Page 41 of Irresistible

Chapter 19

The two stared at each other for a moment before either started to talk. They were experiencing an odd mixture of emotions. Both were angry and harbored resentment. But under the surface, they realized they still cared for each other. The two sets of feelings conflicted and resulted in a profound amount of stress and tension. In reality, this conversation was necessary. The lack of closure would have been hell for both of them. Yet, neither of them was looking forward to it.

“Alright, fifteen minutes, starting now,” Richard said, pushing a small button on his watch.

“What specifically do you want to talk about? We’re on your time now,” Scarlet said, looking away. She was clearly in pain and would have preferred to be anywhere else.

“Well, I wanted to see if you’re any closer to believing me about what happened on Saturday morning.”

“I don’t think so, no. It was one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen. Honestly, Richard. I just do not believe that a man deletes nudes off his phone from a woman he used to be in a relationship with. I don’t believe you do that. I don’t believe that you have no feelings for her, and I refuse to accept that there’s nothing there.”

“I thought you might say that. So I thought I’d make this even more awkward,” Richard said, holding his phone in front of him.

Scarlet squinted as she realized that the phone was ringing on speakerphone. The name on the front screen read “Carly Pomodoro”.

“Richard, please don’t do this. Just let it go. Like you said, we can go on with our lives. Don’t do this,” Scarlet begged between rings.

“I need to do this for me. I’m not the kind of person you think I am, and I need to prove that to you in the best way I know how.”

The phone rang twice more. Scarlet was nearly pulling her hair out with anxiety. She turned to leave the room as Carly picked up on the other end.

“Hello?”

Scarlet couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Carly, it’s Richard. Can we talk for a second? You’re on speakerphone.”

“Sure…what’s this about?” she said with a tone of hesitation. She had been burned by too many media personalities to trust speaking with anyone on speakerphone.

“I’m here with a lovely young woman, Scarlet. We’ve been romantically involved, but she saw those unsavory pictures you sent me on Saturday. I wanted to call to set the record straight. We’re not together anymore, right?”

“N…no. We broke up a while ago. This is really embarrassing actually. I was drunk when I sent those, and I was just kind of hoping you’d delete them. I get weird when I drink. Scarlet, Richard and I had kind of a tough breakup, but it’s not fair to you to drag you into this. Richard’s a good man. As much as I wish things had worked out between us, I wish you two nothing but the best. Can…can you take me off speakerphone now, Richard? I’m pretty uncomfortable.”

There it was. Richard was nothing if not efficient. He had proven his case in under a minute and a half. This was likely why the bank had hired him as CEO. If there was one thing he knew how to do, it was solve problems. Scarlet had a harder time believing that an ex-lover would lie for Richard like that. Men can be scumbags, but women don’t generally lie for scumbags, especially when sex is involved. As mad as she still was at Richard, she struggled to find a rationale for her anger.

“Of course. Thanks so much,” Richard said, pressing the end button as he finished the sentence. There were still clearly hard feelings between him and Carly.

“I know that was painful, but did that help at all? Do you believe me?”

“I guess I don’t have much of a choice, do I? I honestly didn’t know that you would go to those lengths just to prove that you weren’t lying,” Scarlet responded quietly.

“So, how do you feel about us? Is there any way we can give this a shot again?”

“I’m not there, Richard. I honestly can’t think straight about any of this. You’re not going to get an answer out of me at this point, and if you give me an ultimatum, you’re likely not going to like the answer you get.”

Richard held his hands up in surrender. He decided to let it go. There was clearly nothing more that could be done at this point. Scarlet raised her eyebrows, asked if she could leave, and Richard held up his hands once more. He was not going to get in her way.

“Richard?”

“Yeah?”

“I know you didn’t really hurt me, but this whole thing is still kind of crazy. I’m not sure that I’m ever going to get over our differences.”

“And what differences are those?” Richard asked.

“I mean, look at us. We’re from two completely different stratospheres. You’re a rich and powerful CEO who has control over one of the most powerful banks in the region. You can get basically anything you want at any time. You’ve had relationships with starlets and models. Compare that to me, the twenty-something working as a teller at the bank you run. I’ve had a few relationships here and there, but almost all of them have ended with the guy cheating on me. I’m not certain about what I want to do with my life and I really haven’t achieved success in my career yet. I’m stuck. You’ve crossed the finish line, and I’m basically still stuck at the start of the race. Do you think those two states of life are really compatible with each other?”

Scarlet knew she was ranting, but she had to let out everything she was feeling. All of her hesitations about a potential relationship with Richard were pouring out of her like lava out of a volcano. He looked like he was able to stand up to the heat.

“Of course we’re different. But I don’t think all of that matters when two people really care about each other. Words can’t express how deeply I care for you. I just want this to work out, but I know that it’s not fair of me to push you into anything. I never want you to feel anything but comfortable around me. I’ll leave it to you to decide what to do from here.”

Scarlet nodded and turned to leave. The fact that he was able to be professional, yet charming, throughout the whole conversation said a great deal about his character in her mind. Whenever she had issues in previous relationships, they had inevitably been reduced to shouting matches. It was never that way with Richard. She was able to shout at him, but be confident that she was heard. While it was an excruciating conversation to have, Scarlet did get a great deal out of it. She no longer felt like a husk. It was truly up to her. Richard wanted to be with her if she wanted to be with him. It was clear that he didn’t have any romantic feelings left for Carly Pomodoro. All of the hurdles had been removed, and the future was completely up to her. She now felt sad rather than anxious. She had a lot to think about. Her gut was conflicted.