Dirty Boss: A Second Chance Romance

by Alex Riley

  Everything had been right and perfect in his world. He had no idea that it was all soon going to end.

  Claire had come down with an inexplicable fever some days ago and he rushed her to the hospital. Treatment commenced immediately and she was starting to get better only to slump barely minutes after she was discharged and he brought her home again.

  There had been no goodbyes; it was so sudden that he still didn’t believe that she was gone. He had taken her to the hospital again, pleading with the doctor to revive her but it was useless. The doctor said she died even before they made it back to hospital.

  His entire world was thrown into darkness. His ray of sunshine was gone.

  He looked at the picture in his hand again, the tears now coming faster and harder. It was one of the pictures he took of her recently when they went to Japan during the school holidays. She had been so happy and free.

  He brought the picture to his chest and cried some more. How was he going to live without Claire?

  *********

  Breathing heavily, Ryan stopped punching the bag in the gym and dropped to the floor. He was tired already but he still felt like hitting the bag till he either lost consciousness or hurt himself.

  He missed Claire.

  The gym had been set up in the house for her only last year. Her doctor, Dr. Vamp was of the opinion that she could gain more strength in her body if she exercised frequently but lightly. He wasted no time in building an exercise room in their house worthy of the best in the world. The punching bag came five days after her death and he spent the better part of his days and nights in here, punching the bag. It was exactly one month after her death today.

  He rose up to punch the bag again but felt a hand on his bare shoulder.

  It was Nina, Claire’s nurse. The older woman had been with him for eleven years now and felt his grief. Even after Claire’s death when he informed her that she could go back to her home in Riverside with a huge settlement from him, she declined his offer and continued to stay with him. He knew that she thought that he would probably kill himself or do something crazy but she didn’t know that he couldn’t as much as he wanted to.

  When Claire was nine years old, she had gone for one of her frequent check-ups in the hospital where she learned that she didn’t have too long to live. She had come home to him, not crying but with a brave face and a mission. She made him promise to be happy if she did die. She wanted him to get married and give birth to cute siblings for her; she would watch over them all from heaven, she had said. She coerced him into making a pinky promise, while he prayed there would be no need to fulfil his promise.

  Now, he was stuck. How was he supposed to fulfil his promise to her when he didn’t even want to live?

  “It is enough. You will only hurt yourself.” Nina said quietly.

  He turned to her with grief stricken face.

  “I miss her Nina. I miss her so much every day. What am I going to do?” He asked her desolately.

  Nina took him by the elbow and guided him to a seat in the room.

  “You know what Claire would have loved you to do.” She told him, handling him a bottle of chilled water.

  He took the bottle from her but did not open it.

  “She wanted me to move on, she told me already.” He whispered.

  Nina nodded. “I know.” He looked over at her and she smiled sadly. “She told me. She also said that I should ensure that you kept your promise too.”

  He shook his head. His sunshine had left no stone unturned as much as she could.

  “It is hard, so damned hard.” He said.

  “Believe me, I know. I loved her like no other too.” Nina had tears in her eyes now but she sniffed them back, stubbornly refusing to let them fall. They both fell silent, lost in thought.

  “I have been thinking,” Nina spoke up, “I think you should go back to photography. Claire loved it and you are so good at it.” She proclaimed.

  He remained silent, wondering where she was going with this. She was right however; Claire would have wanted him to continue with his hobby no matter what.

  “There is this International Fashion Show coming up. My son is registered as one of the photographers but his wife gave birth prematurely and he is refusing to leave her side; it’s his first child, you see. When he told me of this, I thought you could take his place.” She explained, looking at him warily as if she could already guess what his answer would be.

  He started to shake his head but she raised a hand. “Think of Claire,” she said.

  At a loss for what to say or do, he opened the bottle of water and brought it to his mouth. He gulped down the water without feeling the chill wash down his throat. He couldn’t imagine taking pictures of models and clothes when Claire was dead but that was exactly what Nina was asking him to do. She got him hooked too; Claire would have wanted him to go for it.

  “Where is this Show taking place?” he asked on a sigh.

  There was a suspicious silence from the woman seated next to him.

  “Athens, Georgia.” She said at last.

  He knew why she was hesitant to tell him. It was where he had fallen in love for the second time in his life. It was where he met her, Emily Wilson, a woman he’d only spent one night with and yet he felt he knew everything about her. Seeing her at the dinner party organized for high achieving graduates, she had touched him with her naivety and guilelessness. He was an entrepreneur himself and had no need for such parties but he had gone to see if he could scout someone for his own company.

  Bored with the party, he left his manager, whom he had come with at their table and gone wandering. That was when he saw her, staring at her drink as if she couldn’t decide what to do with it. She was the most delightful woman he had ever seen and he felt compelled to talk to her.

  He had felt an instant connection and longed for her almost instantly. She couldn’t be held accountable for her actions of getting him into her bed and he should have tried harder to stop her. But he was halfway in love and more than halfway in lust already and he had yielded to her wiles.

