When we finish eating, I dump the plates in the sink and rinse them off. I grab my clothes and something out of my bedroom and return to the bathroom. The dog watches me as I come and go. His head tilts to the side, but he doesn't bother following me. "Stay," I order before wandering into the bathroom.
Jumping in the shower I am in there all of five minutes when I hear a low whining coming from outside the bathroom door. Reaching out the shower, I open the bathroom door before turning back to rinse the shampoo that is now burning my eyes. Opening my stinging eyes, the dog is watching me through the shower door.
“You know it is rude to stare,” I tell him. He cocks his big head to the side, not fazed by my comment. Feeling his eyes on me, I rush to get out. I don’t know why but sometimes his gaze makes me feel a little uneasy, it’s almost human-like. Wrapping the towel around me, I get out and dig through the drawers finding an old shirt and a pair of panties. Slipping them on, I walk back out and find the bottle of tequila I was drinking the night before.
I don't have a problem, I need it to help me sleep lately, that's all. The nightmares are terrible, reliving the night my mother passed over and over again. Alcohol helps make sleep easier. I reach for the bottle to pour it in a glass and pause. I only have a quarter left, why not just drink straight from the bottle? One less dish to worry about.
I tip the bottle to my lips, the stray walks over, his fur brushing against my side. He sits on my feet staring up at me. I take a swig from the bottle, coughing from the intense burn it leaves in my throat. The cough will go away after another mouthful. A few more and it will be like drinking water. Come to think of it, I need to find another way to sleep. If I keep doing this, I may just become an alcoholic like my mother. The dog whines when I take another big mouthful.
I enjoy the sting in my throat for a moment before pulling the bottle away and addressing him. “What? Don’t look at me with those judging eyes. You really do remind me of Tobias when you glare at me like that. You don't know my life, you aren't allowed to judge me.” Great, only a couple of swallows in and I’m arguing with the dog like he understands me.
The dog pulls the bottom of my shirt with his mouth, tugging me out of the kitchen. Grabbing the bottle and wrapping my arms around it, I follow and grab a blanket out of the linen cupboard. I open the doors leading outside in case the dog needs to pee during the night. Curling up on the couch, the dog jumps up beside me.
I don't even remember what I choose to watch on TV, and it doesn't matter. I just need my brain to die. I take another deep swig and smile, my eyelids are heavy. Sleep is blissfully close, but I can’t sleep in the bed, I’m used to my cramped car so I know I won’t be comfortable in such a huge bed.
Instead, I stay on the couch, cuddling with my furry hot water bottle. His head rests on my hip, and eventually I fall into a dreamless sleep.
The next morning, I wake up, and the dog is gone. I look in every room but can’t find him. He must have left to go outside. I hope he'll show up while I’m getting ready for work, but I don't see any sign of him. My head pounds, and my eyesight is blurry. A migraine builds up, the pressure against my cheeks makes me wince. If I don't take something soon I'll regret it later. I look for some Tylenol when Tobias walks in, followed by Theo. What is this? I don't even get a knock anymore? Sure, come on in, make my morning even better.
“Good morning, Imogen. I hope you’re decent,” Theo’s voice rings out in a sing-song. I’m glad I’ve suffered to make sure I got dressed before searching for medicines. I'll have to put my clothes out the night before to make sure they never catch me unprepared.
Digging through my oversized purse, I try to find a bottle of Tylenol, or anything else at this point, to get rid of this damn headache. After a few minutes, Tobias must have got tired of waiting because he burst through my bedroom door. I yelp and resist the urge to throw my bag at his head.
“How much longer?” He asks, tone cold. Another morning, another pissed off Tobias. Maybe he just isn't a morning person?
“Just a sec, I need to find some medicine. I stayed up too late reading." I resume my search.
Tobias walks past me to the dresser and pulls a bottle of pills from the top drawer. "If you weren't so fucking hung over you'd know where you put your damn things," he snarls. I wince, how did he find out about my hangover? I thought I was covering it up well.
