The truth about his relationship with Jasmine wasn't just about the fact that they were good friends. In fact, they were childhood friends and his parents and hers have always been friends as well.Derek grew up being fond of Jasmine and as thus treated her like a younger sister due to the age gap which wasn't a lot but was more than five years.He wasn't sure if Jasmine saw him in the light that he saw her but their relationship has always been healthy even with the less frequent communications these days.Derek arrived at the train station that Jasmine told him she was at and it didn't take too long for him to find her amidst the crowd of people.He noticed the look she was giving him. It was like a scrutiny as she gave him a once-over."Why are you still in the clothes of yesterday? Did you go home at all?" was the first question or questions she asked him when he was closer to her."I didn't. It was too late to go home," he told her."So where did you sleep?""At my office. But do
Derek's arrival at the station came with anxiety but he already knew why he felt like that. On one hand, he hoped that the officers wanted to put the man behind bars. On another hand, he was filled with the thought that perhaps they wanted to release the man. He was already too angry with life to be cheated by the authorities after he already gave them enough evidence to prove that the man actually molested Gina. He was directed to the office of the officer in charge of the case. And that was the same officer that led the arrest of the man. "Good day, Mr. McKay," the officer said when he got in, extending a hand toward him which he received without hesitation. "Good day, officer. I came immediately I got your message," Derek said. "Thank you for honouring the invitation. Please, take a seat." Derek did as told and relaxed himself into chair. He was trying his best not to reveal just how anxious he was at that moment. "So what's the progress of the investigation? Is the man goin
"Derek McKay speaking," Derek said into the phone the instance he heard the beep that indicated he was connected to a call."Hello, Mr. McKay," was what he heard from the phone. "This is the New Age Holdings.""I know. How may I help you?" he asked, his heart starting to pound from the thought of what could possibly happen."We're calling to discuss the deal that we're in the middle of with Cora Limited…"This was it, Derek thought. The biggest contract deal he worked so hard for was about to slip out of his reach. And it was all because he didn't insist when he could have."Before you say anything regarding it," he says, "I would like you to know that it was never my intention to sabotage the deal. I was only acting out of protectiveness.""Which is why we want to offer you the deal."Derek wasn't sure he heard right. "Can you please repeat what you said?""We will be offering the Cora Limited the business deal, Mr. McKay. Congratulations to you and your team."If Derek had been insi
Derek barged into the living room once he arrived at the apartment. He hoped to find Catherine there but didn't see her at all.Without wasting time, he went up the stairs to their bedroom shouting: "Kathy… where are you?"There was no response either until he got to the front of the bedroom which he pushed open. And the first thing he sees is Catherine laying on their matrimonial bed in a nightgown.For a moment, he was glued to the spot, not knowing how best to react. What he could see from where he was standing didn't look like someone who was in pain or in a terrible situation.Catherine, while being dressed in the nightgown she had on, was revealing a lot of skin.The most notable thing about the way she was laying on the bed was the sensual stare she was passing to him. It was difficult to resist but he wasn't even in the mood for whatever was going on at the moment."What is this, Kathy?" Derek asked her, his tone exuding the annoyance he was starting to feel.Instead of respon
Several days have passed since his fight with Catherine but Derek hadn't bothered to make amends with her. He was hell-bent on staying away from her this time around and was sticking to it.Since the fight, he only went home once and that was to pick up some clothes that he was going to be wearing for the time being. Fortunately for him, he didn't meet her at home when he did that.He couldn't deny the fact that he missed being at his place. However to get over that, he decided to immerse himself in his work and the final sealing of the deal with New Age Holdings."Don't you think you're being ridiculous?" Marcus, his friend whom he hadn't spoken to in a while, asked him over the phone as he checked through some files in his office."Because I'm staying away from home, I'm ridiculous?""Yes," Marcus said. "What message are you trying to pass by staying away from her? You're simply making it known to her that you know about what she has been doing behind your back. I thought you said y
Derek arrived at the address sent to him less than thirty minutes later. It was a bar downtown, a location that was secluded enough for cheats like his wife.He wasn't surprised that she would meet up with a man in such a location. It was away from prying eyes and was a sure bank into doing whatever escapade she wanted.When he got there, the first person he saw was Edna who was standing beside a car that he presumed to be her own. She was standing patiently in wait and only loosened up when she saw him."You're here earlier than expected," she said, noting the fact that he showed up at a nigh perfect time."I had to. Hope they're still in there?" he asked, gesturing toward the bar they were both facing at the moment."Yes, they are. Except there's a back way out of there, I'm sure they're still in there," Edna said. "Let's go in."With that, they both went toward the entrance leading into the bar, the soft music being played in there already making its way into their ears.Once they
At that moment, Derek didn't exactly know how to feel. He was mostly embarrassed already about what he just did but there was this feeling that something wasn't right.The shock that overwhelmed him was minimal only because he already received a call from Nadia about his wife's actual whereabouts.He put down the phone, hanging up the call to get a better view of the somewhat familiar woman.Edna had joined him and she obviously saw what was wrong which was why she said nothing. She too was shocked as she looked at the woman that she thought to be Derek's wife."What is going on here? Why would you take my shades off my face?" the woman questioned Derek in a harsh tone as she moved to stand up from her seat but was held back down by Richard Langston."Richard, who is she?" Edna asked her husband seated awkwardly beside his supposed lover."Answer that question. And also answer why she looks so much like my wife!" Derek snapped at the man who was finding it difficult to say something.
