28- Surprise at Dinner

"Now he's going to listen to me!" - Trish thought.

Trish walked into Dante's office without knocking.

— Hi to you too. Did you know there's a thing called knocking to announce you're coming in? — Dante said.

— To hell with knocking! How dare you make me lose a talented writer? — Trish said, huffing.

— You couldn't convince her, could you? — Dante said, running his hand through his hair.

— I haven't given up, but she's not an easy one to persuade.

— It's my fault, I knew what she was like and still managed to win her heart, but I didn't know how to handle it. I regret it.

— And you owe me a lot because you're going to help me get her back.

— Huh? Have you seen that she doesn't even want to see me, let alone work with me? — He said, confused.

— No matter how you do it, just do it.

— Trish, you know I'm still the boss around here, right? — Dante asked ironically.

— To hell with you! How dare you hurt her feelings and on top of that, make me lose what I've been searching for for years for this company? — Trish said in a threatening tone.

— You're scary. Seriously, you're scaring me.

— I don't care, just fix this as soon as possible!

— But how? I don't even know where she lives.

— As if her portfolio doesn't have her current address and phone number... Sometimes I think you're deliberately stupid, it's not possible to be so intelligent and waste it like this.

— You're wicked, but you're my savior!

— Define a strategy and then let me know.

— Yes, you can count on it! — Dante said excitedly.

— Before I go, I need to know something, and I need you to be honest.

— Okay, go ahead and ask.

— Do you love her?

Dante seemed shocked. As if the question caught him off guard, his eyes turned sad.

— You want to know the truth, right?

— Yes, without hiding what you feel, please.

— Yes, I love her. I never forgot her, but I was a coward and let her slip away while being a jerk. I couldn't get her out of my head, even when I tried. Do you know why I haven't dated anyone all this time?

— I can guess.

— And you might be right, I couldn't forget her way, her scent, and the way she kissed me. There was something there, something that was never present in any other relationship I had.

— What are you waiting for to fight for her?

— I don't know what to do, I'm lost.

— Do you want her back?

— More than you can imagine, I can't control myself when I'm with her. I just want to kiss her, touch her, hold her, and never let her escape again.

— I see that I'll have to correct your past mistakes. You owe me that! — Trish said, leaving the room.

Now, all that was left was to define how and when she would start acting. She would wait a few days to put the plan into action, mainly because she had to make Kyra believe that she was in control.

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As soon as Trish left the room, Dante was lost in thought. He didn't expect to encounter the love of his life again, especially wanting a position in his company. Destiny had played a trick on him, but he was happy about it because now he had a chance to win Kyra back. It seemed incredibly impossible, he knew that better than anyone, but he was ready to face the consequences of his past actions in order to have a second chance. What he would do next, he had no idea, he just knew he wouldn't let Kyra slip out of his arms again, and that was a promise. A new hope was swelling in his chest, a feeling he had never experienced before, and the fact that Kyra seemed affected by his kiss made him smile with excitement. It would be a battle, that he was sure of, but it was also a delight to feel these emotions and sensations again.

Dante rested both elbows on his desk, his chin resting in his hands, as he stared at the door in front of him.

— Clearly, I need to kick off my conquering strategy. I'll come up with the perfect plan. — Dante grabbed a piece of paper, and a pen, and began to write:

1st First, I'll get her to work for me;

2nd I won't rush, but I'll explain the real reasons why I couldn't be with her back then;

3rd I'll help in whatever way necessary to showcase her talent;

4th I'll win her back;

5th I'll marry her.

— That's it! This time I'm going to fight for her happiness and mine. I want to make her happy. I'm so nervous.

Dante stood up and left. He needed to rest, as the next few days would be turbulent, and he needed to be prepared.

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I (Kyra) went out to buy the ingredients I needed to make dinner for my dear friends since João and Daniel had other commitments and couldn't make it. The menu for the night was the traditional Lasagna (an Italian dish) because I loved it, and Lucy and Nick said they enjoyed Italian food. I hadn't prepared it for them before, but the ones I had made until now were quite good (without bragging).

Luckily, the interview didn't take too long, as if it had lasted another hour, I wouldn't have been able to prepare everything in time. I got home, prepared the ingredients, placed the pot on the stove, and started making the red sauce. Thirty minutes later, my lasagna was assembled and ready to be baked. Since we had agreed to meet at 7:30 in the evening, I still had time to take a shower.

I headed to the bedroom, picked out the clothes I would wear (light jeans and a cream turtleneck sweater since it was a bit chilly), and went for a shower (it was 6:35). I came out of the shower, went to the kitchen, and turned on the oven so that the lasagna would still be warm when they arrived.

Everything was ready to welcome them, and at exactly 7:30, they showed up. I went to the door to greet them.

— Hello! — I said, hugging Lucy.

— Hello, Kyra, I hope you won't kill me.

— What do you mean? — I asked, furrowing my brow, not understanding anything.

— I brought an extra and annoying guest along.

I finished greeting Nick and looked at the door in shock.

— Hello again, Kyra! — Said the person I least wanted to see today.