Her boss is calling

I tapped my fingers nervously on the table in front of me. My lips were between my teeth and I occasionally ran my hand through my hair, racking my brain for a way to make things work in my favor.

It was exactly 12 hours since Asher had announced we were moving and I hadn't still thought of a way to make him change his mind. If I told him I didn't want to leave LA, he would see it as disrespect and was going to force me to go with him anyway.

My phone rang at my side. It was Shaun calling. My heart skipped a few beats. He was the only reason I didn't want to leave LA. I couldn't live in a strange state with an abusive husband and a soul-sucking depressed excuse for a life.

I watched the phone ring as a huge lump formed in my throat. I resisted the urge to cry even though I was literally almost losing my mind. My phone rang until it finally stopped by itself.

If at all I was leaving LA, I needed to cut off all ties I had with Shaun. I didn't want him to miss me at all. If I started distancing myself from him now, he was going to get bored of me and eventually stop thinking about me. That was for the best, but it still hurt so bad.

There was a knock on the door, distracting me from my thoughts. I sighed in frustration. I wanted to just sit where I was and ignore the loud knock on the door. I wanted to wallow in misery and let my heart continue in the it's profound bleakness.

After some time, I finally decided to let go of my misery and see who was knocking. Without even checking from the peephole, I opened the door and I immediately recognized who the person was. It was our neighbor, the same man who Asher once beat me up for.

I swallowed hard. Asher wasn't home, but I kept having a feeling that he was going to show up all of a sudden.

“Hey" I let out a forced smile as I stared at the wrapped stuff in his hand. His thin lips curved into a smile.

“I came to say hi. It's been so long since I saw you" he spoke with a witty smile still on his face. He was going to take it off when Asher suddenly shows up and beats the shit out of him. I wasn't being negative, I was just being realistic. “And yesterday was my birthday. As neighbors, I felt it was only right I brought cake"

“Oh, that's so thoughtful of you. Happy birthday" I flashed him a genuine smile.

He handed the cake to me and I thought he was going to leave, but he still stood there, staring at me.

“So there's this program I stumbled upon recently"

“Yeah?"

“It's about women's rights and stuff like that. It's free, I made sure of that and I think it might be helpful to you"

I narrowed my eyes in confusion. I didn't understand what he was playing at.

“I don't understand"

“It's uh... Women with abusive husbands, boyfriends, fiances" he kept going on and on.

Then it finally hit me. He knew my husband was abusive and was trying to get me help. Instead of appreciating his kind gesture, I felt angry and embarrassed. He had been seeing me as pathetic all this while.

He had no business in my life, so he had no right to pry.

I suppressed my anger before I spoke. “Sorry, I don't think I need that". He was about to speak again, but I didn't let him. I slammed the door so hard in his face that I could bet he flinched. I threw the cake he gave me into the bin because I was too angry to eat it. And even if I did, I would feel guilty because I treated him so badly when he was just trying to be nice.

******

Asher's POV

“No, I can't let my family stay here, it's not safe" I leaned back on my office chair as I stared at Roman who had been trying to convince me to stay back in LA.

“The Marco family doesn't have any beef with you. They won't try to mess with you or your family"

"Well I am not certain of that and since I am not, I will not let my family stay in the same state with those monsters”

"Boss" Dante spoke up and I groaned in frustration. I didn't want to hear what he had to say, but I still turned to look at him. “The shipment is going to be here next month, but you are leaving the country next week. How are we going on with it?"

"Me leaving Los Angeles doesn't stop anything. You can continue with the shipment and I'll keep in touch from Italy. That's not so hard to do Dante “

Roman spoke up. "But Are you leaving for good?”

"I don't know yet, but I plan on staying there for a long time”

“I think you should stay here. The Marco family might not even be interested in you"

That statement made me angry. “I have made up my mind roman. Quit trying to persuade me” I said with a stern look on my face and that gave them the cue to keep their mouths shut. “Now leave I have work to do," I said without sparing them a glance.

****

Lindsay's POV

I forced myself to eat because I knew. Asher was going to get mad at me if I didn't eat. He already looked angry when he got back from work and I didn't want to add to his anger. My head still hurt from how he dragged it the previous day.

“Why are we moving?" I finally spoke up as I watched him drink up a glass of water. Leia also looked up at him in anticipation. I knew she also had that question to ask but wasn't given the chance to.

Asher didn't give me a reply as he stabbed the steak with his fork and guided it to his mouth.

I wanted to keep my mouth shut and just continue eating, but my curiosity couldn't be tamed.

“Asher?" I called out softly and he finally looked up at me with a stern look on his face.

“I don't owe you an explanation for that"

My mouth felt heavy, but I was still able to ask. “What if I don't want to go?"

He scoffed. “Is that a request or a command?"

“I don't want to quit my work, Asher. It's the best I have had so far"

“I don't care about that," he spat out in annoyance."You can get another one in Italy," he added and continued eating.

I was about to say something else, but my phone rang beside me. I stiffened immediately. I had a feeling it was Shaun because he had repeatedly been calling me since morning. He was probably worried that I didn't show up today. The mistake I made was not switching the phone off when Asher got back.

I looked at the screen and gulped when I saw Shaun. Asher noticed my discomfort and he watched me closely.

“Who's that?" He asked and my heart skipped a beat.

“my boss” the fear in my voice couldn't be hidden. I knew he sensed it.

"What are you waiting for, pick up the phone” he ordered in a low tone and I found myself picking up the phone from the table.

"Answer the call,” he said." And put it on speakers” he added.

A/N please make sure you like and comment for the next update