“Come on, Imogen, next time hide the bottle. You left it on your couch, leaking all over it, mind you. Do you know how expensive that thing is?" He shakes his head and turns away from me, slamming the door behind him.
I scramble to get ready in record time, throwing my hair in a bun. Once ready for work, I join them and Theo gives me a weak smile before handing me my apartment keys and a bottle of water. Great, he probably heard our conversation too. I take the bottle and down the pills that Tobias found for me.
Walking out, the valet tosses Tobias the keys. I pause at his car. I don't want another ride like yesterday, especially with Tobias in this kind of mood, yet again. His attitude is bad enough but I don't want to lose my precious pills if I get sick from his driving and being flung around in the car like some helpless pinball.
When I don’t get in, Tobias stares at me over the roof of the car. “Get in the car.”
I look to Theo for help, but he’s already in the backseat. “I think I'll drive myself today.”
“It wasn’t a choice, Imogen, get in the car,” he repeats, this time daring me to tell him no.
I stare into his dark eyes, I don't feel like bowing to him. "No," I respond calmly. "I'm good." I turn away, walking to the garage.
“Don’t make me come get you, Imogen. You won’t like the consequences if I do.” I stop, frozen in my tracks. Consequences? What, is he going to do, smack my ass like a child? Scold me, put me in the naughty corner? “Don’t make me repeat myself.” His words are harsh. I can hear the anger behind them.
Turning back around, I gulp and his eyes blaze. I take a step toward the car, he doesn’t drop his intense gaze. I open the door and slip in, something about him today makes it impossible to say no and mean it.
“Good girl,” he praises before getting in himself.
I freeze and glance over at him, I should be pissed. I should want to throw something at his head, but instead I find myself doing as he asked.
I buckle my seat belt and Tobias starts the car. I grip the oh-shit bar white knuckled the entire way. Theo laughs a few times when I clench my eyes as Tobias screams around a corner. My stomach plummets to somewhere deep inside me as I wait for us to hit something.
Only we never do. When the car stops, I open the door and jump straight out. My stomach rumbles, threatening to make me lose my water and pills. I stand with my hands on my knees, bent over, taking deep breaths, trying to stop myself from puking in the parking lot.
Tobias gets out of the car and stands behind me, inspecting me as I struggle to breathe. I hear the crack before I feel the sting on my ass. He slaps me with the palm of his hand. "Don't drink and you won't get sick," he scolds before walking away and into the building.
Standing up, I flip him the bird behind his back. Theo chuckles at me before he chases after Tobias, leaving me in the car garage by myself. Walking in, I see Tom, he comes over and gives me a warm hug. “God, I miss seeing your face every morning,” I tell him. Hopefully, he won't watch the embarrassment of me on the cameras with the whole flipping off Tobias thing.
“I miss our morning coffee dates too,” replies Tom. He turns and watches Theo and Tobias leave. Once they are out of sight, he turns back to me. “So where did they put you?” He asks.
I roll my eyes. I should feel angry at Tom, but I know his heart is in the right place. “At their apartment building.”
“Really? That’s interesting. Just be careful, Imogen. It’s not the best neighborhood for someone like us to be in.” I stare, confused. Someone like us? I wonder what he means by that. It’s an odd thing to say considering how ritzy the place is.
“I’m fairly sure it is one of the safest areas around here," I reply. Will he explain more?
He pauses, considering his words. “I suppose you’re right dear. Don’t mind me. I just worry about you.” I can tell he wants to say something else, but Tobias pops his head back around the corner.
“Imogen, hurry up," he snaps at me.
Why is he in such a bad mood all the time? What have I done to him? I think about it for a moment, lips twitching. The correct question would be what have I done to him today? “Shit, got to go, Tom,” I sing, scrambling to catch up with Tobias.
