Chapter 4 – Yesterday Was Today

(Eve’s POV)

I crawled onto the bed, facing the full-length mirror that stood against the wall. A sense of shock washed over me when I saw my reflection. I was dressed in my old pair of black pajamas, which I was sure I wore yesterday night. There was no evidence of my messy mascara, but my hair was a complete mess, with a few strands sticking out in every direction. I blinked in dazed confusion, slowly turning my head on the table calendar on the side table.

Was it a dream? I swallowed hard, convincing myself that what happened yesterday must be real. My core still tingled, reacting at the memory of Callahan’s massive manhood inside me. I could still taste and feel his touch and kisses.

I closed my eyes and groaned. Either I was lonely or broken.

“Is everything okay?” Bethany looked at me anxiously and shook her head. “Wrong question. Are you okay? You look sick,” she said, pressing her palm on my forehead. “You’re -”

“Okay,” I muttered, easing back. “I’m fine, Bethany,” I assured her.

She raised her eyebrows, tilting her head as she studied my face. “Your face is so red; how can you be fine?”

Perhaps remembering Callahan in his birthday suit made me blush; that was why I was so red. I pouted in dismay. This was all her fault. If she had not made the mistake of giving me the key, I would not have met him.

I groaned, my surroundings reminding me that it didn’t happen. Sighing, I crawled back to bed and covered my face with a pillow. I must be crazy to think that everything was real.

“I changed my mind about applying to your company,” I muttered, placing the pillow beside me.

“Because?” Bethany lifted an eyebrow, looking curiously at me.

I had been pestering her to help me get a job at Secret Temptation’s kiosk in the mall, a part-time job that would help me survive the holidays ahead, not for me, but for my children.

“Because I’m not qualified. I don’t have a degree, and I’m not qualified,” I answered.

She crossed her arms over her chest, eyeing me suspiciously. “What’s with not qualified-not qualified?”

“Huh?” I blinked in confusion.  

“You said it twice, Eve.” My best friend rolled her eyes and sneered at me. “You know what, you don’t have to act strange if you don’t like to work in the mall. I know shifting from your quiet world in the library to a crowded shopping mall is quite a big adjustment for you.”

“Yeah! Yeah!” I nodded, agreeing with her. I puffed out air nervously as I continued, “But… um, is there another job that I don’t need to talk to a lot of people?”

Bethany took her phone; her fingers tapped on her phone screen. After a moment, she sighed and turned the screen towards me.  

“There’s another job position available, and -”

“Don’t tell me I’m not qualified, Beth. I’ll get hurt,” I cut in, getting out of bed.

She scoffed. “Deal with your pain, but yes, you’re right, you’re not qualified. Bob’s looking for a college graduate with experience and someone who can speak and read other languages. And oh!” she exclaimed and smirked at me. “With no hangups in life and very much single,” she added, waving her cell phone.

“You just buried me alive, Beth.” I sighed, glancing at the piles of unsettled bills and unopened envelopes on the side.

It wasn’t an insult but the truth. Looking back, I hardly remember why I decided to stop studying. Perhaps I was too in love with Marcus… or Theo. I was Cooper’s tutor in Math and had this huge crush on my employer’s husband. When Julie died giving birth to Theo, Marcus was devastated, and while I was taking care of the baby, one thing led to another. My stupid heart ruled over my body, and before I knew it, I was already looking after the rest of his children.

There were no regrets, though. I loved all his children, but Marcus was another story.

“Unless…” Bethany’s lips curved into a wicked smile.

“Unless?” My eyes were round, and I probably looked funny because she chuckled.

She flipped her hair to her back. “Unless you’re ready to work with the big boss. Callahan can be an asshole sometimes, but I can ask him -”

“What? No!” I gasped, almost lunging at my best friend and grabbing her hand to stop her from talking. I didn’t want to see him having this same feeling as I have. It would be too weird. “It’s all right. There are other jobs there; I’m sure of that.”

I wasn’t.

