Harry suddenly got to his feet. "Dad, mom, don't force her," he said. "I will give her my blessing if she doesn't want to be with me. I know I have been selfish. I should let her be happy, even if it's not with me. What she said is right. Why should I expect her to be with me if I know how hard it is to be with someone I don't love?"
"Dad, please give Ethan a chance, you'll like him, I promise."
"Don't promise anything," her dad said. "I'm sorry, Harry for making you hope for nothing. This child of ours is such a disappointment."
Hearing that, Liz's jaw dropped.
"It's not your fault dad," Harry said. "It was me who persisted with this one-sided love. I thought she would eventually love me back but I was wrong."
"I wish I could tell my heart to love you instead of Ethan, but I just can't," Liz said. "Forgive..."
He interrupted her. "No, don't apologize to me, Liz, he said. "I should be the one to apologize to you. I have been a bother to you in the past few days."
Liz pursed her lips and looked away.
"I should go now," Harry said.
"Take care of yourself, child," Liz's father told him.
"I will," he said then left.
Mr. Lukorito glared at his daughter. "See how you've hurt him," he said.
Liz pouted her lips and furrowed her brow. "Would you rather I got hurt instead, dad?"
Her father sighed. "Of course, not," he said. "Tell your boyfriend to come over tomorrow for dinner. We have to meet him before we go back home."
Liz smiled. "Thank you so much, dad."
"Don't thank me," he said. "Thank Harry for giving up on you. If he didn't I would have supported him to the end."
Liz frowned. "Dad!"
"Ha-ha! Child, don't mind your father," her mother said. "You know your father. He is just kidding."
Mr. Lukorito glared at Liz's mom.
Liz pursed her lips then sighed. "Dad, I will still thank you for accepting to meet Ethan," she said. "It means a lot to me."
"He had better love you as much as you do him or else he'll get it from me," her father said.
"He does, dad."
"Okay, we shall see if that's true when I meet him."
The following day in the evening, Ethan had dinner with Liz and her family and everything was fine. Although her parents had reservations about him because he came from a wealthy family, they agreed to let him date their daughter because she loved him very much. However, they secretly hoped that their relationship would not last. They didn't want him as their son-in-law because they were afraid that their daughter would suffer in the hands of his family.
Liz's parents traveled back home the next day and Liz went back to her home with Ethan.
---
It was around one o'clock in the afternoon, and people in the office were preparing to go for lunch. Liz put away her things and stood up, ready to go to the staff cafeteria.
"Liz, the boss wants you in his office now," Claire said.
Why is he looking for me? She pondered. Then she remembered the mistake she made with the price in the contract and gasped. Is he going to fire me? Maybe he can forgive me if I beg.
She left her workstation and headed to Oscar's office.
"Come in," he said when she knocked at the door.
He immediately looked up and smiled when she entered.
"Sir, I'm sorry about the mistake I made the other day," she said. "It won't happen again. I will be more careful."
"If I hadn't corrected the mistake the company could have lost a lot of money."
"I know," she said. "I'm sorry. Please give me another chance."
He hated seeing her beg. "Fine. I won't fire you," he said, looking straight into her eyes.
"Thank you, Oscar. I won't let you down again."
"Don't mention it," he said. "You are my ex. How can I be very tough on you?"
She pursed her lips and licked them then bowed her head. "I'm ashamed of myself," she said. "It was not my intention to put you in a tight spot. You had to let me off because of our past relationship." She paused and stared at him then continued. "Oscar, you don't have to let it slide. Punish me like any other employee. You're my boss and I'm your employee. I have made a mistake and I won't hold it against you whatever decision you make regarding this case. I will understand that you're doing it for the company. Don't let other people blame you for playing favorites."
He smiled and leaned back in his chair. "You worry so much about what other people say," he said. "Okay. I'm giving you a chance to redeem yourself. But I only have one question for you."
"What question?"
"How are you going to repay me?" he asked then raised a brow.
She blinked. "Repay you?"
"Yes. There's no free lunch, you know."
Oscar stared at her for a moment then waved his hand in the air. "No problem. You can take your time to think about it," he said. "Or you can let me decide."
"I can't think of anything. You decide."
"Fine. I will think about what I want as payment," Oscar said and blinked.
Hey, what is he thinking? She wondered. "Just don't come up with an immoral request," she said. "I won't do it."
"Hey, do you think I'm a pervert?"
She bit her fingernail. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way," she said.
He stood up and went to the couch.
"Okay. Come and take a seat," Oscar said patting at the space beside him on the couch.
"What?"
"Come and sit," he said.
"I can't."
He stared at her. "It is an order, not a request."
"Okay." She pursed her lips then obediently sat beside him.
He put one of the lunch boxes that were on the table before her and took the other one. "Let's have lunch together," he said.
She opened the lunch box. "Grilled lamb chops and rice?"
"Mm...It's your favorite, right?"
She shook her head. "No. Not anymore," she said.
Oscar's heart sank. That used to be their favorite dish when they were dating back in college.
"What if someone walks in on us?" Liz asked.
"Nothing will happen," Oscar said. "We are only sharing a meal, not doing something bad."
She nodded. "Um... It's delicious," she said.
There was suddenly a knock at the door. She almost choked on food.
"Careful," Oscar said. He poured water in a glass and handed it to her. "Drink some water."
Bea entered with a file in her hand. "Oscar," she said then stopped when she saw them.
Bea was an architect in the company and Oscar's fiancée. She was in love with him and didn't care that he didn't love her back.
Something twisted in her heart when she saw him sharing a meal with the new girl from the Finance Department. Oscar was always cold to her. He had never invited her for a meal unless his parents made arrangements and forced him to come.
"Thanks." Liz took the glass and gulped down all its contents then put it on the table.
Oscar quietly watched her. She was acting weird. Was it because she was nervous about them being seen together by Bea?
"Bea, don't just stand there," Oscar said. "Come over."
Bea smiled and walked towards them. "Pretend to be cool," she quietly told herself.
"Hey, I am Beatrice Mwema," she said, proffering her right hand to Liz.
"Lissette Lukorito," Liz said shaking hands with her.
In as much as she looked calm and collected, Liz could see daggers flying from Beatrice's eyes towards her. It was terrifying. She excused herself and ran away.
***