If You So Desire (sequel to Turn... and Walk Away)

Chapter 18

A/N: The image above does not belong to me. It belongs to the person who uploaded it on the internet.

Third Person POV

"You look like you haven't slept a wink," Debbie teased Max when he passed by the reception desk.

"You're right, I haven't," Max had no energy to deny what Debbie said.

He had tried calling Godt last night but Godt didn't take his call. Max had left a message on Godt's voicemail asking to meet up with him to discuss something of great importance. Godt never called back.

Max had been so tempted to drive over to Godt's condo unit to let him know that Godt's boyfriend or whatever he was to Godt was starting to sound dangerous, that his threats were not something to take lightly.

Max decided against driving over to Godt's condo but the decision caused him a sleepless night.

After pressing his index finger against the screen of the time-in machine, Max immediately walked over to Godt's office. He wasn't there. Where the hell was he.

Max glanced at Godt's  wall clock. It was ten minutes past eight in the morning. It was unusual of Godt to be late. He was usually in his office before eight in the morning.

Max walked back to Debbie's desk.

"Hey, Deb, did Godt call to say that he was going to be late for work today?" Max tried to make his question sound casual.

"No, he didn't," said Debbie. "I mean, he called, but not to say that he was going to be late. He called to say that he wasn't coming in to work today."

Max continued to try to sound casual. "And did he say why?"

Debbie looked away, not wanting to meet Max's eyes.

"I ... he ... "

"Damn it, Debbie," Max lost his patience.

"Is something going on between you and Godt?" Debbie asked before Max could say anything else.

"Damn it, Debbie!" Max said again, his voice sounding louder than he meant it to be.

Debbie covered her ears.

"What's going on here?"

Oh shit, the manager had just walked in and had heard Max cursing at Debbie.

"Nothing really," Max denied but the dark pink on his cheeks gave him away.

"He wanted to know why Godt wasn't going to come to work today," Debbie said, frowning at Max.

"It's for a personal reason, Max," Siriporn, the company manager, chided Max. "You don't need to know, unless ... "

Siriporn stopped mid sentence and stared meaningfully at Max.

"You're right," Max said quickly, turning away. "I don't need to know."

"I think you should follow me to my office," Siriporn said to Max.

Max's heart rate started to spike as he followed the company manager to her office.

"Sit down, Max," Siriporn said, motioning to the chair that was right across from her desk.

Max did as he was asked to do.

After Siriporn placed her purse inside her desk drawer, she sat on her desk facing Max.

Siriporn studied Max's face intently before speaking.

"I think that before I even start asking questions, you should tell me whether you are in a relationship with Godt or not," Siriporn said in an ominous voice.

"We are not in a relationship," Max denied, "not at all."

"Let me tell you something, Max," Siriporn said. "Godt's husband is my nephew."

Max jumped up from his chair.

"That fucking bastard!" he exclaimed.

"Are you referring to Godt or to my nephew?" Siriporn asked in a very cold voice.

Max was beside himself with apologies.

"I'm so sorry," Max said. "I  guess I should come clean with you. But first of all, to answer your question, I wasn't referring to your nephew."

"Then would you mind telling me why you considered Godt as a 'fucking bastard' to use your own words?" Siriporn asked.

"When we were talking over lunch, he told me that he was recently separated," Max began his narration to Siriporn.

"Oh so he took you out on a lunch date," Siriporn got sidetracked.

"I wouldn't call it that," Max said. "It was just a getting to know each other lunch."

"So, a lunch date," Siriporn insisted.

Max knew that nothing he could say would change Siriporn's mind so he kept quiet.

"So what else happened?" Siriporn wanted to know.

"One day after work, he tried to invite me to dinner at the same restaurant where he had lunch but when I turned him down, he asked if I would agree to have dinner with him at his condo unit," Max said. "He said he was feeling lonely and didn't want to have dinner all by himself."

"And did you agree to spend the evening with him at his condo unit?" Siriporn's voice was getting colder and more ominous by the second.

Max started to feel worried. In fact he was starting to be fearful of losing his job for having an affair with a married man.

"Please, Siriporn," Max started to plead. "I only had dinner with him there. Nothing happened between us, please believe me!"

"Even if you had spent a night with him, I am not going to take it against you," Siriporn declared. "He had tricked you into thinking that he was not in a committed relationship with my  nephew. I have recommended his removal from this branch and have sent him packing. As we are talking, he is on his way back to our Chiangmai branch."

"I'm very sorry that I ever got involved with Godt," Max said. "I promise I will never have anything to do with him again."

"I will hold you to your promise," Siriporn said. "Now go and work on the advertising project that the toothpaste company has commissioned us to do. I believe you won't be needing supervision from Godt at all. You can come directly to me if you have any questions."

"Yes, Siriporn, I will do exactly just that," Max said fervently, almost in tears, very grateful that he wasn't going to lose his job after all.

Max had just typed in his password on his computer when his phone started to ring. It was an unknown number. He debated briefly whether to answer the call or not before swiping on the screen.

"Hello?" Max said in a tentative voice.

"Max?" Tul's nervous and anxious voice came on Max's phone, making Max grip his phone until his knuckles turned white.

Then before Max could say a word, his phone screen went blank. It didn't matter to Max. Tul's new phone number had registered on Max's phone. That was all that Max needed to know. That was the most important thing that he needed for now.