He sighed when he realized it was Claire, his sister.
"Why was she calling? This was really not the right time to talk about something insignificant," Alex thought angrily as he merely stared at the phone without attempting to pick up the call.
All Claire had done since the last time with Vanessa was just talk about Vanessa and he was tired of it all. He didn't want to talk about Vanessa, and he didn't want to argue with his sister either.
When the phone kept ringing, he decided to answer. If she was calling so persistently, it might be something important, he mused as he took the call.
"I thought you were avoiding my calls; where did you keep your phone? Didn't you hear it ring?" Claire questioned interrogatively, and Alex sighed.
"I was busy with some work. What's going on? Everything alright?" Alex asked going straight to the point.
"You were busy? That's fine. I just called to let you know that you have a date with Vanessa by 6:00 pm..."
"Date? What date?" He cut in as he raised a hand to his temple, where he was already feeling the start of a throbbing headache.
"A date with Vanessa by 6 pm. Make sure you show up for it. Otherwise, I will bring Vanessa to your house. You know me, and you definitely know what I'm capable of doing," Claire said with authority, her voice giving no room for argument.
Alex imagined the drama that would ensue if Claire brought Vanessa to the house and realized that Emma was staying with him.
There was already a lot going on, and the last thing he wanted was to add this to the list.
He gave a long, resigned sigh and said, "It's fine. I will be available for the date by 6:00 p.m."
"Good. We'll talk later. Take care," Claire concluded the call.
Although he knew nothing was going to come out of this, he was willing to play along with it as long as Emma was safe from all of this drama.
Thinking about the series of call he had received and the fact that he was yet to call Emma, he dialed her line, hoping she was okay and that her voice could bring him some calm.
"Hey you, are you home yet?" Alex asked, his tone giving away his state of tiredness.
"Yeah, I got home not quite long ago. I stopped somewhere to see a friend. I hope you are fine. You sound very tired," Emma said, taking off her earrings.
Alex raised a brow, quite surprised that she had noticed. "I'm fine; I didn't know you had friends," he said, wondering why the guard didn't mention that.
Emma laughed and said, "Well, I just reconnected with her, and I'm glad I did."
"That's good to hear. I actually called to let you know that I will be home very late today. I have some things to attend to. Can you cope without me for a few more hours?" Alex teased, and Emma giggled.
"Is that you wanting to play a loving husband? I hope you know none of this is real?" She asked, even though she sort of loved it when he was being that way with her.
"Will you be fine?" Alex asked since he was more concerned about that.
"Sure, why do you sound so worried?" Emma asked, a frown creasing her brows.
"You saw Jake. How are you?" he said, and Emma rolled her eyes as memories of her encounter came to mind.
"I'm fine—better than I've ever been. You shouldn't be worried about that or think I'll subject myself to that sad mood because I ran into someone as disgusting as him," Emma said. From her tone, Alex could tell she wasn't sad or depressed but rather angry.
"It's good to know you're fine. So, see you when I get back," he said and Emma nodded.
"No problem, husband," she said and chuckled, causing Alex to smile.
His mood had indeed improved just by talking to her.
"I won't be back before dinner, so have dinner without me, okay?" Alex said, and Emma sighed, feeling some sort of way of having to eat dinner alone.
"Sure," she said, not wanting Alex to know how she was feeling.
Emma had already gotten used to eating with Alex for over a month; it was going to feel kind of different eating alone.
She didn't know why he was going to be home late, and she didn't have the courage to ask.
He was only helping her, and she shouldn't expect him to always be there. After all, this was all just an arrangement.
"Alright, talk to you later," Alex said, ending the call.
After dinner with Vanessa, he would talk to Emma about Jake and have her decide what she wanted Jake to know.
Though he wanted to protect her from him, she had the right to choose how she should be protected, seeing as she was beginning to stand up to Jake.
Away from there, Jake kept pacing the entire length of his office long after his call with Mark ended, his thoughts still on Emma.
His heart pounded as he thought back to the cold exchange, her mocking words, and how she acted like he was nothing to her.
What business did she have at Ling Corp? Who was she here to see? And why did she look so confident? Who was backing her? Where was she even staying now?
All these questions kept circling his head, begging to be answered.
He continued to pace around the room, his shoes clicking sharply against the polished floor. He couldn't shake the nagging feeling that something wasn't right.
Emma was never the type to leave the house without a reason how much more coming to Ling Corp, looking the way she did.
She didn't have a friend at the company, and even if she did, Emma wasn't one to make casual visits, especially after everything that had gone down between them.
The Emma he remembered was a naive, timid girl who would beg and cry to have him show her a little care. And yet, there she was today, walking right past him with that damned smile on her face.
He stopped by his desk, a thought coming to mind, and without a second thought, he stepped out of his office.