The CEO’s Unspoken Love (Eleanor and Derek) novel Chapter 149

Chapter 149

Eleanor POV

The next evetring, snow had fallen over Boston, covering the previous day’s grime with a pristine white blanket. I walked alongside Olivia down Newbury Street, past elegant storefronts with their post-holiday sales signs. My boots crunched through fresh snow that had already been trampled into slush by afternoon shoppers. The cold air nipped at my cheeks, but I welcomed/the sensation- it helped clear my head after the emotional chaos of last night’s confrontation at the bar.

“I still can’t believe what happened last night, Olivia said, breaking the comfortable silence between us. The way Derek and James were squaring off like two alpha wolves fighting over territory. She shook her head, her breath forming small clouds in the frigi air. “And you just walked out and left them both standing there. That was honestly the best exit I’ve seen outside of a movie.

I gave her a weak smile. “I just couldn’t take it anymore. Being treated like some prize to be won.”

“Did Derek follow you?” she asked, her tone careful but curious. When he ran out after you?”

“He caught up to me at the curb,” I admitted. “We argued. I told him to respect my choices and my space.”

Olivia nodded, seemingly satisfied with my answer, though I could tell there was more she wanted to ask. We walked in silence for another block, the sun beginning to set behind the brick buildings, casting long shadows across the snow.

“Ellie,” she finally said, her voice softer now. “I feel like there’s something you’re not telling me about all this. About you and Derek. She glanced at me sideways. “You two have this… tension. It’s like watching a rubber band being stretched to its breaking point.”

I sighed, watching my breath dissipate in the cold air. “It’s complicated, Liv.”

“You’ve been saying that since your divorce papers were signed, she pointed out. “But complicated how? You’ve never really

explained.”

I was saved from answering as we reached my apartment building, the Victorian brownstone where I’d lived since the divorce. Olivia followed me inside, and we both stomped snow from our boots in the entryway.

3

Inside my warm apartment, Sunny bounded toward us with the enthusiasm only a golden retriever could muster, his tail wagging so hard his entire body shook with it. I bent down to scratch behind his ears, grateful for his uncomplicated affection.

“At least someone’s always happy to see me, I murmured, feeling his warm fur beneath my fingers.

The apartment was quiet and cozy-a stark contrast to the imposing Wells mansion where I’d lived during my marriage. Here, everything was chosen by me, for me: the soft blue throw pillows on the cream-colored sofa, the watercolor paintings of flower arrangements I’d created, the well-worn hardwood floors that creaked in all the right places.

After hanging our coats on the vintage coat rack by the door, I turned to Olivia. “Thank you for staying tonight,” I said, genuine

1/3

Chapter 149

gratitude in my voice. “I really didn’t want to be alone.”

Olivia smiled, kicking off her boots and arranging them neatly by the door. “Winter is meant for two people curled up under blankets,” she said, her usual confident tone returning. “Why else would God invent central heating and best friends?”

Her words unexpectedly conjured memories of Derek’s warm embrace, of nights spent tangled in sheets with his arms around me. The weight of his body next to mine, the way he’d pull me closer in his sleep, unconsciously seeking my warmth. A shadow must have crossed my face because Olivia’s expression shifted, her smile fading,

“You’re thinking about something,” she observed quietly, her voice gentle but knowing.

I shook my head, forcing a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “I’ll make some tea,” I said, desperate to change the subject. “Red or

chamomile?”

Later, dressed in pajamas and propped against pillows on my bed, I took a deep breath. Sunny was curled at our feet, snoring softly. The dim light from my bedside lamp cast a warm glow across the room, making everything seem softer, safer somehow.

“About what you said earlier,’ I began, finally breaking the comfortable silence that had settled between us. “You’re right. There are things I haven’t told you… about Derek and James.”

Olivia set her tea mug on the nightstand, giving me her full attention. “I’m listening.”

“You know James kissed me on Christmas Eve,” I said, picking at a loose thread on my duvet cover.

“Yes, you mentioned that, she nodded.

I looked up at her. “The thing is, when he kissed me… I felt nothing, Liv. No spark, no butterflies. Nothing.”

Her eyebrows rose slightly. “Nothing at all?”

I shook my head. “When he kissed me, I was wishing it was someone else. I swallowed hard. “I was wishing it was Derek.

Olivia’s expression shifted, but she remained silent, waiting for me to continue.

“That night, when James brought the cake and lit the candle, he told me to make a wish.” I looked down at my hands. I wished I could go back to the year I first met Derek, to start over. To never fall in love with him in the first place.”

I took a shaky breath. “But then, not long after James left… Derek showed up at my door. It was still snowing. He brought me a sapphire necklace for my birthday.” I touched my neck unconsciously, remembering the weight of the pendant. “We argued, and then… I felt heat rise to my cheeks, unable to finish the sentence.

Olivia’s eyes widened with realization. “You slept with him? After the divorce?”

I nodded, my voice barely audible. “It wasn’t the first time.”

THEY

O

2/3

D

Chapter 149

Olivia sat up straighter, her face suddenly tense. “Ellie,” she said carefully, setting her mug down with deliberate slowness, “did he…

force you? Did he pressure you into anything?”

“No,” I said quickly, meeting her eyes. ‘God, no. Nothing like that.” I looked down at my hands, twisting them in my lap. “If

anything.. I wanted him as much as he wanted me. Maybe more.”

The memory of that night flashed through my mind-Derek’s hands on my skin, the heat between us, the desperate way we’d clung

to each other. I could still feel the weight of him, still taste him on my lips.

Comments

4

Write Comments

|||

<SHARE

3/3

14:19 Thu, Jul 2 MA

The CEO’s Unspoken Love