Chapter 50
The moment Emily entered Starz’s building there was an uproar. They employees and creatives didn’t bother to hide their whispers and shocked expressions as she strutted through the building. It was like they’d seen a ghost.
It had been a while since she’d been here so it was understandable.
She didn’t bother knocking on the door to Jake’s office. His head of sandy brown hair rose when she entered. Jake stood and gave her a strained smile. “Long time no see.”
She walked over to the chair before him and took a seat. He watched her, waiting for her to speak first.
Emily regarded him with cold eyes as she crossed her legs. “Let’s get this over with.”
Jake’s lips made a thin line. With the pace of a slug, he reached for the file in the drawer of his office’s desk.
He slid the document across the table, his gaze closing around her.
“By signing this, you’re severing all ties with the talent-agency division of Starz Media. Are you willing to do so?”
“I wouldn’t be sitting here if I weren’t, would I?” She couldn’t help but snap and his brows flew up in surprise.
“You’ve changed,” Jake noted. His eyes roamed over her. “And it’s not just your appearance.”
“People change not because they want to, but because they’re forced to.”
He scoffed. “You’re always like this. Acting all high and mighty. It’s like you can’t help showing how much better you are than others.”
“I’ve never acted conceited in your presence, Jake,” she said. “Not once. You’re the one who was delusional because you always had some inferiority complex against me.”
His face grew red. “I never—”
“And for the record, I don’t act as if I’m better than you,” Emily cut him off. “I am better than you.”
He bristled and pointed his index finger at her. “This is what I’m talking about. You playing the victim until this side comes out. No wonder everyone regards you as an ice queen.”
She rolled her eyes. “I didn’t come here to argue with you about the past. I came here because of my future. Now can you hurry up and give me those papers?”
With a forceful shove, the stack was on her side of the table. She didn’t bother giving him the reaction he wanted. Silently, she flipped it open and began to read the contents carefully.
Meanwhile, Jake stared at her, lips curling in discontent. “You’re dating again, aren’t you?”
Her eyes halted on a word.
Lifting her head to look at him, she spat, “I don’t think that’s any of your concern.”
“You didn’t deny it. That means you are.”
“I thought I just said it has nothing to do with you,” she repeated between clenched teeth. “And don’t you have a family to worry about? Stella’s pregnant and your baby is on the way. Don’t exert all this energy into my business. I can assure you it doesn’t require it.”
Stella had gotten her karma. After the drama with her and Jake going viral, no major contractor wanted to sign her for a movie. Her pride was so big she refused supporting roles, so she claimed she was going on a hiatus.
His eyes tore open. “You know Stella’s pregnant?”
“I know more than that, Jake,” she said without any emotion.
His eye twitched. “I was talking about you, not me, Emily. I just wanted to know if you’ve finally stopped being bitter about what happened between us. I can see that’s not the case though.”
Emily let out a laugh. He didn’t even bother asking how long she’d known, what else she’d known. It was so like him to overlook the details. Or to simply not care about them at all.
With a swift signature at the bottom of the paper, she stood up quickly. “It’s pathetic that you’re still caught up on me even after all this time, Jake.”
He stood at her taunting, eyes blazing. “What did you just say?”
She let out a sigh. “If you must know, I am over you.” The way in which his eyes hardened fed her satisfaction. “Have been since the night I saw you and Stella kissing while I was drunk in your car.”
“Y-You…” Horror was in his eyes, pouring from every orifice of his body. “You’ve known about us since then? Before the gala invitation drama? Wait a minute.” He looked at her, nausea filling his face. “You planned all of this, didn’t you?”
At her smirk, his worst suspicions were confirmed.
“Fuckkk!” he cursed vehemently, fists slamming against the table.
“You tried to ruin me and my company—everything I have just because I cheated on you? Because of one little mistake? Do you have any idea how much fucking money we’ve lost, Emily?
Steven is trying to fuck me over as we speak. Are you…are you insane?!”
“The fact that you still think what you did to me was a momentary lapse of judgment shows how much you deserved it.”
He released a strangled sound. “And you had the nerve to play the victim? After knowing all that, you were still with me, hugging me, kissing me—”
“Ew, I haven’t kissed you since then.” She held up a hand. “As for the hugs, they were difficult, but I managed to pull it off after holding back on my gag reflexes.”