  When he found out that he was her first, his heart had melted, feeling deeply for the woman beneath him. When the morning came and she was still sleeping, he was uncertain if he should wait for her reaction or not. Judging by her words the previous night, she wasn’t the type to be impulsive but she had slept with him, a stranger; there was no doubt that she would regret it and blame him when the effect of alcohol was gone. At last, he decided to save them both the trouble by leaving first. He took the first flight home that very morning.

  He hadn’t been back there since that night.

  Both Nina and Claire suspected that something had happened when he arrived at home. Not wanting Claire to feel threatened by any lady, he always ensured to keep all his affairs with the ladies secret. His relationships were always short-lived and for sex only. So he hadn’t told her about Emily at first even though they told each other everything. But his daughter was smart and knew him like no other. She got the story out of him only a few weeks later and laughed as he told her and Nina about Emily. He knew that Claire meant that he should get married to Emily when she made him make the promise to her.

  The thin blonde girl he met that night never left his mind afterwards and only Claire’s death drove every thought out of his mind recently. Nina’s mention of Athens brought the memories rushing back at him despite his grief.

  She would long have left Georgia, he thought to himself.

  “I think you should go, maybe you would find her and fulfil your promise to Claire in one fell swoop.” Nina said quietly.

  Ryan sighed again. He knew that Nina would hassle him to death if he didn’t go. She would play on his guilt and sense of responsibility by bringing up his promise to Claire at the slightest opportunity.

  It seemed like he would be going to back to Athens after all.

  Reunion

  Five

  August, 2016

  Everything was differe
nt, yet nothing had changed. Emily looked through the window of her hotel room at the streets that were once so familiar. She had once walked through these streets as a student of Georgia. This city had been her home for four years. It had also been her place of rebirth. It was where she had done an entire about-face and become who she was today.

  It was where she had fallen in love with a stranger.

  It had taken her another three months after that night to come to the realization that she had fallen headlong in love with the mysterious, quick-to-grin Ryan Jones. She never forgot his name too.

  In light of the drastic change that came over her - spiky, short hair, lenses instead of glasses, a better dress sense, it was Shannon who finally declared that she had fallen in love with her mysterious one night stand such that she was making an effort to change herself into the image he suggested she did. Emily had emphatically agreed with her. If that was love that she felt that night, then she would keep it close to her heart forever. However, she hadn’t been able to experience that feeling with any other man. She had dated a couple of times in the last four years but they all seemed empty. It was like Ryan Jones had spoilt her for other men.

  Still best of friends, Shannon kept hooking her up with some of her husband’s colleagues (to Emily’s delight, Shannon and Greg finally tied the knot two years ago) but none ever lead to anything serious. However, Emily still hoped for the man that would sweep her off her feet (again) someday.

  Sighing deeply, she turned away from the window to sit on the bed. It was just morning and it was the first day of rehearsals with her models and other props. The attachment that was mailed to her as an update for the Show had informed her that she would be provided with one top brand producer (along with three other participants) three models for her designs, two makeup artistes, one photographer and an optional assistant/apprentice designer if needed. She wouldn’t be in need an assistant as she came with her own assistant designer, Marianne who was her right hand since she joined her one year ago and a great designer in the making.

  Emily mentally checked everything she had prepared for the Show. She ticked items on a mental list, nodding in satisfaction at each item ticked. Registering for the Show had been one of her numerous spontaneous decisions and she wanted it to go well so badly. Since she started her label right out of college, it would be the first time that she would be entering into something as big and as serious as the Show and she was just a tad nervous. She was just three years in the industry and would be showcasing her outfits against industry veterans. However, she had supreme confidence in the uniqueness of her brand and knew that she would do well with her outfits. At the very least, she thought to herself consolingly, I would be gaining international recognition.

  The door of her hotel room opened unceremoniously. She knew who it was before she raised her eyes to see.

  “Everyone is going crazy over the Show. I swear, there are more clothes here than I have seen in my entire life.” Marianne gushed, plopping on the bed beside Emily.

  Her assistant was a twenty-one-year-old girl, full of energy and park. She was a college drop out of her own decision who wanted to be a designer and not some lawyer like her parents wanted her to be. What Emily liked about her, was her sharp mind and eye for detail. In the fashion industry, those two could never be amiss. She had never regretted employing the girl despite her lack of experience.

  “But of course, that is to be expected. This is the International Fashion Show, Marianne, you can’t help it here.” She explained to her.

  The organizing body had secured the biggest hotel in the city for the event where all the participants were lodged. There was a display room in place already where the bestselling outfits of previous winners of the Show were displayed and sold at ridiculously high prices. For that privilege alone, many salivated at the honor of winning at the Show. She guessed that Marianne had gone for a morning tour of the display room and was impressed at what she saw.

