My Boss Is Secretly A Softie - Chapter 48

Chapter 48: Missed You~
“Sir, we will be arriving in 5 hours,” Merlin informed the blonde who was staring at his phone with a frown.

On it was the message he had sent to Elara which hadn’t been read. How odd! Around this time, she should have seen it.

After all, she suddenly formed the strange habit of contacting him only at midnight. And when he probed too hard, she ended up promising to tell him everything later.

Though he already had a couple of guesses.

“Hah…,” he sighed.

To think some random man would suddenly become a nuisance just a few days away from his Ela. Maybe he’d have to play a little dirty this time.

***

“I like you,” John muttered softly under the drizzling light. Lara said nothing and just as he was about to apologize, she laughed.

“First time?” her teasing smile and eyes should have been annoying yet somehow they lulled him to a frantic mess.

“I, I…”

“I’m ace, aroace to be precise.”

“I know,” he sighed in sadness, “Sorry.”

“You didn’t have to. Ace is but a label I use because I find it easier to explain to others what’s going on with me. And,” she continued calmly, “I’m not too strict on it. If I do meet someone that moves my heart in the future, I’m more likely to open my options.”

“… I’m guessing I’m not the one?”

He pouted, that was even more terrible.

Lara ‘eh-ed’ then suddenly leaned in closer, startling him.

“What?”

“Well, you are my first something….”

He perked up, “What exactly?”

“My first true friend.”

***

Had she been lying, back then? John couldn’t tell, but seeing Elara kneeling before him, bawling like a child, he was sure as hell she wasn’t lying about the first fact.

If she found someone she liked, she was more likely to open up her options despite her reluctance.

“What exactly is it that you want?” John asked in his exasperation, rubbing his furrowed brows.

This was a whole new side to Elara he didn’t know existed… Looking at the teary-eyed lady with a pitiful look, he groaned. Perfect. Dangerous in whatever she did.

“My boss…. One last time,” she pleaded shamelessly.

“…. You were the one who said you would limit all contact to digital means. So you could focus on me.”

He never once brought it up, but to outdo herself, she decided to reinstate her last claims and be true to it. She dug herself into this mess, so what was she bawling for?

“And I will! Even with my other friends. Just give me some time to round this up…”

“And why didn’t you tell me before?” John frowned in discontent.

Elara was stumped and couldn’t say anything.

He sneered, “Because then the authenticity of your promise would be doubted! Nicely done, Elara, as tricky as always.”

She made an apologetic face then doubled down, “John, PLEASE!”

“What the…!” he exclaimed in alarm, on having his waist snatched by a fiercely passionate lady.

“PLEASE!”

“Ah, let me go—!”

***

Fortunately, her pitiful screeches got her somewhere, though the other had been so pissed he locked her out of his house, dissolving their deal. Heh, she’d just worm her way in later.

John: …

Her phone buzzed, and picking it up, she brightened at the caller.

“Damn, girl, a lot sure did happen. I read it all in one go, that tea was as hot as they get~.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, did you investigate?” she huffed in annoyance.

Terra treating her misfortunes as fun was something she did expect. It didn’t stop her from wanting to chuck her off a bridge, though.

“Yes~,” she sang, “It’s Dora; I paid her a ‘visit’, so you don’t have to worry anymore.”

Elara frowned, “She sure is something, but I’m sure she doesn’t know Lara is Elara. She’s too dumb to figure that out, and John would have never told her.”

She reduced the volume of her song to better hear Terra’s response.

“Oh, apparently, John pretended he knew you as Elara and got a lot of info about you,” she chuckled, “You know, I found out something even more interesting.”

Elara cocked up her brow. Terra’s ‘interesting findings’ weren’t always good. She knew this first hand.

“Yes?” she suddenly stepped on the brakes— traffic was being a bitch.

“Terrence has been digging his nose into places he shouldn’t. What do you want me to do about this, Sarah?”

For some reason, her carefree take on everything didn’t anger Elara— probably because she was already used to this nuisance.

“Hmm, nothing,” She clicked her tongue, “Unless he gets me or John to admit, he’ll never find the tracks. Why did you think I restricted my association when I was Lara?”

Terra hummed, intrigued.

“Because it would be much easier to destroy all traces of my existence later on. Lara and Elara are so vastly different; it would take an intervention by a major in-knower like you, John, or me for Terry to find anything.”

