I want to get Connor to the bed, but every time he moves at all, his stomach sends another wave up and he is left hugging the toilet. He has completely emptied the entire contents of his stomach out now and has been dry heaving for the last hour.
I wipe his mouth and face with a wet washcloth while he leans his head against my legs as I sit on the chair in the middle of the bathroom. I wish I had a magic wand, and I could make this all go away.
He has his eyes closed as a soft groan escapes from him. My heart twists as I hate seeing him in so much pain and discomfort.
I gently run my fingers through his soft silky hair as I pray he will get over this soon.
Dotty walks into the bathroom and lightly taps my shoulder. “How is he doing? Has he stopped throwing up yet?”
As I keep my attention on my husband, I shake my head. “No. If he tries to move at all, he usually end
With Connor’s phone in my hand, I take one last look while the medical staff work gets him comfortable in bed with an IV in his arm. My heart aches seeing him like this, but there isn’t anything I can do. I would be in the doctor’s way if I stayed. Plus, I have promised the P.I. to get back to him later regarding the information that he has sent. I take a deep breath before I turn towards the doctor. “Doc, I’ll be down the hall working on some files. If you need anything, let me know. Okay.” The middle-aged man looks up at me and nods. However, immediately turns his attention back to my husband. I walk out of the room and down the hall into the next vacant bedroom. As I sit down on the edge of the bed, I open Connor’s phone and look for the investigator’s messages. Within seconds, I locate the various files and slowly go through the information. My blood boils with each item I loo
I sit down at the dining room table as the smell of eggs and bacon fills my nose. I grab the pitcher of orange juice and pour myself glass before grabbing the water pitcher and pouring a glass for the plate beside me.From across the table, Dotty motions her fork towards the empty seat next to me. “Is Connor finally feeling well enough to come down and eat with us?”As I grab a couple of pieces of toast off the plate in the center of the table, I nod. “Yes. He has told me he will come down on his own. I just want to get some food ready for him. He shouldn’t be much longer.”Barbara walks into the dining room from the kitchen with a couple more bowls of food. As she sets them down in the center of the table, she glances at me and smiles. “It is good to see him up and moving around again. He was way too sick.”I sigh and nod. “Yes, he was.
As soon as I get everything I need to complete done, I reach for my phone.Ring…ring…ring…I don’t even let Ryan answer as I cut him off. “Hey, did you look through all the information the P.I. has sent?”He sighs. “Yeah, I did. What are you planning on doing?”I shake my head and lean back against the chair. “I haven’t had a clear mind to do anything. I’ve been sick, but Deanna has been thinking and forming a plan with the help of Cliff and his family. I have to admit, she is smart. I don’t know if I would have thought of some things she did.”A soft chuckle spills from the phone. “I’m sure she is. Hey, did you see the news about the latest business awards?”I shake my head as my eyes roam back over to my laptop. “No. Is there something I need to know?”
I look down at my royal blue dress and nervously run my hands down the silky material as Connor’s deep voice asks, “Are you nervous?” I shouldn’t be, but I am. This is one of the ‘big’ events not only for the company but for the city. Anyone who is anyone will be there, which also means that my parents might be there too. My stomach twists at the thought of possibly seeing them again. My voice cracks as I reply, “N.No.” His soft chuckle fills my ear as his arm slides around my waist and pulls me tight against him. “There is nothing to be worried about. I’ll be there right next to you the whole time.” He kisses the top of my head. I get a small sense of relief knowing he will be at my side. However, my stomach still twists as my mind starts to bombard me with tons of questions. Will my parents be there? If not tonight, will they be at the awards ceremony tomorrow? Will they even
My eyes lock with theirs. I instantly start coughing and my eyes water as the champagne accidentally goes down my throat wrong. Connor quickly takes my glass away from me and pats my back. “Love, are you alright? Did something happen?” I try to talk, but all I can manage is a grunt as I wave my hand back and forth in front of me. Luckily, the press isn’t anywhere near. This all I need right now is to end up on the front page of all the newspapers and websites for almost choking to death on a glass of champagne. Dotty rushes to my side and gently pats my back. “Do you need a glass of water?” My eyes continue to water as I shake my head. Barbara and Cliff also step closer to me as their faces fill with concern. Cliff softly asks, “Did you see something to make you choke?” My eyes widen as I continue to cough while my throat and lungs burn. He says nothing e
