Chapter 92: Livid
Ashley retorted, her voice laced with a hint of bitterness, "I'm merely learning from my more seasoned colleagues, Damian. Not everything revolves around you." It was common knowledge that only those listed on the law firm's roster had a chance at handling the high-profile KM Road cases. Without that listing, they were merely spectators, not players.Damian, however, was quick to counter. "KM Road has a rigorous selection process, involving at least four rounds of vetting. Don't set your expectations too high. Sky Balance, isn't it? Let's face it—if KM Road is reaching out to your firm, it's akin to them lowering their standards." The condescending tone in Damian's voice was enough to make Ashley's blood boil. She was fiercely protective of her firm—Sky Balance. "We just won a case for KM Road, and yet, here you are, ready to sever ties. Even if we're not long-term partners, we were once on the same side. There's no need for such harshness."Dismissing her words, Damian tossed aside a piece of paper, his air of superiority as palpable as ever. "Is this your grand scheme to infiltrate KM Road? Is it for your career or to get closer to me?"Good heavens!The man's ego was boundless.Ashley took a deep breath, reminding herself to stay calm. "Rest assured, Damian, everything I'm doing is for the sake of my career. It has nothing to do with you.""You're not being truthful."Ashley was momentarily speechless.How could she make him understand that she was no longer the starry-eyed fan from six years ago? She wanted to maintain her distance from Damian more than anyone could comprehend.But she decided to let it go; arguing was simply too draining.Damian had an inexplicable fascination with grocery shopping, and despite Ashley's reluctance, he practically dragged her along.As she absentmindedly picked through the produce, she commented, "We still have plenty at home. Buying more will only lead to waste. We should respect the hard work that goes into our food supply."Growing impatient with her slow movements, Damian interjected, "The country doesn't need you to save food; it encourages consumption to boost the economy. If you don't buy, how are you respecting the workers? Is leaving fruits and vegetables to rot in the fields respectful?"Ashley felt a headache coming on. Why did she even bother trying to reason with Damian? "Fine, you're right. Let's buy out the whole store."She stepped back, relinquishing control of the vegetable section to him.Damian found her obstinacy infuriating, yet oddly attractive. "What filling do you want?"Ashley kept her distance. "I'm not into pasta.""So much in the fridge—are we feeding all those to the dogs?"Ashley gritted her teeth. "Yeah, to you."As if he needed feeding.A hint of a smile played on Damian's lips, his eyes sparkling with amusement. "I prefer other things to pasta."Perhaps it was his unconventional rhythm that caught her off guard, but the first image that popped into Ashley's mind was unseemly, causing her cheeks to flush. "Can you hurry up?"As Damian placed items in the cart, his hand brushed against hers unintentionally, the warmth between them lingering for a moment—brief yet tantalizing.He said nothing, but Ashley understood his silent response.Jerk!How could he not pick up habits from hanging out with the likes of Christian?Back home, Ashley retreated to her room to avoid Damian.Not long after, Sean's call came through.As she turned, she saw Damian leaning in the doorway, his arms crossed.With no escape, Ashley answered in Damian's presence, "Sean?"Sean apologized, revealing that he had only just found out his uncle had privately asked her out for dinner. "I told my uncle I had a last-minute business obligation tonight and wouldn't be able to make it back, so you don't need to come over either. I hope it hasn't caused you any inconvenience."Preferring not to delve into details, Ashley responded with a polite smile. "No worries.""We can have dinner another time, my treat, to make it up to you. I'll smooth things over with my uncle, so don't stress about it.""That sounds good. I'll see you then," Ashley agreed.Without asking Ashley, Damian casually fetched his cigarette pack and expertly ignited his lighter. "You turned down Sean's dinner to be with me. That must mean I'm more important to you," he said as the flame flickered to life.Ashley pocketed her phone, offering him a forced smile. "You're overthinking it, Damian. Sean had something come