Chapter 8

"Are you okay?" He asked again in a worried tone, Caily could deem that he was getting nearer but she still couldn't see him.

Just as she was about to voice her concerns, the headlights went off. She fluttered her eyes open and could finally make out his face, - His unexpectedly handsome face. She recognized him as she had seen him one time with Emily.

"I'm Nathan Hayes. Emily's boss. I have heard a lot about you, nice to meet you," He uttered, his hand stretched towards Caily,

Caily looked dumbfounded but still took his hand in a quick handshake.

He chuckled at the way she abruptly shook him.

His eyebrows raised towards her motionless baffled expression,

Caily shook her head out of her slight daze,

"Oh, I'm Caily Thorne…Windsor. I'm Caily Windsor," She reprimanded herself in her thoughts. When would she accept that she was no longer married to Alex and a part of the Thornefield family?!

"I know." Nathan beamed at her, "Why are you out here so late all alone?"

Caily bit her lower lips in contemplation as she looked around, pondering on what excuse to give to him, because she clearly couldn't bring herself to let him know what had happened to her during the day that led her walking aimlessly in the dark alone, close to the road.

"I just… I don't know," She nervously brushed a hand through her wrinkled hair,

"You can talk to me, it's okay," Nathan urged with what seemed like a compassionate smile on his face,

He gazed at her dearly like she was someone really close and precious to him.

Of course, he knew who Caily was.

The only woman that Crystal City tagged as 'A cheating Gold Digger,' even without enough evidence to support their claim.

He instantly felt pity for her and wondered how she had been able to scale through everything; The gold digger scandal she first had when she got married into the Thornefield family, the humiliation, the horrendous tags with her name, and then the sudden cheating scandal that seemed to him to be the execution of someone else, Someone who obviously yearned for her downfall.

Her present appearance even made him more worried, she looked like she had fought with someone before she escaped, and her shiny rough hair was covering a half part of her beautiful face.

When she still remained quiet, Nathan bent his head to her level,

"Do you need a ride to somewhere? I would be more than willing to help," He offered,

Caily looked up at him and met his soft gaze, his deep blue eyes hovering over her face,

"I don't have anywhere to go," She breathed,

Nathan exhaled sharply. He seemed to be lost in thoughts for a few seconds before he gestured to her, "Alright, come here,"

Caily stared at him, stunned.

He was gesturing her to his car.

Where was he going to take her to?

"Let's take you home for now," He released to her greatest shock.

"No!" She debunked in a yell, "I don't want to go back there,"

"What?" Nathan brow's furrowed, His face twisted in a haze,

"I….I fought with my parents, Okay! So I don't want to go back home," Caily disclosed,

Nathan's eyes lostly looked around, nodding at her revelation,

"Okay. But that was not the home I meant… I meant my home," He released in a laid-back manner like it was no big deal to take a woman he barely knew to his house,

Caily gazed hard at him in sheer puzzlement.

She couldn't help but ponder within herself if he was just being nice. Or if he had other motives.

She moved her head from side to side, Shunning away all the negative thoughts.

Unlike Alex, he did not look like the type that could even hurt a fly.

And besides, she had nowhere to go at the moment. And someone was willing to help, what choice did she have? -NONE.

Nathan grasped the distressed look on her face,

"I get that Emily is out of the country right now. If I leave you out here all alone, she will chew my head off when she gets back. So…"

Caily nodded.

And a few minutes later, she was in his car, headed to his home.

They arrived at Nathan's home, a massive grand space.

And just as Caily shyly trailed behind Nathan, a sudden news blast on the TV grabbed their attention.

["Viral Gold Digger Moves To Another Wealthy Man! *** Her Target this time is Nathan Hayes, The CEO Of Crystal City Law Firm And The Only Son Of The Mayor Of Crystal City. More Information Coming Soon!]

Caily gasped in shock, and her eyes widened with fright at the image of her and Nathan getting into his car fully displayed in the news,

The comments that followed shattered her even more.

[ *Uh, this girl irritates me to the core! How can she be so disgusting?!*

*Hasn't she done enough harm, such a terrible person, *

*I feel pity for her ex-husband, she has ruined his image for sure,*

*Such a sly fox. She won't stop till she ruins every good man in the city,* ]

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to drag you into this miserable life of mine, I'm so…" Caily began to plead in a whimpering tone,

"Caily, it's okay," Nathan consoled, his hands firmly but gently held both of her shoulders,

Nathan caught her eyes already filled with tears,

"It's late, go get some sleep, okay?" He urged, pointing to the direction of one of the doors in the house,

Caily nodded without hesitation and strutted off, she closed the door behind her.

Nathan veered his attention back to the TV and sighed, his hands rubbing the nape of his neck, this could really affect his image as the CEO of a law firm.

His father would be so furious if he saw the news.

His mother would be even more furious as she was in the process of setting him up with a lady from a supposedly well-known family.