Page 12 of BillionHeir
No. Just no. Not for all the money in the world.
I consider calling a friend to come hang out with me tonight, but I don’t think I would be very good company. As I ride the T home, I try to forget about everything that just happened. Better yet, I would like to forget the whole day.
I stop by the Chinese restaurant that Jenna and I used to frequent regularly when she was still living with me. I long for the past when she was my flatmate and we would spend our evenings commiserating about our jobs. Back when she worked for Jackson and hated his guts. My job wasn’t so bad aside from working around the clock to pay my bills, but Jenna was miserable. A Chinese takeaway and a bottle of wine always seemed to cheer her up. Maybe it will do the job for me tonight, even if my bestie isn’t here to listen to me complain.
I take the food back to my apartment, trudging up three flights of stairs when the lift doesn’t respond to my repeated attempts to call it. It must not be working again, along with most things in this old building.
“Of course,” I mumble to myself as I slowly ascend the steps.
When I get into my blessedly quiet apartment, I let out a huge sigh of relief. I dump my bag and the food on the table then gostraight to the kitchen for a bottle of wine. I uncork it and leave it on the table to breathe for a minute. Jenna left this particular bottle when she and Jackson moved the last of her stuff out of here. Since then, I have been waiting for a nice occasion to drink it. I am just desperate enough tonight to say ‘screw it’. If I keep waiting for a nice reason to drink it, it will probably go bad.
I head into my bedroom and take off my nursing scrubs. As far as uniforms go, they are really not that bad. I remove my bra and panties and leave the dirty clothes in the hamper before heading into the en-suite bathroom. I turn the shower tap on to warm up the water and turn to look at myself in the mirror as the steamy mist starts to swirl around me. I hardly recognize myself. The woman looking back at me is thin and stylish but getting older and much more tired and haggard than ever before. When did that happen?
Life has been difficult lately. While my mum is in remission, the years of illness have taken their toll on her, and apparently on me as well. All the worry and anxiety has started to show on my face, and it hasn’t been kind.
I miss when Jenna and I would stay up late, eating and drinking way too much, giggling about boys, complaining about anything and everything. I crave her friendship sometimes, but I know that she is happy in Wyoming. If I wasn’t so broke, I would book a plane ticket to go see her.
I get in the shower and wash off the day, doing my best to cheer myself up. When I step out, I am feeling refreshed and in a slightly better mood. It is amazing what some hot water can do for a girl.
I find my phone and send Jenna a text asking if she is available tonight. My phone dings in response almost immediately after. I cross my fingers for a yes, and squeal with delight when she says she will be available in twenty minutes.
Chinese food, wine, and a video chat with my best friend? What could be better?
Chapter 5
_______________________
Maxwell
“You expect me to drink this swill?”
“Your diet plan was specifically designed for you and your needs, sir. Doctor’s orders” the timid night nurse says after bringing me my breakfast tray.
I narrow my eyes on her and watch as she wilts under my stare. “Well, then call the doctor and tell him he is fired. I am not eating this shit.”
I want to wipe the tray off the table with my arm, but thatseems childish.
“I can’t—”
“I know you can’t, Ms. Davis,” I practically shout at the woman. None of this is her fault, but after two nights at Sanctuary Springs, my patience has worn thinner than ever. “Get out.”
The poor girl goes scurrying out of the room just as Ethan is walking in.
“Please tell me you are getting me out of here.”
“Good morning to you, too, Mr. Banks.”
“I told you to call me Max. When do I leave?”
“Well, there is the small issue of having no one to care for you when you get home,” he says, looking uncomfortable.
“What happened with the nurse?”
“You mean Chloe?” he asks, being purposely obtuse for reasons unknown to me.
“Of course that is who I mean. What did she say?”
“No.”
