Chapter 37 Fighting Back
ADAMS
For a moment, I thought I was hallucinating.
Because of all the Legal Advisors my boss could have hired, it just had to be her– the last person I ever wanted to see again.
Her brown hair was styled perfectly, swept behind her ears into a tight bun, her suit was neatly pressed and her mouth, with her signature red lipstick was smirking victoriously at me.
I thought about it then, the likelihood of such a coincidence happening was low. And from the fulfilled look on her face, it was clear that she had done this.
Either she had approached my boss himself or she had gotten used her connections to get it. Either way, she was working here now, with me of all people.
A frown appeared on my face as I thought about how Agnes was going to take this news.
She isn’t going to be happy, that’s for sure.
“Adams!” my boss suddenly called out.
“Sorry sir,” I smiled apologetically, my attention returning to the meeting in front of me.
“Where is your mind for goodness sake?” he asked, shaking his head like he was disappointed.
I forced a smile. “To be honest sir, I was a bit taken aback to see Selena here,” I replied, giving Selena a sideways glance.
Her eyes widened slightly at me but she didn’t budge.
“Selena?” my boss repeated. “Do you two know each other?”
I smiled uneasily. “Yes,” I said quietly. “We used to.”
Selena laughed softly. “Used to is such a funny choice of words, when we know each other better than that.”
Mr Evans gave us a funny look. “What does she mean by that, Adams?”
“Well sir, Selena is my ex-wife,” I told him calmly.
Mr Evans stared between us for a second before suddenly bursting into laughter.
“Wow, what a small world indeed,” he laughed. “Adams, I certainly don’t envy your position at all, I can’t imagine working with my ex-wife.”
“But as long as you both are fine with it and will remain professional, then I guess I have no problem with it,” he replied casually.
He continued talking about the new contracts, ignoring how tense the room felt. I tried to focus on what he was saying but all I could focus on were Selena’s eyes glaring at me throughout the meeting.
As soon as the meeting ended, I stood up and rushed out of the room, not wanting to have to talk to her.
“Are you seriously running from me, Adams?” Selena called sharply, making me stop in my tracks.
“Even when I try to avoid you, you still find a way to keep harassing me. What exactly are you even doing here Selena?” I asked her angrily, trying to keep my voice calm.
She smiled, her hand reaching out to clean dust off my shirt. “Can’t I work in this office? Or is there any rule that says that a divorced couple can’t work together?”
“You make me fucking uncomfortable Selena, this is getting out of hand. First of all, I don’t know what you told Esther, now Mike is inciting all my colleagues against me and now you are working here, can’t you just move on already?” I asked her.
“No Adams,” Selena’s eyes turned cold. “I will never move on, I made a mistake back then when I cheated on you but I want you back and I don’t care about the cards I have to play to get you.”
I stepped back from her, feeling sickened.
“You are branch manager now,” she said, her tone back to normal. “Congratulations on that, I know how long you have been working for it.”
“Just fucking stay away out of my life okay and stop using Agnes’ parents to threaten me, I am never leaving her,” I warned her, with an edge in my voice.
“Don’t be so sure, Adams,” She replied calmly. “You know I always get what I want.”
“Is that a threat?” I asked, feeling dread in my belly.
“You can call it… a promise.”
With that, she walked away, leaving the hint of her suffocating perfume in her wake.
I felt nauseous by the time I reached the elevator. Selena had always done this, always managed to show up in my best moments all with a plan to take it away from me.
It was funny how I never saw how twisted she could be when we were married and now, it was all I saw.
I had worked for this promotion for years, and right as I got it she got a way to stand by my side again.
I exhaled deeply as soon as the elevator stopped on my floor, trying to steady my anxious heart.
She was going to do something to make sure I lost everything again and I wasn’t going to let her this time.
Agnes was seated on the couch, watching a reality TV show when I walked in, in her hands were a bowl of ice cream and some chips in another plate.
She was so involved in the show that she didn’t even hear me walk in.
I stared at her, feeling a sense of calm return. I almost didn’t want to tell her. I didn’t want to ruin this peaceful mood she was in.
“Adams?” she suddenly noticed me, pausing the show to walk towards me.
I sighed, dropping my briefcase on the floor.
She noticed my mood immediately. “Are you okay? What is going on—”
Her question was left unanswered as I pulled her into my arms for a tight hug, hugging her like I wanted to assimilate every part of her skin into mine.
“Adams?” she choked out, tapping on my shoulder. “I can’t breathe..”
I released her slowly, looking into her eyes
“What happened?” she asked with a frown. “Did my parents call to threaten you or what?”
I shook my head and rubbed my forehead, pushing my hair back. “No…it’s Selena,” I said, hating the sound of her name on my tongue. “She was hired as the company’s new legal advisor and now we have to work together.”
Agnes blinked, clearly stunned. “Wait—what? She’s working with you again?”
“Yeah, I was made Branch Manager today and—”
“Oh my gosh you were promoted?” she exclaimed, her eyes wide with surprise.
“Yeah and coincidentally, she happens to get a job working with me,” I replied, feeling mentally drained.
I walked to the couch and sat down with Agnes trailing behind me.
“She did this on purpose,” Agnes said quietly.
“I know,” I replied. “I even confronted her about it but she just wants to mess with me—with us.”
“Then don’t let her,” Agnes said, sitting next to me. “If she really wants to play games then we should play along.”
I stared at her in shock. Agnes didn’t look annoyed or frustrated, she just looked calm with resolve glinting in her eyes.
“We need to figure out a way to turn this back on her,” she continued. “You said that she manipulated your ex girlfriends and turned them against you right? Then that means all we need to do is to expose her true colors to everyone.”
“Expose her?” I echoed, trying to figure out how that would be possible.
“Yeah,” Agnes nodded. “Just act civil with her for now, make her believe you only want to keep things professional and she will eventually try to sabotage you, when she does, we are going to catch her in the act.
I stared at her and smiled at the intensity in my eyes. It was the first time I had been with someone who was willing to fight for me like this.
“Thank you for this,” I whispered, taking her hand in mine.
Agnes smiled back. “You don’t have to mention it. You have protected me so many times Adams, now let me try to protect you.”
I pulled her closer to my side and kissed her forehead. “You really are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
She smiled, raising her head to face me. “We are going to get through this Adams, this time you don’t have to deal with her on your own.”
We kissed then. Her hands sliding through my hair, while I unbuttoned my clothes. Before we knew it, we were naked, our bodies coming together like a silent promise.
This time, we weren't going to run or hide.
We were going to fight back.
Together.