Chapter 16 Bath time
Bath time
“Are you going to show your face or just keep dangling donuts in front of me?” I called out.
Raymond appeared, standing opposite the table where I sat. “I had to make sure you were okay with me being here first.”
“So much for giving me time to think.” I snatched the donuts from the table and opened them. Yes, I wanted them, and yes, I’d already forgiven him, but I couldn’t let him know that.
“I know. I’m sorry.” He took a step back, like he was afraid I would hit him.
“Don’t be. But you could have brought more than one pack.”
His hand vanished, and when it reappeared, a plastic bag full of packs of those little donuts appeared.
“I figured you might want more.” He put the bag on the table. “And if you decide to come with me, you’ll have plenty for the trip.”
“You’re going to need a lot more of these to get me through a trip to hell.” I pointed at the bag. “Think semi-truck full!”
“Does that mean you’re considering going?” he asked hopefully.
“You gave me less than an hour to think,” I huffed.
“But what I’m considering is everything that will need to be managed while I’m away.
If I go, there’s a lot to consider. Like my business—who will take care of everything?
And my home. I have a lot of plants here, in case you haven’t noticed. They need me.”
“Logical frame of mind.” He sat at the table. “I should have expected nothing less.”
“I don’t know how else to be at a time like this.”
“Natalie could handle things for a few weeks,” he suggested. “That would take care of the work stuff.”
“Weeks? What do you mean a few weeks? How long could this possibly take?”
“Honestly, it could take longer than that, but in the Bane, time moves at a different rate. A day there is a week here,” he explained. “So even if we’re only gone less than a week, it would be a month you’re away from work.”
“How do you expect me to stay away from my business for a month?” A searing pain shot through my chest as I tried to inhale, and the constricting feeling left me lightheaded, on the verge of collapse.
“Damnit! What am I supposed to do now? I’ve worked so hard to build my business, and now, it’s all just going to fall apart. ”
“Just breathe.” Raymond stepped around me and put his hands on my shoulders. He massaged me with just enough pressure to make my head fall back.
I sighed as I felt the tension leaving my body, but my chest still burned with the building anxiety. “You don’t know how much I put into this. I don’t want to lose everything.”
“Do you think you'll lose everything after taking a few weeks away? If that’s the case, your business isn’t as solid as you think it is. Maybe I should reconsider signing all my assets to you.”
“Funny. I didn’t think that was still the plan.”
“Of course it is.” He paused the massage. “Did you think I would go back on my word?”
“I—” Pretending to struggle to breathe was the perfect mask for hiding how I really felt.
I couldn’t tell him I thought he would stay, that after our time on the roof together, I expected him to change his mind and insist on continuing our partnership.
Instead of admitting that, I simply said, “No.”
“I will protect you, Jericha. You know that.” His hands warmed against my shoulders. “If that’s what you’re worried about, you can stop. Nothing is going to happen to you.”
“That’s great for you to say, but you and I both know that’s not a promise you can keep. Anything can happen when things really pop off.”
“You’re right,” he conceded.
“Wait, why is it I can feel you coming but Jackie can’t?” I asked. “And I didn’t feel your brother either.”
“Because my brother is rude.” He shook his head, and his locs brushed against my shoulders. “I do that on purpose, like a doorbell to let you know I’m coming.”
“Oh, I thought something was wrong with you!” I chuckled at the feeling of relief. “Man, I was afraid you were sick or something. Tried to keep it from Cufio just in case.”
“Look at you, trying to protect my interests.” He laughed. “I’m good, I promise. Now, tell me what you need to make you feel better.”
I leaned back in my seat and glanced at him. What did I need? For demons to not be threatening my life so I didn’t have to carry my ass to another world and for his hand to be massaging a whole lot more than my shoulders!
“A hot bath and a planner so I can start mapping out things for Natalie.” It made no sense to pretend they weren’t all right. I had to go with him.
If I didn’t go, not only would I risk being attacked and threaten the safety of my friends, but it would put Raymond in a bad spot. Not only would he be distracted, wondering if I was okay, but if anything happened to me, he would blame himself. Or, at least, I hoped he would. Hell, he better!