“Cheer up, Eve. It might work. I don’t know what his deal is, but he’s like trying to be an iceberg, hoping to sink the Titanic. He needs an employee with a strong drive,” she chuckled, cupping my face. “And you, my dear best friend, have that. So will you please get ready, take a shower, and I’ll deal with your stuff. You know I hate traffic. I’ll deal with the boss later.”

“Callahan!” I breathed.

“Yeah,” she groaned. “Callahan Barclay,” Bethany turned me around, placed her hands on my shoulder, pushed me to the bathroom, and continued, “will fire me if we come to the hotel late. Stop overthinking, Eve. Do your thing, then let’s go to this Moira, whoever she is, settle the kids there and go to the hotel.”

“Fine!” I muttered lazily, raising my hands and shifting my thoughts to Moira. I was about to open the bathroom when I remembered my children, so I turned around.

“What now?”

“My kids -”

“Are eating breakfast now. I bought breakfast for your mini-me’s,” she cut in, twirling her index finger, asking me to turn my direction to the bathroom.

I was about to head to the bathroom when I remembered Rosie. “Oh, just in case Rosie comes in, tell her Cooper’s extra spray is in my bag,” I said, pointing at my just-in-case bag.

“Um…” She knitted her eyebrows for a second but nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

Bethany was right. I should stop overthinking. Perhaps I missed Marcus; that was why I dreamt of getting laid by a hot and gorgeous stranger. Or it could mean something else, like a symbol. Besides, I had not met Callahan and Bob yet, so my subconscious probably got mixed. Callahan could be fat, old, and ugly.

Sighing, I closed the door behind me. I had not locked the door yet when I heard Rosie’s voice, looking for me. I pressed my ears to the door to listen and gasped when my daughter told her that Cooper needed a new spray.

My chest felt tight as my heart pounded like a drum. Choosing between being lonely or broken, I could say I was the latter plus crazy. I inhaled deeply, filling my lungs with air and exhaling slowly to calm down and convince myself that this was nothing but a coincidence. Brushing off Callahan, Moira, and her magical room, I took off my clothes and went to the shower area, waking myself from the cold sprinkle of water.

The cold shower did help… a bit.

“Dang!” I groaned, realizing I had forgotten the towel.

I stepped out of the shower area and walked toward the dresser, grabbing a towel from the drawer. I sighed, recalling I had already packed the rest of them. With no other option, I began to dry my hair first, not wanting the droplets of water to fall on my shoulder when I put on my shirt.

The shower did help clear my mind, forgetting about Callahan for a while. I reached for the mirror hanging on the wall, my hand wiping the moisture from the shower that had accumulated on the mirror’s surface. I have five children relying on me, so I must pull myself together and focus on them. I took a deep breath and stared at the foggy mirror.

“I can do this! I am strong! I am proud of myself!” I said, affirming myself while watching the fog slowly clear from the mirror. “I am…” My brows furrowed, squinting my eyes at the red marks on the slope of my breasts.

I gasped, realizing what they were. “It can’t be. It’s just… it’s just a dream.”

My hand trembled as I ran my fingers over the love bites on my skin and tilted my head. My heart raced as I checked my neck, feeling relieved when I saw no marks there. It would be difficult to explain to Bethany how I got those love bites.

I could not even explain to myself how it happened.

“Eve.” Bethany’s soft knock on the door made me jump. “Moira’s calling.” Then she groaned. “Argh! And Bob’s calling. I’ll wait for you outside.”

I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for her to leave the bedroom. When I heard the door opening and closing, I left my hair damp, quickly covered my body with the towel, and ran toward the closet, ignoring my ringing phone.

“This must not be love bites,” I murmured, putting on my black T-shirt and jeans. These marks could be a sign of illness.  

The shrill cry of my phone reminded me of Moira. I turned around but stopped abruptly, seeing myself in the full-length mirror. I groaned, taking off my clothes immediately as this was what I wore yesterday. Suddenly, I sniffled as I realized that today was actually yesterday.