From Neglected Wife to CEO’s Obsession novel Chapter 80

No one really knew when the rain would finally let up—or when this VIP guest would decide to leave. Either way, there was no way I could just ask him to go.

The minutes crawled by. The rain didn’t let up at all—in fact, the wind kept getting stronger. Down below, the trees thrashed wildly, like they’d lost their minds. Farther down the street, a massive tree snapped clean in two. The road was turning into a river, water pooling deeper by the minute. Cars were stranded everywhere, some halfway underwater, and a few little sedans were actually floating around, drifting wherever the wind pushed them.

Honestly, it felt like the apocalypse had come early.

“What are you looking at?” Elliot’s voice was suddenly right beside me, snapping me out of my trance.

The sunroom was dark, no lights on, just the storm’s shadow flickering everywhere. He startled me so badly I nearly jumped. I blurted out, “Just watching the rain. I can’t believe it’s still going.”

The mood changed instantly. Elliot glanced at his watch, his voice smooth but distant. “It’s late. You should get some sleep. I’ll head out now. Thanks for dinner. See you at the office tomorrow.”

I glanced at the flooded street again, at the cars bobbing around, and it just came out: “Isn’t it too dangerous? Most of the cars are stuck.”

He was already halfway to the living room door. He paused, sounded totally calm, and said, “I’ll have to try my luck. Maybe fate’s on my side tonight. Goodnight, Ms. Greenwood.”

Right then, thunder crashed overhead—so loud my ears rang and I saw stars. Lightning ripped across the sky, lighting up everything through the glass ceiling, and the rain hammered down even harder, drumming on the roof like it wanted in.

A cold shiver ran through me.

I suddenly remembered a story I’d read online—some guy went to a friend’s house for dinner, never made it home, and the next morning they found him drowned in a man-made lake barely a hundred feet from his house. His family sued the friend, said he’d encouraged drinking and didn’t make sure he got home safe. They wanted two million in damages. The court ruled the guy was an adult, so he was sixty percent responsible, but the friend still had to pay six hundred thousand.

I had a little money, sure, but if something happened to someone like Elliot? There’s no way I could cover that.

I was speechless.

Marian didn’t even bother asking me—she just went ahead and made the decision. And now Elliot was asking if it was okay? Did he really need to ask?

“It’s totally fine,” I managed. “Really. No problem at all.”

Even if it wasn’t, I’d just have to deal.

I showed him to the guest room like he was royalty, then made a beeline for my own bedroom to shower and get ready for bed. Pajamas or a robe? He’d have to sort that out himself. This was a single woman’s apartment—I didn’t exactly have men’s sleepwear lying around.

After my shower, I heard my phone buzzing nonstop on the bed. I picked it up and, to my surprise, it was Julia calling—video chat, of course.