“You don’t want to get married anymore? Okay, we won’t,” Emma said with a pleasant smile. “Let’s wait until you’re not busy. We can talk more later.”
Nathan was in shock. He reached out and grabbed Emma’s shoulder. “Don’t you love me anymore? What about you? Do you love me?”
Emma carefully slipped out of his grasp, mindful of her promise to Eric not to get too close to another man. Nathan was stunned into silence. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. The truth was, he had never had any real feelings for Emma, but he wasn’t ready to give up his hold over her just yet.
“How can you even question my love?” he finally said. “Of course, I want to marry you. I just wish you would think a little about all the stress I’m under. It hasn’t been easy trying to get Amber into the running for the top 10 Awards. It’s frustrating that you can’t be more understanding.”
Emma slowly distanced herself from him, remaining composed. “Well, if we’re going to get married, you’ll have to get used to me. This is who I am from now on.” She left him standing there alone as she left the building.
Nathan stood still for a while, trying to figure things out. He couldn’t understand why Emma’s attitude had changed so much. But after some thought, he decided she was just jealous of Amber. He didn’t have the energy to chase after her and try to talk things out. “After she cools down, she’ll get over it,” he thought. Besides, he needed to spend some time smoothing things over with Amber, who was still very upset.
Emma put Nathan straight out of her mind and decided to hurry home to see Eric. The very thought of seeing him made her heart speed up with excitement. “Emma, I’ll take you home first so you can recharge,” said Lisa. “Tomorrow we’re citing the Bellamy contract and then straight off for an out-of-town commercial shoot.”
“Lisa, would you be up for canceling the lease on your apartment and moving into my old home rent-free? You can go ahead and change the locks. If Nathan asks, you could just say that you’ve moved in to work more closely with me, and he can’t have a key anymore. Tomorrow, I’ll sign a new contract with you. How does that work for you? It’ll save me some money if nothing else,” Emma suggested.
After a pause, Lisa looked at Emma with a smirk. “The mighty president of Kaleidoscope, how are things going there? Don’t be so nosy,” Emma replied, refusing to meet her friend’s eyes.
When Emma got to Eric’s place, he wasn’t back yet. She made her way into the kitchen and found his personal chef preparing dinner. “Please let me help,” she said.
“There’s no need. I wouldn’t want to trouble you,” the chef, an amicable middle-aged woman, answered.
“How about this instead?” Emma suggested. “Please let me give you the rest of the day off, and I’ll cook dinner for Eric tonight.”
After some persuasion, Emma ushered the chef out of the kitchen and started her own cooking. Eric didn’t get home until late at night. Not seeing Emma at first, he followed his nose to the kitchen. He was surprised to see her standing at the stove, wearing an apron. After a moment admiring her long, slender legs, he quietly approached her, hugged her from behind, and gently kissed the back of her neck.
“Alright, careful. I’m cooking,” Emma said. “Don’t you want to eat?”
He reached over and turned off the stove. “I sure do, but right now, I just want to nibble on you.”
Emma put down the spoon and turned around to hug Eric. His soft touch completely captivated her. He kissed her gently, inching slowly down her body before returning to her collarbone, where he stopped. “Any lower, and I won’t be able to control myself.”
“Dinner! I need to finish cooking,” she pushed away from his embrace and turned on the stove again. He massaged her shoulders as he inhaled the delicious aroma. “Let me help you cook, Mr. Eric Roberts, CEO of Kaleidoscope, can cook?” Emma asked, raising her eyebrows.
“You know, this one time is okay,” he said softly. “But from now on, no more cooking for you. You shouldn’t have to put in all this work, and it would be a tragedy if you scalded yourself. I’m quite capable of taking care of myself in the kitchen,” she said playfully, touched by his concern.
They continued preparing their dinner together. It turned out that Eric was actually quite an accomplished cook. When the meal was ready, they took a moment to admire the gorgeous spread they put together. It felt special, like something not just any couple could do in such a perfect sync. As they sat down to enjoy their meal together, Emma said, “Tomorrow, I’m headed to Seattle for a commercial shoot. I’m not sure how long the trip will be, but I definitely won’t be home tomorrow night. Are you setting the contract with Bella B tomorrow? Will you be leaving right after that?”
“Yes, Bellamy wants to launch their new product as soon as possible,” she said.
“Eric, I’ll need some time, but I know that I can rise to a position that you’ll be proud of.”
“I’m already proud of you, but I have no doubts that you can reach the most dizzying heights of the industry,” he responded, placing a morsel of food on Emma’s plate. Not only was he looking forward to seeing her advance, he was also gleefully anticipating just how miserable Nathan and Amber would be.
Meanwhile, the wind and rain had picked up, matching Amber’s stormy mood. She returned to Nathan’s house in a fury and began grabbing plates, cups, and bowls, smashing them by hurling them to the ground as hard as she could. Every time she thought of Emma signing the Bellamy contract, her rage took over, and she smashed something else.
To make matters worse, Nathan had actually supported Emma. The whole thing was unbearable. Nathan came home to find the floor covered in shards of broken crockery, and Amber holding a vase above her head, ready to hurl it down. He carefully picked his way across the floor, grabbed the valuable vase, and embraced her.
“Try not to get so upset. It’s not good for you or the baby.”
“Oh, you think you know what’s best for me and the baby? You just stood by and let Emma steal that huge deal out from under me. How is that good for any of us?”
“We still have plenty of options. I’m already working on securing an even bigger deal for you. Stop focusing on Emma, even if she is working with Bellamy now. Nothing’s gonna come of it for her.”
“Listen to me, babe. Don’t hurt yourself. She held on to you for so many years,” said Amber with tears in her eyes. “I can’t let her have this too. It felt like the only comfort at that moment was that Gary’s efforts were already having an effect. He was posting content to rip Emma’s reputation to shreds, and it was paying off. Even if Amber couldn’t end up winning exactly how she wanted, she was determined to see Emma lose. And the next part of the plan was about to unfold. She told Gary to post the details of Emma’s travel schedule, giving Amber’s supporters plenty of opportunities to cause trouble. The next day, Emma was going to see that she really shouldn’t have messed with Amber.”
