He had actually called her here to…apologize?
As Liz slowly tried to come to comprehend what was going on, she opened her mouth to try and explain what had happened in the ladies' room.
Yet, the CEO who had been fuming with anger and disgust on his face after shouting those words spoke again.
He seemed to have gotten a grip on his rage, as his voice was now as cold as ice.
"Don't bother. Just…don't speak. If I see you try something like this again, you will be fired. I'll see you at work tomorrow."
Saying so, the CEO walked out of the room without hesitation and banged the door shut behind him.
Sliding down to the ground with the wall as support, Liz stared blankly at the door.
He had just…left like that?!
Why the hell had he reacted like this?
Who would have this kind of reaction the moment they saw someone wearing such clothes?!
From his eyes itself, Liz could tell that he thought of her as a slut who wanted to sleep with him for his money.
This thought itself made her feel dirty, causing her to hold her knees and rock to and fro as she tried to calm down and think about what to do next.
For whatever reason, she had been tricked into this situation. Clearly, the perpetrators had known that the CEO would react like this.
This was the only thing that became clear to Liz as she tried to analyze what had happened.
After all, it couldn't be a coincidence that the dress had torn so perfectly as to transform her into someone who could be construed in that way by the CEO.
Yet, her mind couldn't process things after this point.
The pain was still too raw, and Liz tried to hold in the tears because she knew that she would break down completely if she let them flow.
The damn man hadn't even given her any chance to explain!
Hell, even if he had, Liz guessed that he would just have treated her words as an excuse to get back into his good graces.
Shaking her heard again vigorously, Liz tried to order her thoughts.
She was now alone in this place, and there was no way that she would even consider walking out in this state.
Even though she might have attempted it if she were in a different mood, the CEO's look was still fresh in her mind. There was no way that she would be able to handle more similar looks from those on the way.
At this moment of complete distress and hopelessness, a handsome face and a name sprung up in her head.
Luke.
Scrambling forward on the floor, Liz reached her bag on the table before wrinkling her nose due to the awful smell of the maggot cheese.
The memory of their conversation before she had gone to the ladies' room only served to bring back the pain she felt, as she tried to resist once again the thought about what could have happened if things didn't turn out this way.
Calling Luke, she finally saw a ray of sunlight in the clouds of darkness as she heard him pick up on the first ring.
'What's up?"
His voice seemed to have a power that gave her the strength to control her feelings and speak coherently.
She had someone she could depend on, like the strong foundation of a building that would keep it standing when all else failed.
"I need you to get me a dress from my house and pick me up at Les Avantis on 63rd Street. Don't ask questions, I'll explain when you get here. Call me when you enter, I'll ask someone to guide you to me."
After a pause, Luke just said, "Got it."
Sighing with relief and hanging up, Liz held herself again as she tried to forget the CEO's face that kept popping up in her head again and again.
They would pay. Whoever had put her in this position would pay, she thought to herself, while an expression of vehemence came on her face.
…..
Meanwhile, in the limousine that had pulled up in front of the restaurant to pick the CEO up.
After pressing a button to bring up the barrier between the driver and passenger sections, Will looked out the window while trying to fight the memories that had dredged up due to what he had just witnessed in the private booth.
Cassandra.
As he remembered this name, emotions that he had buried deep in his heart started to peek out.
Attraction.
Desire.
Trust.
And then betrayal.
As he tightened his fist so hard that blood started to flow from his palm, Will opened his mouth and screamed soundlessly, feeling the pain that had once destroyed him return to wreck him again.