“Interesting, just how far did you think through before becoming Lara?”

“If it took me all that time to craft her, of course, I had better do it right. Now be helpful and round off my explanation to Star and Dominic, I gotta prove my loyalty to my newest friend.”

A loud groan came from across the phone, “Why don’t we just tell them everything?”

“Are you high?!” Elara yelled, “Don’t you dare, Terrance!”

“Okay, okay, you’re freaking me out calling me by my full name. Babe, chill.”

Elara rolled her eyes, “Anything you want to let me know?”

Terra cleared her throat, then replied, “Can I fuck him after you’re done with the repentance thing?”

“…”

“He’s so hot. Please…?”

The call was ruthlessly cut off and Elara could have sworn she heard laughter just before it ended.

‘Still as crazy as ever, huh?’

She smiled softly, though that was her charm. She couldn’t even bring herself to hate it. Ever.

***

Terrance had just returned and was greeted with the soullessness of his estate. Beautiful yet desolate. He should be used to this, but somehow it felt more annoying than usual.

He checked his phone. There was no reply from his Ela— interesting.

The next thing he did was slip out of his outfit and into the shower to wash off his exhaustion and be more clear-minded before making any decisions or taking any actions.

He was just dressing up in his PJs when Merlin’s knock came.

“Sir, Miss Elara is here.”

He was stunned, absolutely flabbergasted, and then he instantly placed on a casual shirt and sweatpants and dashed out of his room like a madman.

On his sofa sat a sharp-eyed lady, fidgeting uneasily, or rather in excitement. Their eyes clashed, and before she could say a word, his large frame enveloped her.

“Angel, hmm… Hmm~,” Elara muffled while being buried in the male’s ‘interesting’ pecks.

Now this was heaven, but earthly matters needed to be dealt with right now.

“Wait.”

Like that, they ended up hugging for minutes, with Elara on his lap.

This was when it hit them— they had deathly missed each other. She was so emotional, she nearly gave up on John as a whole but thinking about how important it all was, she deleted that thought immediately. Additionally, her relationship with her angel would also benefit from it, as Elara would finally be gone.

But even without the benefits, she had to reconcile with John, and so she brought up the matter, and boy was her angel enraged.

“Angel…”

“Really? ‘A friend’? I stayed away for a couple of days, and it goes from nothing to you cohabitating with a man?”

He pouted fiercely, how unpleasant.

“… For all you could tell, I might be gay.”

“You said you were ace.”

“….”

So why are you still pursuing me, if we are being that strict on labels?

Terrence could read her thoughts loud and clear and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“I refuse,” he shook his head, “one more day not seeing you and I would lose my mind.”

“Well, I never said I wouldn’t see you,” she suggested sneakily, “We just have to make it sneaky in the meantime.”

Her words were cut off by a quick kiss, which left her embarrassed, and as payment, he got smacked on the chest.

Attack— 100%; Damage— -1.

Well, he did take damage, in his heart.

“Why?” he asked while playing with her hair.

Elara paused, and then her visage fell.

“I did something terrible to him and have to pay, or it will forever haunt me.”

She sighed, “Please, Angel, just this once. I’ll tell you everything after all of this is over. Please?”

“What secret place?” he suddenly asked.

“Huh?”

He leaned into her, “What secret place?”

She averted her gaze silently in thought but was brought back to meet the male face-to-face.

She had been too distracted to notice it before, but looking into his hot eyes, she gulped. Did he get more sexy or what?

They nearly kissed, again, but she managed to stop it by covering his mouth.

“Ah!” Terrence’s tongue traced her palm, leaving her flinching.

She tried to retrace but was held down firmly and with a tug, she was topped.

A pair of twinkling eyes overlooked the magnetizing lady who, despite her nervousness, could barely hide the sparkle in her eyes.

Terrence could tell she wanted him too, just reluctant to take this leap of faith— he’d push her to, one way or another. After all, she was already his, he just needed to seal the deal.

“Angel? I do have a place…” she spoke with beguiling eyes.

He smiled, leaving her astonished.

Elara was his, and this time, unlike the others, she had come to stay— regardless of her yes or no.

He sucked on the lady’s fair digits, “I have somewhere better. Let’s be as sneaky as you want, Ela.”