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“Knock, Knock.” It was Erik standing at my office door.
“Hey, come on in. You’re right on time, Dr. Reynolds.”
Erik came to the bank to finalize contracts for Fenmore’s. Soon my tapas bar will be opened for business. My place was going to be the newest and hottest hotspot in Baltimore, but not before these new contracts were signed, notarized, sealed, and delivered.
Erik sat down in front of my desk and crossed his legs. Well, his right ankle landed on top of his left kneecap. I’m not sure if that qualifies as a leg cross, but he looked sexy doing it.
“Courtney, how about we grab some lunch after we’re finished here? We can head to Ceriello’s over on Belvedere. I’ve been craving Italian all week.”
“Oh, yes, that sounds good. I’ll send my assistant an air message and have her make our reservations. We can head over as soon as we’re finished here.”
Before I could get my words out, my eyes landed on the front door of the crowded banking center. It was one of the tellers storming back in from another one of her overly long lunch breaks with what looked like tears in her eyes, obviously upset about something.
“I swear white women can be so dramatic.” I cracked a smile at my stereotypically driven comment. Erik looked at the teller running through the lobby then quickly back at me.
“What’s her deal?” he asked calmly.
“That’s Epiphany Morgan; she works here.” I took my eyes off the teller station where Epiphany now stood and looked at him. My attention was now focused on trying to figure out a way to get my husband butt-naked and on top of my desk without anyone noticing.
I looked at him.
He looked at me.
He then looked down at the front of his body as if I had just detected a noticeable wrinkle in his wardrobe. “Courtney, why are you looking at me like that?”
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
He looked around, then back at me. I could tell by the devilish grin on his lips he was thinking exactly what I was thinking.
“Courtney, we can’t . . . Not here. Not now.”
“Why not? I have blinds, and both doors close and lock.” I looked over at the door behind me, leading to the employee side of the bank, then over at the main door leading out to the lobby.
He laughed me off. “Courtney, we can’t, baby.”
Before my next entreat for my husband to screw me on top of my desk until I sang the Star-Spangled Banner backward, Epiphany was heading toward my office. She had perfect timing because I was ready for her to meet the real reason why I turned down all her invites to lunch, to the movies, dinner, and even her friend requests on Facebook. I’m a married man, happily married to a happily married man. It sounds more confusing than it really is.
I’ll let her down easy with something like Hey girl; I’m gay! I giggled as I got up to meet her in the lobby. I wanted to break the news to her first before she met Erik.
“Erik, I’ll be right back.” I walked past him and met Epiphany inches away from my office.
She was holding a commercial loan app she needed preapproved. When she stopped in front of me, I could see tears resting in her eyes.
“Epiphany, what’s wrong?” I didn’t want to date her, but I considered her somewhat of a friend, and I was genuinely concerned.
“It’s nothing.” I could tell more was coming, and I was right. “Me and my sisters just got into a huge fight.” She broke down right in front of the entire banking center and me. God, I wish I hadn’t asked what was wrong with her. I guess I wasn’t that concerned, after all.
“Why don’t you come into my office for a second and collect yourself. I’ll take care of the preapproval, and then maybe you can join us for lunch.”
Her watery green eyes looked into mine. “Us?”
“Yes, I want you to meet someone.”
Just because she was all broke up over some catfight she had with her sisters on her lunch break did not mean she wasn’t going to meet my husband. I’m getting this out in the open right here, right now.
By the time I made it back to my office, Erik was gone. In the sixty-five seconds I spent with Epiphany right outside my doorway, my husband had vanished.
“Epiphany have a seat . . . Give me one second.” She sat down where Erik had been sitting. I poked my head back out into the lobby, but he wasn’t out there.
“Courtney, who are you looking for?” I ignored Epiphany.
I headed out the second door to my office in route to find Erik. I couldn’t imagine he’d be in the back wing of the bank since it was only for employees.
The second I made it out into the hallway, I spotted him heading for the exit with his phone up to his ear. I raced behind him, but I didn’t catch him before he made it out the glass door marked Employee’s Only.
When I made it outside, I shouted, “Erik!” He didn’t respond. I got closer to him. “Erik, where are you going?” No answer. He tended to his phone call, almost as if I wasn’t running behind him. “Erik, wait!”
When I got in-ears reach, I heard him saying, “Katie? . . . Katie, can you hear me?” He then ended the phone call and stuffed his cell deep into his pocket.
When he finally turned to me, I asked, “Why did you leave? We aren’t finished with the contracts,” but he didn’t answer me. “And who is Katie and why were you shouting at her? . . .” Before I could finish questioning him, Erik grabbed me. He snatched me up and forced me toward his car that was only steps away from us.
“Erik, what are you doing? Where are you taking me? I’m still working!”
He unlocked the doors to his Beamer and literally threw me inside. It took me a moment to realize what was happening, so I sat on the plush leather frozen. I watched Erik through the windshield race around to the other side of the car. He jumped in, started the engine, and sped off.
I screamed, “What are you doing?!” without an answer from him. Instead, he jetted to the freeway dodging every other car in sight.
I looked over at him with terror in my face. “Erik, what are you . . .” Oh no! We almost crashed into the back of an ambulance. “Erik, stop! . . . Slow down!”
