Page 83 of Grumpy Boss in Love
“Hi, Simone.”
“How are you holding up?” she asked.
I shrugged. “I’ve been better. Elliot… I mean, Mr. Westwood…” I snorted inwardly. What was the use of pretending at this point? “Elliot called me. Can I go in?”
“Sure, he said to let you in when you got here.”
My hope mounted. That was a good sign. “Okay.” I aimed for his door, feeling slightly better. There was a smile on my face when I stepped into his domain. “Elliot, I’m glad you…”
My eyes swiveled around the room. Elliot sat at his desk, and there were two men with him. One I recognized as his lawyer. That drew me up short. I swallowed. “Am I being sued?” I inquired in a tiny voice.
Elliot gave me one of his annoyed looks—which I had actually missed—and said, “No, close the door.”
I did.
“Why are you here?” he asked. “You should have stayed home. You need to stay out of sight until everything dies down.”
I stared at him, disappointed that he didn’t even greet me. He just launched into a lecture. “You wouldn’t answer your phone. I didn’t know if… I assumed I should come to work.” The lawyer and the other guy were making me edgy. Plus, I didn’t want them to watch me beg Elliot for forgiveness. “Can we talk alone?”
“It’s best if I stay,” the lawyer said.
I rolled my eyes. “Elliot, can I have a moment with you? Please?”
His eyebrows furrowed. “Allan, Dan, give us a minute.”
The lawyer glanced at him. “But?—”
“Leave,” Elliot said in this CEO voice. The one that made everyone jump to obey. It was crazy because the Elliot I saw behind closed doors was the sweetest man… to me. The two men scurried out to my relief.
“Thank you,” I said once we were alone. I advanced inside. “Look, I didn’t know I was supposed to stay away. I wished you had called me to tell me.”
He stared at me, and the lack of his usual affection had me worried. I knew I messed up, but how could he be so cold to me after everything we shared? “You asked me to come up…”
Finally, he spoke. “To inform you that you should stay home until further notice. Just stay inside and avoid reporters until my people sort out this mess.”
“Until further notice? But I need to work. I don’t understand. Am I fired?”
He sighed and got up. Walking around the desk, he said, “Just lay low. It’s the least you can do after the mess you’ve made.”
“A mess I’ve been trying to apologize for. Why won’t you answer when I call? Why won’t you talk to me?” I wailed.
“What is there to talk about?” He dropped his stony mask to show an ounce of emotion. Fury. “You betrayed me.”
“It’s not like that. I swore Megan to secrecy when I let too much slip.”
“It wasn’t a slip, Ruby!” he hissed. “Those articles had every fucking detail, even our trip to London. I’ve been in this position for years, and I’ve never come close to a media scandal, so thank you for that!” he snapped.
Ducking my head, I told him, “I was feeling overwhelmed, afraid of what I was feeling for you. I needed to talk to someone, to get advice, and I thought I could trust my friend…” I met his gaze even though I didn’t want him to see the tears glistening in my eyes. “I’d never deliberately hurt you because I love you, Elliot.”
There I said it. Despite a lifetime of fearing the sentiment toward any man, I said it—put my heart on the line.
The silence dragged on forever, and my heart pounded rapidly. Our eyes were locked. My hope was fleeting because there wasn’t the slightest crack in Elliot’s expression. There was a crack forming in my heart though. It was breaking.
When he responded with a monotonous, “It’s best if you stay away for now,” the organ shattered to pieces on his office carpet.
A painful lump formed in my throat, making it impossible to speak. Blinking back tears, I backed toward the door. I told him I loved him, and he was sending me away. When I walked out of his office and he didn’t stop me, I was crushed.
Would I ever find the strength to get over him? To heal? Because I was certain we were done.