Anna turned toward Douglas and her eyes looked him up and down. Douglas looked back at her, leaning against the counter as he waited for her to speak, for something was most certainly on her mind.
“I want you to be home from work on time tomorrow,” she said simply.
“Then I will be,” Douglas said, easily agreeing with a shrug.
“I have called a few massage therapists throughout the course of the day,” Anna went on to explain. “I think I found one that will serve our needs very nicely, and I set up a meeting for five thirty tomorrow.”
Doug’s mind whirled for a moment, and then he recalled that he had agreed to try massage therapy to help out with his migraines. He wanted to groan and complain, but he knew that he had already agreed to this course of action. At first he felt a twinge of irritation, but at length her relented, knowing that his wife was just concerned for his wellbeing.
“Okay,” Douglas nodded. “I will be here.”
“Good,” Anna said simply. “You have to be here, because I won’t be.”
“Where will you be?” Douglas asked, frowning with some confusion.
“I’m going to that book signing with Kathy,” she explained, her lips slightly pursing. “I told you last week.”
“Oh, oh right,” Douglas nodded. Anna blinked a couple of times, and Douglas knew well that she didn’t believe him. Again, he couldn’t fight the wave of guilt that washed over him. But, as usual, there was nothing he could really say to absolve himself of his faults, so he said nothing.
“So just be sure to be here,” Anna said again. “I set up the appointment for five thirty, so that should leave enough time for traffic and everything. But only if you actually leave on time.”
“I will, I will,” Douglas assured her, nodding.
“This is a professional,” Anna pressed further. “And this is something that could really benefit you.”
Her tone was somewhat chiding, and Douglas felt a prickle of irritation.
“Look, I got it,” he snapped. “I’ll be here on time.”
Anna released a small huff of air from her nostrils. He could tell that she wanted to say something to him, but she held her tongue.
“Good,” she said simply, and turned to leave the room.
Douglas briefly considered stopping her, but he knew that the conversation was over. He ran his hand through his thinning hair and let out a sigh.
Chapter 3
Douglas moved into his office and finally brought all his business for the day to a close. He stretched his arms out above his head and let out a yawn, blinking heavily. He blinked his eyes heavily and vaguely registered just how tired he was. HE was finally sure that he would be able to get some decent sleep now that he had gotten his work done.
He turned off the computer and all the lights in his office and then closed and locked the door. He made a round of the house to make sure that all the doors were locked and all the alarms were set. When he was satisfied that everything was properly set, he moved toward the staircase and slowly ascended to the second floor of his home.
He moved down the hall and vaguely noted that the door to Anna’s room was ajar. Silently, he moved to stand in the doorframe, and he looked in on his sleeping wife. His heart yearned for her as he took in her calm, peaceful expression as she slept. Her mouth was parted slightly, and he listened carefully to catch the slow rhythm of her breathing. Her hair was slightly messed up, strewn around the pillow.
Douglas wondered vaguely what she would do if he just crawled into bed beside her. He frowned as he tried to remember the last time they had shared a bed. Much to his disappointment, he couldn’t remember, and again the idea came to him to just get in the bed and see what would happen.
A part of him, though, reminded him that his advances would likely just be met with annoyance or disinterest. He acknowledged that it would be much deserved. Even so, he found that he didn’t particularly care to deal with that sort of reaction. More than that, he was also very tired, and a large part of him just wanted to go to sleep and get some good rest.
Douglas took a last look at his wife before silently slipping out of the doorway and moving back down the hallway. It didn’t take him long to reach his own room, and he securely shut the door behind him as he moved into his dwelling space.
Once inside, he leaned backward to crack his back, and he groaned at the slightly painful sensation. He then took off his clothes, hanging them up on one side of the closet, where he put the things that needed to be taken to the cleaners. Then, he peeled off his socks, boxer-briefs, and undershirt and tossed them into his hamper in the bathroom.
He turned on the water to the shower and allowed it a few seconds to heat up. He glanced over his frame in the mirror. He shrugged as he looked himself over. For a man in his middle ages, he didn’t look too shabby. He still kept up with his health. He never wanted to be overweight, so he worked with a trainer four days a week, and he ran in his own time.
Douglas saw steam coming from the shower, and that was his indication that he was ready to get in. He stepped into the shower, and allowed the hot water to flow over his knotted muscles. He rolled his neck and shoulders as he shampooed his hair. His knots were bordering on painful. Maybe it was a good thing that he was going to start massage therapy after all.
Doug finished up with his shower and toweled off. He hung up the towel on the rack to dry, and then moved back into his room. He put on another pair of black boxer briefs, and then moved over to his bed. With a sigh, he pulled back the covers, and then climbed in. He reached over to his nightstand and set his alarm. Then, he rested his head against his pillow, and it was not long at all until he fell into an exhausted sleep, tired after a long day at the office.
