CHAPTER 34

I rushed home to get ready for work before Reeves would wake up from sleep because I didn’t want him seducing me to stay with him and ditch work, which wouldn’t be a bad idea, seeing there was some weird rich woman who wants my head on a platter. In the course of thinking last night, about my situation with Mrs. Callaway, I thought of possible reasons she’d asked to see me; in her messages to me, she had mentioned that she just wanted to talk, but I think if you’ve encountered a rich woman, you can agree when I say they are crazy, and there’s no telling what they’d do when given the chance, and I’ve come across a lot of them for me to be wary of them. That alone was motivation enough for me to be careful.

I had gotten into work late, though my waking up early and escaping Reeves; I had been stuck in the shower, thinking nonstop about Mrs. Callaway, and ways I could escape her just like I had done with past rich women with similar problems. When I stepped into the building, I was met with a smiling Jared in a green suit, depicting the character I thought of him as; a joker.

“Nice to have you grace us with your presence, Miss Bin,” Jared smiled, sarcasm dripping from his words and exaggerated smile.

“Of course, Jared, and seeing that you came by yourself to welcome me, I’m guessing two things, it’s either this is your way of telling me how much of an asset I am to this company, or you don’t have any work to do this fruitful morning,” I smiled back at him, lacing the same amount of sarcasm in my smile.

“You always have something to say. Anyway, there’s a client in your office, and she’s been waiting for you for over thirty minutes now,” Jared grabbed my arm, leading me to the elevator. As the words left Jared’s lips, a shudder ran through my spine, because I thought of Mrs. Callaway.

“Who’s the client?” I asked him, pressing the button to the fourth floor.

“You remember that client that came yesterday?” he asked me. Of course, I did, she didn’t quite give me the space to forget her anyway. I forced a smile while hiding the fact that I didn’t want to be in the same room as the woman. The thing is I wouldn’t be afraid of her if she was going to only take the matter legally, but I knew there was a chance she’d want to take matters into her own hands and decide I don’t deserve to live. If anything, I love myself, I love my life so much, and because I do, I decided I should have all the good things this life has to offer, and if I die, what’s the point?

“Are you coming in too?” I asked Jared who leaned carefree in the elevator, keeping steady eyes on me, waiting for an answer from me.

“Well, don’t you want me there?” he asked, instead of giving a direct answer. I rolled my eyes at his question and shook my head. Lord knows I needed all the company I could get because there was no telling what she’d do if she got me alone, just like she wanted.

When the elevator came to a stop, my heart sank, but I felt a bit better, knowing Jared was there with me. I stepped out of the elevator with my shoulders high, trying to convince myself that there was nothing Mrs. Callaway could do to me, she could try, but she was going to fail.

“Well, this is unexpected,” I smirked as I stepped into my office, making sure the older woman felt my presence and the power I held over her, whatever that was.

Mrs. Callaway had an emerald dress on, it was short and fit her body nicely, and she had let her curly hair flowing around her shoulders. In shorter words, Mrs. Callaway knew how to look her part; a rich woman, she just had a problem with her attitude.

Mrs. Callaway had a smile on her face; it was the type o smile I knew well because I used it too often; a fake smile. The way her lips tugged up slightly with motive, wicked motive, but she was helpless, and that was the advantage I had over her. She couldn’t do anything to me in my office, and especially when I had Jared with me. I gave her a fake smile of my own, letting her know she wasn’t the one who could be mean and scary. She had given an opening to her weakness and she didn’t even look like she was the same person who threatened me behind her keyboard. The thought made me smirk, and that was when I realized that maybe I shouldn’t have appeared as overconfident as I did, because my confidence was about to backfire.

“Mr. Stone, I’d appreciate it if you could give Miss. Melanie and me a little time to chat,” Mrs. Callaway’s words came in polite but we both know the meaning behind those words were far from polite.

Jared was confused and it was evident on his face as he looked from the older woman to me, trying to get answers to his unanswered questions from our… faces? I stood behind my desk, wondering why I didn’t think that she could ask him out, and what’s worse? I had already gone to my desk, which meant I was cornered, there was simply no way out for me except I suddenly knew Jitsu, which, I’d like to say that I didn’t know the first thing about it. I took in a deep breath though, maintaining my cool. Mrs. Callaway didn’t have to know she had the upper hand.

Jared nodded politely and left my office when he couldn’t get any answers from me, what did he expect me to tell him anyway?

“I shouldn’t have turned in for work today I see,” I smiled coolly at the woman as I took my seat, leaning back and keeping my eyes on her like the office we were in wasn’t the only thing in the building that I could call mine, and when you thought about it carefully, you’d realize that the office wasn’t even technically mine.

“I had no other choice since you made it clear that it was going to take the grace of God for me to see you,” she laughed as she spoke; it was almost like we were old friends casually talking about something funny that happened when we went shopping, not the way it was; two women that didn’t want to be in the same room as the other.

“You seem desperate, so let’s hear what you have to talk about,” I smiled at her. Mrs. Callaway’s face lit up like my suggestion excited her.

“You have to help me do something. Lie for me in court, so I can walk out of my husband’s life with half the shit he owns,” Mrs. Callaway smiled, this time genuinely. I laughed.

“What the hell?” I was too shocked for words. I had been scared all this time for nothing?

“You know my husband well, and you know he can’t keep it in his pants. I’m tired of that life, and I want to leave him. As a gold digger yourself, I know you can relate to what I’m saying?” the woman said. I admired the fact that she wants to go the ultimate way to get that bag, but I didn’t want to be a part of it, who knew what could go wrong? And it’s not like I knew about her husband’s inability to keep it in. I was just there for his money. And what the hell was that backhanded insult about?

“I don’t think I have anything to do with you and your husband’s problems, and I wouldn’t know about his inability to keep it in his pants, as I never gave him the option of putting it in me,” I smiled at her, and I don’t think she liked my answer very much, she didn’t look pleased with all.

“I think you’ve got it all wrong here, Melanie, I’m not begging you to help me. I’m telling you that you don’t have a choice. You’re going to do this whether you want to or not, and it would do you a lot of good, if you agree to do this willingly,” I didn’t like the edge in her voice at all; it annoyed me to no end. What gave her the right to feel like she owned me?

“No, you have the wrong idea, dear. I don’t answer to anyone, and no one can make me do anything that I didn’t want to do. The thing is, you must’ve heard about me, but you have no idea what I’m capable of. I was planning on turning you down politely, but now I’m annoyed, so you have to take your degrading ass out of my office right now or I’ll come over there and help you out, and let me give you a little insight; I won’t be the least gentle with you,” I got up from my seat, looking at the woman dead in her eyes. She didn’t expect me to blow up like that. I loved the look on her face now, she was put in her place, but she didn’t want to give up yet.

“You’re messing with the wrong person Melanie; I could make you lose everything that you have with Reeves. What? You didn’t think I’d know you’re dating him? I could make you scared to even leave your house or even post anything on Instagram,” She threatened. It was pointless; she didn’t and couldn’t have anything against me. She had lost, and I won without any effort.

“I don’t have anything to lose, love. Maybe you should try harder but while you’re doing that, GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY OFFICE!” Maybe I should’ve been a little nicer to the woman. She wanted to divorce her husband and take his shit, and she lost a chance. If she was sure her husband was cheating then she had many other options, she could go ahead and pick one of the many women and have the women lie for her. Why did it have to be me?