Chapter 0017 DARLA . " This fucking bitch . ' I groaned as I walked straight to Elijah's office and found him with her . I wanted him to warn his girlfriend or fiance- so I heard , to stay away from me before I caused trouble for her or him by dropping the business deal , even though we were just offered more benefits for the contract that would span over 6 years . When he saw me , he quickly got up from his chair while Abigail tilted her head and looked at me from the opposite chair she was sitting on behind Elijah's desk . " Darla , is there a problem ? " He asked as he walked over to me . I closed the door behind me and closed the little gap between us . " I want you to tell your girlfriend to stay away from me or else , I'll be forced to report her harassment to the board members before I exclude myself from the project and take my skills elsewhere where I wouldn't be insulted for something that I don't know about . " " Abigail insulted you ? " He asked as he tilted his head and looked at her while she stood up from her chair and walked toward us . " I'm not a fool , Elijah . I can see through her that she's here to ruin our relationship . Can't you see that she's after you ? " She chimed in . " If you don't put her in her place , I'll have no choice but to drop everything because I didn't come here to be disrespected . Not by a woman who has nothing to show but a man who's barely been able to make her his wife , " I snarled at her before turning my back and walking out of the office , heading to the elevator opposite his office . " Darla , wait ! " He said as he rushed toward the elevator and got inside before the doors closed and Abigail's face boiled with anger when the doors closed in front of her . " I'm very sorry for what happened between you two . You being here is exactly what this company needs , and I'm not going to let anyone jeopardize our cooperation . " " If that's the case , please tell her that I'm not someone to be played with , especially now . I won't ever hesitate to walk out of this company and never look back . I have many offers that would gladly replace this project and still keep my bank account popping . " I exhaled as I prepared myself to walk out of the elevator as we got to the ground floor . " She won't be a problem to you anymore , I promise . " I scoffed as I waited for the elevator to open , but when it took longer than expected and the button lights went off , I started panicking , dreading the idea of the elevator being stuck . " Darla , I - " " Why's the doors not opening , what's going on ? " I interjected him panicking . " We seem to be stuck , I don't know . This has never happened before , let me call my secretary to get someone to find out what the problem is . " He took out his cell phone and quickly made a call while I kept pressing the buttons , trying to see if anything would happen . " Someone better come and open this elevator ! " I snapped , realizing that I couldn't call Ethan and inform him 1/3 Chapter 0017 +25 BONUS about the problem since he left with my handbag in the car while I was going to the restroom . But after a while with no idea of what was happening , Elijah and I slid down the floor and sat down opposite each other . I looked at him and shook my head at how the universe decided to play such a funny prank on us when I never imagined being alone in a room with him ever again . " How's California ? " " How's California ? " I scoffed at the thought of him trying to make conversation about California . " Well , it's amazing . If Ethan hadn't convinced me about this project and how it would benefit a poor community in Detroit , I don't think that I would've come back here . " " Oh . " He breathed , visibly disappointed to hear my response , but I didn't care . "But Atlanta was your home , Darla . You grew up here and lived your whole life here . " " California is now my home . " It became quiet for a while until he decided to break the silence . " Did you ever think of me like I have the past five years you were away ? Have you ever wondered where we could've been if we never broke up ? " " Honestly , no . " I shook my head and scoffed . " I don't regret anything about how things happened between us . I found Ethan and married the love of my life . If you and I remained together , I wouldn't have known such great love . " He looked at me for a moment . " I'm happy for you , Darla , and all your success . I wish I wasn't so blind back then to see how brilliant you are . I'm sure if the universe brought us together under different circumstances , we wouldn't be here today having this talk . But I'm very happy to see you . " " Thank you , Elijah . But as soon as we are out of here , I hope that we won't have this talk again . I'm here for business and nothing more . So , I'd appreciate it if you and I strictly regarded each other professionally . " He sighed . " If things happened my way , I would've never brought you so much pain . Things happened so fast , and I- " " You loved Abigail , Elijah , I get it . It doesn't matter now . We don't have to talk about our marriage as if it were ever real . " " I - " The elevator doors creaked open before he could say anything , and when we tilted our heads , there was a whole team of electricians , including Abigail and Ethan . I got up from the floor , walked to Ethan , and hugged him as tightly as I could . " Are you okay ? They've been trying to get the elevator to open for an hour , " Ethan said as I leaned back from him . " Yeah , I'm alright . " " I'm sorry about the elevator , I'm sure it won't be a problem anymore , " Elijah said as Ethan and I looked at him . " Yes , it won't be a problem anymore because my wife and I will never use that elevator again . And I want you to stay away from her , " he said as he took my hand and walked away with me . When I tilted my head and looked back , I saw him and Abigail hugging each other , and my heart made peace that 2/3 Chapter 0017 they belonged together . Just as I always thought whenever he crossed my mind . Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!