Meeting Mr. Mogul(22)

Andrew let out a sigh of relief and chuckled at my words. "Now, I get  why Terry likes you," he murmured, more to himself than to me.

"What does he like about me?" I asked eagerly, wanting to know something I wouldn't ever find out from the person himself.

"You're very easy to love, Andy," Andrew replied in a whisper in my ear, then leaned away a little with a beaming smile.

I beamed at his reply and leaned towards him as I said jokingly, "I  couldn't say the same thing about him. So I salute you for loving the  man."

Andrew enthusiastically wrapped his arms around me, squeezing me  lightly. He only let me go when Terry rejoined us, laughing lightly. I  laughed along with him, which made Terry stare at us with a curious  look. I chuckled at his reaction and turned to Andrew with a finger on  my lips to shush him.   





 

We finally left at three in the morning. Terry left no room for argument  about him taking me home. Andrew even took his side this time. In that  moment, I felt my heart swell knowing I have friends who were as sweet  as them. I didn't continue arguing with them anymore and allowed Terry  to take me back.

Within a few minutes, we reached my apartment and he dropped me off in  front of the entrance. He gave me a brief wave before he hit the road. I  waited for him to disappear from my line of vision before getting  inside. When I reached my bedroom, I didn't have enough energy to  change, so I just slept in the clothes I was in.

The next morning, I was glad to wake up without any side effects from  last night's drinking. Although my head throbbed a little, it wasn't  hindering my ability to think properly. I got out of bed and headed to  the shower. I had my whole day planned. I was going to stay in the  hospital until late evening.

I quickly ate breakfast, which consisted of a granola bar and cereal,  and cleaned up before heading down. As I got out of my apartment, the  door across mine suddenly opened.

"Andy! Good morning," Ally greeted with a smile.

"Morning to you, too."

"So, how's work and everything?" she asked, her voice sounded a little forced. I think that wasn't what she wanted to ask me.

"If you are wondering about the guy from last Tuesday, I would say no,  we aren't dating. He's gay," I replied bluntly, smirking at my own  words.

"Oh," she said in sudden realization, with a small mischievous smile  forming on her lips. "But he doesn't look like..." she added, confusion  visible on her face.

"Yeah. I told him that when I found out," I said, chuckling at her  response. "You don't have to worry. You're not the only one who was  fooled."

She laughed at that and we both headed down to the lobby. We separated  as I walked towards the bus stop while Ally waited for her boyfriend,  which answered my question about who drove the silver car that picked  her up last time. When I finally reached the hospital, I went up  directly to my father's floor. I couldn't wait to see him because I  missed him too much.

As I got in the room, I earnestly greeted him with a hug and a kiss, which startled him.

"What's with the enthusiasm today?" my dad asked as I finally let go of him, chortling at my action.

"Oh nothing. I'm just happy to see you," I replied, beaming as I settled  down. "So, what are the plans for today?" I asked casually.

"Not much, really. I'm watching reruns again."

"You're always watching reruns. How about spicing things up and watching a new show?" I offered, wiggling an eyebrow at him.

He simply smiled at my answer and continued watching the show on the  television, which ended in thirty minutes. Before I could start a  conversation with my father, my phone vibrated in my bag. It took a  while to fish out my phone, but once I checked, the number was  unregistered. Since I didn't know who the caller was, I decided not to  answer. I didn't want my day to be disrupted by something trivial. But  before I could return the phone in my bag, the same person called again.  Left with no choice, I finally answered the call with the intent of  scolding whoever was on the other end of the line.

"What do you want? If this is a prank call, then you have another thing  coming..." I warned, not giving the person a chance to talk first.

"Glad you're still as feisty as ever, Ms. Peterson," a familiar voice snickered.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding... What do you want? Wait, before you  answer that, how did you get my number in the first place?" I asked  incredulously. My good mood went down the drain from that point.

