Sleeping With The CEO-Chapter 285: Battle Armour

For weeks, Emily’s little world had been as serene as she could make it. Some would have called it boring but for her it was safe and calming. Just her, the housework, her embroidery and the interactions that she had with her mother, when the older woman came home from work.

Nothing too complicated. With all of the money that Emily had saved while working at Haven Group, not having expenses such as a car and overpriced rent to pay really helped.

She could have been able to keep up that lifestyle for quite a while, but it was no way to live.

So Emily had slowly started getting back out into the world. Nothing major, just making trips out of the apartment to go out and buy something that was needed, or even going on walks. Simple things.

But like all things in the world, the little peace that she had carved out for herself could not have lasted indefinitely. But Emily wished that it at least ended in a way that did not threaten to tear apart the little bit of self-esteem that she had managed to claw back. Of all the things to finally get her fully out of the apartment and into the world proper. It just had to be an outing that would lead to her going to Haven Group.

The one place in the world, where she did not want to be, because if there was anywhere that she was most likely to run into Derek, then it was there. But unless Emily wanted to prolong things even more, then she had to go in. She had just gotten an email from Human Resources.

Apparently there was some paperwork that she needed to fill in before all of her information could be processed, and she could get what was due to her.

When she had first gotten the email, Emily would not lie. She had stalled. Not really sure how she was going to approach the situation.

The options of handling things over the phone or online existed and she could go for those.

But Emily had seen many former employees nearly pulling their hair out as they struggled with that. Some things were just easier to do in person.

Where all of the little details that one could easily skip over when they were on their own could be explained by somebody who was well-versed in the field. So that meant that Emily, like it or not, would be going in to Haven Group headquarters one more time.

Had it been in the early days of the breakup. Emily was pretty certain that she would have just gone into Haven group without a care in the world.Unbothered by what other people saw when they looked at her because her internal world was too much of a mess, to care about the opinions of others. But now, Emily had had time to heal, even if it was merely just a bandaid over a gaping wound. That bandaid was still something.

The last time that Emily had been at Haven Group, she had looked like an absolute disaster.

She had literally had twigs and leaves in her hair, and her clothes had been not only dirty. They had also been the ones that she had been wearing when Derek’s mother had ripped her heart out. She had looked a mess, even though the only person who had seen her in that state was the head of HR, Padma. Emily felt as though she had to right her wrong.

She could not let the last memory that she had of herself at Haven Group headquarters being that of a woman, so broken that she had not even been able to care about her physical appearance.

That had to be something that she scratched out of her book. So rather than looking at her impending visit, to Haven Group headquarters as something to be dreaded, Emily decided to view it in a new light. This was her redemption. She was going to walk in there as a strong, fierce woman dressed to kill, and she would walk out an even stronger and fiercer woman who still looked gorgeous.

That would be the memory that she would be leaving behind. Not Emily Molson, the woman battered by life. But Emily Molson, the warrior, the survivor.

So rather than just throwing on some random clothes and being out the door. Emily took time with her appearance. She took a long shower, made sure to moisturize, then, while wrapped in a towel, Emily went to pick her attire for the day.

A bone-white crisp suit, one that she had never worn to Haven Group before. Mostly because she had been uncertain that she would be able to keep it as pristine as it was, since she was constantly running around. Now she would not be running around. Instead

She would be gliding across the place and the suit would look good on her. Clothes picked, Emily turned her attention to her hair.

She took her time applying all manner of products until she could tame her hair into a single slick braid that ended just between her shoulder blades. Turning her head this way and that, Emily nodded in satisfaction at her reflection in the mirror.

The hairstyle made her look sharper, stronger somehow.

Hair done, Emily slipped into her clothes. Each layer that she put on having a grounding effect on her. Making her feel more ready for the task ahead.

She was going to Haven Group to finish off her paperwork. She would do so with pride instead of with her head hanging low, like she had done something wrong. The last thing that she had to put on was her shoes. And Emily had just intended to go for her regular flat ones. But she hesitated over a pair of pumps, her eyes moving to the side and landing on stilettos that she rarely ever wore.

A shiny black pair that made her feel as though she were six feet tall. Biting her lip, she reached over for the heeled shoes and walked over with them to the bed where she proceeded to sit down and slip them on one at a time.

When she stood, she had to hold her hands out a bit to get her balance. Then she walked around the room for a few seconds, getting herself used to them. Yes, these were the shoes that she was taking to war with her.

The old Emily would have gone for comfort and practicality. But now she was going for a look that would have anyone who glanced her way knowing that she meant business. Feeling like a giant who could knock down mountains with a single kick, Emily made her way out of the apartment. With any luck, it would not be anything tootaxing and she would be back home before her mom returned from work.

This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