“Yeah, I am here as per your request,”
“I can’t believe that jerk left me after everything I have done; sometimes I wonder what I even saw in him and I’m also thankful that I told him nothing about my past,” Urrgghh, slurring words isn’t my thing but I can’t help it.
“Are you sure I’m supposed to know all these things?”
“What are you talking about? What don’t you know already, I told you how my dad ruined my life, how he made childhood difficult for me or did I not?
“All this is new information but wait, how did your dad ruin your life?”
“Hmmmm, wait, what’s going on; who are you and why are you holding my hand! I dislike the feel of boys’ skin on mine,”
“What do you mean?”
What was she talking about? Phoenix is definitely in pain and I don’t know what she’s going through and I don’t know how to give her what she needs.
“I think I’m going to puke; STERLING!” And there she goes, what sort of boss gets drunk on a week day? I’m just going to take her to her place and put her to sleep and probably sleep over without invading her privacy.
“Hey, let’s go home,”
“Hmmm, home; I like the sound of that,”
*************************
PHOENIX RESIDENCE (2AM)
‘Dad, let go! I’ll scream and the neighbors will hear me and break into the house’
‘Shut up whore; pathetic little thing’
‘Dad, I’m your daughter and you can’t be sleeping with me, it’s not right.. this can’t go on again; I’m not the same 8 years old kid’ I’m 25!!’
‘It makes no difference; now strip’
‘Dad, stop!’
I woke up in frenzy and couldn’t breathe, everything was hazy and I had this splitting headache. I got home to get the painkiller from the cabinet in the bathroom when I stumbled on something and fell to the floor
“Be careful”
Hmmm, that voice sounds awfully familiar
“Sterling? What are you doing here? Wait, are we still at club?”
“No, we’re at home; your home to be precise,”
“Oh, how did you know that?”
“That’s a story for another day. Tell me everything,”
“Don’t be faster than your shadow, it’s late and I’ll show you to a guest room where you can stay the night,”
*************************
2 WEEKS LATER
‘Why hasn’t she called me back yet? Doesn’t she know that she owes me an apology or at the very least an explanation’ Sterling couldn’t wrap his head around that fact. Never has he felt this way towards anyone and here she was, pushing him away.
I’m probably selfish for thinking this way; of course everyone has got a past. I’ll give her time to tell me.
Sterling paced back and forth in the living room of his villa and for the first time in his life, he felt utterly lonely after the death of his mother. True he always felt the loneliness but this was worse and he couldn’t comprehend it just yet.
‘Come on, Phoenix, just come on; the silence is killing me’
While I was wallowing in self-pity and a little bit of pain, a thought came to my head and I decided to do the needful.
‘Pick up, Denzel’
“Oh yeah, Denzel; you talked to the private investigator yet?”
“Sir, about that, the private investigator said that he was spotted in Florida and he is staying in a studio apartment. Why he’s there; we don’t know but when he makes a move, they’ll tail him to the latter. Don’t worry sir; we’ve got this covered,”
“Make sure you do. Keep me posted on everything,”
“Yes sir”
Meanwhile, back at Phoenix’s home, the guilt was eating phoenix alive. She didn’t know if she was to call Sterling or not and she was getting confused.
‘urrgghh, what is wrong with me? I shouldn’t have done that to him! What was I thinking sending him out like that after he helped me home? Gosh, how could I have blurted out those words at the club and even at home? I’m pretty sure that he has questions to ask but I’m not ready to say anything to him yet; I don’t know him that well. I’ll just call him and get this over with,’
After about a few rings, he picked up and my nervousness hit the roof
“Hi Sterling, good evening”
“Hi”
“Uhhmm, I want to apologize for how things ended abruptly last time we met; I shouldn’t have said those words to you and I’m pretty sure that you heard quite a long of things during my drunken state and I’m not faulting you for that, all I’m asking is that you don’t ask me any questions in regards to that matter until I am ready to say it,”
“Okay; I get that you don’t want to say anything and I’m not going to push past my limit, so I understand,”
“I’d rather we take this friendship of ours slow; it’s not as if we’re in a relationship,”
Those words struck a bitter chord in Sterling’s heart but she was right, they weren’t in a relationship and he shouldn’t be coming on strong yet those words felt like his heart just got broken.
“Yeah, you’re absolutely right and I’m sorry about that but just know one thing; that I’ll be here until whenever you’re ready,”
“I know, but can you do me a favor?”
“I don’t know; is it a favor that I can easily pull off?”
“Yeah, I need you to employ someone,”
“Really, who could that be?”
“You know that lady we rescued from that perverted robber some months back?”
“Yeah, I kind of do,”
“Well, that’s her and I want her to stop working as a call girl so she will leave a decent life,”
“Uhh, I’ll see what I can do, just let her send her resume over to the Human Resource Department.”
“Thank you Sterling, I’m pretty sure that I can count on you anytime,”