Chapter 9
1888words
With a blank expression, I calmly asked, "Why are you here, Mr. Bender? Do you need something from me?"
Zane frowned when he picked up the coldness in my voice. But with Desmond standing right there, he just grabbed my hand hard. "We need to talk."
I immediately tried to shake him off, but he was ridiculously strong. He held me so tightly, it was as if he wanted to snap my wrist.
At that moment, Desmond stepped in to pry Zane's hand off me. "Zane, it's been a while. Aren't you going to greet an old acquaintance?"
Zane scowled at him, his tone sharp. "Step aside, Desmond. This has nothing to do with you."
Tension filled the air, but Desmond didn't loosen his grip. He let out a chuckle. "You're forcefully dragging my subordinate away in front of me. How could this not concern me?"
Seeing Zane scowl, I finally snapped, "Zane, there's nothing to talk about between us! Leave!"
Zane's voice shook as he shouted, "Cassidy, you got pregnant! How can you say there's nothing to talk about?"
My heart sank. As expected, Zane did know about the baby. But so what?
I scoffed, asking, "Surely you didn't come all this way to make me get rid of it, right? After all, as someone who's your bedwarmer, I'm clearly not worthy of carrying your child."
Zane's voice trembled with emotion. "Cassidy, you know that's not what I want to say."
Right then, Desmond grabbed my hand. "We should go. Didn't you say you were hungry?"
I nodded before casting a cold glance at Zane. "I'm tired now. I don't want to talk to you about anything."
His whole body tensed up instantly. I knew what got him so surprised.
In all the years we'd been together, he was always the one calling the shots. The time and the place for our dates, even the hotel we stayed at, everything was according to what he wanted.
Before he could react, Desmond had already opened the car door for me.
I caught sight of Zane in the rearview mirror. He was standing there, fists balled up, clearly seething.
"If you care that much about him, I can stop the car right now and let you out," Desmond said.
Looking away, I murmured, "No need."
That night, we went to a nearby restaurant for dinner. I had expected him to ask about Zane and me, but he said nothing. Only when the waiter handed us the wine list did he shake his head.
I looked at him in confusion. He glanced at my stomach, asking, "Aren't you pregnant? Drinking isn't good for a pregnant woman, right?"
I was taken aback for a second, then shook my head and let out a bitter laugh. "The baby… is gone."
Desmond seemed surprised, but he was silent after that. After dinner, I declined his offer to drive me home since I wanted some time alone.
Zane's sudden appearance had caught me off guard. I had never imagined he would come after me.
I had even thought that once I was gone, Lily might take the opportunity to claim a more important place in his life, and they would have a happy future together.
The way Zane had lost his cool just now left me feeling strangely conflicted. Lost in my own thoughts, I made it to my building, only to spot him once more.
Zane stubbed out his cigarette and walked toward me. "Finally, it's just the two of us."
Letting out a long sigh, I asked irritably, "Zane, what exactly do you want to say?"
"I want to ask about the baby. What exactly happened? You know that whenever we do it…" Zane trailed off, but I knew what he wanted to ask.
I had thought he had come all this way because of the baby. Who would have thought that he remembered nothing from that night?
My face turned cold as I pushed him away. "The baby wasn't yours."
Zane grabbed my wrist, tugging me back. "Don't lie! Who else could have been the father besides me?"
That question lit a fire inside me.
"Who else besides you?" I repeated his words quietly, as if hearing the world's funniest joke. "You've got it backward, Zane! From now on, I can sleep with anyone besides you."
With that, I headed upstairs. This time, Zane didn't try to follow me. I then heard him curse under his breath behind me, clearly pissed.
Back at home, I called Kayla to tell her about the events that had unfolded. She wasn't surprised and told me what had happened after I left.
Then, it suddenly hit me. He was simply regretting the loss of a longtime lover.
I scoffed at the thought. He didn't love me. Everything he did now was just because Lily had disappointed him.
But Kayla didn't see it that way. She chuckled. "Cassidy, I have to tell you that I've never seen Zane speak so humbly to me before. Before, he wouldn't even glance at us lower-level employees.
"I heard he booked the first flight he could, and because it was so last-minute, he ended up stuck in economy for over 20 hours. Can you imagine Zane in economy class?"
I couldn't imagine that. After the call ended, my feelings became even more complicated.
I went over to the window, only to see that Zane hadn't left.