When his alarm woke him the next morning, Doug groaned and sat up on the bed. He blinked sleepily and rubbed at his eyes, then released a yawn. He once again cracked his back, and then swung his legs over the edge of the bed and got up. He groggily moved over to his dresser and opened up the drawer. He put on a t-shirt and a pair of athletic shorts. Then, he collected his phone and his keys and made his way through the house to the garage. He pulled out of the garage, and then drove toward the gym where he held a membership.
He woke up little by little as he drove, the light of the sun just beginning to spill over on the horizon. It was not long before he arrived at the gym, and pulled into his usual parking space. He got out of the car and locked the door behind him, then headed for the doors of the building.
Upon entering, he approached the desk. With a smile, he showed the receptionist his membership card. The receptionist gave him a nod and allowed him to step into the facility. He headed straight for the locker rooms, and once there he easily located his usual locker and secured his phone and his keys. By the time he stepped out of the locker room, he spotted his trainer, a former Navy Seal named John.
Douglas had actually known John from college and they had been good friends before they parted ways. He had been good friends with Anna as well. He was heavily muscular and looked impressively intimidating. Douglas knew he would never look quite like that, but at least he knew he was being trained by someone who was more than qualified.
“Good morning,” Douglas said as he approached the other man, and the two shook hands.
“Morning,” John gave him a small smile. “How you doing today?”
“Pretty good,” Doug nodded.
The two men seamlessly sank into their routine. It was strenuous enough to keep Doug progressing, but it also allowed for the free flow of conversation between the two men. Douglas thought it was the perfect balance.
“So how’s work been going lately?” John asked.
“Oh, like hell,” Douglas answered honestly, his breath coming short huffs as he did his ab workout.
“Well, sounds like work,” John chuckled as he looked over Douglas’s body to make sure he was in good form.
“Yeah, pretty much,” Douglas agreed. “I’ve been having a lot of
migraines these days though.”
“More than usual?” John raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah, definitely,” Douglas grunted.
“Probably working yourself too hard,” John shook his head.
“Yeah, as usual,” Douglas chuckled as he moved toward another machine. “But hey, being the boss isn’t easy. We all know that.”
“That’s true,” John shrugged. “But you’ve got to take care of yourself as well. You can’t run the company if you’re incapacitated all the time.”
“Yeah,” Douglas nodded his agreement. “And you know, the pills work and all, I’m just having these damn things so often I’m going through a bottle twice as fast as usual.”
John grunted.
“You’ve got to get this thing sorted out,” John said lowly, briefly readjusting Douglas’s grip.
“Well, Anna did talk about massage therapy,” Douglas mentioned. “I have a meeting today after work with a therapist that she found. Does that seem legitimate to you? I mean, massage therapy.”
“You know, I’ve never done it myself,” John mused for a moment. “But I actually have a couple of friends I served with who swear by it. One of them actually says he goes to get help with PTSD.”
“Oh wow,” Douglas blinked. “And he says it works?”
“Yeah, like a charm,” John nodded.
“Huh,” Douglas mused.
“It can’t hurt to give it a shot, anyway,” John shrugged. “Especially when you’ve got money to blow.”
It was true, Douglas did have more than enough money to pay for a massage therapist.
“Well, I guess I’ll see how the meeting goes today,” Douglas huffed as he finished up his last set on the machine. “Then I’ll let you know how it all goes.”
The men finished up the workout without much further comment. Douglas allowed his mind to linger on the idea of massage therapy, and to dwell on how he felt about it. He still harbored some doubts, but if massage therapy could help John’s friend with his PTSD, massage therapy could most certainly help his migraines.
After an hour long workout, the two men went their different ways, and Douglas fetched up his keys and phone from his locker, then moved back out to the parking lot and got into his car. Eager to take a shower and get out of his sweaty workout clothes, he headed back home to get ready for work.
Chapter 4
Once he arrived at home, Douglass immediately made for his room and went into the bathroom. He stripped out of his sweaty clothes and hopped into the shower. His morning showers were quicker by far than his evening showers. He quickly rinsed off the soap from his body and toweled off. He put on a fresh pair of boxers and an undershirt.
He moved back into the bathroom and lathered on some shaving cream. He shaved off the bit of stubble that had grown in over the night and the past day. His beard was thick and grew fast, and if he didn’t shave every morning he would look like a ragged mess. He carefully ran his roar over the contours of his face. Then, he rinsed off the remnants of the lather and patted on some aftershave.
Satisfied with the state of his face, he moved on to his hair. He took up a small amount of mouse and ran it all through his hair, then neatly combed it off to one side. He vaguely acknowledged that he was probably due for a haircut soon. He would probably get his secretary at work to schedule one for him.
With his hair done, he moved back into his room and headed for his closet. He rifled through his collection of suits until he easily decided on a dark dray selection. He picked out a white shirt and buttoned it on, then donned the pants and the jacket. Once he was dressed, he sprayed on some cologne, and moved out of his bedroom.
He headed straight for the kitchen, where he could already smell coffee brewing. He caught sight of Anna sitting at the breakfast bar, a small book in her hand, and her bags strewn across the bar.
