A month later, the conference date finally arrived. Rayla ordered a taxi to take her to the Airport to meet the rest of the team there, so she wanted to get there early before the others to ensure everyone arrived on time and everyone boarded the plane.
"Laura…" Brad asked her softly. "Yeah?" Rayla responded as she prepared her luggage for the trip. "Want a lift to the airport?" Brad asked her softly as he embraced her back kindly. "No its' alright, I got a taxi coming to pick me up in twenty minutes. Now, you got the list I sent you with my emergency contact information yes?" Rayla asked Brad kindly embracing his face. Brad nodded his head, "Yes, yes and double yes, got it." Brad said following her through the house hallways to the front door as she prepared to leave for the conference.
"Rachel…" Rayla said as she got on one knee and hugged her tightly, "Be a good girl for daddy, ok?" Rayla told their daughter. "Ok…" Rachel replied innocently. Rayla smiled and kissed her forehead softly.
Suddenly, her taxi arrives, "Brad…" Rayla said softly as she hugged her husband and daughter goodbye for her trip for a couple of days. "See you both in a few days." Rayla said kindly and left them there as they watched her drive off, then they went back inside. Brad felt so alone when his wife was not there, although he had his daughter. Feeling the house without her presence really made him miss her.
Meanwhile, on the plane, Rayla opens her laptop and sends her final emails and her PA sits next to her. "all ready?" Her PA asks. "Yeah, and how are you holding up, Mr. Blade?" Rayla asks him kindly as he sat across from her. "I hate flying…." He said looking out the window. Rayla chuckled and gave him a vomiting bag, "Just in case." she said as she winked at him then closed her laptop and looked out the window, watching the plane take off of the ground.
"Thanks." He replied taking a deep breath.
Rayla looked around at her boss and the rest of their team as they were in this together for this company conference.
As they arrive at the City Interstate Conference, they are taken to their accommodation, the men with the men, and the women with the women, to avoid any sexual harassment cases. Rayla had planned this out wisely to ensure no one would cause a sexual harassment case.
Rayla got her own room as she had requested and paid for it out of her own pocket and ensured her team were adequately looked after with their rooms individually.
Once everyone settled in, 6pm arrived and everyone dressed to impress for the evening and they attended the conference complex across the road from their hotel.
At the main event at the conference, just like any other conference, the routine was, guest speakers would get up and speak and then a presentation from each team. Rayla's presentation was about work place safety and anti-bullying. After she had finished presenting, it was time for Evan to get up and present his financial figures.
"He actually did a good job" Rayla thought to herself watching his presentation with her team at the conference. This conference was to strategize increasing financial figures for the next financial year by ten percent.
After all the presentations had ended, the boss got up and closed the first session and opened the festivities of the night time formal celebrations of a well-done year.
Everyone is taken to the dinning hall in a formal setting, dinner was served, and everyone ate to their hearts' content.
The dancefloor was opened, and everyone joined in the celebrations, except Laura, as she wasn't very much of a party person, per say. She decided to leave the party early and go back to her room at the hotel across the road from the conference, she wished everyone a good night until the next morning.
In her hotel room, she skyped her husband and their daughter. "Hi family." She smiled at them from the Skype. "Mommy! I miss you." Rachel waved at the camera on the computer. "Mommy misses you too baby, how is daddy?" Rayla asked softly. "Daddy is good." Brad replied behind Rachel sitting behind her, putting her on his lap to talk to Rayla via skype. "That's good, did you guys eat?" Rayla asked them kindly.
"Yes, we ate pizza" Rachel replied. "Normally they would scold me for that. Hypocrites!" She thought sarcastically within herself as she just stared at the computer screen with a mental blank, "Oh, that's good. Well enjoy your dinner you guys, I will be home in a few days. Talk soon. Love you both." She said to them on skype. "Goodnight…" Brad said to her before they turned off the skype session.
Rayla closed off her live screen and switched off her computer for the night as she took a deep breath, "Hypocrites…" She thought to herself. Brad, meanwhile, kept his computer screen on and looked at their old wedding photos to how his wife was now. "She has changed a lot…" Brad thought to himself.
Meanwhile, Laura, in her hotel room, opens the curtains and opens the door, walks out the balcony on her hotel room, with a cup of tea in her hand, overlooking the city. "I should bring Brad and Rachael here one day …" Rayla thought to herself.
The next day, her whole team presented a presentation at the conference to discuss the importance of work place relations and ensured awareness was made against work place bullying and random outbursts of anger.
