*THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO "Mich34". THANKS FOR THE LOVE AND SUPPORT. *
Ezra quietly opened the front door to his house and stepped inside, trying his best to remain as inconspicuous as possible. He had spent the previous night with his lover Sophia, and he needed to change his clothes before heading back to work. As he tiptoed through the living room, he suddenly heard a voice behind him.
"Where the hell have you been?"
Ezra whirled around to find Shasa standing in front of him, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. He swallowed hard, trying to think of a plausible excuse, but he knew that Shasa could see right through him.
"I, uh, I had to work late," he stammered.
Shasa's eyes narrowed. "Don't lie to me, Ezra. I called you last night and you didn't answer. I even tried texting you, but you didn't respond."
Ezra felt his stomach drop. He had turned off his phone during his time with Sophia, and he had completely forgotten about Shasa's calls and texts.
"I'm sorry," he said, trying to sound contrite. "I didn't mean to worry you."
Shasa's expression softened slightly, but she still looked angry. "Where were you, Ezra? And who were you with?"
Ezra hesitated for a moment, wondering whether he should tell Shasa the truth. However, he knew he didn't love her and doesn't care if the truth hurts her.
"I was with Sophia," he said finally. "My secretary."
Shasa's eyes widened in shock. "Your secretary? You're sleeping with your secretary?"
Ezra winced, knowing how bad it sounded. "It's not like that, Shasa. We just...we have a connection. And things just sort of happened."
Shasa shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe you would do this to me, Ezra. After everything we've been through," she said as she pulled Ezra by his shirt.
"Shasa, please," he said, his voice pleading. "Can we just talk about this calmly? I don't want us to fight."
But Shasa was relentless, her anger simmering just below the surface. "No, Ezra," she snapped. "I want answers. I want to know why you thought it was okay to cheat on me with your secretary. Do you even care about our relationship?"
Ezra felt his patience slipping away, his irritation growing with each passing second. He grabbed her and slapped her across the face. The force of the blow made Shasa stumble backwards, and she felt tears prickling at the corners of her eyes. She wiped her tears and then attacked Ezra. Ezra gave her several blows and kicked her. Shasa fell to the floor in pain.
Ezra turned on his heel and stormed out of the house, leaving Shasa in pain. She was covered with bruises and blood.
Ezra stormed into the office, his mind still consumed with anger and frustration. As he walked through the halls, he could feel the stares of his staff on him. He knew that he must look a mess, with his hair dishevelled and his clothes wrinkled and stained with Shasa's blood. He had been unable to change into fresh clothes after his fight with Shasa, and the evidence of the altercation was still visible on his face.
He tried to ignore the whispers and glances, but he could feel his anger growing with each passing moment. He made his way to his office, slamming the door behind him and throwing himself into his chair.
Ezra was already in a state of distress when Sophia rushed into his office with a grave look on her face. "Ezra, I just got off the phone with our largest client, and they're pulling out of their deal with us. And it's not just them, all of our investors are doing the same," she said, her voice laced with concern.
Ezra felt his heart sink. This was the last thing he needed right now. He knew that the company was already in a precarious position, and losing their biggest client and investors would be a disaster. "What? Why?" he asked, trying to maintain some level of composure.
Sophia shook her head. "I don't know the details yet, but there have been some rumours circulating about us. About our financial stability and the way, we conduct business. It's all over social media, and it's spreading like wildfire," she explained.
Ezra felt a sense of panic rising within him. He had worked so hard to build up the company. He even invested part of the money he got from selling Hailey's properties and now it was all at risk. He couldn't bear the thought of losing everything he had worked for. "We need to do something. We need to stop this from spreading any further," he said, his voice shaking with emotion.
Sophia nodded. "I know. I've already started damage control. I've been reaching out to our clients and investors, trying to reassure them that everything is under control. But it didn't work, the last Client I spoke to said we offended a business Mogul," she explained.
"Who could that be," Ezra asked. "I don't know Ezra, I tried getting the client to tell me but he refused," Sophia let out.