Chapter 2
1246 Words
The previous night was full of sleepless thoughts, and, as Jane arrived at work the next day, she still found her mind stockpiled with repercussions from the day before. The waiting time and the resistance from Steve was not the part that worried her the most. Rather, it was the argument she pictured having on her presuming side. But whatever expectation she had about the situation, nothing could've prepared her for the shock she experienced.
Her breath betrayed her and halted as the doors of the elevator opened onto the lobby.
Steve stood there waiting.
He stood at the middle of the lobby. His noticeable presence amidst the morning rush. Employees bustling in his surroundings, looking at Jane in a curious way as she stepped out,but Steve never took his eyes off her. He was staring at her, waiting.
Her stomach felt unease.
What do we got now?
“Come with me Jane,” Steve said in his even but firm voice.
It didn't sound like a request.
Jane hesitated for a fraction of a second before forcing her legs to move. Steve walked towards his office without any other word. The glass walls of Blackwood Enterprises gleamed in the morning light, but to Jane they felt frustrating.
Inside, Steve closed the door behind them.
The silence gave an awkward feeling between them, thick with unspoken words. Jane repositioned herself to look more confident.
“I've thought about your resignation,“ Steve said, his tone unreadable, “and I've decided. “
Jane clenched her fists. She thought to herself, could it be a counteroffer, a promotion or maybe even a guild trip?
Instead, his next words sent impulse through her.
“Will you be my wife.”
Jane was short of breath.
For a moment she couldn't belive her own ears.
“. . .what?”
Steve mover even closer, his icy blue gaze locking into hers with an intensity that made her feel cringe. Steve then went further, “I can't imagine my life or this company without you,” with a steady voice. “Marry me, and we'll build a life together. You'll lack nothing.”
Jane could feel the words move through her body.
In disbelief, was he serious?
He had to be joking.
But Steve looked serious as ever.
She stared at him, trying to read his expression, some hint of emotion that showed he was joking.
There wasn't any.
Her heart raced
This wasn't a declaration of love. There was no warmth in his voice, no affection in his eyes. This was something else. Control. Possession. Power.
She took a few Steps back. “Steve, I...”
He didn’t give her the chance to finish.
“This is the best decision for both of us, “ he said in an unshaking tone. “You're of great value to me, Jane. You always been.”
Great value.
The word gave her some kind of feeling.
Not loved. Not cherished.
Great value.
Like a well-oiled machine. Like an asset to be retained.
Jane's fingers curled into fists.
“I…I need time to think,” She said, trying her best to make her voice steady.
Steve noticed her, then nodded softly in response, as if he was prepared for this response. “take all the time you need to think about it,” he said. Then, with a faint smirk, he added, “but the announcement will be made tomorrow.”
Jane inhaled sharply.
Just like that?
Steve had decided already.
As if her choice didn’t even matter.
Her throat tightened, but she managed to nod. Then before he could say anything else, she turned and left the office.
Her pulse was hammering in her ears as she walked back to her desk. She barely noticed the curious stares from her colleagues, the whispers that followed in her wake.
Her entire world had just turned upside down.
And she was unaware of the next step to take.
That evening, Jane sat in her dimly lit apartment, looking through her phone.
Her hands shaked as she went through her messages.
The weight of the day pressed down on her like a blizzard.
The scenario had been on a loop in her mind, tangled with doubts and questions that needed answers. Why now? If he truly felt something for her, why he not shown it earlier before? Why did he act after I submitted my resignation letter?
The answer was painfully clear.
Steve didn’t love her.
He just couldn’t stand losing control.
Jane exhaled shakily, trying to bring her thoughts to conclusion.
Then her phone rang
Her heart skipped.
A message, from a number she hadn’t seen for over a year.
Kelvin.
Her hands went numb.
A sick feeling twisted in her gut.
She opened the message slowly.
“You think things are over between us?, think again.”
Her breath hitched.
She didn't even have enough time to process what was going on before another message popped up.
A photo.
Jane's stomach dropped.
It was a picture of her and Steve, taken from a distance, as they left is office earlier that day.
The angle was slightly off, like the picture was taken in a rush, from behind a corner or across the hall.
Beneath it, he wrote:
“I've got my eyes on you.”
Jane gripped her phone hard.
This wasn't real, it couldn’t be real.
Kelvin was in her past. Their relationship didn't end well, but she had moved on. She made sure of it.
Hadn't she?
Her phone vibrated again.
It was a voice message this time.
She hesitated.
Every instinct warned her not to play it.
But she did out of curiosity.
Kelvin’s voice was heard through the speaker, low and dangerous.
“You belong to me, Jane, always have, always will.”
She felt a shiver through her body.
She gripped her phone with her mind racing, remembering how possessive kelvin was in the past, his manipulation, the way he has tried to dictate ever part of her life.
She had escaped him once.
But now….
He came back.
And he was watching her every move.
Jane swallowed hard, trying to remain calm.
This couldn’t be happening now.
Her phone buzzed one last time.
A message from a no caller ID number.
A single word.
“Run.”
Jane felt a chill feeling.
Her instincts screamed at her. Something was very, very off.
She stood up from the couch, reaching for her bag but her hands were shaking.
Her throat tightened, as she could not breath. She needed to leave. immediately.
But just then…
A gentle knock on her door.
She couldn’t move
Not loud. Not forceful.
Just… patient, waiting.
Her phone bussed one final time.
A new text.
“Open up the door, Jane. It's time to come back home.”
Her heart skipped.
Kelvin was at the door.
Jane’s breathe came in sharp gasps as her eyes darted around her apartment. Think, Jane. Think, what are you going to do?
For the past five years she's spent, surviving, trying her best to get out of debt, out of her past, out of his grip.
She refused to go back.
From outside her door came a slow creak.
Jane's fingers tightened around the strap of her bag.
There were only to choice left.
Stay.
Or run. She had only one place to go, Steve's penthouse.
Her heart raced even more.
And then….
She bolted for the fire escape.
- Writer