That night was the final presentation of the boss as, as he stated, the best till last. His presentation was awards for outstanding performance of his employees, after everyone had received their rewards, he finally called Laura's and Evan's names as they both were sitting on opposite tables and both walked up to the stage to collect their awards for outstanding work place performance and ability to cope under pressure.
As they received their awards together, they looked like the ultimate power couple, performing well at work and they looked like they had it all together. "I want to thank you both for working for me and especially you, Laura, for training such an amazing team and for being so supportive to Mr. Blade, you have made an outstanding difference to our company and business, I look forward to seeing your skills increase in the future." Their boss said kindly to her, kissing her on the cheek in a friendly courtesy way and taking their photo together and presenting their award for outstanding work.
The evening continued in the celebrations, drinks and everyone partying hard to celebrate the year. Rayla wasn't a drinker however, so she would socialize to be friendly and after about an hour she decided to go back to her hotel room. Although Rayla was a professional strict person by nature, but deep inside, she was just a family woman who went to work, did her job, got paid and went home, sort of person.
As she walks out at about 11:50pm at night of the conference, she sees that the elevator was not working, so she decided to take the stairs. As she goes through the stairs to go down, she sees Evan sitting on the steps about half way down, looking intensely at his phone. "Congratulations, Mr. Blade on such an outstanding award, well done." She said kindly coming down the stairs, holding the railing.
Evan grasped for a moment, "Rayla…" He said as he got up from the steps, "You startled me" He laughed gently taking a deep breath. "I tend to have that effect on people haha" Rayla jokingly said. Evan smiled at her for a moment, "Want to walk with me for a bit?" Evan asked her softly. "Sure" Rayla smiled at him as they walked down the stairs together and arriving at ground floor, saying their goodnights to everyone as they walked out together and walked back to their hotel across the road.
As it was passed 12am, the elevators required a special key, "It's alright, I got this." Rayla said as she pulled out her card key and they both took the elevator back to their rooms. Evan glanced at her for a moment as she looked down at her phone.
"She is.... a beautiful woman I must say.... she is good at what she does, that's why she is still employed at the company.... She is truly remarkable..." he thought to himself.
Brad, drinking earlier, the alcohol had gotten to his system a little and began to have lustful thoughts towards her. His rational reasoning betrayed him as he couldn't control himself anymore around her. When they arrived at their floor, "Rayla, could you come to my room for a second? I just need you to check something on my presentation?" Evan asked her kindly, however being tired, Rayla never thought anything of it, "Alright, I will check it for you." She said kindly. As they walk in Evan's hotel room, he closed the door behind him and locks it quietly. "Oh, you got the king's room view huh, impressive." Rayla said impressed looking around, when suddenly she turned around and Evan was right behind her bumping into him, "Oh, sorry…" She said pulling her hands back to herself, when suddenly, Evan embraced her face, looking into her eyes tenderly, "Rayla…" He said as he loomed in and kissed her lips softly. Rayla was shocked and surprised for a moment and didn't have time to react to the situation. Suddenly, Rayla pushed him back for a moment, "Whoa, whoa, wait a minute cow boy, what are you doing?" Rayla questioned in confusion. "What's it look like?" Evan questioned her charmingly.
Rayla laughed in shock for a moment, "Look… obviously the alcohol is kicking in a little so I will leave you to rest and sober up…I will forget this ever happened if you don't bring it up ever again, this is a simple misunderstanding, you are intoxicated and I am sober so that says a lot here, I will be going now, Mr. Blade, just email me that presentation and I will look at it for you… Good evening…" She said and walked passed him to walk out the door.
She opens the door when suddenly, he comes behind her, and closes the door, locks it, embracing her shoulder and touching her skin tenderly yet so gently being behind her, "what if its not a misunderstanding … what if its… the real thing?" he asked her seductively. "What are you talking about? …." Rayla leered as she glanced at him behind her. "… are you… happy…?" He asked her tenderly as he embraced her shoulder whilst behind her. "What are you saying!?" Rayla grunted out of frustration, when all a suddenly, Evan turned her around and kissed her passionately, holding her hands up against the door as he kissed her passionately. "What... what is... happening right now?!" Rayla thought to herself as she didn't have time to react to the situation.
Meanwhile, Brad is trying to skype his wife from their home computer, but there is no answer and the mobile phone is saying she is not in range. "That's strange, she would normally pick up by now…" Brad said to himself suspiciously. "Something's wrong…." Brad thought to himself…