NOVEL NEXT Chapter 441 Trust in Ace
Chapter 441 Trust in Ace
“Just trust me, Rina. Everything will be fine. I’ll be back in the office this evening…” Ace said, and I knew that he was quickly running out of time that he could spend with me on the phone.
He’s going to hang up soon and I couldn’t find a valid excuse to stop him from getting back to his work. Ace had asked me to trust him. Although I couldn’t bring myself to absolutely place my trust in Jeremy, I didn’t have an excuse for not placing my complete trust in Ace.
“I’ll be waiting for you in your office,” I replied simply.
“Thank you,” Ace said softly.
The line went dead, and my arm dropped down loosely like it had suddenly lost all strength. The mobile phone that I had in my hand suddenly felt so heavy, just like the burdens that I carried on my shoulders. After taking a few steps back toward my project room where Richard and loads of work was waiting for me, I suddenly decided to turn around and headed for the woman’s toilets instead to piece myself back together.
When I returned to my work desk in the project room, I had gathered myself together enough to appear calm even though I felt like I was going mad on the inside. Richard glanced over at me as I sat back down on my seat. I could feel his eyes on me for a few seconds, but he did not say anything to me. There were times just like these when I was thankful that Richard wasn’t a nosy or talkative person. In a way, that stoic attitude of his also meant that he gave me plenty of personal space without butting in.
me or give me a call. Everything seemed normal and calm and that scared me more than anything. Each time I glanced over at the The day passed by so slowly and my body almost jumped from panic each time my phone screen lit up and vibrated to notify me that I had received a message. I was scared that Jeremy would text me or give me a call. Everything seemed normal and calm and that scared me more than anything. Each time I glanced over at the door, it felt like I was expecting that same lady from the committee to walk to summon me.
“I’m heading out first,” Richard informed me after we had both stayed after work for a couple of hours.
Richard was working on something that seemed important while I was just there because I needed to wait for Ace to come back to the office that evening. While Richard undoubtedly got a lot of work done, I failed to concentrate on anything and as a result I was completely unproductive. I hoped that Richard hadn’t noticed the condition that I was in.
“Ok. Have a safe trip back home,” I replied while trying to sound cheerful.
“Karina…” Richard called my name softly.
“Do you need something?” I asked when I turned around to find him staring down at me.
He was about to walk away from our desk, and he had his laptop bag with him already. I wondered what he needed because I didn’t like seeing the worried expression on his face. The first thought that entered my head was that some big screw up must have happened at work, and I might be the one responsible.
“You know, if you really didn’t do anything wrong, you don’t need to worry about things so much…” Richard said before nodding his head slightly at me.
The very passive and emotionless way that he said it made me unsure if I was hearing him correctly and whether he was trying to comfort me or not. It felt like there was a click and then a lightbulb lit up in my mind when I realized that this must be his way of trying to cheer me up.
“Right. Thank you…” I managed to say after recovering from my shock.
“Good. I’m off…” he declared.
I watched him walk away and out of the room with raised eyebrows. Suddenly, my phone vibrated on the table in front of me and I didn’t have enough time to dwell on Richard’s words anymore. A hollow feeling formed in my chest when I thought that Jeremy might be calling me; however, one look at my phone screen brought me much needed relief.
“Ace…” I whispered.
“I’m in my office. Where are you?” he asked.
“I’ll be right there. Please wait for me,” I quickly replied before hanging up.
My hands automatically reached to grab my handbag and I was out of the door as fast as I could. It felt like my body could take me to Ace’s office by reflex and I arrived there in no time at all. Little did I know back then that a super big surprise was waiting for me in Ace’s office.
Since it was after working hours and Ace was also expecting me, I didn’t bother knocking on the door before entering his office. My body froze in place when I saw that Ace wasn’t the only person sitting on the large sofa set that he had in his office.
“You’re here,” Ace said when he saw me.
“Yes…” I replied in a soft whisper.
My entire body suddenly felt very cold, and my fingers and lower lip had started to go numb. Although I wanted to look away, my eyes kept on staring at the other person sitting opposite Ace on the sofa.
“Come and join us, Rina,” Ace instructed before showing me a warm smile.
It took a lot of effort for me to move my feet forward. I approached the sofa before taking a seat while my mind raced to figure out how things could have turned out this way. Despite trying my best to ignore it, I could feel the eyes of our guest on me. I sat down while wondering if Ace had planned this all along or if it was just some crazy coincidence. What was happening was beyond even my wildest imagination. It felt like my effort of trying to avoid my trouble had all been for naught.
I mean, why is Jeremy here of all people?!
--To be continued…