“Congratulations!” I tell Zed as I walk over to him, a smile plastered on my face.
My heart jumps when a set of tender eyes meet mine. That’s how he used to look at me before.
“Thank you, dear,” he says, my heart warming to that endearment again. I swear I’m already on the verge of throwing my arms around his neck.
“The company is five years already, you said it. Why haven’t I heard about that before?”
I try raising another question to dispel the awkwardness, not realizing I’m bringing up a more intimate topic. It’s still three years since we separated, so it means we were together when Zed’s partnership with The Quartet started.
“I only gave motivations. But then, I just woke up one day and found myself becoming one of them.”
I love how his eyes shine when he explains. And I feel so silly for noticing it only now. Zed deserves more than what he has gained today because those powerful words that come out of his mouth have motivated thousands of souls who have already stopped believing that something good can happen in their lives.
I wave at Ella, acknowledging her presence. And dear, she looks so stunning as she stands smiling beside Zed!
“Hi, Miss Yen, Mr. Mori! Glad to meet you again today,” Ella says, her hand crawling into Zed’s arms. Zed also throws her a loving gaze.
“Glad to meet you, too. By the way, I hope you have made up your mind about the offer already.”
Ella presses a sweet smile before she answers. “Thanks again for the offer, Mr. Mori. Zed and I are still going to discuss it properly, but we will get back to you as soon as possible.”
“Sure. You have this whole month to consider,” Kim replies.
We both return to our seats as the next speaker comes up the stage. And to divert my thoughts away from Zed, I pull out my phone from my bag.
I scan the messages on my social media app and look for Ara’s name. Thankfully, she’s online, so I start sending her a message.
“Ar, where are you?”
“At work. Why?”
“Just learned that Zed is one of the shareholders of The Quartet. Do you know about that?”
“Of course! His company creates our new website.”
“What?” I almost gasp loudly. Why does everyone know about it except me?
“My goodness, Yen. He’s your ex-husband, and you don’t know about that?”
“That’s one of the downsides about him. He keeps secrets.”
“He keeps secrets, or you’re too busy to care about his activities?”
“What do you mean?” I frown at her message. It looks like she’s accusing me.
“Yen, you were Zed’s world. Everything he did was for you. He saw to it that your needs and wants are all attended. But how many times have you asked how he was? What his activities were?”
“Or, if he had started telling you, would you have listened?”
My hands shake after reading her messages. Because Ara is right. I never cared to know his whereabouts because I dwelt more on his weakness and in search of who I was.
I leave Ara’s question unanswered. I don’t want to get more emotional than I am now. I might break down in front of the crowd. To shift my mood, I type Dr. Mitch’s name.
“Where are you now?” I begin typing, then hit the sending icon. She’s not online, but I’m hoping she just turned off her visibility.
To my surprise and relief, her instant reply pops up.
“In a hotel, attending an event.”
“Really? What’s the event?” I ask. It was just a few moments ago since we agreed to meet.
“Founding Anniversary of my friend Aliyah’s company.”
Dear skies! What a small world!
“Where are you? I’m in the front, but I need someone to talk to.” I add emojis to let her know how desperate I am. I feel so sick at the sight of the lovey-dovey couple in front of me. Why do we have to stay together in one place?
“At the back portion. Let’s meet at XYZ’s Coffee Shop on the ground floor.”
Oh, really? Zed’s coffee shop has a branch here?
I excuse myself and tell Kim that I’m meeting Dr. Mitch on the ground floor.
“She’s here?” Kim asks, but his brows pull into a frown. I can tell Kim suspects that I’m uncomfortable having Zed and Ella around. However, he does not expose me.
“Yes. She says she’s going to introduce me to her friend Aliyah Torres.”
“Okay. Shall I walk you to the exit?” Kim offers.
The wind has perhaps blown from the west. Because he’s no longer that sweet after three years of being together. I know I am the only woman in Kim’s life, but we’re past the honeymoon stage already. So, those sweet nothings are no longer necessary all the time.
“No, it’s alright.”
Dr. Mitch’s grin has already reached her ears as soon as she sees me entering the coffee shop.
“What’s your drama this time?” she says as soon as I take my seat across from her.
I tell Mitch about Zed’s status in The Quartet right away. And I also tell her about my discomfort in seeing my ex-husband and his lover cuddling each other.
“No idea about it before? So unbelievable! Yen, The Quartet is already the country’s top IT Solution company. They’re even starting to penetrate the global market.” I almost choked at her words. That only shows I never cared about Zed’s success before.
To change the subject, I ask another question. “Are you saying you are friends with Miss Aliyah Torres?”
“Very close friends. I even know how head-over-heels in love she is with Zed. She’s even hoping that their partnership will bring them closer together. And honestly, I want them together.”
I freeze at her words. Great women are falling for Zed while I left him twice. I hadn’t lost my memory yet when I met and married Kim in Japan. What people say about finding the person’s true worth only when they are lost is true after all.
On the other hand, I think I already know why Miss Aliyah Flores never comes out in public with an escort.
“But Zed has Ella already.”
“Are they for real? I don’t think so. Although, they are on the sexual stage already.”
My eyes fly wide. Sex. Why on earth does Mitch know?
“Zed took Ella to the clinic this morning for a prenatal checkup. And Zed even confesses they had sex before they came.”
“What?” Zed never talked about sex. It’s a flaw he’s never willing to admit, even with me. So how come he openly mentioned it to her?
“Yes, dear.”
“Dr. Mitch, you know about his flaw, don’t you?”
“Of course. But maybe Ella is open-minded about that because Zed looked so comfortable when he brought it up. He even asked about safe positions…”
Dr. Mitch stops when she senses the signs of discomfort registering on my face. At this moment, I feel shame and regret. I was never a good wife to Zed. I only cared about sexual satisfaction and not on valuable traits.
Fate seems to tease me because I see Zed entering the coffee shop when I look up. He smiles and nods at us before he walks in our direction.
“Hi, ladies! Thanks for coming to my coffee shop.”
“It’s a pleasure, Zed. By the way, congratulations!”
“Oh, thank you,” he chuckles, reaching for Dr. Mitch’s hand. “By the way, I need to talk to my manager about something important.”
“By the way, Zed, I won’t take you long. But may I know why the name is XYZ?” I look at Zed, then back to Mitch. I get curious as well.
“X stands for our baby’s name. Before, Yen and I had planned to give her or him a name that starts with the letter X. Y is Yen, then Z is Zedrich.”
Zed and Mitch burst out laughing while I feel like fainting. I was Zed’s world indeed.
When Zed is about to enter his private space, I suddenly scramble to my feet and run after him. I manage to push the door open again before it closes.
“Yen?” he exclaims; his brows raise in a questioning look.
I pause for a while to look into his eyes. Then, I grab his chin and plant my lips over his. He freezes, but I don’t mind. I continue my desperate and hungry kiss, prompting him to respond as I probe my tongue into his mouth.
I glance at his broad chest, and a strange feeling engulfs me. I suddenly want to snuggle on his chest. But why only now? And why do his lips are not as delicious as now?”
“Yen?” he says, trying to push me away gently. “What’s wrong?”
I don’t know what’s happening with me, but I can’t help myself from breaking into a loud sob.
“I want you back!” I mutter in between my sniffs. “I’m sorry I was not a good wife to you. And for seeing your worth only now.”
He steps back and looks at me like I am out of my mind. He then shakes his head and says,
“Dear, I’m sorry. You were my life before. But things have changed already. Ella and I are going to have a child soon.”
“Do you even love her?” I know I am foolish to ask this.
“Of course. More than I ever did with you.”