  “Head Turners will soon be sitting with those outfits.” She said confidently.

  Marianne’s unending boost of confidence was another reason that Emily liked the girl. She was a go-getter and was always optimistic.

  “I hope so.” Emily replied.

  They chatted about this and that for another minute before the time came for rehearsal.

  *********

  “Emily, meet your photographer, Ryan Jones. Ryan, meet Emily Wilson.”

  Her producer, Jamie Langdon was a busy man and he turned away quickly to see what the other designers were up to as soon as the words left his mouth. He did not see the shocked expression that came over the faces of both Emily and Ryan as he introduced them.

  Emily was shocked speechless and immobile. She had been in the little room provided for her and her props all day, rehearsing with the models. She found the models and makeup artistes to her satisfaction and was making quick progress with them. However, her photographer had yet to show up and she had been worried. Each participant needed their first photographs on display first thing tomorrow morning. The other props were now on break and she was left with Marianne in the room talking about their missing photographer and what they should do if he didn’t turn up for the second session. Marianne was just suggesting that they ‘borrow’ one of the other photographers for a brief period when the producer walked in with him.

  “Ryan Jones, a fresh graduate of this grand school and a photographer by hobby.”

  It was obvious that her one-night stand had made his hobby a profession.

  She swallowed as she allowed her eyes to meet his. Her heart almost flew right out of her chest. His eyes were still the same brilliant shade of gold that she remembered. She had thought that the excess wine she had that night must have surely exaggerated his features in her mind and that he couldn’t be as handsome as she thought him to be. It so happened that the wine had understated his handsomeness. Ryan Wilson was looking more handsome, more masculine, more mature and more everything than she remembered in a cream, designer T shirt rolled up at the sleeves and a pair of chocolate brown pants. He had a four o’clock shadow on his cheeks and the dimples she so much remembered and loved, showed blatantly on them. He was staring at her as if he had just seen a ghost.

  She figured that she must be staring at him in quite the same way.

  “Emily?” he asked in perplexed confusion.

  “Emily!” her assistant whispered, jabbing her in the side to remove her boss from her obvious paralysis. “Hi, Mr. Jones. I am Marianne, Emily’s assistant.” She said, trying to give her obviously dumbfounded boss time to recoup.

  The man however had eyes only for Emily. It seemed like there was a history here, Marianne thought, licking her lips in anticipation of a great love story. She was a romantic at heart.

  “Hi Marianne,” he glanced at her briefly before turning back to Emily.

  Marianne sighed at the two and crept out of the room, not that they noticed her leave anyway. It seemed like the two had a lot of catching up to do and her presence wouldn’t be required. She hoped that they would be through with whatever they had going before the next session which was to be in exactly forty-two minutes’ time.

  Emily saw Marianne leave from the corner of her eye but her tongue was still locked to the roof of her mouth. It was too coincidental not to mention surprising that she would be meeting with Ryan in the first time that she came back to this place after four years.

  “Hi Ryan,” she said at last.

  A small smile came across his face at her greeting. She had no idea why she thought so but she couldn’t help but think that it was the first real smile that had crossed this man’s lips in a while. Now that she was released from the initial shock, she could see that there was something sad in his eyes, the brightness in his lovely eyes were dimmed and there were crows feet in the corner of his left eye. She wondered what had happened to him since she last saw him.

  “Hi, Emily. I never imagined you for a fashion designer,” he said.

>   At his words, she got her savvy, cheesy-self back and dazzled him with a smile.

  “Is that the only thing different you’ve noticed about me?” she asked him though her heart was still pounding hard in her chest.

  He walked up to where she was seated and took the chair in front of her just like he did the night they met.

  “You are more beautiful. Absolutely stunning,” he said, looking at her from head to toe.

  The former Emily Wilson would have blushed at those words but this Emily Wilson of his making, even though he might not know it, preened at the compliment. She frequently got such compliments from men but it was the first time she was actually flattered upon receiving it.

  “Thanks. You look dashing yourself, as expected of course.” She told him.

  He laughed out loud at her cliché and stopped suddenly as if the sound of his own laughter was strange to his ears.

  “Thanks,” he said quietly.

  Something was definitely wrong with this guy, she thought. In place of the carefree young man that she met four years ago was this brooding man that seemed to carry the weight of the world on his broad shoulders. Immediately, her heart reached out to him and she sought to help him, like he helped her those years ago.

  “You seem to have done well for yourself,” he commented, looking around her tiny room.

  She also looked around the room, trying to see her hung out outfits through a stranger’s eyes. They looked pretty good to her but then, she might still be biased despite her attempted detachment.

  “Yeah, I guess so. I started a fashion line right after college; Head Turners and only just entered for the Show this year.” She informed him.

  “Wow, that’s great. I guess you finally took that leap we talked about,” he gestured towards the room and her appearance. He looked like he was reliving that night just like she was.

  “I did, thanks to you.” She confirmed.