Page 27 of Adore Me
"Savannah! It’s time!" Anne's mother yelled at me.
I awoke in the middle of the night feeling empty. Even though I received that letter two weeks ago, I am still haunted by it. How can someone just keep something like that from their wife?
It is baffling to me that Joel did this to me. He looked at me in my eyes for years and knew he kept this from me. Sociopaths have more humility than Joel has.
Vincent stirred in his sleep and I became restless. Obviously, sleep isn't coming back to me, so I decided on going swimming.
I climbed out of the bed and walked down the hall to the stairs and out to the slider that leads to the pool. There is something about swimming that just makes me feel better. I love the way the water hugs my body and grounds me to the earth.
Walking into the pool is magical and I immediately felt better. I dived into the pool after stepping off the steps and swam over to the raft. I swung my body in order to get on the raft that I keep in the pool. Hands down, Vincent putting a heater in the pool is probably the sweetest gesture I ever received.
With my body on the raft, I leaned back into it and sunk my butt into the raft to get warm. My eyes closed and I floated for I don't know how long.
I must have fallen asleep because when I opened my eyes again, it was dawn. The big raft had floated over to the stairs, and I stepped off of them and walked into the house. It was very cold in here, my nipples hardened as I walked up the stairs to shower for work.
Vincent was just waking up and looked over at me. He smiled when I entered the room and wiped his hand over his face. "Swimming?" He asked as I walked over to the bathroom.
"Yes, sorry. I couldn't sleep."
With the shower on and my adjusting the water, he came into the shower and pulled me in too. Our bodies leaned against each other naturally and I rested my head on his shoulder. His arms came around me and he placed a kiss in my hair.
"Don't be sorry. Next time, wake me up and I will go with you."
*
"Guess what!" Anne screamed as I walked into the office holding two big gulp coffees. It was pretty cold outside and since I didn't sleep well last night, I got a latte.
My best friend and I usually take turns buying the other coffee and lunch, so I handed her a cup. "Mm?" I asked as I set my stuff down on my desk and kicked my heels off.
She blew me a kiss as a thank you and I puckered my lips back at her. Anne took a drink and then clapped her hands together like a cheerleader. Where does this energy come from? Hot damn! Sometimes she reminds me of the Energizer Bunny. "Carlo's offer went through and we close tomorrow. Also, there are two appointments that are coming in today to list and look for homes. Isn't that great?"
I sat down at my desk and took my lap top out. "That's great! Don't forget that we meet with the broker today to set up the inspections." We had to make sure that Alphonse's units were up to code before listing them.
I watched as Anne stood up from her desk and walked over to mine. After one of her butt cheeks were resting on the edge of my desk, she leaned in like she was about to tell me a secret. "So... I have been wanting to ask you about something."
I knew she was going to ask me about the money that I received from my parents. However, she was nervous since she didn't want me to rip her head off. "Yes?"
"What are you going to do with the money that your parents left you?" There it is. The one question that I didn't know how to answer.
"I am really not sure. Maybe I will invest or something. That is a lot of money. Grr. This is so confusing. What do you think?"
She hopped off my desk to go back to hers and plunked herself into her seat then rolled her chair over to me and pushed my folders aside. "Maybe you should just think about it," I laughed as she rolled herself back to her desk to grab her coffee and then came back. "That money was left for you to share with your husband. I know you got it late, but maybe you can use it to start a new life with... Vincent."
I rolled my eyes and pushed my files back in front of my place at my desk. "Shut up," I shoved her and then kicked her chair to make her roll away. "We are just... I don't even know. I guess dating. Is that what you call living with your lover?" I asked the last part with a joking tone hoping to disguise my true feelings. There was no way I wanted to give away that I was anxious.
"Mm, I think it is considered more than dating. Get your shit together, Carlo will be here soon."
I sat in my seat trying to act like I wanted to be here. However, all I wanted to do was get my hair done. That is actually a really good idea.
"Anne, I am going to skip out a little early. I want to see if Caridee has any openings. This hair needs some love!" I giggled as I pulled my phone out to call the salon. Lucky for me... and well every woman that is affiliated with the family, can get their hair done for free. That is a major perk fordatinga silent partner.
All I had to do was text Caridee for her to make an appointment for me. Anne wanted to come too which will be nice. I love spending time with her, and I do not get to do that very often.
Anne's phone buzzed and she laughed as she read it. "Have you got a text yet?"
I looked through my texts and then found the one in question. "A family dinner at Johnny's restaurant. Sounds like a lot of fun! Is it tonight?"
"Yes, we can head over there after we get our hair done!"
