Page 42 of The Fake Dating Plan

I crossed my arms to show my exasperation.

“Not when everyone else here is working like they’re on speed. It’s like Santa’s factory on Christmas.”

I glanced around. Everyone else was too busy with their tasks to care about our interaction. “Well, it is Christmas. Of course, everything is hectic.”

He frowned. “Have you slept? You look tired.”

I hadn’t actually. After our dinner, I spent all last night trying to fix a shipment kerfuffle that had happened in Singapore. “Yes. Is that why you’re here? To inquire about my sleep schedule?”

“No actually…”

His voice became faint. The room started spinning and everything began to blend into one. I could hear him call my name. I heard Laura’s voice as well, but it sounded distant. Oh no. It wasn’t happening. I wasn’t about to faint. I tried to steady myself but I made a miscalculation, the floor was too wobbly, and dropped to the ground. Only the ground didn’t feel hard, but warm, soft, and… was that Ax’s cologne enveloping me? Everything went black.

The familiar scent of sandalwood brought me to the present. I opened my eyes and stared at the unfamiliar white ceiling. It wasn’t my room. I grasped the black silk sheets. It wasn’t my bed either. I sat up straight and took in the austere, masculine decor around me. Everything screamed Axel Reid. I was in his bedroom. I tried to recall how I got here and all I could remember was collapsing in his arms. I groaned. Talk about embarrassing. Fainting like I was some nineteenth-century lady. I glanced at the view of the New York night skyline outside. How long did I pass out? It wasn’t hours, wasn’t it?

“You’re awake.” Ax said as he came into the room.

“How long was I out?” Before I even finished the sentence, he had dashed out. A few seconds later, he came back, followed by a tall middle-aged woman in a black pantsuit with a stethoscope around her neck.

“This is doctor Sanderson; she’s going to perform a check on you if that’s all right.”

“I don’t think it’s necessary. I was probably dehydrated.”

“Still. Just have her check on you.”

I nodded, and the woman moved from behind Ax to sit beside me. I then noticed the briefcase she had brought, which she sat on the bedside table and opened.

“Hi Emilia, how are you feeling?”

I told her the truth. “Fine now, but I was a little dizzy before I fainted.”

She took out a blood pressure monitor, wrapped the band around my arm, and turned it on. She asked several questions about my health. Allergies I might have had, what I ate if I had been sleeping. The last two made me feel embarrassed because I hadn’t eaten or slept that much in a long time.

“Have you been under a lot of stress lately,” she asked.

I nodded and looked beyond the doctor to Ax, who stood with his chin in hand and a furrowed brow. I hesitated to deduce that as him being worried about me. Why would he when before he had acted like an asshole?

After checking my blood pressure, she took my temperature, checked my eyesight, then said, “You need to rest. It’s the holidays and you might take a couple of days off to cool down.”

I nodded even when I wasn’t sure how I was going to do that. Our sales were booming and this was the biggest holiday Steel Cute had experienced so far.

“I’ll make sure she will.”

I smiled and said as politely as I could, “You don’t have to.”

Doctor Sanderson scribbled a note, stood up, and gave it to Ax, “Make sure she takes this.”

He accepted it and put it in his pocket. Shouldn’t she be giving me that? He thanked her and she added, “If you have any more issues, don’t hesitate to call me.” She was looking at me when she said it, but I was sure she was speaking to Ax. I didn’t even have her number. Plus, I was sure I wouldn’t be able to afford her bespoke services.

When Ax ushered her out, I got out of bed. I didn’t want to spend more time than was necessary lying there. My feet felt weak and prickly as I trudged forward. I looked around for my heels and when I put them on and wobbled; I thought better of it and held them. I grabbed my purse lying on top of the kist. My phone was still inside, thank god. I fished it out as I made my way out. A ton of messages were on it. Most from Laura and Dylan.

“What are you doing out of bed?”

He’s back already? The man moved like the wind.

“Getting out of here.”

“You need to rest. Doctor’s orders. Literally.”

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