Wooing The Ex-Wife

Chapter 5: Arrangements

Liza entered her apartment, taking in the pictures adorning the wall, the black rug that Carson had

brought for her when he had gone to Russia, the warm beige couches and instantly felt relaxed. She

had moved out from Carson's and Melanie's apartment after a year of getting job. They had never

made her feel unwelcomed but she knew that like every other couple they needed their own privacy

and their own space. So she had moved out and had bought this apartment. It seemed to be perfect for

her. It was a cozy two bedroom apartment. Liza had spent last three years making the apartment. Her

apartment was now a symbol that she was independent, that she didn't need to depend on anyone.

She was proud of all of her achievements and making a home for herself in California was one of them.

She took in a deep breath and let her shoulders relax. Her mind unwinding from the events of the

previous day. She had expected a chaotic wedding, it was Krista's wedding after all but she hadn't

expected to meet Jonathan and neither had she expected to get drunk enough to pass out. She closed

the door behind her and started removing her dress. After changing into a long T-Shirt probably

belonging to Alex, she lied down on the bed her face hitting the pillow and her body sinking into the soft

mattress.

She turned over so that she was on her back now and laid there staring at the stars that Carson and

Alex had helped her to stick on the ceiling. The Glow in dark stars were childish and she knew that but

she didn't mind the little bit of childishness in her life. She had spent too much time acting like a grown

up, being mature about things, keeping quite when she should have thrown a tantrum or should have

raised hell. The glow in dark stars reminded her that sometimes you have to demand things, you have

to be stubborn and you have to keep your life simple and not overthink things just like a kid does.

Liza realized now that maybe somethings that had gone down between her and Jonathan had been her

fault as well. Had she been more trusting towards him, more open about her past, they would have

been in a different place. Maybe he would have come to her to discuss his problems, maybe he would

have told her about the kiss with Stacy. Had she been more independent then she would not have

depended on Jonathan like he was her lifeline. She would have found a way to survive.

It was funny in a way, the love she had craved for all her life, had been given to her and then had been

snatched away just as quickly. She had spent more than a year to make herself trust Jonathan, to

remove the suspicion that was always there in the back of her mind and when she had finally gotten rid

of it and was convinced that what she and Jonathan had would stay the same forever she had found

out that nothing stays frozen in time, people change and their feelings change too.

Maybe Jonathan had loved her when he claimed to do so, four years back but she had realized that

she could never look at him in the same way., that whenever he would go to some trip leaving her

behind she would always worry if he was replacing her with someone else that night and she could not

live with that agony for the rest of her life. So she left him. After four years she thought that she was

finally over him but now after seeing him again even if it was only for a few minutes, all the feelings that

had been buried had risen again.

All the feelings of anger, stinging betrayal, and her love that had kept her from leaving him for so long

had made a reappearance and now her mind was in chaos. She wanted to treat the encounter with

indifference, just like she wished to treat Jonathan, like a stranger but she couldn't do it. She

remembered how her heart beat had increased when she had seen him and how her skin had

suddenly become hot when he had held her hand even if it was just for a second.

Her mind replayed every single moment of their encounter and she continued to think about what if's in

her life that she would never find answers too. It had been hours and Liza was still in her bed , her eyes

wide open as she picked apart ever single moment , thinking what she could have done differently,,

how she could have reacted differently, more professionally, till she realized what she had been doing .

She was freaking out over a chance meeting. She was freaking out, worrying over Jonathan, one thing

she had promised never to do again. She wanted to stop it but she found herself to be unable to do so.

So, she decided that she was allowed to freak out over her encounter for one day, just for today.

Tomorrow she would go back to the calm and collected Liza that she pretended to be in front of

everyone.

Jonathan grinned as he fixed his tie. He was finally signing the deal. Initially he had planned on

refusing Leslie's proposal but after seeing Liza he decided that it didn't matter if the deal was risky or

could cost him millions if he got a chance to get Liza back. He looked in the mirror and was startled to

see a little sparkle in his eyes. It had been four years since he had gotten ex cited over anything and it

was startling to see that just seeing Liza again could bring such a change in him. He walked out of his

condo and into the softly lit hallway. He saw Leslie's car parked outside as he walked to the front door

of the building.

He dimmed his smile as he walked towards the car, making it barely noticeable and his eyes lost their

warmth as he put on hi business man mask. He had learned through his experience that it is best not to

show emotions while conducting business. He had learned to keep his face in an expressionless like it

was made of stone. It had been difficult at first but after Liza had left it became easier. It became

natural to him and his face grew more and more expressionless, his hear grew colder little by little. He

did not lose who he was but he simply learned to control himself and put on façade of a ruthless

businessman.

The chauffeur opened the gate and revealed a grinning Leslie. Jonathan could tell that her smile wasn't

real. "It's a pleasure to see you Mr. West" she said her smile dripping with insincerity. "Same here Ms.

Santiago" Jonathan replied giving her a saccharine smile of his own. Both of them knew that neither of

them would hesitate to cut down another if it came to their own survival and this was what made any

deal between them work. The car stopped outside a beautiful restaurant. "Let's seal our deal while

having a wonderful dinner shall we" Leslie said. "Of course Ms. Santiago". Soon they were seated at

their table and the first course of their dinner had been served. "I am curious Mr. West, Why did you put

the condition that Ms. Nestor will have to assist you in heading this branch and why choose this

branch?." Leslie asked. "Not that any it's any of your business Ms. Santiago but I will still answer your

question. I believe that Ms. Nestor is extremely good at what she does and since this is my first venture

in field of publishing." Jonathan answered tersely.

He did not want anyone to especially Leslie to know about the history he shared with Liza and so he

decided to be as terse about it as possible. "Of course it is my business Mr. West. Liza is my best

employee." Leslie said and Jonathan realized that however shrewd business woman Leslie seemed to

be, she definitely cared for Liza. "Don't worry Ms. Santiago Ms. Nestor would be working under a good Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org

boss? Surely, you don't doubt my skills, do you?" he replied flashing her a charming smile. "I don't

doubt you skill Mr. west, in fact I am very much confident about your skills and this is what worries me

the most" Leslie muttered.

Liza woke up around seven in the evening. The sky outside was a mix of orange and blue giving it a

unique glow. She had slept through the whole day and now her whole body was aching from stiffness.

Liza cracked her neck as she made her way out of the room and into the kitchen. She poured a glass

of ice cold water for herself and started deciding upon what she would make for dinner. Her stomach

was growling with hunger, so she decided to skip the tedious process of making a proper dinner and

simply ordered a Pizza. As she put down the phone after ordering Pizza, she realized that tomorrow

she would have to go office.

Usually she loved going to office, even if it was hectic and sometimes Leslie could be a pain but still

she loved her Job and enjoyed doing it but today she just wished that she had one more day to relax,

to not deal with the drama of daily life. she never realized that when she was groaning at the thought of

the office, on the other end of the city there was Jonathan who had finally signed the deal and was

softly smiling to himself, half listening to Leslie talk about all the great things their company's would do

together while thinking about the seeing the woman he loved again.