“Who are you?”
I was puzzled and could not figure out who the caller was.
“I’m Ronan. Have you forgotten me, Ms. Garcia?”
Ronan, who was on the other end of the line, was somewhat disappointed after knowing that I could not recognize him.
“Oh, it’s you. I didn’t forget about you. It’s just that it’s out of my expectations that you’ll call me out of the blue.”
Ronan’s unforgettable looks could fight that of Michael’s, so I would never forget him. But then, I did not expect that he would call me.
I thought I would never meet him again. Who knew he would call me just after a few days.
To be honest, I disliked men who were like Ronan. Even though it was undeniable that he was handsome and had a sunny boy kind of vibe, he had always given me the impression that he was flippant.
He looked like an irresponsible young lad, which was the extreme opposite of the type of man I would like—mature and steady.
“It took me great difficulty to get your number, so how is it possible for me to not contact you? I’m very enthusiastic when it comes to calling pretty ladies.”
Ronan’s voice from the other side of the phone was starting to get frivolous.
Instantly, I frowned as I disliked the way he talked.
“Why did you call me for?” I asked plainly.
“Well, I would like to ask a pretty lady like you out for dinner.”
Ronan’s voice sounded from the other end of the line once again, but this time his words only got me more furious.
Isn’t it unchivalrous for a man to tell a lady such words when he has only seen her twice?
“I don’t have time today, so I’m afraid we can’t meet.”
In my mind, I had already labeled Ronan as a playboy. As such, I instinctively rejected his invitation.
“Ms. Garcia, you rejected me without thinking. That hurts me so much; I’m really disappointed,” continued Ronan after pausing for a while.
“I’m sorry, but I really have something on tonight.”
Since I decided not to have any form of relationship with Ronan, I rejected him outright.
I knew this playboy’s reason for calling me very well. Other than not having any interest in him, I figured I should not do anything inappropriate given my current relationship with Michael.
“All right, I won’t insist since you said that. But I hope you’ll not turn me down next time.”
Hearing my response, Ronan did not press the topic any further.
“Goodbye then.”
I heaved a sigh of relief and hung up the phone after saying that.
Apart from our first meet, Ronan had always been very frivolous. Although he was very handsome, I did not have good feelings toward him. I preferred men who had a mature and staid appearance, albeit they might not be the same on the inside. Michael was the exact example of that.
When I returned to Birchwood, Michael was not home yet. Then, I recalled the text message he sent me earlier, yet could not wrap my mind around why he had asked me to wait for him at the parking lot.
I shook my head and did not want to think about anything related to Michael. Because of him, I already had a hard time in the company, so I did not want anyone else to know about my relationship with him.
If that colleague called Tiffany knew that I had slept with Michael for more than once, won’t she be so furious that she lost her mind?
I was in the kitchen busily preparing for dinner that night. After a long while, I heard the sounds of the knob twisting and the door opening, and Michael walked in after.
As soon as he saw me, his expression instantly turned grim as his gaze glinted with anger.
“You’re at home?” he uttered as he came over to my side. There was a hint of fury in his tone.
“Of course I’m at home. Where else can I be at this hour if I’m not home?”
I forced a smile on my face as a sense of guilt rose in me while I looked at Michael.
He must’ve asked me that because of that text message.
“Didn’t I tell you to wait for me at the parking lot? Why did you come back first?”
After hearing my reply, Michael’s expression froze. He strode toward me as his eyes were blazing with growing rage that it was as though he wanted to burn me to ashes.
“Message? What message?” I pretended to be confused as I felt a shiver down my spine.
“What do you mean? Anna, don’t tell me you didn’t receive the message I sent you?”
I thought I would be able to bluff my way out. However, Michael appeared to be even angrier after I said that.
“I really don’t know what message you’re referring to. When did you send me a message?”
Faced with his stern looks, I could not bring myself to look into his eyes. I was panicking deep inside.
“Don’t try to use your petty tricks on me, Anna!” Michael snorted before leaving for the room.
I was flustered when I saw him leaving. Hesitated at the thought of how I was the target of my colleagues in the office that morning, I called and stopped him from heading out.
“Umm… I have something to tell you.”
To avoid being constantly targeted by my colleagues, I decided to clear up the air with Michael.
“What?”
He stopped in his tracks and turned to me while still looking cold and indifferent.
“From today onward, can we not have any other contact or meet up outside this house? I don’t want to let too many people know about our relationship.” After a moment of silence, I decided to tell him what was on my mind.
The reason I could put my words out in a tone devoid of guilt and shame was that I thought Michael would agree to my suggestion since he was just unwilling to let others learn about our relationship as well, just like me.
“Is this what you wanted to tell me?”
He narrowed his eyes as he stood in his original spot. The surge of coldness sprang from the depth of his eyes that I instantly felt a drop in the room temperature.
“I know you don’t want others to know about our relationship too. Since we have the same thought in mind, we should act like we don’t know each other when we’re outside,” I reiterated while looking into Michael’s eyes, even though I could not decipher why he was so furious.
“To you, my presence is really that embarrassing?” He stared at me and popped the question after a long time. I was confident that those words I had said were out of goodwill for both of us. However, his reaction to my reply seemed to show that he was really annoyed.
