Boss Lady

Resting

The pain was excruciating. Even after twelve hours, it had not subsided one bit. Someone invisible was pummeling the shit of my lower back and abdomen and enjoying it very much. I was damn dure of it. The pain shouldn't be this unmanageable but it wasn't any better and some of it might...just might be my fault.

I had been sitting in the same position for over two hours reviewing the balance sheet of the sales and analysing the sales in the last quarter.

Being a CEO was all good fun but it was a 24 hour job. There was no full stop when there were no fixed hours and one could easily burnout in the game of making more money. When there was no one to pay you salary for a certain amount of work hours, it was easy to get carried away.

I managed to swallow one saltine cracker and some juice and promptly vomitted everything out in the bathroom sink.

I moaned as I lay down on my white sheets, clutching my stomach. Josh was asleep in his bed and I was so thankful that it was across the hallway. Most nights, he crawled into my bed, but thankfully he was at peace tonight.

I was just about to close my eyes, when my phone rang shattering the silence. I crawled across the bed on my stomach and reached it.

"I am sleeping. It's one in the morning and don't call me again unless you want a lawsuit against you for sleep deprivation.", I shouted without even seeing the caller ID. Whoever it was could go straight to hell!

"Don't hang up. I am at the door!", came Ethan's quiet voice on the line.

" Oh?", I said startled. I left the phone on the bed and walked slowly down the stairs. Never in a million years would I have expected to see Ethan at my house at such an ungodly hour. Besides, how did he find out where I lived?

With these questions in my head, I opened the door to a deliciously disheveled Ethan. His eyes were still heavy with sleep and his blond hair was mussed up.

"What are you doing here?", I whisper yelled at him.

"I couldn't sleep. I was worried about you and clearly I was right!", he said looking pointedly at my red eyes and clutched stomach.
His voice was magnified by the silence.

"Speak softly. Josh is asleep upstairs. He is a light sleeper.", I said still not letting him in.

The guesthouse was my sanctuary. Even Jules hadn't been here more than a few times. I shared this space with my son and valued my privacy over all else. So, I was a little apprehensive about letting him in.

"You don't look good. Why didn't you call me?", he said, his hand reaching up to touch my forehead.

" I am fine, Ethan. Besides you barely get any sleep all week. I didn't want to disturb you.", I said sighing. His hand was cool against my clammy skin.

"Are we going to stand here all night? I am really exhausted.", he asked as he enveloped me into an oxytocin producing hug. It felt good to lay my head on his hard pecs.

" I suppose you can come in. You are harmless enough. You are not carrying any guns are you?", I joked.

"Yes, of course, I am here to rob your house."

We both laughed. We couldn't stop sassing each other even when I was half dead and he was still asleep.

"You shouldn't have driven in this condition. How did you get my address?"

"Magic."

I gave him a wry look.

"Fine.... I might have threatened your friend Jules into telling me."