Somehow, I managed to get through last night’s event. My parents avoided me like the plague, which was both a blessing and a painful reminder of what my life used to be like. Just like when I was living at home with them, they chose to build business relationships instead of making any attempt to talk to me.I would be lying if I say it didn’t hurt me at all. I tried my best to push the pain away, but by the time Connor and I got back to his penthouse, it had all caught up to me.I cried myself to sleep in his loving arms.On the upside, we surprisingly didn’t run into Connor’s family. I honestly don’t know if I could have handled all of them in one night, though.However, the pain from last night has fortified me for today’s event.Even Cliff and Barbara agree everyone will be there tonight.Almost like déjà vu, I look down at
I watch Deanna as she scans the table and the various name plates. I also can’t help but to notice how her body tenses after she spots not only her parents but also my family’s name plate. She knew this was going to happen. This is part of our plan, but after last night, I realize that even though she talks like she is fine, she really isn’t. On the outside, she may appear to be strong, but on the inside, she is still the neglected child who wishes to have her parents’ love.I lean towards her and gently kiss her cheek. “Love, everything will be alright. Don’t worry.”Her lower lip trembles as she takes a deep breath. She slowly turns her head towards me and nods.My heart aches seeing the doubt swirling in her eyes.Ryan sits down next to me. “It won’t be much longer now before the rest of our group will find the table. Is everyon
Well, this isn’t how we planned for tonight to go.I glance at Deanna, beside me, and spot the same shocked look on her. However, I also see a hint of anger swirling around in her eyes.I turn back towards Charles and politely reply, “Thank you for the…”My father cuts me off as he turns towards Charles. His nostrils flare while spit flies in the air as he growls, “How the hell do you know about any of this?”Brett sinks into his chair while his face drains of any color. Tiffany leans forward and looks around her husband while her eyebrows knot together.The air suddenly becomes thick as the tension builds around us.Charles doesn’t back down as he turns towards my father and smiles. “You would be surprised at what everyone knows, including the WW Enterprises board. If you will remember, they have good reason to be hesitant and doubt you.&r
Dotty and her mom walk into my bedroom as I stand in front of the mirror, making sure I look perfect. My off-white silk wedding dress shimmers in the afternoon light as I shift from side to side, looking at it from every angle. A smile dances around on my face while my eyes sparkle. My attention soon drifts down to my stomach, and my smile widens. The silky material falls loosely across my large baby bump. I gently caress my stomach and whisper, “This is it, babies. I’m finally getting the wedding I’ve always wanted.” Dotty smiles and wraps her arm around my shoulders as she looks down at my stomach. “Kiddos, your mommy is finally getting everything she deserves. Not only is your daddy giving her the gorgeous wedding she deserves, but he has agreed to stay here with us.” Her mother lightly slaps her shoulder. “Stop hugging her. You are going to wrinkle her wedding dress.” She then looks at me throu
My palms glisten and my stomach twists as the nurse leads us back to the exam room. With each step, my mind goes wild with the various reasons for why I’m tired lately. However, none of them really makes any sense. I quickly wipe my hands against my pants as I take a deep breath. Connor wraps his arm around my waist and kisses the side of my head. “Don’t worry too much, love. We are here to take some simple tests and then we will hopefully have some answers soon. Okay.” I glance at him out of the corner of my eye as I tentatively nod my head. He kisses the side of my head again and whispers, “I’m going to be right here next to you. Don’t worry. I’m sure it isn’t anything serious.” I take another deep breath. I wish I could be that confident, but my history reminds of what could go wrong. The nurse stops in front of an open door. “You will be in here. Please have a
My gut tells me something is wrong with Deanna. I don’t know what, but I’m not taking any chances.I work like a madman trying to get everything done in a short period of time, so we can go back to the Midwest.I completely ignore my father and mother. I did the only thing I could, and that is I got him his lawyer. However, his lawyer wouldn’t even take the case until I gave him a hefty retainer. I didn’t want to ask how much my father owed him, but I figure I gave him enough money to cover everything.Unfortunately, it hasn’t stopped my mother from trying to bug me, but I let my security handle it, both at the office and at my apartment. In addition, I have removed her name from the approved list of people who can visit me.I have also let Dotty and her parents know what is going on. So, if I need to have backup, I have it when we get back there. With Deanna’s
