Anna walked into her office, aware of Charles presence behind her. She loved having him around, it gave her a sense of security, she knew so well that if she was together with him, nothing can even dare to harm her. She sat down and held a stoic expression as she scrolled through her daily routine. “Ma’am, Julia informed me that in the next fifteen minutes we have to go to a meeting, I think we should start getting ready by now.” She lifted at him to stare intones eyes. She loved the way he used ‘we’ in whatever he was referring to her. Which showed her that she wasn’t the only one.
She had been working with Charles for at least three weeks now, and there wasn’t a single day when she hadn’t found him attractive or resisted the urge to throw herself at him until she kissed him out of his breath. That thought crossed her heart too now when her eyes briskly stared at his lips. “Do you think we should do that? The board of directors always give me headache whenever we have a meeting with them. I’m not strong enough for the stress they give me, Charles.” She made a pouty expression, and he slightly smiled at her. She loved the fact that she didn’t hide anything of herself to him, she had the real Anna that not anyone knew laid bare out to him.
He stared at the two visitors chairs that were in front of her table and looked up at her, “Can I sit down, Ma’am? I have a few words to share with you.”
“Before you do that, can you start calling me Anna?” She smiled at him before she motioned for the chair and he sat down. Maybe he felt the attractive she had? Or was he attracted to her too?
Charles sat down and she stared at him with an eased expression, waiting to hear what he had to say. Because in the weeks they he had started working with her, he had never been less of his professional self until today, and to say that she loved it and was so excited about this new change in their lives was even an understatement. It looked like he was nervous, and she chuckled to ease off the awkward atmosphere that had surrounded the place.
“Come on, Charles. I don’t bite, I promise.” And he smiled before she watched as he eased off a bit.
“Julia said she doesn’t know how to tell you this, and you ought to know as well.” He let his words trailed off and she could see the lines of worry that began to paint themselves on his forehead. What? What was it that Julia couldn’t tell her? She had left Mom well today, right? Then what? Panic began to grow within her.
“What is it, Charles? You’re making me feel uneasy.” She couldn’t help with the shiver of her voice and the tears that had already began to accumulate in her eyes. Whatever it was Julia couldn’t tell her about, was something so huge that she dreaded to hear.
“She told me that Nate has gotten married yesterday, their picture is all over the social media. She knows you’ll be sad about this that’s why she wants to tell you to stay off the social medias at least for a day or two until the pictures are done trending.” Her whole body was shaking even before Charles was done talking and she was already bringing her phone out to see the pictures she had just been warned not to.
She knew she could never say that she didn’t forgotten about Nate. He was still in her heart, he still lived in her mind, and all she did since she had left Florida was trying all she could to say as far away from him as she could. There had always been this comforting thought that stopped her from breaking apart, she knew that ‘He might break up with Lancy before they get married. Or even if they were to get married, that will be after at least six months and she wouldn’t be so hurt then.’ But everything was over now, and she didn’t even know she was crying until she tasted the salty liquid of her own tears.
Her whole body shook, and she palmed her mouth as she kept scrolling through the pictures, posted by Nate himself with lovely captions that made her want to pluck her heart out of her chest. “Nate…” she whispered as the tears she had been fighting with rolled down to her chest. She kept scrolling down to the beautiful wedding they had and remembered when she had been planning that wedding. And then she realized, they had their wedding in Maui, the same resort Anna took him where she confessed her love for him.
That broke her all over and she dropped the phone and began to cry uncontrollably. Charles stood up from where he sat and walked up to her chair. He pulled her up and when she stared into his eyes, Anna broke into tears and fell on his chest. She felt as he hugged her and she cried even harder, what had she done for Nate to do what he just did to her? Wasn’t she a good girlfriend? Didn’t she love him enough? Why would he do this to her for goodness sake? She wanted her heart to burst out of her chest.
Charles rocked them slightly as he softly spoke, “Come on, Anna, you can’t be crying this badly over that guy, okay? It’s okay, it will be fine.” She shook her head as she buried her head on his chest, wrapping her hands around his body, feeling the sturdy physique she had always admired from afar. If she wasn’t in so pain, she would’ve fancied about how much comfort Charles body brought to her.
She shook her head, “You don’t understand what this will make me feel, Charles. I still love him.” She cried even harder and her body shook along with his.
Charles broke their hug and stared deeply into her raining eyes, “Why do you still love the man that makes you this miserable, Anna? Do you know that you’re a whole spec that needs to be loved and respected? And from what Julia told me, he does neither of the two, does he?” Her trembling lips curled up into a pout and she shook her head.