He stood motionless downstairs. I wondered what he was thinking. Maybe… he was thinking about the baby. The baby really was just an accident.
Back then, Zane had drunk too much at a business event. And in the heat of the moment, he had removed the condom and whispered, "Cassidy, I want you to be completely mine."
So we did it without protection. I never took the pill either because at the time, I believed we could have a future together.
Little did I expect that he'd forgotten everything by the time he sobered up, and that my judgment had been completely wrong.
The thought of all the sweet nothings he'd said that night made me feel sick. I snapped the curtains shut, refusing to look at him again.
To my surprise, when I came downstairs the next day, he was still there. He leaned against his car, watching me in silence.
"Get in."
Zane opened the car door. I shot him a glance, but sat inside in the end. His little smirk and smug satisfaction did not escape me.
Once inside, he grabbed a box from the back seat. "You can have these back. I don't want them."
I glanced inside. It was the stuff I'd returned to him, like the ceramic mug. "Then just toss them in the trash. I'm not a dump, you know."
Zane slammed on the brakes, turning to me with a frown. "Cassidy, how long are you going to keep this up?"
Instead of getting angry, I simply smiled and said evenly, "Zane, how long are you going to keep pestering me?"
"Pestering you?"
He let out a furious laugh.
If this were the past him, he'd have already left me by the side of the road. But this time, he only paused for a beat before driving on again. We didn't speak for the rest of the ride, but I could tell he was furious.
Back then, I'd always gauge his mood and try to appease him right away. But now, I merely looked out the window, thinking about the file Desmond had given me yesterday.
When we got to the company, Zane got out to open the door for me. The moment he appeared, every passing employee stared.
"I'll pick you up tonight," he said before leaving as if I'd already agreed.
Although he was gentler than before, his haughty demeanor was still there.
I was annoyed. On my way up, I kept thinking about how to quickly get rid of him.
The moment I stepped into the office, my coworkers swarmed me. "Cassidy, that man who was downstairs was Mr. Bender, right? I heard he came to our company yesterday, but I didn't believe it. I didn't expect it to be true!"
"What's the deal between you two? From the way he was acting, could it be that he's trying to pursue you?"
"Jeez, I really envy you. Not only does Mr. Archer value you, but now Mr. Bender likes you. You're so lucky!"
Lucky?
A man who only knew how to toy with people's emotions? I wouldn't want him even if he were handed to me.
Hearing them mention Desmond, though, gave me an idea. "Mr. Archer, are you busy today? Want me to stay and work overtime with you?"
I found it hard not to feel ridiculous after saying that. Desmond let out a chuckle. "Trying to avoid him?"
He hit the nail on the head, though he only got part of it right.
I was about to explain when Desmond set his documents down. "Alright, then. Actually, there's a project I want you on. We'll go over it tonight."
I let out a sigh of relief.
As for Zane, he completely lost it. According to my coworkers, he waited downstairs for a long time that day. Eventually, he couldn't take it any longer and grabbed a passing employee to ask where I had gone.
When my coworker was describing what had happened, they still looked rattled. "Man, with the way he was acting, I thought he was going to barrel past security and charge straight into the building."
They looked at me in awe. "Cassidy, a CEO this lovesick isn't something you see every day."
"You're imagining things. I have no interest in him."
With that, I grabbed my file and headed to Desmond's office.
Seeing my gloomy expression, he set his documents aside and uncharacteristically moved to sit beside me.
"You can ignore them. They simply have never dealt with wealthy men before. Once they have, they'll realize that most men are like that.
"Whether rich or poor, they're always tempted by novelty. Bastards like Zane will never truly love a woman. He only cares about himself."
I was surprised. Desmond had never spoken so much before.
"And you? Are you like that too?" I asked with a smile.
Desmond turned to look at me. "Maybe."
There was something about his casual tone and laid-back attitude that made my heart pound.
Lately, to avoid Zane, I spent a lot of time with Desmond. At night, the office was quiet as we were the only ones left.
Desmond unbuttoned his shirt, poured a glass of red wine, and handed it to me.
"Are you going to avoid him forever?" He gestured outside and snorted. "From what I know of Zane, he's the kind of guy who won't stop until he gets what he wants."
I knew that as well, but at the moment, Zane's standing was way above mine. If he wanted to ruin my life, it'd be easy for him.
I sighed, the wine tasting bitter in my mouth.
Desmond came up to me just then. He bent slightly, staring directly into my eyes. "Want me to help you get rid of him for good?"
