Married to my CEO Crush

Chapter2

ITS HIM

As Emma raced to her office building, she juggled her files and tried to catch her breath. She was already 30 minutes late and knew her superiors were going to give her an earful. Then, she spotted Nora running towards her, panting and out of breath. "Girl, where have you been?" Nora exclaimed. "I've been trying to call you!" "What's up?" Emma asked, trying to catch her breath. "The new CEO is coming in today!" Nora announced. "New CEO? What happened to the old one?" Emma was completely out of the loop.

"What the heck, Emma! You didn't go to the company-wide meeting last month? Our company got sold and no one knows who the new owner is, but they're coming in today. And you can't be late, we have to be presentable and ready when they arrive!" Nora exclaimed, her eyes wide with worry. "Oh s**t I didn’t attend that!" Emma said, frantically trying to gather her things and tidy herself up. "Let's get moving," Nora urged, and they both raced towards the office building.

"Who cares about a new CEO? We're just the marketing department, they probably won't even come by to see us," Emma thought to herself as she and Nora hurried into the elevator.

She was deep in her thoughts when the elevator pinged open on her office floor. As she walked in, there he was, standing before the rest of the staff. Nora gasped for air, holding on to Emma. “D..Dylan..Fisher is our new CEO!” Nora whispered. “I see that!” Emma muttered. “This can’t be happening! Why is Dylan here right now?! Why him?” Emma thought to herself.

Dylan turned to look at the two women who had just entered the office. He looked at his watch, then back at them. "Are you just getting in now?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Emma stood there, frozen in place, unsure if Dylan recognized her or not. Nora blurted out the first thing that came to mind: "No sir, we just went out to get some coffee." Dylan knew this was a lie, but he nodded and walked away, heading back to his office. Emma couldn't believe what had just happened. She felt like she was in a dream.

As the hours passed, Emma could barely focus on her work. The thought of Dylan being the new CEO kept swirling around in her head. She couldn't believe their reunion had been so awkward and unexpected. Suddenly, her office phone rang. "Miss Norman, this is the CEO's office. He requests your presence," a female voice said. Emma felt her heart skip a beat. She had to face Dylan again, and soon.

Emma stepped out of the elevator and onto the executive floor. Her footsteps echoed on the marble floor as she made her way down the long hallway to Dylan's office. With a shaky hand, she knocked on the door and heard a muffled, "Come in." She opened the door and saw Dylan standing by the window, looking out at the city skyline. He turned to face her and said, "So, what did you spend all that money on? It certainly wasn't coffee."

Emma's mind was racing. "What money?" she whispered, though Dylan heard her clearly. He smirked and said, "Looks can be deceiving. Who knew, aside from your job in the marketing department, you had a side hustle."

Emma was lost. "What the hell is he yapping about?" she thought to herself. "Don't you remember? The bar?" Dylan asked, a menacing look in his eyes. "That was you?" Emma exclaimed, then covered her mouth with her hands. "Look, it's not what you think," she said, trying to explain. "I'm not a p********e or anything like that. I was just out to have a good time."

"So you didn’t take the money?" Dylan asked, his expression unreadable. Emma didn't know what to say. The truth was, she had used the money to pay her rent and a few other bills, but she couldn't bring herself to admit that. "Of course I had to," she said. "It's not like I could just leave it there. And you obviously have enough money to spare, so why not put it to good use?" She added, a hint of anger in her voice. "You have no right to judge me," she continued. "Who knew the respected CEO, Dylan Fisher, went around sleeping with bar girls and throwing his money at their faces!” She scoffed.

"Whoa, no need to get so defensive," Dylan said, laughing. "I won't tell anyone, your secret's safe with me." His tone was mocking, and Emma could feel her anger rising. "Can I leave now?" she asked, wanting to end the conversation. But Dylan wasn't done. "How much for another night?" he asked, a smirk on his face. "Are you kidding me?" Emma exclaimed. "I already told you, what happened was just for fun. It's never happening again." She was getting angrier by the second.

"Not even for a hundred thousand dollars?" Dylan leaned in close, his words slurring slightly. Emma hated him in that moment. She couldn't believe this was the same boy she'd had a crush on years ago. He was different now, arrogant and cocky. She wondered if he didn't recognize her, or if he was simply being cruel. Either way, she wanted to get away from him as soon as possible.

Emma locked eyes with Dylan, trying to maintain her composure. "Not a chance," she said, her voice steady despite the anger bubbling inside her. Without another word, she turned and walked away, her heart pounding in her chest. She was disgusted by his behavior, and couldn't believe he had treated her this way. "What an asshole," she muttered to herself as she made her way back to her office.

*********

As Emma walked through the door of her tiny apartment, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy. "A hundred thousand dollars could take me out of this shitty place," she thought to herself. It was ironic, really. When they were kids, her family had been comfortable, while Dylan's family had struggled financially. She remembered how he would isolate himself from the other kids, as they made fun of his secondhand clothes and hand-me-down backpack. They even had to sell their house and move to a smaller town. Now, he was a big shot in the city, while she was just scraping by.

She sighed when she heard her phone ring, she saw on the screen that it was her mother. "Hey, Mom," Emma answered the phone, trying to sound upbeat. But her mother's tone was grim. "The men your father owed money to came by again today," she said, her voice trembling. "They're getting furious, Emma. When do you think you'll be able to get the money?" The last thing Emma wanted to hear was her mother's desperation, but she knew it was real. "I know, Mom, but it's not like $1.500,000 can just fall out of the sky!" she exclaimed. "I'm doing everything I can, but dad is only going to go back and gamble away everything again.”

“These men are dangerous, Emma! They’ll hurt us if we don’t pay up soon. It's not just about your father and his gambling habits anymore” her mom said. “I know mom,” Emma managed to respond. "And don't forget the wedding invitation I sent you," her mother added, her voice perking up slightly. "It's an exclusive event, and I managed to get you an invite. Maybe you'll meet a man who is wealthy and can help take care of us." Emma couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her mother was so desperate, she was ready to sell her off to the highest bidder. "Mom, you can't be serious," she said, her voice shaking with disbelief. "I'm not going to marry some random rich guy just to solve our problems."

"But you'll have to if you want to stop worrying about loan sharks coming after us because of your father!" her mother insisted. Emma was at a loss for words. She couldn't believe her mother was actually suggesting this. "I'll go to the wedding, Mom, but I can't promise anything else," she said finally. "Just please, don't worry. I'll figure something out." "Alright, I'll let you go," her mother relented. "Good night, Emma." "Good night, Mom," Emma replied, hanging up the phone.