Sleeping With The CEO
Chapter 135: One More Chance

Chapter 135: One More Chance

The call had come while Emily had been in the middle of butchering an unfortunate piece of embroidery. She had known even as she had been lying to herself saying that she was working on it, that all she was doing was destroying the piece of fabric. But she had been unable to stop herself, her anger needing an outlet. And destroying a piece of cloth had been a much safer option than destroying anything else in the apartment.

Then out of nowhere, her screen had lit up, the name Buttface Macbutt flashing on it. For a moment, Emily had stared, not really knowing who it was. She had looked at the screen, a dumb look on her face, and then the memory of her changing Derek’s name to Buttface Macbutt had resurfaced.

She had been torn between scoffing and carrying on with her work of destroying her art piece or actually answering. It had taken her a few more rings for her to make a decision. In the end she had decided to answer, common sense winning out. After all, if she just let it ring, she would forever be wondering why he had called. Emily did not want such a fate for herself. She had to know why he was reaching out.

Was it to apologize to her for his beyond rude statement? For just assuming that she would sleep with him? Or was it to tell her to be ready for a legal battle, that he was going to drag her through the courts and bleed her dry for daring to lay a hand on him? Since Emily had not fancied being followed around by such uncertainty, she had decided that answering was in her best interest. And so she had picked up the call and she had made no secret of the fact that she was not happy to hear from him in the least. But at the end, she had still agreed to a meeting with him.

And when the call had ended, Emily was glad. At least this way she had some control over the situation. She would not be at the diner constantly looking over her shoulder, wondering whether or not he would show up. At least this time, she knew for sure that he would be there. But that was if he stayed true to his word. If he made her wait, and did not show up. Then that would be it for them. She would not be giving him another chance.

After agreeing to the meeting, Emily had spent the rest of the day trying to get herself in a state that would not have her ending up in jail, if it turned out that Derek was there to threaten her when he finally made it to the diner. But now all of that had passed.

Her shift had begun hours prior and Emily, even though she had promised herself she would not be staring at the door waiting for him to come, was doing just that. It was just after midnight and Derek had still not shown up. In the past she would have said he would show sometime after two in the morning. But now she could not be so sure. She had made a promise to herself that if he did not pitch, then she would shut him out of her life for good. But that did not stop her mind from trying to think of possibilities, of what could happen.

What if he did not show up at all? What if he decided to just be a coward about it and disappear? What if it was not him who would show up, but one of his lawyers, there to serve her papers and instil some fear in her? As the hours ticked by, countless scenarios went round and round in her head to the point that Emily was exhausted but she could not stop herself from thinking. Her mind going from one extreme to the other. She imagined herself stuck, paying off a debt that she could not afford to pay even if she were to multiply herself into a million Emilys, and got high paying jobs. Sometimes she imagined herself in prison serving a life sentence for daring to lay a hand on the richest man ever.

But either way, Emily had to know why it was, that he had said what he said. She had never known him to be a pervert. His uncle was a classic example of that, and she had never seen such things from Derek. So what had possessed him to talk to her like that?

She had to know.

Had she been wrong in her opinion of him being a good man or had she missed something?

But as time continued to pass and Derek did not show up, Emily began thinking to herself that maybe she would never know. Maybe that would be their last interaction, their last memory of him.

She did not want that to be it. If she had the choice, her last memory of him would have been back at Haven Group that day when she had quit. At least then she had no ill will towards him and she did not have reason to feel worry around him. But as things stood, even if he were to show up. Emily would not be showing him the trust that she had unconsciously given him. As she wiped down tables, she had a bit of hot chili pepper hidden in the front pocket of her apron. Should he try anything, she would blast him with a face full of it.

She had never felt the need for something like that around him, and she was sad that that was how things had become for them. But she was not stupid. Just because the Derek she thought she knew would not have come onto her like that, she would not ignore what was very clearly a red flag.

Now, all that he had to do was show up so that Emily would know what was going on. Did she need to be wary of him or not? The suspense was killing her.