LEO POV "That's enough for today, Leo. You know that I do not stop you from spending more hours to finish up but this has to stop. You can't bury yourself into work for no reason. It's midnight already," Jude said, snatching a document from me. "I think you're forgetting I'm the boss so I get to call the shots," I replied gawking at his face as he burst into laughter. "You're the boss and I'm your executive assistant and secretary who's also your friend. My job is to ensure that you live a balanced life which is the opposite of what you're living right now," he responded. "So what do you want me to do? Leave all these tasks for another day until it piles up and I get discouraged?" I asked. "What are you avoiding? Scratch that. Who are you avoiding?" he asked sitting on the chair opposite my table. "Why would I avoid anyone? I'm Leo Robbins, the most perfect guy in all NYC," I replied with an air of pride. "What about Emily? You didn't say anything about her all day nor did you a
LEO POVEmily’s face was downcast when I walked into her office. She raised her face which showed that she had cried a little bit. Jude ordered everyone to vacate the vicinity of Emily’s office so as to give us privacy. I gasped as I stared at her.“Explain yourself!” I yelled at her.“I don’t know what to say. Whoever made that video must be out to get me because I never kissed your brother,” she replied calmly.“So the video was edited? It was clear that you two were having an intimate kiss,” I replied.“The angle of the video made it seem that way. Nothing happened. I’d never cheat on you,” she cried.“And you think I’ll believe you. Whenever you’ve made trouble, you’ll shed some crocodile tears and expect that I’ll forgive and forget. Guess what?! You’ll pay dearly for this particular one. Do you even know how stupid I look in front of my employees?” I yelled.“Just do it, Leo. Do whatever you want to do with me. There’s no amount of explanation I’ll make that would change your mi
EMILY POVI tried to act tough and locked myself in my office all day but the notifications kept ringing on my phone and at some point, I felt it might blow up.The employees were gossiping about me and Kay. They also stated that Kay admitted that I seduced him.At first, I felt they might be cooking up stories to make matters worse but on second thoughts, he was capable of doing so since he attempted to force himself on me.My head was filled with dreadful thoughts and being in the office environment made it worse. I picked my bag and headed to the parking space where I saw Kay, Leo and their father together.They went into the building through another entrance while I raced to my car and drove out.I wore my sunglasses and headed to my family home. In order to avoid Madam Beatrice and any other person that might recognize me, I parked my car at a distance and covered my head with a scarf.I sneaked into the apartment and shut the door. It was the only place that could shield me from
EMILY POVThe crowd applauded after I made my speech and I got compliments from various women who commented on my oratory skills. While some were pleased to meet me, few of them destested me."What is she wearing?" one of the ladies said as I passed by their table."Leo Robbins must have gone blind," another said and hissed.I pretended not to hear them as I walked briskly to my chair."That was a great one," Annabel commended me."Thanks for the support," I replied and the waitresses and waiters began to serve a course meal.While I ate, I heard someone else whisper, "the wife and side chick in one place. What a duo." I felt uneasy as I stole glances at Annabel who concentrated on her food. I admire her audacity which I emulated and continued eating my food as well.Unknown to me that Annabel had staged the whole thing just to humiliate me. She had all Leo's girlfriends at the event and also made me wear the wrong dress to get back at me for taking Leo away from her.She even went a
EMILY POV"He's leaving? Where is he going? Does he want to leave me now?" I shouted."Not that kind of leaving. He's traveling to France for a business project," Jude said and laughed."He didn't even bother to tell me. Not even a text message," I sighed. "When will he be back?" I asked."I can't tell but he might be back in a month or more," he replied."A month or more?" I screamed and held my head in my arms. "It's fine. I'm fine. I'll be fine. Thanks for your prompt response to my call and for being a friend," I said."I'll always be willing to help. You can always call me when you need a listening ear," he said as he stood up and bowed. Seeing him exit the door slapped me with the realization that I was truly alone in New York City with no one to listen to me. I didn't want to call Annabel so I wouldn't burden her with my problems and Jude who I could call, was also traveling with Leo.I went to my room and wet my bed with tears. "I wish you were here, Max. Or I could just join
LEO POVMy trip to France was the necessary distraction I needed to forget about Emily whom I had grown fond of. I knew I had been harsh but I was never a nice guy.Jude had deliberately told me about his meeting with her the night before my trip but I poured all he said into a trash can. I was not a guy who would feel pity for any woman but Emily was different.I felt pity for her when I was supposed to ignore her tears or complain. I denied and rejected having feelings for her with my body and soul which was the reason I took the trip. The business project was just a pretense to get away from it all.I and Jude had a fun time touring Paris. It wasn't our first time but we did unwind and reminisce about high school and college.It was evening when we got back to my house in the state after a fun-filled tour for international cuisines. "It's a surprise to have you call Martha. I hope all is well," Jude spoke to her over the phone. She had suddenly called around 8pm which was unusual.
EMILY POV I removed my gaze from Leo whose eyes held mine for a moment. “You’ve got a week to plan everything,” Jude said and giggled. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to. A birthday party is unnecessary,” Leo said and shrugged. “Do you think your father would see it that way? You have a wife now,” Jude said. “Then I should get to work,” I said and pushed myself up. “I don’t want to hear anyone complaining about a stressed body. I need peace of mind,” Leo said without looking away from his laptop screen. “I can take care of myself,” I replied and smiled. I felt a surge of emotions like there were butterflies in my belly as I went into the kitchen. My mind recapped my conversation with both men and I felt on cloud nine because Leo left France for me. He was extremely compassionate and caring than I imagined. He simply had a rotten personality on the outside but he was an angel inside. I giggled as I thought about Leo. I was so shy and cheerful like a 16 years old in love.
EMILY POVMy eyes followed the movement of the gatecrashers as they walked in. I moved my attention to Leo who was about to hold his glass to his mouth but stopped mid-way as they entered.When one of them noticed me, she gestured to the others and they approached me. Every step they took made me jittery but I found my confidence soon.I was Leo's wife and from what I could deduce, he might have feelings for me. And even if he didn't have feelings for me, I was ready to take a stand and show them who the boss is. I walked elegantly to Leo and held his arm."Honey, can we go grab a drink?" I asked him in a bid to steal him away from the guests he was speaking with."Of course, excuse me," he said to the guests and followed me. One of his ex-girlfriends followed in our direction and we met at the small bar put in place for the event."Hey boy! Won't you even say hello? I came all the way to celebrate you today even though someone decided not to send me an invite," she said."I guess you