Page 23 of Over My Dead Boss
“I have questions. So many questions. Like, first of all: How dare you, Cyrus? How dare you make me read all of this when I can’t yet find out what happens next?”
“Well, Miss Ray, I am so sorry that my methods of torture are working as planned after all.” He gets up with a mischievous smile, takes the notebook from me, then leans down, extends his hand and slowly wipes his thumb over my lips. My breath gets stuck in my throat as he removes a little sugary cream and leaves me a wanting mess. “I hope you can one day forgive me and my poor manners,” Phoenix says and I, from the bottom of my still-standing heart, hope he doesn’t know what this is doing to me.
Unlikely, but I’ll try, I want to shout after him as he disappears up the stairs. Instead, I just sit there, staring into the distance, feeling the pressure of his thumb against my lip still.
When I finally go to bed, it takes hours to fall asleep. My mind is racing with thoughts of his new book, but even more, it seems to be occupied by him and his irritating frowns, his annoying looks and aggravating scent, his unnecessarily rude behavior and his charming, and very contradictory, actions.
What’s wrong with me that I find those things enticing?
I should know better than to be drawn to something like this. Someone like him.
I get back out of my bed and open the door, listening intently to hear if he is still up. There’s no sound until Dog decides to check on me and we cuddle up together in my bed. Another bout of nightmares finally forces me awake at the break of dawn. I check the time, 6 AM. No wonder I’d have more nightmares after an evening like this. Dog is up already as well, so I decide to take her for a run. I leave on the pair of shorts that I usually wear to bed, a shirt, the pair of sneakers I brought, and we leave the house. I haven’t been able to do any sort of sports for the last week and finally being able to move again feels almost cathartic. The two of us jog towards the sun, which has just risen on the horizon. The sweltering heat from yesterday has subsided over night, making for perfect running conditions. So Dog and I just keep going and going, only stopping by a running creek that leads into a rather large pond for a brief break. The nature around feels idyllic and I wonder if Phoenix ever comes here to take a bath, naked, only him and the trees, his muscles accentuated by the sunlight shimmering through the leaves above. Which is when Dog takes the plunge into the pond, splashing water all over me.
“Good call, buddy. My mind was getting away from me there again.”
Like a happy puppy, Dog swims through the clear water to cool off and I watch for a while before letting her know that we had better head back home. After one or two detours, we finally find the right path and are eventually greeted by a grim-looking face out on the patio. Phoenix gets up when he sees us approach and catches the enormous husky in his arms when she jumps onto him.
“Where have you been?” His angry voice bellows through the air. “I thought something happened.”
I wipe the sweat from my forehead before answering. “No need to worry about her. No need to perform CPR on anyone.” I calm him down. “I am a good bodyguard. I told you, I can kill with my bare hands.”
“I…” He stops himself and then starts again. “There’s wolfs out here. You could have gotten lost since you don’t know your way around here. You could have slipped, broken an ankle and starved.” He puts Dog down and ruffles her head, then looks at me with those judging eyes as if to say:Don’t do that ever again.“I might have never seen Dog again. That was quite reckless of you.”
I nod slowly, thinking he might be right. “Yeah, ok. I won’t do it again.”
“Alright, well, I made breakfast. Oh, and a package arrived for you, Mrs. Cyrus.” His left eyebrow raised, he awaits my reaction carefully.
“Mrs. Whatnow?”
“On the table.” His head gestures towards the house.
I go inside and discover a sizeable package addressed to Mrs. Olivia Cyrus, the i’s dotted with hearts.
Sienna.
“Yup, that’s for me alright. Sorry about that. I asked my roommate to send me some clothes to… create a more professional work environment. She’s a bit of a comedian.” I use a knife from the cutlery to cut the tape and open the box. A note lies on top which reads:You may die alone, but I will make sure you will not be poorly dressed.My gaze wanders from the sheet of paper in my hands to the contents of the box, and both Phoenix and I stare at a wide selection of lace underwear in colors ranging from red to emerald to black. Quickly, I close the box again and slowly tilt my head towards the usually grim-looking man standing to the side behind me.
His frowning expression has shifted to a tentative smile that builds as he watches me reseal the package. “Well,” he gasps, clearly amused, “I am looking forward to working with you, I suppose.”
“Careful, Cyrus. Don’t make me fire you.”
“I was under the impression you were working for me?”
I huff a little with feigned disdain. “Very well, don’t make me sue you for sexual harassment then. I have an excellent lawyer on retainer.”
“You are absolutely right. I wouldn’t want to harass another person. Especially not the one I apparently married.”
“Well, you better not, or I’ll have to consider getting a divorce.” I grab the box and quickly go to my room to die of embarrassment in private.
Olivia: I will murder everyone you love while making you watch.
Sienna: Hey, threatening suicide is not cool! I take it you got my package?
Olivia: I OPENED IT WITH HIM RIGHT NEXT TO ME!
Sienna: Relax, he’ll see them eventually anyway…
Olivia: Lingerie, short pants, flowery dresses, more lingerie, tight dresses, A FREAKING EVENING GOWN!