"I have all your information, Ms. Peterson. We need you in the office  now," he replied monotonously, his voice sounded a little tired.

"It's my off day, Mr. Maxwell. You can even ask Maggie about it. And if  you're unable to do that, you can also review my files since you have  graciously checked it to get this number..." I replied sourly with  clenched teeth.

"Yes, I already know it was your day off. But we are busy this week with  the new real estate contract. We need all the help we can get. If you  are worried about rendering extra hours, don't worry. You'll be paid for  them on your first check," he said in a rush, his tone slightly bit  irked.   





 

That only added fuel to my already ruined mood. "Wow, Mr. Maxwell! If  you really needed my help that much, you could have asked nicely.  Insulting someone doesn't get you into anyone's good side. Even someone  like you should know that," I said bitterly as I huffed out a breath to  release some tension. "I'm busy today, Mr. Maxwell. I can't help you."

I half-slammed the phone back in my purse in a fit of rage. When I  looked up, I met my father's eyes and saw the worried look on his face.

"Who was that?"

"My boss' brother," I replied as I gritted my teeth, ending the conversation.

After a few minutes, my phone rang again. My father gave me a  questioning look when I didn't move to answer. With a sigh, he reached  for my bag and took my phone out. I looked at him in shock as he  answered the call.

"Hello...? Yes, she is here. Can you give me a moment please?" At this  point, he covered the speaker and said in a whisper, "It's Margarette.  She said you know her."

After knowing who it was, I breathed a sigh of relief and got the phone  from him. "Maggie?" I asked, just to be sure that it wasn't Mr. Mogul.

"Hi, Andy. I'm sorry about what happened a few minutes ago. It was a bad  choice on my part to let William call you. I was too busy filing some  papers. Can you come in today? We really do need your help," she asked a  bit desperately.

I smiled at Maggie's obvious plight. This woman is just so endearing. In  her frantic state, she might just have forgotten my rocky relationship  with William when she asked him to call me.

"I'll be there in a few. Let me clear things up here with my dad," I replied with a small smile.

"I'm really sorry, Andy. Can you put him on the phone? I'll talk to him for you," she offered sincerely.

"Sure," I replied and looked at my father. I handed him the phone with a  sad smile. He took it from me with a baffled expression.

"Hello?"

From the way his expression softened, I think Maggie sweet-talked him  into allowing me to go to work today. With a soft voice, he said his  goodbye and ended the call. He looked at me proudly and smiled.

"You should go now. They need you there. You can come back anytime you finish."

"I'm so sorry about this. I'll be back before you know it," I said wistfully as I leaned in for a hug.

"Take your time honey. I'm not going anywhere," he replied with a guffaw, giving me a soft squeeze before letting go.

"Do you know you're the world's most awesome dad?" I asked.

"I do now," he replied with a huge smile.

With one last kiss, I went out of the room and half-jogged to the  elevator. It didn't take me long to reach the bus stop. On the ride to  work, I glanced down at my casual clothes with a frustrated sigh. I was  wearing my plain white shirt, jeans, and sneakers. I didn't look like  someone who was ready to face a powerful man.

When I finally arrived at my stop, I brushed off the thought. Besides, I  didn't really need fancy clothes to confront Mr. Mogul. The first time I  fought with him, I was wearing my waitress uniform, which was just as  inappropriate to what I was wearing now.

With my confidence back, I determinedly marched to the building. When I  waved to Danny in the reception desk before getting inside the elevator,  I caught her shocked response as she looked my outfit. I smiled to  myself at her reaction. Strangely, that also gave me the confidence to  face him.

Once I reached my floor, I was still a bit scared of facing him. But  when I stepped a foot out of the elevator, I was greeted with the sight  of an empty desk. I was surprised and puzzled to see no one. I was about  to push the close button to check if they were on another floor when  the door to Mr. Mogul's office opened, giving me a slight jolt.

"Andy, you're here," Maggie greeted as she closed the door behind her.