The elevator ride is tense the whole way to the office. Once free from my metal confines, I race around, turning everything on. Theo lingers behind, following me around like a lost puppy. Not even he’s game enough to piss Tobias off today, more than he usually is anyway. Today will be another long day, Tobias' mood swings have been getting worse. We are constantly walking on eggshells at work, and outside of it things keep going downhill with him.
At lunch time, I escape into the small kitchenette, needing another caffeine hit. While I’m busy pouring the hot water, I feel a presence behind me. I know instantly who it is. “What do you need, Theo?” I ask with my back turned to him.
He steps closer. His chest moves against my back, soft breathing against the back of my neck. Putting the jug down on the counter, I turn around, only to be entranced by his hypnotic eyes. They burn brightly and I swallow, almost forgetting to breathe. Fog takes over my brain. I hold onto the counter with my hands, the only thing grounding me before I’m lost in his gaze.
He presses his lean body into mine, his leg sliding between mine and lodging there. My breasts are squashed against his hard-toned body. I can even make out the muscles on his abdomen. Theo’s hand leisurely moves up and brushes a piece of hair back that has escaped my bun behind my ear.
“What are you doing, Theo?” I whisper, trying to keep my voice low so Tobias won’t overhear and come yell at me more today.
“Getting a reaction,” he whispers back against my lips. I don't get a chance to ask more before his lips smash into mine, cold yet demanding. His tongue brushes my bottom lip and I gasp from the chill, my lips parting. Theo's tongue plunges into my mouth, capturing mine and toying with it. While I’m distracted by the coldness of him, he reaches up with one hand and grabs my breast though my dress. He squeezes it hard and I am unable to stop the embarrassing moan that escapes my lips.
He chuckles against me and my senses return. I’m kissing my boss! And not only that, he’s my other boss's partner.
I place my hands against his chest to shove him back. His lips leave mine and he nips at my jawline. My eyes flutter and the hands meant to place him away, hold on instead. I can't fight this, it feels so damn good. His hands curl around my hips and he sets me on top of the counter, pushing against me so his hard erection brushes against me.
His lips move down, kissing and sucking on the skin of my neck, his cold tongue tracing a pathway. My hands bury themselves into his hair. Theo’s mouth devours my skin, sending goosebumps everywhere his lips touch. I moan in encouragement, lost to his every touch. The contrast of my now burning skin to his cold lips makes me shiver. When he gets to my collarbone, he pulls the top three buttons of my dress open kissing the top of my breasts. My thoughts are lost to the teeth nipping at my sensitive skin.
It hurts when he bites my breast. I squirm, but even then I can't push him away. His tongue glides over the bite mark and the chill of it takes away the sting. My head falls back against the wall. Theo tugs my dress down lower, my breasts threatening to spill out. My eyes flutter, and the fog fades in a blink. There, just over Theo's shoulder and watching us, is Tobias. He stands in the middle of the doorway, calm enough, but his dark eyes burn. His arms are crossed over his chest, not interrupting us, but just watching.
I gulp, looking away and tugging my dress back into place. Theo looks up, following where I’m staring and his eyes lock onto Tobias. He helps me adjust my clothes back and stands up, releasing me from whatever spell that gripped me.
“About time you came looking for us,” Theo winks at me with a cocky smile on his face. I’m breathless and confused, looking between the two of them. Is this the reaction he wanted? A pissed off Tobias catching us being inappropriate in the kitchen? Theo strides out of the room like nothing notable happened, like he hadn’t just been caught making out with their secretary.
Tobias just calmly stands there for a second before turning around and walking out, his fists clenched tightly. I know Tobias’s silence is deadly, like a ticking time bomb.
I quickly fix my dress and try to get my bearings. What the fuck just happened? I had no intention of doing anything. I know it’s wrong, yet my body reacted like I was possessed. Theo overwhelmed my senses completely, overriding my common sense. Jumping down from the counter, I quickly grab my coffee and go back to my desk. After this, I can't let myself slip back into fantasizing about them, either of them. That has to be why I can't resist Theo. I've been lost in another one of my own imaginings.