4

6 minutes had passed and she hadn't stopped what she was doing.

Roberto chose to stand, watching her engrossed in her work. More minutes flew by, the silence hovering between them was thick. For a moment, he started entertaining the thought that this lady didn't want to see them at all.

But patience was one of the things he had learned to have over the years.

After roughly almost an extra 4 minutes of them standing, she finally raised her head to look up at him and his secretary.

Upon seeing who he was, her eyes flickered in surprise, and for a moment her jaws almost dropped open but then she quickly collected herself, the cold demeanor returning as she held his gaze.

She hadn't expected to meet him here of all places.  But she couldn't act familiar with him, he was a stranger to her.

Roberto, on his part, was stunned after his target raised her head. How come she looked familiar — similar to his ex-wife even?

"Why are you guys still standing?" she asked, looking puzzled.

"We just felt like it. Watching you work is a delight in itself," Roberto said with a polite smile.

"Oh, this?" she pointed to the drawing on her device's screen. "I was just whiling away my time out of boredom. This is just a doodle," she said leisurely, causing Roberto's mouth to twitch.

For some seconds, he was lost for words. If she considered that a doodle, then what would she consider as a perfect work?

"Please, have your seats," Lily offered, gesturing to the empty chairs on the other end of the round table.

With that, the two men finally got seated.

"So, gentlemen, what brought you here? Or am I in trouble?" she asked.

Her eyes were on the device as she made the finishing touches to what she called a doodle.

'Quite a perfectionist,' Roberto internally observed but he maintained the polite smile as he slowly shook his head before he responded.

"No, Miss. You're perfectly safe," he reassured, "I'm a fan of your works, you see. I'm thoroughly impressed by your creativity, your dedication to your work..."

"Isn't that typical of everyone who has a success story?" She had a brow raised in askance.

He suspired, feeling this woman would be difficult to handle. However, he was someone who rarely shied away from challenges.

"But you aren't just a person with a success story, Miss Shawn,"

"Oh? What am I then?" she asked, putting her device in her black leather bag.

"You are..." Roberto's words hung in his throat as the latter abruptly gestured for him to stop speaking.

"If you are here because you want me to work for your company, then I must apologize. I'm not interested," she rose to her feet and both men did as well.

 She hung the bag on her shoulder and asked with an incredulous look. "Are you planning to follow me?"

"Not at all," Roberto kept on his friendly look, although his patience was now starting to thin.

Why didn't she let him finish?

Lily fished out her android phone from one of her bag's inner pockets and quickly answered the call, her expression turning stern, "I'll be right there in a few minutes,"

Putting her phone away, she turned to Roberto, "I appreciate you coming to see me, but what you're asking for is impossible. The one who gave information about my arrival in this land should have also told you that I'm signing a deal with Fawn Corporation tomorrow. My integrity isn't for sale. Please, have a nice day, I have somewhere to go,"

Roberto was left transfixed in his spot the moment he heard her revelation. Still he didn't want to give up just yet.

"Can I do the honours of dropping you off at least?" He offered after rushing to catch up with her.

"My ride is already waiting outside. I appreciate your good intentions but please stop wasting your breath, time and energy on me, ex,"

With that she sashayed away, the clicks of her heels resonating in the almost empty lounge.

It took him a minute to realize what she said at the end of her sentence.

"Ex..." he mumbled and then... his eyes widened.

No wonder he found her familiar.

She was his ex-wife?!

At that moment, he made a break for the lounge's exit, hoping to catch up to her but when he got out, he couldn't find even her shadow.

His secretary was puzzled as to why his boss was acting like this. Clearly, their target already stated she wouldn't work for them.

His boss' action could be likened to asking a dead lion to growl.

Still, he chased after his boss, silently cursing Lily under his breath. Why didn't she just shoo them away from the start instead of frittering their time?

Roberto rushed to the parking lot, only to find his ex-wife seated in the backseat of a black maybach.

"Lily!" he called out desperately as he rushed in the vehicle's direction. On seeing him, the latter quickly wind up the car's tinted window and told the man in the driver's seat to move the car.

Roberto had almost reached his destination, only for the car to zoom past him. If he didn't get out of the way on time, he would have been hit.

His assistant finally caught up to him, panting, "Boss, why chase after her?" he probed.

"Because... she is someone I know. Someone important. A treasure I had foolishly casted away," Roberto replied, his tone heavily laced with a meld of guilt, regret and longing.

He had ditched the pearl for a fish eye and now, he was enduring the aftermath.

He didn't return to the office. Back there, he couldn't concentrate on his work and now that he had seen Lily again, he was surer that he would push those documents off his desk and probably ruin a few expensive items to vent his frustration.

"Fawn Corporation is really despicable," the secretary commented unhappily, "They already had her to themselves. Why ask us to try convincing her to sign with us? Was it to show their supremacy or that they have no use for us?"

"Whichever is the case, I won't let things slide," Roberto swore, clenching his teeth.

Upon reaching home, he found his wife waiting for him in the living room, seated on the red couch with a ugly and menacing look on her pretty face.

She had her arms crossed before her chest and also had her right leg placed over the other.

Upon catching sight of him, she immediately rose from the couch, ready to unleash a barrage of vitriolic words on him but he unexpectedly beat her to speech.

"I'm not in the mood for an argument right now, honey. Whatever you want to say, please, I beg you, keep it bottled up for later," With that said he made his way up the spiral staircase, his hand placed on the handrail.

However, his wife wasn't intent on letting things be. She charged up the stairs, the  clatter of her footwear reverberating across the living room.

Roberto, who was in the midst of changing, got a bit startled when the door was suddenly kicked open and a raging Miriam entered the bedroom.

He frowned but didn't say anything as he continued undoing the buttons of his white shirt, suddenly finding them a hassle.

"Roberto, are you even a man?" she barked, her chest heaving.

"You well know the answer," he replied in a calm tone,"

"Why are you so deadset on embarrassing me, huh?" she interrogated, walking closer to him.

"Why can't you understand? That money is a lot, and you aren't even going to use it on anything beneficial," he reasoned.

"So you're calling me stupid and a spendthrift? Where is the man who gave me a grand wedding back then? Coz all I see right now a lazy, lying weakling," she ranted.

Roberto facepalmed, feeling a headache coming on.

Should he have just gone to the bar and gotten worse for the drink before coming home?

"Honey, please stop this. I did nothing to deserve these insults,"

"Do you know my mates out there now look down on me? The last charity we attended, others donated millions and even one of my friends in addition to funds, also donated a necklace that cost 5 million to the orphanage. But what did we donate?" She held up two fingers before continuing with her complaint, "Two million. Just a paltry two million that isn't even enough to buy anything worthwhile for those poor souls. Do you know how sad, embarrassed and depressed I was? I gave up my successful career for you, have you forgotten?"

"Miriam, I was never against your work. You were the one who decided to be a full-time housewife and I agreed since that's what you wanted," Roberto pointed out.

"Roberto, I well know you're having an affair outside, misappropriating company funds for so long. If find out who that woman is, believe me, I'll make her wish she was never born," she threatened and then turned to leave.

But at the room's threshold, she stopped in her tracks and turned to look at him. "You have just two hours to fetch me the money or else, consider it over between us,"

After saying that, she slammed the door shut behind her.

Roberto had his lower jaws set, hands fisted by his sides and his eyes barely contained his rage.

This was the woman he fell in love with? She only cared about herself, not an ounce about him.

He nodded sagely, "Very well, if that's what you want,"

Then he made a beeline for the bathroom and slammed the door hard.