Chapter 100 CHAPTER 100
Evelyn's POV
I took his handshake, pretending to be unaffected by his presence. But I was sure he could have felt the way my fingers trembled in his hand.
“It's been a month,” I said, and then regretted it immediately.
That was too exact. It meant I was counting the time. It meant I was thinking about him but I wasn't. Not really. At least not everyday. And when I did think of him, not all the thoughts were of me missing him.
“Has it? Feels like years,” he said. He glanced at Shane. “Hello. I'm Alpha Michael Greywood.”
She stretched her hand before he did. “It's unfortunate we are meeting under his circumstances, Alpha Greywood. I'm Shane.”
“It doesn't have to be unfortunate,” he said. “We can make it a little get together.”
She chuckled.
He faced me. “Can we speak privately? Please?”
I felt my tongue go dry. “I… sure,” I said, rising up. “After you.”
We walked out of the conference room and I maintained a good distance behind him. He stopped in front of a smaller room and pushed the door open.
“Come in,” he said, gesturing inside the room.
I hesitated a little. That room was too small for both of us to be in there alone. But I went in. He closed the door and faced me.
“You made good your word,” he said, smiling. “And you are doing well with your life.”
“Thanks,” I replied, dryly.
He pointed to a couch. “Let's sit.”
“I'm okay on my feet,” I said. “This won't be long, right?”
“It depends,” he responded. His eyes fell to my tummy and it lingered there for a while. It was almost as though he knew his child was there. “I don't want us to fight, Evelyn,” he said.
“Asking for what is mine isn't fighting, Alpha Michael,” I said, leaning on one leg. Standing for so long hurt but I was adamant to remain standing.
“I'm ready to give you what's yours, Evelyn. The problem is the board. And I'll hate to be in the same room where such is happening. I want an out of court settlement. What can we give you in order to stop this case from going to court?”
I smiled. “I don't mind going to court, Alpha Michael. The only thing you can give me right now is what's mine. And seventy percent of all earnings made on them since they entered the market.”
“You are asking for too much,” he said. “Do you think you are in the best state for a long legal battle?”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“The baby,” he said, looking at my tummy again.
My hands moved over it reflexively. “It's none of your business.”
He chuckled. Then he walked close to me. “Is it mine, Evelyn?”
His eyes held mine, burning and demanding. I felt like I was going to fracture under the weight of his scrutiny. Thankfully someone knocked on the door and interrupted us.
“Alpha Michael,” she called from the other side of the door. “The meeting is about to start.”
“I'll be there in a moment.”
I had used the opportunity of the break to regain composure. Before he could ask again, I responded. “This baby is not yours. Stop your wishful thinking.” I turned around to leave but he held me and swung me towards him. So close. Too close.
My breath came out in gasps. He smiled. “See? I still make you feel breathless, Evelyn.” His eyes fell on my lips. “Just like you make me feel.”
I closed my eyes anticipating the kiss. Silly me. The next thing I heard was the sound of the door being opened. I bit my lips and cursed under my breath.
“What the hell, Evelyn.”
Alpha Raymond was seated in the meeting. Tamara was there too, but it seemed she had been promoted to a very important position. She didn't look at me even though I wanted to say hello.
“Thank you for meeting us on such short notice,” the Greywood lawyer said. “I'm Calvin, representing Greywood industries and for the purpose of this meeting, all conversations will be recorded.”
Shane leaned forward. “Shane Steve, representing Evelyn Moon.”
“We received your demands,” Calvin said, “and we have also come up with ours.”
He passed a sheet of paper to us. “For records sake, our demands are that your client's claim for the products are illegal. Those products were built while she was an employee in Greywood industries, using materials from this company.”
Shane picked the sheet and adjusted her glasses on the bridge of her nose. She always did that to intimidate. “Your claims are ambiguous. Are you saying anything made within the premises of Greywood industries belongs to the company? Let's say, including a baby? That product was as a result of my client's curiosity. It was not a project given to her by the company. And if it was, I have to question your employment and human resource department. My client was employed as an intern in your company when she gave birth to the idea for her products. When does an intern start making products for a company? We should be looking at some civil rights violations here.”
Shane was fired and she was unstoppable. She pushed the document back to Calvin. “This is, permit me to say, a whole lot of crap.”
Calvin seemed out of words. He took his proposal and read it again as though they had not been written by him.
“While my client would also like an out of court settlement, we will not accept this insult from Greywoods industries.”
The meeting ended shortly after that. I nudged Shane on the shoulder. She took off her glasses and she became normal again.
“How did I do?” She asked.
“Blown.” I laughed.
Tamara passed beside me. “Tamara,” I called out.
She turned and looked at me. “Hey, Evelyn,” she said, her voice devoid of emotions. “It's Fiona Dover now though.”