The Billionaire's Gamble

I just barely keep myself from rolling my eyes, and I’m about to give him another comeback when Kelly appears behind him. “That’s enough,” she says softly, moving Jacob out of the way. “Come in. Of course you can stay as long as you need.”

Jacob is practically seething, and I can feel the anger rolling off him in waves as I pass him and go into the house.

Kelly’s voice is a whisper, “Did you bring anything with you?”

“No,” I shake my head, “I didn’t think it was a good idea to go back to my house.”

“Okay. I’ll meet you upstairs in the guest room in a couple of minutes.”

I head up the staircase immediately, not wanting to hear what Jacob is going to say after I leave the room. Whatever it is it’s not going to be flattering in any sense of the word. I toss my briefcase on a chair in the guest room, kick off my shoes and flop onto the bed. I’ve only been awake for like five hours and I already think I could sleep for another eight. I hear Kelly and Jacob’s voices downstairs. He doesn’t sound happy, but then it’s a rare occasion when he actually does.

The front door closes a bit too hard and with that, Jacob’s out of the house. Kelly comes into the room a few minutes later.

“I’m guessing more pictures of me are on the internet,” I say.

“Yeah.”

“How bad is it?”

She sits on the bed, shifting to the center and sitting cross legged the way we used to do as kids. “Pictures of you at the house. They know all about who you are now. Only a couple of photos of you after the accident. I don’t think any of them wants to report that the accident was caused by a reporter.”

“Reporter is a loose term,” I say, sitting up and scooting back against the headboard. “This isn’t exactly how I had planned my day.”

“Yeah,” she says. “So did they send you home because of the accident?”

I shake my head. “John fired me.”

“What?”

“Yeah. You could say that this really hasn’t been my morning.”

Kelly runs a hand through her hair. “Shit, Dani, I’m really sorry.”

I laugh, though nothing really seems funny. “It’s not your fault.”

We sit in silence for a while, and I can feel my body lowering itself into sleep. “I think I need to sleep,” I say. “Take the edge off.”

“Okay.”

“Can I borrow some clothes when I wake up?”

Kelly grins at me from the doorway. “You really have to ask? Take whatever you need.”

“Thanks, sis.”

She shuts the door softly behind her. I thought I’d fall asleep right away, but I don’t. My mind is swirling with the car chase and John and Nolan and everything. It all seems to catch up with me at once and it’s too much. It’s all too much. I’m crying before I even realize what’s happening, and I’m asleep not long after that.

When I wake up, it feels like I’m coming out of a coma. My body is stiff and I don’t think that I even moved while I was passed out. The very definition of a crash. I hear the clinking of dishes downstairs and the voices of both Kelly and Jacob. He sounds less pissed than before, but that’s sure to change if he sees me.

Looking around, I see that Kelly has left a glass of water and some aspirin on the nightstand, and a pair of fluffy pajamas on the chair. It makes me smile because it’s so very Kelly. Of the two of us she’s always been the one to take care of people. I was the trouble-maker. Looks like I still am.

I turn on the bedside lamp and take the aspirin. My stomach growls as it realizes it hasn’t eaten in…a long time. I find my phone and check the time. It’s later than I thought it was. I could go downstairs and ask Kelly what they had for dinner, but I’d rather hide in here. I don’t want Jacob’s judgment or the small talk that Kelly and I resort to when he’s around. No, I’ll sneak down to the kitchen later after they’re asleep and find something to eat. I down the rest of the water so there’s at least something in my stomach.

I change into the pajamas that Kelly laid out, stretching as I go. I find it amazing that I’m still as tired as I am, but then again I don’t get fired and have high-speed car chases every day. My yoga mat is at home but I take the time to do some simple stretches. I always feel more centered after I practice and I should make a point to be more consistent. Things have been so busy at work that I’m letting myself slip. I guess I’ll have all the time I need to focus on that now.