Edna took the lady to a place not too far away from the parking lot. It was quite a distance because she didn't want either Derek or her husband to intrude in the conversation she intended to have with the lady.They both found somewhere to sit. However, the lady didn't look comfortable sitting beside her. She was sure that if the lady had the chance, she would leave the place.Edna had so many questions that she wanted to ask her. She didn't know where to start from but she was going to start anyway.She was surprised that she wasn't overwhelmed by anger. Instead, the only thing consuming her was the confusion of the incident of today.Finally, she first asked, "What's your name again?"Reluctantly, the lady responded: "Anne.""Now, Anne, you'll have to start explaining yourself to me because I can smell something fishy going on around here. I don't know what has been going on between you and Richard but I know it hasn't been something good.All along, I thought the lady with him was
"What are you talking about?" Marcus asked, his expression a mixture of confusion and surprise."You know what I'm talking about. Stop acting like you don't," Derek said."Well, I don't. And I'll be leaving now before you consume me with your bullshit.""The past two weeks made me realize something, Marcus. And it's the fact that your enemies are actually the ones closer to you. You have been my enemy for but u didn't know all these while.""Did you drink something? Why are you speaking nonsense? And since when did I become your enemy?"Derek stood up, facing the man directly. "That's a good question… When?""Can you two sit your asses down and explain to me what is going on here?" Catherine said to them, almost screaming at them.Derek looked at the woman. "I haven't said you should talk," he told her."And since when did you get to give me how and when I should talk?""Since I found out that my allegation against you has always been true."Catherine wasn't getting a hang of what was
As Marcus was reluctantly finding a way to get in between the couple, Catherine, who still had a frown etched on her face, whispered to Derek."What is he doing here? I thought it's supposed to be just you and me," she said with a stern tone."I know I said that. But Marcus is just here to join us briefly. I can promise that his stay here won't be for long then we can have the time to ourselves," Derek told his wife.Catherine wasn't buying that. And she was this close to telling him to send Marcus away when the man eventually came back with an empty chair which he placed in the middle of the couple.Marcus took a seat but was still confused about what was going on because this wasn't what he had in mind when he got the invitation from Derek to show up at Kingston Hotel."What's going on here, Derek? Why is there a cake on your table? Is it someone's birthday?" Marcus directed the question to Derek while trying to make a guess.He couldn't deny that he noticed the hard stare Catherine
"I'm home," Derek announced as soon as he got into his apartment. "Where are you, Kathy?" he called out as he went to take a seat just so be could relax himself."I'm upstairs," was the response he got from his wife to which he nodded."Alright, I'm coming."Two minutes later, after getting a cup of water, he was on the way to their room upstairs with his briefcase in his hand. He was sure that the woman would be busy when he gets there and it was no surprise that she was on her laptop when he got there.She was sitting close to where the mirror in the room was and he watched her from where he was standing, seeing that she was typing into her laptop. There was also a document on her laptop which she kept glancing at occasionally.He dropped the briefcase on the bed and then took off his jacket which he also placed on the bed. Then he walked over to her, standing right behind her.In that position, he bent and put his hands around her waist. "What are you doing?" he asked as he whisper
"How did it go?" Derek asked the lady who seemed to be more interested in the ice cream she was consuming than him."How did what go?" Gina asked in return as she scooped a mouthful from the cone. As the cream melted down her mouth, she felt a sensation that made her giggle without a care in the world."Now that was weird," Derek stated but then got back to his question. "How did the meeting with Eugene go? Was he able to convince you this time around?"Gina wanted to take another scoop from the ice cream when she heard that question which then put her to a halt."Hmph, of course not. I already told you that I wouldn't be accepting his offer, didn't I? It seems like you forgot to relay my message to him," she said and then got back to her ice cream.At that point, Derek was getting annoyed with how immersed she was in it. He just had to hold in his annoyance lest he snaps at her."I did relay your message but it was too late for him to turn back," he told her."So you mean you just to
