Page 773 of One More Kiss

“Oh Ross, I’ve really fucked things up now. I mean, all that I’ve worked for, all of my life, is gone! Just gone!” Panic consumes me. I don’t know how I’m going to get out of this mess.

“Okay, tell me what happened? What do you mean, gone? I don’t want to throw tons of questions at you, so just start at the beginning and explain what happened.”

I turn my head towards him and nod in confirmation. Then I take a couple of deep breaths and wipe the tears from my face with my bare hands.

“Well, first off, I don’t remember much at all. All I know is that you and I were at the party last night. I went outside to get some fresh air and began puking my brains out. Then, Nicholas, I mean, Mr. Brooks, came over to help me. I mean, I don’t even know where he came from. And then the next thing I know, I woke up in this strange place. I had no idea where I was, and I was naked. Apparently, in his bed.”

“Okay, so that’s it?”

“That’s all that I can remember.”

“Okay, soooo, why are you feeling like your life is over? Because so far, I haven’t heard anything that screams ‘you’ve ended your life’s work’, nor your career.”

I hate that I have to spell it out to him, but do so anyway. “Ross, I slept with my boss, again! That is a forbidden act at the company.”

“Okay, slow down. You’re jumping to conclusions and being really irrational right now. Listen to me, I’m going to need you to calm down and pull it together, okay? Because for all you know, he could have brought you there to sober up, get you cleaned up, and get you home safely. Did you ever think of that?”

“Well, no.” I’ve never taken Nicholas to be a bad guy, and I don’t think he would ever hurt me. He had many chances before this encounter to do so if he wanted to.

“All right then. It is a possibility, okay. I mean, you don’t appear to be harmed, beaten, battered, or bruised. It doesn’t appear that you were being held against your will. Were you?”

“Well, no… I don’t think so. Although naked, I was in bed alone. And my vomit-soaked dress was laid across the bathtub with care. It wasn’t carelessly thrown around, and my shoes and purse were neatly sat in a chair. I think he even made a pot of coffee for me.”

“Okay, so maybe you didn’t think this through and overreacted, hmm?” Ross reasons with me.

I respond with a subtle and embarrassed, “Yeah, maybe. But either way, it’s not a good look for my job at Brooks Enterprises, and bad for my career in this industry if word gets out,” I continue.

“Well, somehow I feel like he has more to lose than you. He is the M.I.C. of Brooks Enterprises.”

“M.I.C.?”

“Man In Charge. He is a rich man, sitting at the head of a multi-million-dollar table. He does not want, nor does he need, this type of bad press. What do you think he’s going to do? Go out and spread the word to his office staff that he’s banging the interior designer of the company. No Ma’am, he is not. Besides, you’re the one that has the upper-hand if this goes from sugar to shit.”

“What, how do you figure that?”

“Because, silly, you’re the one that can file a multi-million-dollar sexual harassment lawsuit against him and his company should anything go awry. That will be very bad for him. That would tarnish the image of his family’s dynasty. It would also cause him to lose investors; thereby, losing capital. Trust me, you are not worth all of that to him. The worst he could do to you is fire you. But again, you could sue, and he knows that. Believe me, he will not allow any of this to get out.”

“Okay, you’ve made your point. Thank you for coming to get me. I can always count on you.”

“For sure. I have your back, sweets.”

Ross drops me off in front of my apartment complex and I take a long, soothing, lavender bubble bath. Then I put my comfy pajamas on and grab a bottle of water from the kitchen. While walking back to my bedroom, I swallow a few gulps of the water and climb into bed. I let my eyes fall closed and do everything I can to forget about the mockery better known as my life. Tomorrow will be better, I swear it.

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