**Chapter 7**
The past three months, devoid of Thomas Scott’s presence, had honestly turned out to be a breath of fresh air.
Each day, I clocked in and out with precision, never once dipping into the realm of overtime. My days off were filled with laughter and camaraderie, as I reveled in the company of friends who seemed to shine brighter alongside me.
No exaggeration, it wasn’t just my friends who noticed the change; I could feel it too. There was a lightness in my step, a newfound glow that enveloped me like a warm embrace.
But then, one fateful evening, as I was on my way to play badminton with a friend, the unexpected happened. Just as we were about to step onto the court, she received a frantic call, summoning her for an urgent business trip. With a quick apology, she hurried off to sort things out with her husband, leaving me standing alone in the park.
Wandering aimlessly, I found myself lost in thought, the cool evening air brushing against my skin. Suddenly, a voice sliced through the tranquility, calling my name.
“Riley Addison!”
I spun around, my heart racing, and to my utter disbelief, there stood Thomas Scott. He looked like a shadow of his former self, his face gaunt and his eyes clouded with a deep sorrow that tugged at my heartstrings.
“Why haven’t you called? Why haven’t you sent me a single text?!”
His tone, usually sharp and accusatory, was now laced with a raw vulnerability that took me aback.
I stood there, momentarily stunned, as memories of our time together flooded my mind. Since the divorce, I had been diligently going about my routine at Scott Corp, but I had intentionally shut out any thoughts of Thomas and his life.
When silence stretched between us, he took a step closer, reaching out to grasp my hand. Instinctively, I recoiled, dodging his touch as if it were a live wire. His hand halted mid-air, and disbelief washed over his features.
I stared at him, confusion swirling in my mind as the streetlight bathed us in a soft glow. In that moment, I realized how much better I looked compared to him.
From an outsider’s perspective, it must have seemed like a classic tale of a heartless woman who had cast aside her jilted lover.
Determined to ground him in reality, I spoke with a frigid detachment. “Mr. Scott, we’ve been divorced for three months now.”
“So?” he shot back, his single-word response igniting a fire of frustration within me.
We were divorced. Outside of the workplace, where he held a managerial role and I was merely an employee, our lives had no intersection.
It wasn’t as if we had children to tie us together.
“This is my personal time, Thomas. We’ve been divorced for three months. Why on earth would I feel compelled to text or call you? And let’s be clear, Mr. Scott, you’re not even my direct supervisor anymore!”
At my words, his expression faltered, a flicker of an emotion I couldn’t quite place darting through his eyes.
“I’ve been waiting for you to reach out! Even while I was away on business, I held onto the hope of your call, your text!”
“Those three months without you were a revelation. I’ve done a lot of soul-searching.”
“I realized how I’ve taken your feelings for granted all these years. You were always there, and I foolishly assumed you would never leave me.”
“I’m sorry… We should never have ended up like this…”
He appeared thinner, the weight of his emotional turmoil etched into his weary face.
I remained silent, watching as panic flickered in his eyes. He reached for me again, desperation evident in his movement.
Startled, I instinctively took a few steps back, my heart racing. Perhaps it was the way I recoiled from him, as if he were a ghost, that caused him to freeze.
Just then, his phone buzzed insistently, breaking the tension. I didn’t need to glance at the screen; I recognized the ringtone immediately—it was Peyton Kennedy’s custom tune.
He hesitated for a moment, then, to my astonishment, declined the call.
My eyes widened in disbelief as a hint of satisfaction spread across Thomas’s face. “Riley…”
“That was Peyton, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah… but I…”
“Shouldn’t you be answering that? What if she’s in trouble? Unless, of course, she’s had another ‘injury’ like last time—the one that was nearly healed by the time she reached the ER, forcing the doctor to use a microscope just to find the scratch.”
“Riley, you’re still jealous, aren’t you?”
I stared at him, utterly baffled, as if he had sprouted a second head. “Uh, no! I am not! Don’t you dare start that nonsense and ruin my reputation!”
In a flurry of panic, I backed away a few more steps before turning on my heel and sprinting away.
It was terrifying. I had never seen Thomas act like this before. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was either hallucinating or witnessing something deeply unsettling.
Once I got home, the more I pondered the encounter, the creepier it felt. That very night, I made a decision: I sent my resignation letter to my boss.
After that, I packed up my life and moved to a new city, eager to put distance between us.
Finally, I could escape the shadow of Thomas Scott, or so I thought.
The sound of my boss placing his cup down jolted me back to the present.
“Those are the new work assignments. Meeting adjourned.”
**Chapter 8**