“Then that is enough to let you know that he doesn’t deserve your tears, Anna. Look at the empire your father has built, do you prefer to see it collapse because of a man that doesn’t even give a damn about your life? He knows that you’d see that, and I can assure that what he will think is, that will give you even more reasons to let go of him.”
“He told me that he doesn’t care whether I live or die, Charles. What have I done wrong to him? He told me that I’m a bitchy boss and he doesn’t love me. He has never loved me in his life…” she couldn’t continue with what she was saying as she broke into even more tears and Charles pulled her back to his chest as he rocked her slightly.
“Shhh, his words shouldn’t define your worth, and I want you to know that you’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met, Anna. Damn it, you’re lovely!” Maybe Charles words did the magic, or maybe she was indeed lovely. Even though despite the tears she was shedding, Anna still chuckled at that, she knew later in the evening, this terrible feeling will surely haunt her soul. But for her, she would have to enjoy what being ensconced in Charles embrace made her felt.
❦
Nothing was fun to do now, and he knew it wouldn’t be so long that his Father will know about his suspension even though he tried all he could not to stay longer in the house. He had wanted to have his apartment numerous times, but his Father said no, and Jack knew that was another way of him showing him that he still had some power over him. He wanted to live alone but his Mother always begged him not to do it.
Clara wasn’t home, she had left to her Father’s town, where he used to be a cowboy, her grandmother was sick, and she had to take care of her for the time being. And the loneliness was even much more for him. His phone rang and when he saw that it was Willa, he clenched his eyes shot and picked the call begrudgingly.
“Willa, what is it?” The mean reason he picked her call was because he wanted to know if she was fine, for she had told him that Victor had travelled out.
“Hey, chill out. This isn’t the right way to speak to your elder sister, is it? I’m bored, Jack, can you please come and take me out?” He weighed her words and realized he wanted someone to take him out himself.
“It’s going to be late before we go back home, Willa, and you’re pregnant. Why not tomorrow?” He had been wanting to have a reason to leave this home, but he didn’t know where to go in daytime for all his friends worked and he didn’t even want anybody to know that he had been suspended from work.
“Jack, please! I’m so sad right now and I haven’t anything since breakfast, can you come and take me out of this house?” He heard the way her voice broke at the end of her sentence and he knew that she was surely hiding something from him. Willa might appear to soft hearted; bubbly and she didn’t worry anyone with whatever was bothering her, but he knew her better to believe that she was fine. There were pregnancy hormones, but this was more.
“I’ll be there in fifteen minutes, don’t make me wait, okay?” He didn’t even bother to ask her what was wrong because he knew she wouldn’t answer him even if he did. Maybe if she had his inquisitive eyes of his fixed on her, she might spill.
“Don’t tell Mom, please, she’ll just panic for nothing.” She said sadly and ended the call. If she thought that he might tell this to Mom, then she was sick in the head, not just sad.
He quickly got ready and walked down the stairs, the maids were greeting him and all he did was nod as he hopped into his car and drove out of the house. He thought of Clara and wondered if he should tell Willa about their relationship or not. But he knew Mom will never agree of their relationship. She wasn’t so hard to convince, Dad was. And whatever was going to cause a chaos between him and that man, he’d rather avoid it then face it.
He asked the maid he saw in the living room, “Is Willa ready?”
“Yes, sir. I just saw her walking to the kitchen to get some water.” And he headed to the kitchen while in his head, calculating how long it had been since the last time he had been in Willa’s house.
“Willa,” he called out, and a detached Willa turned to him even though she had tried to paint a smile on her face, but he knew she could not fake her emotions so well.
“Jack, you’re finally here.” She dropped the water she was holding on the counter and came toward him as she engulfed him into an impromptu hug.
“Willa,” Jack whispered and hugged her back, “Are you alright? What’s wrong?” She broke her their hug and smiled weakly at him.
“What? I’m fine, I’ve just been waiting for this hug all this while. You know you give out the best comfort through your hugs, right?” She grinned at him, trying all she could to bring back to humorous Willa and he could only nod his head at her. He knew that probing her about what was wrong with her will only make her want to hide it even more. She will tell him everything at her own will, she had no best friend other than him and Mom since after she got married and he knew she would never tell Mom about this.
“Let’s go, I’m starving.” She grinned and they walked out, their hands entwined. She sat on the passenger’s seat and she had to beg him to take off the roof of the car, in her words, she wanted to scream her grief out. And when she screamed until he pulled her back to the car and closed it, she was laughing her chest out.