Dotty’s voice booms from my phone. “If you don’t come back here right now, I’m going there. How can you let yourself get so run down that you nearly faint at work? Is Connor not taking good enough care of you?”I shake my head and stare out the bedroom window. “It isn’t like that, and you know it. Connor has been taking good care of me. We have been under a lot of stress lately. You know that full well. I’m sure it has finally caught up to me. There is nothing to worry about, though.”I glance around the room. “Connor has me resting in bed right now. He said he wasn’t going to take no, so I gave in. Everything will be fine. Now, stop worrying.”She sighs. “I’m just concerned, especially after what you went through before. I don’t want a repeat of it.”I slide under t
Connor and I walk into his office building. What little smile we can muster is barely visible as we walk through the lobby. The bags under our eyes show everyone exactly what we have been going through. Even though we should be going back to the Midwest and to my job there, we are still in the city and dealing with his issues here. A slight yawn escapes my mouth as I try to acknowledge the receptionist as we walk by. She smiles back at us, but it doesn’t reach her eyes as her eyebrows knot together. I need a hot cup of herbal tea. I’ll be good then. Connor places his hand on my back and whispers, “Do you need to take a nap? You can sleep in my office if you can’t stay awake.” I sigh and shake my head. “No. I have too much to do. If for some reason I get too tired, I’ll just lay down on your couch and take a small cat nap.” “Uhm. Okay. I’m assuming you nee
Why did I let my mother talk me into this? I keep telling Deanna to not let her parents affect her, and here I am letting my mother talk me into leaving with her for a private talk. However, this isn’t really a private talk at all.I glance around the table and politely smile at Mr. Gold while I ignore my father. I then turn my attention back to my mother. “What is this all about? I have work to do, and I need to get back to the office.”She flashes me a sweet smile and reaches across the table to pat my hands. However, I yank my hands away before she can touch me.Her smile falters a bit as she stares at me. “Son, we need to have a very important conversation with you. This is the best way to do it without having any interruptions.”Interruptions. She is worried about interruptions.Anger rushes through my veins. I grit my teeth and growl, &
I stare down at my herbal tea as I sigh. What am I going to do now? Dotty’s voice booms from my phone, and I instantly pull it away from my ear. “Stop doing that! You have talked about this before. Shoot, even you and I have talked about this. Neither of your parents deserves to be called your parents. Your parents have abandoned you and even when given the chance, they still ignore you like the plague. While Connor’s parents seem to only want to use him for whatever stupid scheme, his father is cooking up. So, stop giving them the benefit of the doubt.” I slowly put the phone back to my ears as I nod. “I know we have talked about it, but it isn’t quite the same thing as when you see it with your own eyes. I don’t want to be the reason Connor has a strained relationship with his mother.” “Ugh… Girl, you are really trying my patience here. Stop treating them special because s
The look of defeat on Brett’s face still floats around in my mind. I have never seen him look like that, even when he was dealing with his family. However, this particular blow seems to have been a little too close to home. I sigh and stare out the window and across the city’s horizon. For once, I’m alone in Connor’s office while he has another meeting with a few department heads on another project. However, I’m not in the mood to sit there while everyone looks at me with either envy or disgust. As my focus drifts to the sky and some wispy few clouds floating along, my thoughts go back to Connor’s father and the board’s decision. Will his luck finally run out? However, I think the bigger question is will the board actually follow through with their threat this time. Connor has given me a complete history of his father and the things he has done. In addition, he has explained how he became the CEO at
My stomach sinks as my assistant explains what the board has decided to do.A part of me knows this is the right thing, but another part of me still wants to protect my father. However, I don’t think he deserves any protection right now, especially after some things he has done lately.I can also breathe a sigh of relief since the board isn’t holding me accountable for anything my father does. Most of them remember what he did in the past. Plus, his recent slips of judgement have sealed his own fate.As my smile fades and turns into a deep frown, I turn so Deanna can’t see my expression. However, I know it is already too late.I run my hand through my hair as everything slowly sinks into my brain.Deanna’s concerned voice keeps me from turning my back around completely to her. “Connor, did something bad happen? Is the board going to go after your father