Derek was destabilized. And it was that instability that he took with him back home.From the look of things, he wasn't safe anymore. He couldn't do things willingly without actually having it at the back of his head that he was being watched by someone he didn't know.Who knows how many more pictures the person had of him. Pictures that could generate questions due to the way they looked.He went straight to the bedroom once he was at the apartment. He wasn't surprised when he found Catherine already on the bed, supposedly waiting for him to join her."Where did you go?" she asked him as he joined her on the bed with his mind still going through a lot of dilemma.Halfheartedly, he responded, "I went for a walk around the neighborhood.""I see," was what she told him before silence ensued between both of them. It was what he wanted at that point because he still had a lot that he wanted to think about.He thought about the possibility of the person watching him being one of the neighb
"Congratulations, Derek. But you don't look too happy about it," Gina pointed out."Because I'm not sure what to make of the news…""What happened this time around?""Nothing. I just don't know how exactly I'm supposed to feel when I'm still suspecting her of cheating. It's going to be hard for me to admit it's my child she's carrying.""I don't think you need that," Gina said. "She took the time to tell you she's pregnant with your child. Which means that she's happy that's finally going to have your baby. I don't think that would relate with her supposedly having the child for another man.""We would never know," Derek simply said as a way to shift the topic of discussion. He didn't see himself going deep into it with Gina and as well wasn't even comfortable discussing it when he was still battling with the idea."So you're going to be a father, huh? Have you thought of the name you're going to give the child?"Derek shook his head. "I haven't yet. But I'm sure I'll do some thinking
"Why did you ask to see us, Mr. McKay? How urgent is it that you couldn't decide to see us some other time?" the assistant manager from the other end of the table asked Derek. Even the manager himself revealed the expression of someone that didn't want to be there.However, Derek looked past that to say, "I'm sorry that this might seem like the wrong time to call for a meeting. I'm even feeling the inconvenience myself because I should be on the way home by now. But we have to thrash this out first so we can be on the safe side.""It's about the collaboration, isn't it?""It is, sir.""We already told you, Mr. McKay. That part is already over. We have made the decision to go for the deal and that's what we'll be doing.""I understand, sir. Still I have a question to ask regarding that.""What is it?""Does the company plan on being a business under the consortium? Probably be a merger company that has its control and affairs being directed by the consortium…"The question he asked now
The one thing Derek hated about Eugene Leviathan was the smug look which he always had on his face. He had one now and it definitely was triggering for him."Sorry I'm late. I should have been here an hour ago but the traffic held me down," Eugene Leviathan said to the manager and the others that weren't Derek in the room.At first Derek had thought that the man was in the company on short notice. But now that he looked at it, the company actually invited the man over.He couldn't properly establish what the man was there for. However, he sure knew that it had to do with the deal that Derek was trying so hard to put off."I don't expect you to admit to taking advantage of Cora Limited. I mean, aren't you the son of the owner again?" Derek asked that so casually before moving to step out of the room for them.It was clear that he wasn't there. And he didn't want it to seem like he was the one delaying their meeting. So he was taking the initiative to leave."Me being the son of the own
Derek felt defeated. And he sure was letting that defeat get to him as he drove back home about an hour after meeting with the management.The only thing on his mind now was to find a way to get into his apartment and then sleep off everything that happened that day. He didn't care about missing tomorrow's work. He just wanted to get his mind off everything.It was draining and tiring for him that his work was looking futile. The management didn't want to listen to him even with the evidence he presented to them.Perhaps they thought he was doing it for his own good when he was just trying to protect the interest of the company."They just don't understand," he said to himself as the thought flowed through his head. What was too hard for them to see, he wondered.This was something they could easily delve into themselves to see that the Jackson and Sons was bad business. It wasn't going to help them like they thought it would.An incoming call from Gina was enough to distract him from
It didn't look like a good thing he was doing. The idea of stalking his wife wasn't a quest he saw himself doing. But he was curious and desperate at the same time.He wanted to see for himself what it was that was keeping her out there. He wanted to know just why she never had her mind in their marriage. That one thing that kept her away from actually being his wife.It was too late for her to be heading out, he knew. The timing and every other thing was just not right. And he wanted to see for himself what it was that she was looking for.Although he could still see her far from the distance he was, he decided to put a call through to her. She picked up after the second ring."Where are you? I'm almost home now," he told her immediately."Uhm, I'm not home. But I will be soon," she said."Are you still at work? Perhaps you would like me to come pick you up.""Don't worry. I'm with my car.""Alright then."He hung up the call right after that. At least she did not lie about being at
"That's…" he started to say but was too stunned to complete his words."What?""That's Eugene Leviathan. That district manager I told you about. He's the one on a date with my wife!"His hand balled into a fist, rage consuming him. He wasn't just mad at this point about events not going right with him. He was mad how people kept being the reason for his messy situations."Derek, calm down," Gina said from across the table. She could see how he was boiling and knew that he needed to relax."Why should I be calm when my wife is there on a date with the same man instigating something that I've been trying so hard to fight against for the past few days?""I know you can't handle your emotions right now but don't go and make a mistake. We're in a public location and it could lead to a series of events that you won't be able to control.""Maybe if I did care about what would happen next, I wouldn't be reacting this way," And he was up on his feet immediately after he said that.He didn't th
"How did it go?" Gina asked that question immediately she saw Derek stepping out of the restaurant. All along, she had been beside his car waiting for him."Not good," he told her. "Although they kept denying that they were there on a date.""What was their claim then?""Something like a business discussion. My wife works at the Jackson and Sons so she's about to be promoted. And what comes with that package is the overseeing of the deal they just agreed on with our company."Gina didn't look pleased. "That sounds as awful as knowing your wife is on a date with another man. She's literally going to be the head of something you are completely against," she said icily with an edge to her tone."Unfortunately that's what it's going to look like. I don't even know what to say or how to feel at this point," Derek lamented."Didn't you tell her to back out of it?""How am I supposed to convince her to back out of an opportunity as big as this? It's the first ever for her and she made it cle
"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