Erik didn’t show any signs of emotions as he drove. He whipped the car with his arms extended to the steering wheel like he was handling a racing game at an arcade.
I shouted, “Erik, would you please slow down!” He didn’t. He drove like a madman until we reached our home.
He turned my familiar, pleasant, thirty-minute car ride into twelve and a half minutes of reckless horror.
He turned into our driveway, slammed his BMW in park, hopped out and decided I was coming with him . . . from his side of the car. He grabbed hold of my suit jacket and dragged me out of my seat, over his seat, and out to the pavement.
“Erik, what . . . what are . . .” We were tussling right outside in the driveway. “What are you doing? Would you stop this!”
He opened the garage and forced me inside. As I’m heading into the house, I could hear the right garage door closing. Once I got into the kitchen, I turned back toward the door I left open to wait for my husband to come in the house, but he was already standing right in front of me. His eyes read anger; his body language told me to beware, but why? What had I done to make him so upset? I didn’t have time to ask because now his hands were wrapped around my neck. I gasped for air. I couldn’t breathe as he chocked me. What the hell was going on here?!
I coughed. I swatted at his hands, but it was no use. He wasn’t letting up.
I fought him, but he was getting the best out of me. When he reached for my neck again, I thought about scooping up one of the knives in the knife block only a few reaches away to defend myself, but I couldn’t reach it.
“Erik!” Cough, cough, cough. “Erik, . . . what are you doing?” Oh, shit! I think my whole life just flashed in front of my eyes. I feel weak . . . unable to fight as hard as I was a minute ago. My thoughts we’re becoming far and in between as I counted the seconds in the air. I could no longer speak, gasp, cough, or breathe. Erik was right in front of me, but I could barely make out who he was. My eyes were wide open, but the room was starting to go black. I could feel Erik’s breath on my face, but I couldn’t see him. I was no longer fighting for my life because I couldn’t move anymore. All the torture inside of my husband’s hands was over. I couldn’t feel anything . . . My mind was still running, but my lifeless body had plummeted to the floor a few seconds ago. I lied in darkness. Total black, cold, eerie darkness.
I had lost all consciousness by the time Erik picked me up off the floor and carried me toward the staircase, with my last thought being what the hell just happened? . . .
One Hour Later . . .
I awakened slowly, rubbing my temples as my eyes gradually opened a little wider. I blinked a few quick times to get the room into focus without any luck. Everything was still hazy. I even had a hard time making out the numbers that were reading across the digital clock on the nightstand next to the bed.
I sat up and stretched with a big yawn quickly to follow. When my eyes reopened, I noticed him sitting there. I almost jumped out of my skin. Screw almost, I jumped out of my skin. My abuser was only inches away from me, looking as if he was ready for round two. He apparently had been watching me as I slept. Maybe he was waiting for me to wake up so he could finish the job.
“You’re awake.” I just looked at him and didn’t say a word. “Do you need anything? Do you want some tea? Let me get you some water.”
When Erik got up, I stopped him with, “I don’t want any water or tea.”
He asked, “Okay . . . Well, what do you want, baby?”
I sat up straight when I said, “All I want to know is, who is Katie?”
All the color suddenly flushed from Erik’s face. He turned as pale as our bedroom walls once I quizzed him. He was shouting her name earlier, so I want to know who this chick is, so I asked him again, “Erik, who is Katie? I heard you on the phone with her earlier.” I rubbed my neck. “I heard you loud and clear.”
He handed me a bottle of DASANI. I put it on the table without opening it. “Erik, who in the hell is Katie?!”
“She’s the lead hygienist at my practice. She called me earlier to let me know about a troublesome patient. I got up from your desk when she called to get a little privacy, but when I got outside, we lost signal. I couldn’t hear her anymore. That’s when you ran up.”
“Yeah, and that’s when you chocked me out.”
Erik looked away from me as if he couldn’t stand to look into my eyes any longer. “I lost my temper earlier, Court; I should never have done that to you, though. I shouldn’t have put my hands on you. I just-baby, I blacked out. I lost it after the hygienist called. It’s a lot going on in my office, but . . . look, babe, there is no excuse for what I did earlier. I’m so sorry.”
Looking at him right now makes me want to hate him. And I don’t give a damn about that phone call, or some troublesome patient. He had no right to do this to me. No fuckin’ right!
I snapped, “I want to meet her!”
“Who-what?”
“Katie . . . She’s your head hygienist, so I feel like I should have met her by now, right? Her, or at least someone from your staff.” Erik has a private practice in Great Falls, about an hour away. I’ve been there before, but I don’t remember seeing a Katie. Actually, I don’t remember seeing anyone at all. We strolled through the well-equipped office several times, but always after hours.
“Did you hear me, Erik?”
“Yeah, but, Court, I can’t do that. She’s-she is not on site right now.”
I jumped up. “Make it happen. I want to meet this woman.”
“Courtney, why are you doing this? It was work earlier, babe. Just-work.”
I stood up. ‘“Just work,’ don’t leave me bruised.” Before he responded, I headed for the bathroom. I said, “I want to meet her, Erik, and that’s final!” before I slammed the door behind me.