Billionaire's Obsessed love

Chapter 7

I wash up the dishes while mom sits and scribbles on a notepad a list of items she needs from the supermarket.

“Hmm, I’ll have to get these later when my car that Reggie brings my car over from the garage.”

“I’ll get them for you,” I inform her. “I want to get out the house a little anyway.”

“But what will you do for a car?”

“I’ll just call a cab,” I tell her.

“I can’t let you do that. It’s too expensive. We can just wait on the car to be brought around later.”

“mom, I insist. I’m taking a cab out anyway even if you don’t get the list.”

“Alright,” she conceded.

“Great. Just let me change.”

The air outside was a bit cool but warmer than in Detroit. I ring the cab company for them to send over a cab and afterwards get dressed. I pull on a short, pleated skirt, navy blue leggings beneath and a burgundy top. I shoved my feet into a pair of booties and grab my purse just as the cab pulled up.

“I’ve got this mom,” I tell her when she tries to give me money to buy the groceries, “I’ll see you later.”

I kiss her on the cheek and get into the cab, asking the driver to drop me at supermarket. When I ask if he could wait until I get the groceries, he advises me the meter would be running so I tell him he could go. I could call another cab when I’m ready.

Before going into the supermarket, I go over to a new clothes store I have never noticed before. I browse a bit deciding they do have some nice outfits but they were a little pricey. As I no longer have a job and couldn’t spend as much, I leave the store and stop at an ice cream shop next door. I have a caramel ice cream on a waffle cone while I stare through the glass enclosure at the people who go by.

Reading isn’t like Detroit at all. It is smaller and not as many people going around. That’s one of the things I like about Reading. Detroit tends to be crowdy. There isn’t much to do in Reading though which sucks for people who would want to settle here. People around these parts do get crazy about college football though and several persons around have something that display Crimson Tide, the University football team. They wear sweaters, hats, even cars bear the team’s name.

After spending roughly fifteen minutes eating my waffle cone, and people-watching, I head on over to market. I insert a coin in the trolley to get it out of stack and go inside the store. Though mom gave me the list, I also buy some other items that I could use while I’m staying here.

The queue to cash is long and I have to wait a long time before I finally get to the cashier’s desk. The supermarket is eco-friendly and only uses paperbacks that can be recycled. I pluck a couple from the pile and add it to the counter for the cashier to add it to the list of groceries. I pay with a hundred dollar bill which reminds me that I would need to watch my spending until I find a job.

I could always stay here with my mother but that isn’t fair to Jess plus we both have lease for that apartment so I couldn’t saddle her with the responsibility alone. As soon as I get home I would start job hunting, I decide.

I push the trolley outside and retrieve my purse to call the cab company again. I’m such a dolt. I should have called them when I was standing in the line waiting for my turn to cash.

I startle when the phone is plucked from my hands.

“What the…” I start to say then stare in horror. “You! What are you doing here?”

Daniel is standing beside me, my phone in his hand. He is smirking at me in that insufferable way of his.

“How foolish of you to think you could escape me so easily,” he responds. “Foolish girl. Don’t you know wherever you go, I’ll find you?”

My heart skips a beat at his words and I couldn’t deny the thrill that goes through my body. I am supposed to be pissed at him and I am but I’m also feeling triumphant that he has come after me. I was right after all. Now to figure out what it means that Daniel would travel all the way from Detroit to find an employee who doesn’t want to be found.

“I—”

Before I can finish my thought, a car drives up and two men step out from the front. What the hell! They look like bodyguards.

“Why are you here?” I ask him but he ignores my question. He opens the car door for me.

“Get in.”

The men move towards the trolley and ignoring my protests, load my groceries into the back of the Jaguar.

“Don’t let me repeat myself Amelia,” he says to me with a sharp voice. “You’re already in big trouble with me. Don’t make it worse. Get in or do you want me to kidnap you. Is that what floats your boat?”

I get it into the car, sliding over to the far corner to avoid him as he gets into the vehicle beside me. The two men who are with him, occupy the front seats.

I stare at Daniel when he rattles off the address to my mother’s house. How does he even know?

