“So, you guys are all fine now?” The girls and I were at Barkers for lunch on Monday and I didn’t know how to answer Erica’s question. Since Saturday night Greg and I hadn’t talked at all. I tried texting him a few times, but nothing. When I came into work this morning, Max had let me know that Greg was out of town for a few days on a last-minute business trip.
With whom, I had no idea, because I knew Greg’s calendar like the back of my hand, and we didn’t have any clients who were so remote to the city that they couldn’t come here right now. I didn’t question, though. I liked having the time to think everything out and this was exactly what I needed to do until our session on Wednesday.
I knew what I wanted to ask Tessa. I just hoped she would approve and say it was a great idea.
“I guess we’ll see when Wednesday comes. Greg won’t answer his phone at all and he’s away on business.” I looked down at my phone, checking just one more time, and still nothing.
I had sent him at least three messages already this morning. I didn’t care if I looked needy, we needed to talk and I wanted to do it before we went to our next session.
“You can always come over tonight and we can drown everything out with movies and food,” Erica suggested.
“Or I could kick Max out for the night and we could build a fort in the house!” Alexa was jumping up and down in her seat.
“I think,” I took a bite of my sandwich, “that I’m just going to stay home.”
I couldn’t look at the girls’ faces because I knew I would only see disappointment. I just needed time to sort everything out. And, to do that, Greg and I needed to have a serious conversation.
When we got back to the office I finished up everything I needed to do and looked around to see others quietly working at their desks. I was starting to pack up my bag when Erica rolled around the corner in her chair.
“And where do you think you’re going?” She was leaned back, with a smile on her face like she had caught me red-handed. As long as I had all the work that I needed to finished, the office could run itself. I had emailed Max to let him know that I would be finishing anything that I had at home and would do so for the next few days. This way I was there whenever Greg got back and could get him to talk to me then.
“Home.” I stood up and slung the bag over my shoulder. “To think.”
Her face fell and she moved out of my way as I walked to the stairs and left work. I went straight to my apartment, tossed my bag on the couch and then went into my room to fall into bed. I was still fully clothed, but I pulled the covers over me and let sleep overtake me.
I finally woke up around midnight with a growling stomach. Ice cream it was, since it was the only thing I typically kept in my fridge. I didn’t cook, even though I loved food, so I only kept snacks and I ate out all the time. I grabbed for a bowl and spoon. When I finally looked down at my wrinkled outfit, I cringed and made my way back to my room to at least get myself looking decent, if not for anyone but myself.
I grabbed my phone out of my bag which I had left on the couch. Four missed calls, none from Greg, and six texts. I didn’t bother scrolling through them because I knew they were from Alexa since she was the one who had called me.
I made quick on my ice cream and crawled back into bed, leaving my phone out in the kitchen. I made sure to grab for my laptop while I was near the living room and propped it on my lap. I made quick on some emails that would need to be sent out tomorrow, timing them so it didn’t seem like I was working in the middle of the night. I set up a few meetings for Greg over the next few weeks and then finished off with the last few spreadsheets we had been working on last week. It was four in the morning by the time I was finished, but it meant I could sleep in a be a bum for a majority of the day tomorrow. I didn’t tell Alexa or Erica that I wasn’t going to go into work tomorrow, just Max, so at first, they probably wouldn’t notice my absence, but then around lunch the whispers would start, because I never missed a day of work. That’s why I had left my phone in the kitchen, I knew someone was going to start blowing it up and all I wanted to do was sleep and not stress out. I was lucky to have a boss who managed the company himself and understood a hard worker and my need to just have a day to myself.
I just hoped that this little plan I had would work to my advantage to get Greg to talk to me.
Hopefully.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
“Open the fucking door, woman!” Greg’s yells had me rolling over in bed. I moaned at the aches I felt in my body, because that’s what happened when you spent two days straight in bed, locked in your apartment, not answering your phone, working from your laptop and waiting for a man to show up, just so you could talk to him.
I know, a little dramatic, but truly I didn’t know what else to do. Max had been fine with my missing work today as long as I got everything I needed to done and contacted everyone in my department to make sure everything was running smoothly, which it was. My team had their shit together because they knew if everything went well, then we never had to stay late at the office.
“For fuck’s sake, Lilly.” His voice was closer now, and I knew he had used his key to get in and that thrilled me a little. My bedroom door swung open next and there he was. In all his glory, standing in my doorway in jeans and a tight black shirt. He looked like he had recently gotten a fresh cut and I wanted to run my hand along his head to feel the buzz under my fingers.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” He moved closer checking my night stand and then pulled out his phone and tapped at the screen. A loud vibration came from the other room. He was calling my phone, not checking in on me. I slumped back into the bed and pulled the covers over my face, trying to take myself back into the sweet slumber that Greg had awoken me from.
“Hell, no.” He tossed the covers off me and pulled me from the bed and into his arms. I was wearing only sleep shorts and a tank, so my body was basically touching his. Well, that’s what my half-asleep mind thought.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and snuggled into his arms. I felt him relax beneath me and his hand that was on my back started to rub in circles. I made a noise that almost sounded like a child whining, but it was a praising whine. I felt ready to go back to sleep, but then we were moving and the sunlight hit my eyes. I tried to hide in Greg’s neck but he just laughed at me and sat us both down on the couch.
I sat up a little to look at him. His face was serious and it woke me up a little more. He wasn’t allowed to be mad. Not right now he wasn’t.
“You scared the shit out of me.” His comment was a matter-of-fact.
“And you hurt me.” I spat back at him.
