Page 52 of Caleb
Entitled Good-Looking Son of a Bitch
September 6, 2008
“HOW IS SHE DOING?”Ambassador Murphy says in a subtle panic, dragging a worried hand through his hair. “Is she in there?” We’re all worried. At least I know I am too.
Red woke up early in the morning feeling ill and throwing up. We still don’t know what’s causing it, but I’ve been standing outside her door from the moment Annette informed me of this, hoping I could go inside instead of staring at her door like a useless idiot.
“She’s inside with Miss LeRoux, Mr. Ambassador,” Scott replies. “A doctor came to see her earlier and left about thirty minutes ago, but we weren’t briefed on a diagnosis.”
Ambassador Murphy thanks Scott for the information and knocks on her door.
“May I come in?” he asks almost desperately when Annette opens it. She nods and pulls the door open enough for him to step in. With pursed lips, she makes eye contact with me for a couple of seconds, and then shuts the door behind her. It makes me want to knock it down and step inside to check on Red myself. I can’t stand the uncertainty.
All I do is sigh and pace in the hall. Scott’s not making a sound. He’s in full statue mode staring at Red’s door.
Good.
A good twenty minutes later, Ambassador Murphy steps out with Annette and addresses us.
“I need you to take my daughter back home immediately,” he says. “I’ve spoken to our physician in Paris, and he thinks it’s food poisoning. But I would feel more at ease if he could see her. And I also think it would be best for her to recover back home. I’m sure it was the damn oysters we had for lunch yesterday. She must’ve gotten a bad one.”
My need to ask more questions feels almost unbearable inside my chest, but I need to keep a straight face. I can’t allow Ambassador Murphy to notice how much I care about her.
“I’ll go pack my things,” Annette says, “and then I’ll come back to help Miss Murphy get ready for us to leave. She stopped vomiting after the doctor administered the injection earlier. Hopefully, she’ll be stable during the ride back.”
“You’re staying in Deauville, Miss LeRoux,” Ambassador Murphy says with an air of indifference, pulling out his phone from his inner jacket pocket after it chimed twice.
“But—” Annette begins to say but is quickly cut off by the ambassador.
“Get her ready to leave, please.” His tone is harsher this time. “I need you here for the remainder of the event.”
Asshole.
Abuse of power might not be the best approach to getting back together with your ex, but what do I know. And that’s precisely what he wants. Annette texted me last night after the event was over to tell me how he was practically begging. I guess he sees this as his opportunity to have some alone time with her.
Annette might be struggling with her feelings. I didn’t feel like she was very sure about blowing him off. It’s as if she were asking for my blessing to give it another try, but I would never “bless” that relationship. He only makes her feel like shit, and I care about Annette too much to ignore the past.
“Of course, Mr. Ambassador. I’ll get Miss Murphy’s things ready then,” she says with a sigh, walking back inside her room after swiping the room’s keycard on the reader.
“Caleb, you’ll stay in Paris with my daughter.” His brows pull in just slightly. “Scott, you’ll return tomorrow first thing in the morning to drive Miss LeRoux and me back.”
“Of course, Mr. Ambassador,” we reply in unison.
“I need to take this call,” he says, looking at his phone, “but I’ll meet you downstairs in the lobby as soon as you’re ready.”
He walks away and disappears inside an elevator, taking his dark, stormy cloud with him.
The vibe’s always better when that prick is gone.
“I hate this,” Red mumbles as we saunter toward the lobby. She lets her head drop against my arm, and I pull her closer to me from the waist to help her walk the last few steps toward the SUV. It’s the first time I’ve seen her this ill. She’s not one to get sick often. Since I started working here three years ago, she’s probably only had the common cold twice.
“We’re almost there.” I wish I could’ve just swooped her in my arms and carried her down here.
“I’m sorry I can’t accompany you back to Paris, Miss Murphy,” Annette says, her tone genuinely apologetic.
“Don’t worry, Annette.” Her lips twitch into a small smile. “I don’t think my father knows how to function without you.”
A beat of silence sways in the air.
