Page 11 of Shape Of My Heart
She turned on the computer just to see how many emails there were, and when she did her heart almost jumped out of her chest. She had 33,205 emails to work her way through and that landmine of letters. It was crazy, completelycrazy.
Feeling faint again, she chose the letters first because that would also be filing and tidying the office. She also didn’t think she could stand staring at the computer screen for so long. She’d have to set aside a dayforthat.
She heard voices in the corridor as she opened up the first letter. It was the women. They were talking excitedly about shopping. She then heard the front door open and close astheyleft.
Josh came into the office. “I need these.” He held his hand out towards her with a small piece of paper between hisfingers.
She assessed him, he seemed different from earlier. He was drunk again. Just likeyesterday.
“What do you need?” she asked, resting the letters she held down on thetable.
She walked over to him and took it. It wasalist.
“You can get most of these at the drugstore,” Joshslurred.
The first item on the list raised her eyes to him withdisgust.
It was a large box of extra-extra-large condoms, ribbed, which he wrote in capital letters. He also wanted five bottles of lubricant, all different flavors, and ten casesofbeer.
“I am not getting these.” She shook her head. But he only responded with alaugh.
“Yes Kansas, you will. Aren’t you my personal assistant? Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do? Personally assist. Now go and assist me with my needs before my womencomeback.”
Lord Jesus, she couldn’t do this. She couldn’t do this. As she looked at the air of menace on his face and saw how serious he was she felt the backs of her eyes sting. This was day two, and she’d already been throughsomuch.
Her hands shook, as did her body, and she was ready to scream at him, but the image of her mother’s face and her frail body lying in the hospital bed after her last surgery sprung tohermind.
It sprung to her mind and stilled her soul, giving her strength to take the listfromhim.
She walked past him, heading towards the door and holding back the tears so she wouldn’t cry in frontofhim.
“Oh yeah. Hold on Kansas.” He caught uptoher.
“Why are you calling me that?” she hissed. He could at least call herbyname.
“You’re my PA. I’ll call you what the hell ever I want,Kansas.” He gave a cruel laugh. Then took hold of her elbow and ushered her to the sitting room. “Do you see that?” He pointed ahead to theglasswall.
“What am Ilookingat?”
“That kid,” hehissed.
She had seen the boy when she first looked but didn’t think he was actually referring to him as athat.“You know what’s worse than your four-legged friends from this morning? Thosethings.”
She looked up at him and narrowed her eyes. “You meanchildren?”
“Yes. Children. Get ridofit.”
He really was vile, and simply just awful. What kind of manwashe?
The boy looked to be no more than ten. He had short dark hair, a backpack on his back, and a football shirt. But it wasn’t any ordinary football shirt. It had number forty-eight big and bold on the front. Above the numbers was the Gladiators’ logo and below that was writtenMancini.The boy held a football under his arm and just stood there looking on as if he was waiting forsomething.
Her heart broke as shewatchedhim.
Josh cleared his throat and inclined his head to the side, taking pleasure in her reaction. “Get rid of him and tell him not to come back, or I’ll call the cops and have him sent tojuvie.”
He was serious; every word he said reflected the seriousness in his voice. Even if he was drunk. She wasspeechless.
“Okay.”
He smiled the same cruel smile and laid a heavy hand on her shoulder. “Good, I’m starting to like this relationship of ours. Having a PA definitely has itsperks.”
As she watched him saunter away she planned to call her mother’s consultant when she finished work. She wanted to get his thoughts on the maximum time that her mother could wait for the surgery. Last time when they spoke he said it was imperative that they plan for the surgery, but he also knew they had no moremoney.
Maybe she’d jumped into this too quickly without thinking. If her mother could wait, then she’d find another job. Maybe she could go back to New York and Teddy would give her her oldjobback.
All she knew for certain was that she couldn’t stay here. Not with this man who had to be the optimum definition of the worst guy she’d everevermet inherlife.
