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It is a start though.
It’s Brandon’s voice in my mind now, overwriting anything negative I try to even think or say about myself.
Autocorrecting my thinking, making me feel stronger. A better person as well as a loved person.
“Sorry, Mark.” I offer. “I was up late with the damaged dress. I’ll call the dry cleaner,” I tell him, but he shakes his head.
“I’ll take it. I only dropped in to see how things were going.”
I feel my heart freeze.
The thought of my boss handling that dress.
The one Brandon ravished me in. The one probably still wet from my quaking orgasm.
“Really,” I squeak. “I can call them right now, they’re only a few blocks away. They can—”
But it’s too late, he’s already moving towards it, and glancing at the other garments still in their sleeves he asks if I checked them over as well.
I stab a nod, not even remembering anything from last night to do with work after Brandon pulled back that curtain.
Made me a real woman.
His woman.
“Well, I’ll take ‘em all in. Have them drop them back later. She’ll be here at two to pick everything up. Cynthia’s already spoken to her.”
I nod and try to focus on what he’s saying, but my mind is already miles away.
I suddenly realize that Brandon’s right upstairs too, and could appear at any moment.
That would be just like him, probably naked as well to boot.
Shit.
“Well. If you’re taking these to the dry cleaner, I won’t hold you up,” I tell Mark, urging him towards the door. Eager to get him out of here before Brandon surfaces.
“Just a minute,” he snaps, taking a deep breath before apologizing in a low voice. “Sorry, Ash. It’s been a rough night. Look… Cynthia and I were talking, and because there’s the Canning wedding tomorrow, as well as the other existing jobs we have on…”
I don’t like the sound of this. Where’s he going with it all?
I know I slept in, but he wouldn’t fire me because of it.
Would he?
“What is it?” I ask, feeling my heart in my throat.
“Well, we hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but Cynthia’s sister will be coordinating the Canning wedding tomorrow. You’ve had a big enough week and we don’t want to put it all on you,” he explains.
Looking a little brighter already, like he’s got something off his chest that’s been bothering him.
“We know you could manage, but well… we value you too much, appreciate everything you do around here, Ash. It’s unfair to expect you to do everything just because we’re so…” he takes a series of sudden breaths. His eyes narrow, water and redden before he sneezes loudly into a handful of tissues and blows his nose.
“…sick.” He groans, folding the garments in a big bundle over his arm, the bridal dress on top, but he wouldn’t notice if it was covered in red paint right now.
“Once the Canning’s pick these up after the dry cleaner drops them back, we want you to take tomorrow and Monday off, okay?” Mark says, creasing a smile as he stands at the door.
“And sorry for being such a grouch. Ten minutes past nine isn’t the end of the world, is it?”
At that exact moment, I spot Brandon out of the corner of my eye, standing at the top of the stairs scratching his belly and yawning.
And yep. He’s butt naked.
Launching myself towards the door and my boss, I really do bundle him outside now, towards his car.
“Thanks, Mark,” I tell him hurriedly, only glancing back to make sure Brandon hasn’t started to come down the stairs yet.
He wouldn’t just walk around naked though.
Would he?
Yeah. He would.
He’s the king of the castle now that he’s got what he wanted. There’ll be no stopping him from doing whatever the hell he wants from now on.
“I don’t mind if you have someone else to help. Truth is, I was kinda nervous about it all anyway… I’ll make sure the Canning’s get these once the dry cleaner brings them back… You drive safe and tell Cynthia hi and get well from me, won’t you?”
He gives me a sidelong look, maybe to ask why I’m so keen to get rid of him, but his puffy red eyes and worn out look tell me that he only wants to get back home. Everything else can wait until he’s feeling better.
Until both of them are feeling better.
Cynthia’s sister used to help out a lot before I came along, so I know the Canning’s are in good hands with their wedding arrangements.
It also means I have half of today and two whole days after it with nothing to do except spend time with Brandon.
Chapter Eighteen
Brandon
Waking up on a strange floor, reaching for Ashlee before I remember everything that brought me here, I almost feel like another person.
Like someone else in my body.