up tonight. We'll reschedule."Sean, respecting her preferences, had agreed to remain disengaged, so he concocted a convenient excuse to skip dinner with his demanding uncle to spare her the trouble.It was clear that Sean was a decent guy.With a grunt of disapproval, Damian said in a stern tone, "Come on, it's time to make some pasta."Ashley felt overwhelmed. She couldn't understand Damian's fascination with cooking.Rolling up her sleeves and donning an apron, Ashley asked for guidance. "And then?"From the sidelines, Damian instructed her to wash the vegetables and chop them."It's chopping veggies, not splitting logs. Try again."Gritting her teeth, Ashley's cheeks ached as she faced the chopping board, a three-inch piece of leek lying across it. She hacked at it again. "How about now?"Damian, now serious, said, "Keep going."Ashley chopped away reluctantly, as if a halo of resistant arrows surrounded her—if only visual effects could show it.She eventually finished chopping the leeks, only to turn around and find Damian on a phone call."What's up?" His tone was unusually gentle."Don't rush, I'm on my way." He glanced at his watch. "I'll be there in about fifteen minutes, by six-thirty.""Okay, I'll be waiting."The phone call ended, and he said, "Got to go. You can follow a tutorial."With that, Damian changed shoes, grabbed his jacket, and hurried out.Left alone with the knife in hand, Ashley watched the door slam shut, and a wave of relief washed over her.Three hours passed without a word from him.In the living room, surrounded by piled-up boxes, she couldn't bring herself to touch a single one.The house, now devoid of Damian's comings and goings, felt unusually quiet—an almost unsettling quiet.
With a sigh of irritation, Ashley retreated to the sanctuary of her kitchen. She dumped the freshly chopped leeks into the bin with a spiteful flourish, her dreams of a homemade meal abandoned. Instead, she opted for the convenience of takeout.As she sat down to eat, her phone buzzed with an incoming video call from Amelia."Takeout again, Ashley?" Amelia queried, her tone laced with surprise. "I thought you were supposed to be honing your culinary skills."A headache was beginning to form at the base of Ashley's skull, and she groaned in response. "Enough with the nagging, Amelia. Can we talk about something other than my dietary habits?"Amelia's lips curled into a smirk, her eyes gleaming with dark amusement. "Let me guess, your ex has been giving you grief again?"Ashley simply nodded, her expression grim. "Yes.""And where is he now?" Amelia probed further.Ashley shrugged nonchalantly. "I have no idea. He took a call and left. Probably off to see his new girlfriend."Amelia let out a low whistle. "So, he's juggling his ex, you, and a new girl all at once? What a first-class jerk!"The term 'first-class jerk' seemed to fit him perfectly, as if it should be tattooed across his forehead.Ashley's lips curled into a sneer. "What did you want to talk about, Amelia?""Do you remember Christian?" Amelia asked, her tone suddenly serious.Ashley's eyes narrowed at the mention of the name. "Is he causing you trouble again?"Amelia stomped her foot in frustration, her face a mask of fury. "Remember that new show I was about to start? It was practically a done deal until the producer said the backers wanted someone else. I did some digging and found out that Global View is one of the backers. Who else but Christian could be behind this? It's infuriating!"Ashley bit her lower lip, the image of Christian's smug, cynical face flashing in her mind. "I'll go have a word with him."Amelia quickly interjected, "No, Ashley. I was just venting. I didn't mean for you to confront him. There's no point in talking to someone like him. He's beyond reasoning.""Perhaps," Ashley conceded, "but we can't just let him walk all over us. This role is too important for you to just give up and let him win."Amelia sighed, her frustration tinged with a sense of helplessness. "Our agency just signed a new talent, barely a few days ago. She's supposedly connected to Christian. They're probably going to replace me with her. They even had the audacity to suggest that I'm getting too old and washed up. Good thing I have self-control, or she'd be getting more than an earful!"Ashley asked, almost instinctively, "What's her name?"Amelia snorted dismissively. "You wouldn't know her. She goes by the name Gregory. Such a phony."Ironically, Ashley did know her.