The drive to my mother’s continues on in awkward. Why doesn’t he say anything? What is he waiting on to blast me with how much he is going to sue me for abandoning my contract? Perhaps he has a summons for me to appear in court for assaulting his security guard.

I glance surreptitiously at him from the corner of my eye. He seems quite unperturbed, very sure of himself and it scares me because I can’t read his mind. I don’t have a clue what he is thinking or what he will do when we get to our destination.

“Why are—” I try to ask him what he is doing here but the look he gives me, has me swallowing my words. So this is how it’s going to be. The ball is in his court and I’ll have to go ahead with his leave.

Even though he isn’t at the office, he is dressed in dark blue trousers and a dress shirt. I am not sure this man ever dresses down. I couldn’t quite picture him wearing a simple pair of jeans and T-shirt. At least he doesn’t have a tie on and had left his jacket. Unfortunately for me, the close-fitting shirt reminds me of how well-defined his chest is and plunge me into the memory of the morning I’d tried to hand in my resignation letter.

I am appalled that the memory is causing me to get wet. I am confused about why this man who I feel threatened by can have such a profound effect on me and my senses. The smell of him, that same woodsy, earthy smell flood my nostrils until I feel I am cloaked in his essence. It is quite disturbing.

When my mother’s house looms in front of us, I am relieved we are here. Now the show can begin. He would either leave me alone or say what he has to say and leave me alone. Because one thing I am certain of. This man isn’t going to bully me into returning to work for him. Not I would not be tempted. Not by his wealth and not by the deep desire I have to turn to him, unbutton his shirt and run my palms over his chest.

Good Lord, isn’t an AC in this car? I am burning up. The car comes to a stop outside and I realize my mother’s car is in the half-opened garage. Drat! If only I had waited and allowed my grandmother to get the groceries instead. But what would that have changed? Nothing. One way or another Daniel would have found me. If he had travelled all this way to Reading, nothing would have prevented him from finding me.

I push the car door open as soon as the car comes to a stop at the porch. The trunk is popped and I go to retrieve my groceries. Daniel is there ahead of me, already having most of the bags.

“I can manage,” I tell him. “You can go back to where you’re coming from.”

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

He finally speaks! He walks ahead of me towards the house bold as you please. I trail after him with the two bags clutched in my hands. I peer at the two men sitting at the front of the car. Are they just going to sit there and wait? That means Daniel couldn’t be planning on staying, is he? Foolish girl why would he be staying? The man is here only for you to squirm a bit. He cares nothing about you or are you forgetting the way he treats you?

“Wait!” I call after Daniel but he waltzes through the front door of the house as if he owns the place. Really! The man’s conceit has to be legendary. I hurry after him, not wanting him to scare my mother with his unexpected presence.

 “daniell, you can’t just walk into my home,” I begin to chide him but then my mother walks in from the back door and my heart sinks.

“Mr. Daniel, you’ve found her,” she says with a smile. “I was afraid you might miss her.”

“Wait a minute,” I respond to her. “You knew he was coming and told him where I was?”

She walks into the kitchen after Daniel and I have to do the same. What in the world is going on?

“Of course I didn’t know he was coming,” mom replies. “As soon as you left Mr. Daniel shows up and introduces himself. He’s such a nice man.”

“Nice?” I exclaim, looking from a smirking Daniel to her contented face. Doesn’t she see that smirk that he is wearing?

“Yes, he’s a very nice man,” mom continues, then scolds me. “While you’ve been very rude dear. I can’t believe you ran out on your job like that without even two weeks’ notice. That’s not very professional of you, Amelia. And when he’s just taken over the company too and needs someone familiar to work with him.”

My mouth falls open in astonishment and I would have dropped the grocery bags, hadn’t Daniel reach out and take them from me. Just what lies has he been feeding my mother for her to be taking his side instead of mine?

“He and I cannot see eye to eye,” I tell her. “It’s in both our interest for me to quit.” But he was remain silent and I don’t know why he is?

 “By the way you did it dear,” she insists.

“Did he tell you—”

“Amelia, i***t girl don’t bore your mother with unnecessary details,” Daniel interrupts me. “I’m sure whatever problem you have working for me, all we need to do is to sit and talk it out and you’ll realize I’m not such an unreasonable man after all.”