Chapter Six

Tally focused on her work for a while before her thoughts eventually drifted back to her personal life. As she had been pondering Ryan’s sex life, it made her reflect on her own. Tally had always believed that her experiences were typical, dismissing the stories she read in magazines or heard from Ryan’s previous partners, as exaggerated or unconventional. However, now she couldn’t help but cringe inwardly at the notion of her sex life with Blake being called “normal.” In reality, she could now see it was more accurately described as boring.

Tally had found her sex life with Blake to be lacking excitement at times. She noticed that he often didn’t realize when she hadn’t reached climax. As a result, she had always assumed that she simply had a low sex drive and wasn’t particularly interested in it. Since Blake was her only sexual partner, she had no one else to compare him to. Additionally, he held very traditional views when it came to the bedroom. Snorting. Maybe the problem in the bedroom was how much Blake wanted her?

Blake would never have allowed her to ride him like the blonde had done today. The image of that blonde woman riding Blake, a sight that had burned itself into her memory, replayed over and over again, taunting her. 

She bet Ryan’s sex life was anything but vanilla. As she had heard it called in one of her magazines. Tally really wanted to call someone and chat to them, a girlfriend, anyone. But Tally realized that all her friends had come from her relationship with Blake. Seeing now, he had effectively just pruned all her old uni friends from her life and replaced them with people he saw as the right fit for them and his job.

A surge of frustration coursed through her veins. How had she allowed herself to be stripped of her independence? She was a strong, intelligent woman, capable of making her own decisions. Yet somewhere along the way, she had surrendered her autonomy, allowing Blake to reshape her world according to his own vision. If anything, it was a repeat of how her father had controlled her mother’s life and her own.

Tally put her elbows on the desk. She rested her hands on the back of her neck. No friends that she could trust in her life to help her. How would she know they wouldn’t call Blake without her knowing? 

Well, she wasn’t going home tonight, that was for sure. But she needed to get some of her stuff. She would be ok for tonight. At the office, she kept an overnight bag in case of emergencies. It hadn’t been the first time Ryan had to leave on a moment’s notice, and she didn’t have time to go home. If she was traveling with him.

Fortunately, when she had first started working for Ryan, he had told her to keep a go bag. Anyone would think he was a frigging crime fighter. Tally also had her dress for tonight’s business dinner.

Tally straightened and picked her phone up from the desk. The thought of booking into a hotel crossed her mind. She knew she could only afford to stay for a few nights, though, as she didn’t want to waste money. The process of moving and separating her life from Blake was going to be expensive. Unlocking her phone, she discovered 14 messages and 8 missed calls from Blake, as well as additional ones from their shared friends. Tally resisted the urge to open any of them and simply deleted everything, determined to remove him from her life entirely.

Tally decided to search for hotels in the area on G****e. She wanted to find one that was both highly rated and affordable. After conducting her search, Tally quickly proceeded to the online check-in and booked a room. The last thing she wanted was for Ryan to overhear her booking a hotel. This was precisely why she had opted not to use the company apartment. She wanted to avoid any unnecessary questions.

Tally felt secure in her job now. Despite being single, she had been with the company for a long time and had been working directly for Ryan for over eighteen months. Moreover, she had an ironclad contract and had no intention of making advances towards her boss. 

The rest of the day, she worked in a mindless zombie state and even got through the important meeting with Ryan, closing the deal. But her ass started to really drag during the dinner that night and she hit a wall around 9:30 pm. Feeling like she would full asleep at the table.

Her phone hadn’t stopped buzzing. She knew who it was without looking, because throughout their relationship, Blake never remembered if she told him she wouldn’t be home for some reason. She would always have to remind him on the afternoon of the event if she would not be home. So many warning signs, she realized now. Things he hadn’t paid attention to or hadn’t cared enough to ask.

Well, she now wasn’t answerable to him, so she hadn’t told him she wouldn’t be home, not just tonight, but ever. 

“Tally?” Ryan’s voice came from right beside her.

Surprised, Tally looked up to find their guests gone and saw only Ryan sitting with her. “Sorry Ryan.” Embarrassed by her lack of attention tonight and their dinner guests.

“Don’t worry about it. I don’t think our guests even noticed. But I think we need to talk, don’t you?” Ryan looked towards his guests, getting their coats on by the door of the restaurant. Tally saw that they seemed very intoxicated.

When she looked back at Ryan, her expression was confused, asking, “Why?”

Ryan sighed. “Because Tally you haven’t been with it since you got back to the office after lunch and I have to tell you Blake called the office?”

“What? When?” Shit, why hadn’t Ryan said something before? Tally quickly replayed the possible conversation that might have taken place between the two men in her mind.

“When you went to get the file, about 2 mins before you arrived back at the office.” Ryan let her know.

Flushed, hoping Blake hadn’t said anything to Ryan. Her boss didn’t do ‘personal’. “What did he say?” She demanded.