“Good morning,” Douglas smiled at her as he moved toward the coffee maker.
“Morning,” she gave him a polite smile.
“Are you going to drive Kathy or is she getting you?” he asked as he stirred some milk into his coffee.
“She’s going to pick me up,” Anna answered, closing the small book she had been reading and tucking it away in her bag.
She collected her plate and fork and moved over toward the sink as Douglas put a couple of pieces of bread in the toaster.
“And just so you know,” Douglas said. “I haven’t forgotten about the meeting with the massage therapist this afternoon. I’ll be sure to leave work on time and get here at five thirty, just like you said.”
Douglas could see relief and a little surprise cross her face.
“Great, thank you,” she said, blinking. “I’m glad you’re being so optimistic about giving this thing a go.”
“I talked to John about it,” Douglas said. “He seems to agree with you.”
“Well that’s good,” Anna nodded as she rinsed off her plate.
They both heard a horn honk from outside.
“That’s Kathy,” Anna said, and moved across the room to gather up her things.
“Any idea when you’ll be home?” Douglas asked as she crossed the room.
“Late,” Anna answered. “Ten or eleven. You’ll be on your own for dinner.”
“Okay,” Douglass nodded. “Have a good time.”
“I will,” Anna replied. “Let me know how the meeting goes.”
“I will,” Douglas said.
With that, Anna left, closing the door securely behind her. Douglas took another drink of his coffee, and then turned his attention back to his toast, which was about to be done.
Once the toast was cooked, he opened up an avocado and sliced it up, arranging the slices neatly on top of the bread, and then he ate his meal. Afterward, he cleaned and put away his dish, leaving the kitchen just as he found it. He filled up the remainder of his coffee in a thermos, and then moved into his study to collect his briefcase. Then, he locked up the house and moved out to the garage, getting in his car and heading to work.
Once there, he had yet another stressful day. His coffee was close to the only thing keeping him alert, as he was overwhelmed with everything that he was supposed to be taking care of. He was both parts relieved and aggravated when at last the clock read five o’clock. True to his work, he did not stay late. He packed up several files in his briefcase and left, locking up his office behind him.
Douglas was in quite a sour mood as he drove home. The last thing he wanted after a day like this was to have a consultation with some massage therapist. But he knew he had no choice. This whole thing was for his benefit exclusively, and he knew he couldn’t just blow it off. He reminded himself that Anna had gone through the trouble of arranging this whole meeting, and the least he could do was do his part.
Douglas rolled his shoulders and took a deep breath as he pulled into the garage. He parked the car and stepped into the kitchen. He got his customary glass of water and washed out his thermos, leaving it beside the sink so that he could fill it up before he left for work the next morning. He then put his briefcase in his study, and resisted the urge to cram in some work in the fifteen minutes before the therapist would arrive.
Douglas managed not to give in, and instead moved to sit in the living room and just unwind a little bit so he could conduct this meeting in a calm and even fashion. He knew that he would likely be going over financial terms and agreements, and he conjured up some numbers that he thought would be acceptable in his mind.
He was just thinking up a weekly rate when he heard the doorbell ring. With a sigh, Douglas rose from his seat on the couch and crossed the room to answer the door. He opened the door with a warm smile, only to have his mouth go slack as he saw who was standing on his doorstep.
Standing before him was a gorgeous young woman, no older than twenty-five. She was small, no taller than five foot two, and she was slender, but with delightful curves and very well proportioned, perky breasts. Her tight top and pants did little to conceal her figure
, and Douglas found himself immediately distracted.
“Can- can I help you?” he managed to get out.
“Hello,” the young woman said with a polite smile. “My name is Nicole Forest. I have a meeting scheduled at this address for five thirty with Anna Price.”
Douglas took a moment to gather his thoughts.
“That’s my wife,” he said vaguely. “She’s out with a friend. My name is Douglas.”
“Oh, she’s already told me all about you,” she smiled up at him. “We can go on with the meeting without her.”
Douglas wondered just what Anna had told her. He saw Nicole looking at him expectantly, and suddenly remembered that she had come here for a meeting.
“Right, well, come in,” she said, still feeling a little off balance with the whole situation.
“Thank you,” Nicole said politely, and stepped into the house as Douglas stepped back to let her in.
Douglas could not help but look down at her firm buttocks as she passed him. She shook his head aggressively as he shut the door behind her, schooling himself to get a grip. For some reason, he never imagined that his massage therapist would be so young or so attractive. He suddenly had a lot of trepidations about this meeting.
He looked into the living room and saw that Nicole had already settled down on his couch. He took a deep breath, and then moved into the living room.
“I have to admit,” Douglas started with a chuckle. “I’ve never had a meeting about anything like this before.”
“That’s okay,” Nicole said easily. “Let’s start off with basics. You have migraines, right?”
“Yes,” Douglas confirmed settling down in one of the chairs in the living room.
“And none of this was your idea, correct?” Nicole pressed, raising an eyebrow.
Romance: Luther's Property Page 59
