Now You Want Me? Too Late

Ian’s brows drew together.

"From where I’m standing, she doesn’t. I can see everything clearly. She looks at you like a woman in love. She finds reasons to stay close to you. She touches you whenever she gets the opportunity. And whenever I’m around, she makes a point of making me feel like I’m intruding."

Ian’s expression changed.

"Do you remember the hospital dinner back then? She deliberately sat beside you even though there were other seats. She kept serving you food and asking if you needed anything, as if she were your wife."

Evelyn’s voice trembled with old resentment. "And when I tried to speak to you, she interrupted us repeatedly. Another time, she called you late at night over something that could have waited until morning. You left immediately."

She turned her face and wiped her tears away.

"I told myself I was being jealous. I tried to convince myself that I was imagining things. But it was unbearable to watch her close to you. She wasn’t just behaving like a colleague, Ian. She wanted me to notice."

Evelyn tried to hold back her tears but failed. "She was declaring her love for you. She subtly indicated to me to leave you. And you... You always supported her, telling me I was only making scenes."

Silence settled between them.

Ian’s mind raced. He remembered Evelyn’s hostility toward Maya from the beginning. He had always assumed it was simply jealousy.

He had never stopped to question what had caused it.

For the first time, Ian began replaying his interactions with Maya from a different perspective. He started to wonder if he had missed something.

Perhaps Evelyn hadn’t been insecure without reason. Perhaps he had been the one who had failed to notice the truth.

He looked at her. "I-I didn’t know... I never noticed."

Evelyn raised an eyebrow. "Never noticed? Or you simply ignored all the signs?"

He gently squeezed her hand. "I don’t want any more misunderstanding between us. And I certainly don’t want to give Maya any reason to believe she has a place in my life that she doesn’t."

Evelyn’s anger softened slightly. But she didn’t smile. She wasn’t ready to make things easy for him.

She studied him for a long moment. Then she pulled her hand from his.

"I’m giving you another chance, Ian. But don’t mistake that for forgiveness."

"I know."

"You have a lot of work to do before I can trust you again." She turned to leave.

"Eve..."

She stopped but didn’t turn around.

"If it’s okay, let’s have dinner together this weekend," he said. "Just you and me."

Evelyn’s expression softened. But her tone remained firm. "I’ll tell you later."

With that, she walked away.

From the corner of the corridor, Maya watched everything. Resentment churned inside her as she watched Ian begging Evelyn for a chance.

"You want to get back together," she whispered bitterly. "I won’t let that happen."

An obsessive determination hardened in her eyes.

"I loved Ian for so many years. I stayed away because he had a family. But now he is divorced. I won’t let anyone take him away from me."

Her fingers curled into fists. "He will be mine."

~~~~~~~~~~

A few days passed.

With the launch of the project drawing closer, Elena became busier than ever.

She spent most of her days at the office, overseeing every stage of the project. She reviewed the final AI architecture, checked the system’s security protocols, and went through the designs with her technical team.

She personally examined the demonstration models and reviewed the data being prepared for the launch presentation.

Every department had been given a detailed list of tasks.

The system was tested repeatedly. Minor bugs were fixed immediately, and the platform was optimized regularly.

Elena also held daily meetings with the core team. Nothing escaped her attention. If she noticed even the smallest inconsistency, she asked the responsible team to investigate it immediately.

She refused to take any chances.

"I want everything to be perfect," Elena said sternly during the meeting.

"Yes, ma’am," everyone answered together.

Her phone blinked on the table. She glanced down.

An unknown number was calling.

She ignored it and returned her attention to the people around the table.

"The launch date is approaching. We don’t have much time left. Start working on the updates I’ve given you. I want everything ready by tomorrow."

She glanced at the team members sitting around the table. "Any questions?"

Several hands immediately went up.

Elena calmly listened to each question and cleared every doubt.

Her phone started ringing again.

She frowned at the unfamiliar number. ’Who keeps calling me?’

She didn’t answer. Instead, she closed the meeting.

"That is all for today. If anyone has further questions, you can come to my office."

The team members nodded.

Elena gathered her documents and left the conference room. Once she returned to her office, she picked up her phone.

Five missed calls.

All from the same number.

Her brows furrowed. ’Who could be calling me so persistently?’

Then a name suddenly crossed her mind.

Noah?

She stared at the number. ’Has he changed his number?’

Before she could think further, the phone rang again. The same number appeared on the screen.

Elena’s breath caught. Her body lurched backward in her chair.

The phone continued ringing.

She hesitated before finally answering.

"Hello? Who is it?"

"It’s Amber Sterling." A cold female voice came from the other end.

Elena went completely still.

’Amber Sterling.’ The name echoed inside her brain.

"I need to talk to you," said Amber. "Let’s meet."

Elena fell silent. Her mother, the woman she had resented for years, was calling her.

"What do you want from me?" she asked.

"I can’t tell you over the phone. Come to Ron’s Café. I’ll be waiting."

The call ended.

Elena continued staring at the phone. Her mind went blank.

Ever since her mother had abandoned her years ago, Elena had carried that wound inside her. She resented Amber for leaving her behind and eventually convinced herself she never wanted to see her again.

And now, after all these years, Amber had suddenly called her and wanted to see her.

’Why now?’

Elena didn’t know what she felt. Was it anger? Curiosity? Or some buried part of her still wanted the answers she had never received?

A knock suddenly sounded on the door.

She almost jumped. She quickly put down the phone, wiped the emotion from her face, and straightened herself.

"Come in."

She expected Nina. Instead, Elias walked in.