“No, I . . . I really just want to go.” Zoe took his hands into hers and kissed them. “Thank you for everything, Haji. This was hard, but I know it would have been even harder if you weren’t here. I have to go.”
“Where?” Haji asked as she briskly walked away with no true destination in mind. “You’re gonna be back, right?”
Ignoring his question, Zoe hopped in the rental car she’d been driving for the past week. All she had was her purse and her phone, and in that moment, that was okay. She didn’t knowwhere she’d end up, but she knew she couldn’t go back into her sister’s apartment. Not while she was still processing the fact that Zina would never be there again.
TEN YEARS LATER
1
Zoe
I wasn’t sure what was more embarrassing, the fact that I’d passed out during the most important meeting of the quarter, or that my fiancé was acting as if it hadn’t happened. I don’t remember what I was saying leading up to blacking out, but when I woke up, my head was throbbing as several people hovered over me and fanned my face. While my fiancé continued on with the meeting, two of my associates helped me stand and leave. Eric must have been frustrated by the spectacle because he picked me up and carried me to my office while Donna muttered about getting me some water . . . because apparently, water solved everything.
Well, truthfully, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten or drank anything. Raymond had stressed how important it was that we start the summer quarter off right, and since I was his VP of marketing, I didn’t want to disappoint him. Being the fiancée of the CEO wasn’t the flex people thought it was. Being Raymond’s woman didn’t mean I worked less; it meant I had to workmore. Not just to prove to other associates that I’d earnedmy title, but to make sure I measured up to a woman worthy enough of being on his arm.
“How are you feeling?” Eric asked as I weakly relaxed in my seat. “When’s the last time you ate, Zoe?”
Scratching my temple, I groaned as my head throbbed. “Honestly, I don’t know.”
“I feel like you need to go to the hospital. You hit the floor pretty hard.”
“Oh God. This is so embarrassing.”
“Being embarrassed should be the last thing you’re worried about right now. Your body shut down on you, and I’m trying to figure out why.”
His care wasn’t reflected in just his actions but his tone and expression as well. My eyes watered because a man that hadn’t experienced my love and loyalty showed more care and concern for me than the man I was supposed to marry next year.
“I was probably just dehydrated, Eric. I’ll be fine, and I don’t need to go to the doctor.”
“Are you sure?” He went from kneeling in front of me to walking behind me. “Let me take a look at your head.”
“Eric, I?—”
“Here.” Donna extended an opened bottle of water in my direction as she scurried into my office. “I wasn’t sure what kind of food you like, but maybe you need to eat too.”
They hovered and made sure I was okay for about five more minutes before they were satisfied enough with me drinking water and eating a muffin. Then, they left me alone. By the time I felt strong enough to join the meeting, it was over. Raymond’s hand wrapped around my arm, and he led me to his office. It wasn’t until we were inside alone, door closed, that he released a hard breath and said . . .
“What the hell was that, Zoe?”
I didn’t respond right away. I was too caught off guard by that. His question suggested I’d intentionally done something wrong. My eyes scanned his frame as he stood and stared like a father disappointed with his child. True, Raymond was twelve years older than me at forty five, and what was maybe even truer was the fact that I’d chosen to marry an older man for the security, maturity, and stability I thought he’d provide. Still, feeling myself shrink under his glare was something unexpected.
His salt and peppered curly hair, strong jaw, and smooth chocolate skin were the first features that drew me in along with his smile. It wasn’t sweet and innocent; it was sneaky and arrogant. For some reason, that attracted me.
“What was what?” I asked, feeling genuinely confused. “Me passing out and you continuing with the meeting as if nothing happened?”
Raymond huffed and ran his fingers down the corners of his mouth. With one hand on his hip, he paced in front of his desk.
“Do you know how embarrassing that was? We had a room full of millionaires and billionaires who were waiting for a spectacular presentation to convince them to trust us with their marketing and branding, and you’re falling out.”
“First of all, my episode clearly didn’t stop the presentation, because you barely blinked in my direction before you took over.”
“I had no choice,” he whispered, voice strained. “I shouldn’t have even been up there. This meeting was on you. I don’t know half the material you do. I was up there scrambling through your slides trying to make it make sense. I’m just glad I was able to finesse them enough to get them to agree to a second presentation.”
“Well, I don’t know what you want me to say, Raymond. I certainly didn’t pass out on purpose. For the past two weeks, I’ve worked my brain to mush and my fingers to the bone on thepresentation. In the process, I didn’t take as much care of myself as I should have. I feel like you want me to apologize for that.”
“I do.”
The laugh that escaped me quickly shut off when I realized he was serious.
