"Valerie. I wanted to check in to see how you're doing."
I looked around my bedroom in a panic as to where I could hide the evidence that wouldn't cause me pain to move fast. Without giving it much more thought, I tossed the folder under the covers and quickly pulled them up so they wouldn't be visible.
"Come in." I could hear the panic in my voice, and I prayed that it went unnoticed by Valerie.
The door creaked as it opened and my boss stuck her head in. "Are you sure? I can come back at a better time."
"Nope, now is good." I plastered a fake smile on my face and waved her in. To keep my shaky hands busy, I fluffed the pillow behind my back and did my best to get comfortable.
My face drained of color when Valerie sat down on the bed right on top of where I had shoved the papers. There was no way she couldn't feel the difference, so I waited patiently for her to ask but it never came.
"Are you sure you're okay? You look a little pale."
Words were stuck in my throat, so all I could do was nod my head as I visibly swallowed the lump down.
"Should I go get Nolen?" Valerie hiked her thumb in the direction of the hallway.
I shook my head and forced myself to say the words. "No need."
If I didn't get my shit together and fast, I was going to give myself away because Valerie was looking at me like I had lost my mind.
I forced my body to relax farther into the pillow and changed the subject so it was no longer focused on me. "Who's watching the shop?"
Sophisticated Sheen was Valerie's pride and joy. There was no way she would close even for a little while just to come check on me.
"Nancy's in town and offered to work for a little bit. Apparently she is sick of her boss today and needed to get out of the office before she strangled him."
Nancy worked for another security company the next town over. Actually his company and Willow Creek Security were good friends and often helped each other.
"I'm sure Wes is just being his usual self."
"Probably. Which means he's probably being annoying." Valerie laughed.
I chuckled with her but quickly stopped when I felt the pull on my ribs. Damn, being hurt was annoying as hell.
"Sorry, I shouldn't make you laugh. I'm guessing that probably hurts." Valerie winced.
"It really does."
Everything hurt. Taking any form of deep breaths made me want to curl up in a ball and cry, but that too would hurt, so it wasn't even an option.
Damn my sister for putting me in this position.
"Not that I want to invade your privacy, but is there a reason I'm sitting on a stack of papers?" Valerie shifted on the bed.
So much for hoping she would just gloss right over that fact.
"I was just doing some light reading."
I winced at my explanation as soon as it left my mouth.
Light reading? Really?!
"Anything I would find interesting?"
I cleared my throat. "No, probably not."
"Would it be okay if I moved it? I feel like whatever it is, is getting crushed under my ass."