"I think it would have been better if you had called me before coming over to the company. What if I was away? It means you would have wasted a full trip down here," Derek said in a scolding manner to the woman sitting opposite him.Edna didn't care about what he was saying and she revealed that completely through her expression. It was as if she just wanted him to talk and then get through with it."At least I met you in, didn't I? I don't understand why you're making a big deal out of it," the woman said.Derek didn't respond to that, perhaps worried that he was going to speak out of line if he did."So, why did you reject my offer? You had a long time to decide and at the end of it, you said no. There has to be a reason. And it had better be a good one."He sat there quietly for some time before he finally decided on saying something."It doesn't feel right, Edna."The woman's gaze at him was a mixture of stern and confusion. "What doesn't? Owning a business or my offer?" she asked
Derek felt a little tired as he walked back into the Cora Limited after having lunch at the eatery down by the road. It was supposed to be his go-to place whenever work got overwhelming but today was just different.He just wanted to try something different other than skipping meals or simply just having something little in the company's eatery which only made light snacks.He knew that having a meal at his go-to eatery would affect his work rate but he was willing to risk it.A honk from a car caught his attention right after he passed by the parking lot. He was sure that it was for him which was why he turned around to find out which car had honked at him.It didn't take him too long to find the car as well as the person who operated it. And right out of that very car, Eugene Leviathan stepped out, looking all smiley like there was something good he wanted to talk about."Mr. McKay. Good to see you again," Eugene Leviathan said to Derek like it was the first time he was seeing him i
"Who's that again?" Gina asked, trying to rack her brain for any information related to the name Derek just told her."The ex-wife of Richard Langston," Derek responded."Wait, isn't that the man that you thought was having an affair with your wife?""Yes.""Oh. So when did you get this close to his wife so much that she offered you her business to handle?"The way Gina said it made it seem like he was having an illicit affair with Edna and that didn't look good at all."Ex-wife, Gina. They are divorced now. And the way you say it, it sounds like I'm doing something wrong with her.""I never implied it that way. You're the one with the ideas here," she defended herself."Whatever," he said. "Edna and I kept in touch after we both realized that we were chasing the wrong thing. But it didn't change the fact that her husband was a chronic cheat.Anyways, their business was handed over to her by the court but she doesn't want to be around here anymore which is why she wants someone else t
The sudden sound of something slamming on to his desk knocked Derek out of his thoughts. It came as a shock, that for a few seconds, he couldn't get a hold of himself."What did you do that for?" he asked through gritted teeth. He was furious at the person that did that just to get his attention."I've been calling your name but you didn't hear me." He heard Gina's voice and that meant she was that person."Well, you should have called harder."He had to put both hands over his face just to take out the wobbly feeling that had overwhelmed him from the shock.He was still furious at that point. If it had been someone else other than Gina, he would have taken his frustration out on the person. He could only keep his rage to himself because of her."I'm sorry," Gina apologized. "I shouldn't have done what I did but I was getting scared when you didn't answer which was why I resorted to that."He looked up at her. "What happened to tapping me, Gina? Wouldn't that have been much better?""
"You do realize it's my weekend you're consuming," Derek pointed out to Jasmine who was dragging him."I know," she said. "But there's no one else I could call."She came to his place that afternoon and told him that she had an event to attend but didn't have anyone to go with which was why she decided to come to his place.He had declined the offer at first but she kept insisting and even resorted to pulling him out of the house. If Catherine had been home, the sight wouldn't have been pretty.At one point, when they were about to get to his car, he pulled his arm out of her reach."I can't follow you," he told the lady who turned around to face him."But why?" she asked with a pout."I've got to go to work tomorrow, Jasmine. I can't afford a day out at this time when I should be resting.""And I'll be out of the city by tomorrow too. Let me have this, please."Her emphasis on the 'please' was a bit infuriating due to the way she made mention of it. It was as if she wanted to do anyt