When Emily got to her apartment, she was glad that at least she was able to get there in one piece. She had walked like a blind woman and luckily for her, she wasn’t driving, or else she was certain that she would have hit someone.

She, first of all, dropped her bag on the table and kicked off her shoes. Then she settled down, placing her head in both hands, she shut her eyes to recount everything that had happened to her that very night.

“Friends? I don’t need friends. All I am doing is because I want you so badly, you are an incredible woman. You work so hard and I am sure you will be so damn good in bed”

Tommy’s voice kept echoing in her head. She was so sure that there would be no sleeping for her that night.

The man she had had a crush on for a while wanted to sleep with her. All the conferences he had been taking her to had just been to get in her skirt!

She whimpered. It was the saddest night of her life. Not only had Tom disappointed her but now, she had lost every chance with the love of her life as well.

How could men be so wicked! And how could she be so stupid?

The tears were flowing uncontrollably now. She was ready to go back to him, to apologize and tell him that he had been right all along and that she was wrong, especially with what happened with Tommy. He had been right all along and he could have just given her time to come back to her senses. How could he have just gotten a new girlfriend in such a short time? It was not even up to a single day. Was it possible that while she was busy, he was having an affair? She looked up instantly.

She thought she heard something. Then she heard it again, it was a knock on her door.

“Who’s there?” She asked, her voice was a bit unclear from having cried too much.

“It’s me, dear.”

Emily instantly recognized the voice as that of her landlady.

“Mrs. Peri?” she asked with a frown.

“Yes, it’s me, open up.”

She was startled. What could the woman need at that time of the night? Quickly, she cleaned her face with a tissue and stood up to get the door.

“Hello Mrs. Peri, is anything the matter?” She asked, opening the door slightly.

“Well, you came home awfully late and I wanted to check on you.”

“Wow. Thank you. The traffic was really crazy and...”

“Oh, you poor thing! Have you been crying?”

Emily was surprised. “No, actually. I just have something stuck in my eyes.”

“You don’t need to lie to me, darling. I bet you can talk to me,” she said, pushing the door wider so she stepped in.

Emily was surprised and could hardly say anything but the woman was right. She actually needed someone to talk to.

“So tell me, is it your boyfriend again? Or that cute guy that came to pick you earlier today?”

Wow! This woman was pretty nosy!

“Honestly, I don’t even know where to start,” Emily said sitting down.

“What happened, do tell me.”

“The cute guy you saw earlier is a friend, or well, I saw him as my friend and I later found out he saw me as something else entirely. I respected him and I actually thought he was looking out for me. Later I got to know that he only wanted to sleep with me.”

The woman gasped. “Oh my God! Did he try to rape you?”

“No! What happened was that I went with him to the club to try and have some fun and not be home alone. But on getting there I found Liam with some other lady.”

“Wow! In that same club?”

Emily nodded.

“So what happened?”

“It was too much for me so I just ran out.”

“Did he follow you?”

“You mean Liam?”

“Yes.”

“He didn’t even see me. I didn’t allow him to see me.”

“Why not? You could have confronted him on why he had brought some lady to a club when you two broke up a day before.”

“Well, I don’t know but I chickened out and Tommy came to my aid and took me to a hotel.”

“A hotel? You went with him there?”

Emily nodded. “I never actually knew that was where he was taking me initially and it wasn’t the first time, so I thought he was going to ask for two rooms for us like he did the last time. I have been so stupid. All this while, he had been trying to impress me and I stupidly believed that he was a good guy.”

“So what happened next?”

Emily sniffed and continued. “Well, we got to the room and he started nibbling on my ears so I backed away. He got angry and started talking about how the things he has done for me had been because he wanted to sleep with me. I just slapped him and ran out of the room.”

“Wow! Well, thank God he never did anything to you!”

“The most painful thing was that I was ready to go back to Liam and beg him to take me back but I found a woman in his room.”

The landlady gasped. “He was sleeping with another woman?”

“No. I didn’t actually see that. I didn’t even look for him but the picture I had seen was all I needed. He has moved on and ha found a new girlfriend for himself.”

The woman paused for a while. “So you didn’t find them on top of each other?”

Emily shook her head.

“You didn’t find them kissing either?”

She shook her head again.

“So why would you conclude that they were sleeping together?”

Emily stopped. “What are you talking about? There was no way they weren’t sleeping together with the way I had seen the woman.

“But you just said they were not kissing or having sex.”

“Yes, but it was the same woman that he had taken to the bar.”

The woman shrugged. “Well, I don’t think that is enough evidence for you to make your claim. I think you need to talk to him.”

Emily was surprised. “What?” Why would I do that? There is absolutely nothing for us to talk about.”

The woman smiled. “Do you still love him?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yes, it does. Lose the ego, Emily.”

“Well, I do. I still do.”

“Then have you considered the possibility of this woman being no one special?”

Emily thought for a while and shook her head. “That would be a difficult thing to consider,” she shot back.

“You see. I was once like you. I fell in love while I was very young, vibrant and beautiful just like you. One day he asked me out. I was more than eager to go. So, on that beautiful day, I was dressed and was waiting for him patiently until I realized he wasn’t coming. Out of disappointment , I went to his place and found another lady in his room. He wasn’t home and I never asked who the girl was. I allowed my imagination to run wild. I became so bitter and mean to him and later he stopped talking to him when I finally discovered the woman was actually his sister.”

Emily gasped. “His sister?”

She nodded. “Yes, she gave him away on our wedding day.”

“Wow! You were talking about Mr. Peri all along.”

“Yea. So, I want you to think about it very well. Could Liam really have been having an affair before breaking up?”

Emily sighed. “I don’t know, Mrs. Peri.”

“Then you need to find a way to ask him. Confront him, let him know how you feel, and if he listens and he still says no, then you will know that you have tried your best and you can finally forgive yourself and find relief,” with this, the woman stood up. “Goodnight Emily, Think about what I just said.”

Emily bent to give the woman a warm hug. “Thank you so much, Mrs. Peri. I will think about it.”

They pulled away and the woman walked out of the room.

Emily inhaled sharply. Her landlady was right, but how was she going to ask him without sounding jealous and insecure? It was going to be difficult for her. She would really need a plan, but what if the lady was really his girlfriend? Would confronting him not seem like she was embarrassing herself? What if the lady was there when she went to see him in his office? How would she ask him to excuse his girl so that he could have a private discussion with him, as his ex?

She sighed again. This was going to be major work, but she would need to figure it out somehow.