A Twisted Tale

Clearing the Air

Meera's POV

I woke up to a phone call from Valerio informing me that I had the meeting with the board of directors today.

While I was busy getting ready for the meeting, I received a phone call from Mark. He said "Hey, good morning. Remember our discussion about Valerio yesterday? I couldn't get it out of my mind so I asked my PI to dig deeper. Turns out, he had a PR representative whom he was dating back then. But what's weird is that there are literally no pictures of her on the internet. Also, she was caught beating the shit out of a woman at a local restaurant. Valerio was the one to pull her back."
"Okay, thanks for your help. I'm going to directly ask him about it and see what he has to say." I said determined.
"Sweetheart are you sure that's a good idea? I mean, what if you alert him by asking about it? Besides, I don't want you to confront him while I'm not around. It's dangerous." said Mark.

I sighed and asked "Have you ever known me to be a person to mince my words? My straightforwardness is known to all. Also, he can't hurt me. He has too much to lose and he can't afford it. So I'll be fine. You stop worrying about me and get back to winding up with the work there. Oh! I almost forgot to inform you that the meeting with the board of directors is today. Valerio will be picking me up in a while and post the meeting he'll be taking me to lunch. That's when I'll get my answers."

Mark grumbled and protested for a little while longer before caving in to my stubbornness. I was ready and sipping some green tea when Valerio showed up to take me to work.
"Hey. Shall we go?" He asked. I noticed that his attitude changed after yesterday's episode. He didn't seem so sure of himself and probably that's why he decided to stick to being professional. I nodded at him and got into his car. The ride to the office was bathed in uncomfortable silence. On reaching the office, Valerio stopped me from getting off the car and said "Hey, I know you don't trust anything that comes out of my mouth right now but I need to clear the air between us. I know I made mistakes and tried to supersede you one too many times. You need to understand that it wasn't intentional. I have been stressed out with everything that's going on and that's why I lashed out at you. It won't happen ever again. So are we okay?"
I looked at him and said "I heard your piece. Now it's your turn to hear mine. No. We're not okay. Nothing is hunky-dory between us because you screwed up way too many times. First the proposal and then you called me a spy. That's not all. You have the audacity to say that it's your secretary on a video call when I clearly saw lipstick and mascara stains in the bathroom. Who was the woman who was with you? Please enlighten me."

He looked frustrated as he ran his hands down his face which he did when he wasn't sure of answering a question. "That was my ex-girlfriend Aurora. I broke up with her a couple of months ago but when she heard about the partnership and possible wedding, she came back to confront me. You and I were just getting to know each other and I didn't want anything to ruin it. That's why I lied."

"You decided to keep me away from this because you figured I would be the victim of her violent outburst. Like the woman in the restaurant. Am I right?" I asked.
He was shocked beyond measure that I knew. He said "You knew about that huh? Yes. She has a history of violence. The woman at the restaurant is now my legal advisor. A small price I had to pay to ensure she didn't go to the cops. Aurora is not known to go down easy. And nobody would want to touch me with a ten foot pole if I told them about my crazy ex-girlfriend." His laugh sounded hollow.
I truly felt sorry for his situation so I put my hand on his shoulder and said "Now we're okay. I understand why you did what you did. But I have a question for you and I want an honest answer for it. You said she came back. Does that mean you have an on-off relationship with her? Or are you completely done with her?"
He looked right into my eyes as he said "Trust me. The last thing I want to do is be around a crazy woman. I'm totally done with her. If she turns up again, I'll find a permanent solution for it."
"You're saying like she will turn up again. And I hope I have nothing to worry about? Like post guards outside my room?" I asked.
He took my hand into his and said "She will not come anywhere near you. If that were to ever happen, I'll be the one to protect you no matter what."
It was very sweet of him to say that so I smiled at him and said "Okay. You're my personal bodyguard from now onwards. Wherever I go, you follow."
He laughed at that and said "Even to the bathroom?"
I rolled my eyes at him and said "Why? Just why do you have to go back to being that way when I just started liking you?"
"Seriously? Just now? We went on a date, kissed and laughed about a lot of things but just now you STARTED liking me?" He said wounded.
I got off the car and started walking. I was laughing at what he said when he grabbed my hand and pulled me back. He was smiling at me as he asked "You like me huh? Like me enough to give us a shot?"
I leaned closer to him and whispered "Maybe. Maybe not. You just have to wait and find out." He chuckled when I said that and out of an impulse I kissed him on his cheek, which shocked me. I resumed walking without looking back as I didn't want him to see me blushing.

The office was bustling with people as we walked in. Valerio led me to the private elevator and pressed the button to the 20th floor. As soon as the doors closed, Valerio leaned against the door and asked "So, you mind telling me about what you did back at the parking lot?"
I knew he wouldn't let it go so I said "It was just an impulse. Don't read into it."
"Hmmm... So let me also do something out of an impulse now that we're both alone in the elevator." He said as he walked towards me. He put his hands on my waist and pulled me closer to him. He then placed his hands on the either side of my face as he kissed me on my forehead.
I didn't know what to make of the gesture until he said "I really really like you, Meera Iyer. And it's important that you like me too."
He was smiling as he let go of me. Before I could answer, the elevator doors opened. Whatever I was about to say had to wait until after the meeting.