Jake stilled. “Yeah, you’re right. You hadn’t kissed me since then.
” The realization dawned. “Yet you still blamed me for putting Stella, even Starz above you, making me feel sorry for you with those teary eyes. Those fucking eyes! I should’ve known when you never asked about another wedding date. Fuck, I should’ve known.”
“How else would you have believed that you were fooling me? I had to play the part, Jake. It’s called acting. If you’d have an ounce of decency, it wouldn’t have come to this.”
“You bitch!” he finally exploded. “You fucking played me!”
“You played me first,” Emily hissed. “I told you then, when you picked Stella’s side and broke up with me, that you’d regret the day you ever met me.”
He began pulling at his hair, strands falling in quick succession.
“There I was telling Stella her suspicions were wrong. I thought she was being jealous when she said you did everything on purpose at the gala. I said that you couldn’t lie to save your life…
” He chuckled. “Yet you were lying to my face this entire time.”
Emily pursed her lips at his little tantrum.
“Why are you acting as if you’re the victim here?
” she asked calmly. “You cheated me and my family. Yes, I was wrong for allowing you to fool me, but you still did. You relied on me for your success. I was just a backup plan for you. You never loved me, Jake.”
Her eyes swirled with malice.
He stared, lips slightly parting.
She closed them and just like that, the emotion disappeared.
“That’s how you did it,” he whispered, the words scraping out of him in disbelief.
She didn’t comment.
“Okay. Alright. I do have regrets,” he said quickly, running a hand over his mouth, feet tapping.
“You said you’d make me regret ever meeting you?
Well, I do. I fucking regret it because you’re the most selfish, soulless bitch I’ve ever met.
You used to creep me the fuck out on our dates because it’d seem like you were mirroring me.
Every place we went to it was like you were a different person. ”
She refused to flinch.
“You chalked it up to your mental health at the time, and I dealt with that shit. Wanna know why? Because you, Golden Girl, were my golden ticket if Starz didn’t fucking work out.
I knew I could wear you down. I knew I could make you break out of that stupid, fucking depressive state.
But for fuck’s sake, Emily, do you really have to get every fucking thing you want? !”
Her heart thumped, but she stood her ground.
“No! The answer is no. You were born with everything, but I still took what mattered the most,” he snarled. “Taught you humility the hard way. Family? Gone. Love? Never existed, babe.”
She couldn’t help the laugh that left her. She’d undergone a revenge plan and risked losing herself over this? Him?
“Why are you laughing?” Jake snapped. “Is it the irony that’s funny? You set out to ruin me, to make me lose everything. But look where you ended up. I’m still standing. Still have Stella and my son. What about you? What do you have now, huh?”
“I have more than you could ever imagine, Jake.”
He scoffed, clearly thinking she was bluffing.
“You spoke about my family,” Emily began softly.
“You don’t have to worry about us. Our relationship is not perfect, never has been, but we’ll be perfectly fine.
It didn’t take much effort after hearing that you were out of my life for good.
You know they never really liked you. Oh, and I heard you borrowed money from my father? ”
His mouth opened swiftly to argue but she held up a hand. “It doesn’t matter at this point anyway. Seems like you won’t last much longer at your beloved company. Let’s just hope Steven isn’t successful in getting you out, yes?” She raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. “And my love life?”
His lips tugged upward.
“I’m already married, Jake.”
His smile was gone.
“What?”
Wiping at her eyes, Emily held her stomach as she chuckled. She was feeling more broken than satisfied, but she had to see it through. “I said, I’m married, Jake. Have been since I learned about your infidelity.”
His words were frigid. “Did you cheat on me?”
“Again playing the victim?”
“Who the fuck is he?”
She looked at him, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “Oh, you’d love to know, wouldn’t you?”
He growled. “Stop fucking with me and tell me!”
“If I tell you who he is, I don’t think your pride will be able to handle it,” she sang, then gave him a once-over. “Goodbye, Jake.”
She didn’t need to use Nicolas anymore—she wouldn’t for someone like him. He wasn’t worth it.
Jake grabbed her wrist as she turned on her heels. “You don’t get to leave until I tell you to, you bitch!”
He raised his left hand. Emily’s heart stopped. She screwed her eyes shut, bracing herself for the impact.
However, it never landed.
She reopened them to see that someone had pulled him back, fast and firm.
He staggered, almost falling to the floor.