Chapter 5

• Chelsea turned around to face the person who had addressed her. Her heart was racing a million miles per hour as she tried to compose herself.
• Tall and well-built, with brown hair and piercing green eyes. Chelsea tried not to stare, but she couldn't help herself. She felt her world spin at the man standing before her, Liam Knights. The man before her was her estranged husband, the same man who had tortured and tried to kill her.
• She felt a sudden burst of anger towards the man, but she knew she couldn't act impulsively. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
• "Yes, that's me, I'm Miss Scarlett Jensen," she responded, her voice barely above a whisper.
• The man looked at her quizzically for a second. "Have we met before?" he asked, trying to sound casual, but his voice was a bit shaky.
• Chelsea felt her knees buckle at his words. She tried to keep herself steady, but the implications of what he had just said were weighing heavily on her. "This is my first time seeing you."
• His brows knitted together in confusion, but he waved it aside. "Come sit here," he said, gesturing for her to follow him to the couch.
• Chelsea breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that she had plastic surgery on her face five years ago in Toronto. And here she was standing in front of the man responsible for disfiguring her face back then. She felt a bile rise from the pit of her stomach just from sharing the same space with him. Once she had loved him, but now she despised him. She just had to play along and then she'd leave and never come back here.
• Chelsea, feeling her heart pound heavily, took a seat on the couch as Liam's scrutinizing gaze assessed her from head to toe.
• Although Liam thought she bore a resemblance to Chelsea, he was aware that the similarities were mostly limited to their shiny blue eyes, high-pitched voice, and golden hair. The lady before him had a heart-shaped face, in contrast to Chelsea's oblong one, and her long nose differed from Chelsea's shorter one. The woman was undeniably beautiful, while people had always considered Chelsea pretty — he sighed, he had to stop thinking about Chelsea.
• Chelsea was feeling uncomfortable, she lowered her lashes, avoiding direct eye contact. She prayed inwardly for this to be over.
• Clearing his throat, Liam fixed a hard stare at her before speaking. "I've reviewed your resume, and I can see that you're well-suited for the job. You will be working closely with me. I heard you've been able to close up to fifty contracts; impressive, I must say. We just closed a deal with a Chinese investor. There's a bigger deal coming up, and we'll be needing your services."
• A sense of unease settled into Liam's mind as he wondered why Chelsea seemed to avoid meeting his gaze.
• "Do you understand?" His tone was stern.
• "Uhmm, yes, sir, it will be my pleasure," she muttered nervously, but in her mind, she prayed the deal would fall through.
• "Very well then. You can reach out to my secretary, Anna, to get you oriented. You may leave," Liam announced briskly, without even sparing her a glance.
• Chelsea nodded, feeling relieved that it was finally over. She stood up and made her way to the door.
• As she walked out, she could feel Liam's eyes on her back, but she didn't turn around. She just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible.
• Once she was out in the hallway, she let out a breath she didn't even realize she had been holding. She felt nauseous as if she wanted to vomit. She needed the restroom now.
• She hurried towards the secretary who was at her desk. "Hello, are you Anna?"
• "Yes, please, can I help you?" The secretary nodded.
• "Where's the restroom, please?"
• "Over there," she directed her, and her eyes lingered on Chelsea's disheveled state for a second longer before she looked back down at her work.
• Chelsea reached the restroom and started vomiting her breakfast of cereal. She felt the tears streaming down her cheeks as her hand flew to her chest; it hurt so badly. It hurt her to see Liam well alive and looking good after everything he did to her. She was also confused about how she ended up at his company.
• "Liam, you bastard! How could you live peacefully after putting me through that cruel torture?" she sneered, clenching her fist angrily. "I won't let you be. I'll pay you back for everything you did to me."
• She turned on the faucet, washing her face; she had to get back there and meet Anna to bring her up to speed.
• Back at his office, Liam was glancing through some paperwork; he couldn't seem to get Scarlett off his mind. Something about her struck him as mysterious, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it. After several hours working behind the desk, he was starting to grow tired and hungry. He sighed when he saw the box of cookies on the table, obviously the handiwork of his fiance, Jessica. She always brought him cookies, and he was tired of them.
• He grabbed the box, opened it, and took some of the cookies to eat. Fifteen minutes in, he felt a strong urge to use the restroom, which he did.
• An hour later, he had been to the restroom over five times. He picked up his phone and dialed his secretary, and just then Chelsea made her way into the office closely behind Anna.
• "Anna, get me some medication and call the fucking doctor. I don't know what Jessica put in these damn cookies."
• Chelsea's ears perked up at that name, Jessica. She was sure five years ago that Jessica was responsible for framing her; she must have asked someone to place those documents and poison in her room. Her thoughts trailed off when the loud sound of farting echoed in the air. Her eyes widened when she saw that it was Liam, and Anna, mortified, ran out to carry out his request.
• "Wait, Anna," Liam stood up, his hand clutching painfully at his stomach, "throw this piece of crap away."
• Her eyes landed on the box as Anna took them away. "Isn't that the cookies Xolo made? Oh my gosh," she cringed internally.
• "And what do you want?" Liam's voice cut through the air.
• He was uncomfortable, perspiration dripping from his forehead. "Tell me quickly; I need to go."
• She smirked inwardly when she noticed how embarrassed he was, passing gas every minute. It's what he deserved and more.
• "I brought the proposal you asked for here…"
• "Just drop it on the desk and get out," he yelled before dashing for his private restroom.
• She smiled darkly, relishing the moment. So, that was how it felt to see him embarrassed. She swore to herself that she'd make him pay. Yes, and not forgetting Chelsea and that bastard Trey. They'd pay for causing her so much trauma and pain. But a feeling of unease crept up into her mind.
• "Xolo made those cookies. Did he put something inside it?" she wondered. That would be absurd. Why would her son have something against her new boss unless he knew something about him?
• Later that day, Chelsea finished work and went straight to Glory Elementary School to pick up Xolo. She was excited to hear all about his first day of school. She reached his classroom, and to her surprise, he was standing at the door.
• "Here's my big man. How are you doing, and how was today, baby?" she chuckled, ruffling his hair affectionately.
• Xolo smiled mischievously. "It was great, Mom. I made a lot of friends," he replied.
• "I can't wait to hear all about it."
• "What about you, Mom? How was work?"
• He noticed his mommy's countenance had hardened, and he could tell she had already met Liam Knights.
• "It was great," Chelsea forced out a smile. "Now come on, let's go."
• Ignoring his protests, she held his hand, as they walked down the hallway before Xolo stopped his mom.
• "I forgot my textbook in the classroom, Mom."
• "Alright, go get it, I'll be waiting right here for you." Chelsea watched him run along, but her ringtone sounded; it was Kara. She moved to a quiet spot to answer the call.
• Chelsea was engrossed in the call and didn't see Liam walk by quickly. Liam, on the other hand, was in a hurry. He knew his son would be sad if neither he nor Jessica picked him up from school. He had asked the driver to take him to Kevin's school straight from his company.
• He paused in front of Kevin's class when he saw a little boy coming out, probably the same age as Kevin. He furrowed his brows, confused.
• "Why does that little boy look so much like my son? No, scratch that. He looks almost exactly like I did when I was four," he jerked, terrified.