“You work on the planner, and I’ll run the bath.” He rubbed my shoulders once more before leaving me.
While Raymond did that, I headed for my office and went to work.
There was so much to consider—pending contracts, existing ones, meetings to reschedule, staff changes.
Instead of just making a simple checklist, I put together an entire handbook.
It was so thorough that even someone who’d never been in my company before could open it and run it flawlessly. At least, that was what I hoped.
“Are you done? I’ve had to run that bath three times now. I don’t think you have enough hot water left for a fourth.”
“Oh.” I looked up from the document on my laptop. Raymond stood in the doorway, arms crossed and waiting impatiently. I hit the print button and stood. “Yeah, I think that’s good. I’ll need to go over it again, but I think it’s all there.”
“Great. Now,” he stepped aside and pointed down the hall to my bathroom, “go.”
“Who do you think you are, my dad?”
“Oh, you can call me daddy if you want, but I never really liked that. It’s weird.” He bit his lip. “I like, sir. Call me sir.”
“I set myself up for that, didn’t I?” I rolled my eyes.
It would be a cold day in hell before I called a man daddy! Now, sir… that was kinda hot.
“Yes, you did.” He chuckled as I passed him. “Surprised you would leave yourself open like that. We both know how much you love to be in charge.”
“We’re talking about this again?”
“Yes.” He followed me. “It’s the only way you’re going to grow and change. Change is good.”
“I’m going to grow by being nagged?” I frowned. “That doesn’t sound right.”
“No, you’ll grow when you let someone else take control.”
I stopped outside the bathroom door and turned to him.
“I’m fine with being in control. Now, you can go.
I’m going to take this bath and go to bed.
There is a lot I have to get done if I’m going to go to hell with you.
Also, I need you to put together a presentation for me, an intro to hell so I know what to expect when we get there. ”
“You are something else, you know that?” He leaned against the hallway wall.
“It will be helpful, and it will give you something to do until we leave.” I smirked. “Now, step into the shadows and let me have some privacy.”
“You sure you don’t want some company in there?”
“Seriously?” I scoffed. “Demons chasing you, and that’s what you’re thinking about now?”
“That’s not a no. Besides, what better way to get my mind off my troubles?” He pointed at the door. “I’m sure a hot bath would help me too.”
“PowerPoint presentations do the trick for me!” I pointed behind him. “Call your shadow and go.”
“As you wish.” The shadow opened behind him, and he stepped back, waving until it swallowed him whole.
“Tell me I can’t be in control. It’s my damn life,” I muttered before I turned and headed into the bathroom.
Raymond hadn’t just run me a bath. He lit candles, dimmed the light, and set up my towels for me. I looked around the bathroom, and butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
“Stop it!” I fussed at myself. This was not the time for fantasizing—but that was exactly what was about to happen. I could feel it at the back of my mind, a story forming about me and the shadow walker who ran the perfect baths.
It didn't take long for me to tie my hair up and slip into the tub.
The water was the perfect temperature, just hot enough to where I felt like my skin might almost melt off.
As the water worked on me, easing away all the tension left from the day, I closed my eyes.
Yeah, he was right. They were all right.
At some point in my life, I would have to learn to let go of being in control of everything.
With shadow walkers and demons knocking on my door, it felt like the absolute wrong time to relinquish control of any part of my life.
Already, I was coming up with ways to prolong the situation and give myself more time to get acclimated to the idea of going to hell.
I thought about faking an injury or packing my bags and running away in the middle of the night, but even if Raymond couldn’t find me, Jackie sure could. And there he was again, in my head.
Raymond.
It started simple. I thought about how well we worked together, how things would be different when our partnership ended.
Then, I replayed the day, how tense he looked around his brother and the other demons.
How, after they were gone, he was back to the same swag-dripping guy I knew before.
Then, I questioned his motives and how he felt about me.
At any moment, he could have left me, demonic threat or not, but he didn’t.
He stayed to protect me. But why the hell did it matter to me how he felt?
I didn’t want to be with him, did I? And even if I did, what possible future could I have with a man who wasn’t even from the same world as me and whose real name I couldn’t pronounce?