A glow in the dark

Rosa’s POV

Last night, my husband’s body was pressed against mine, with his breath heavy, but the fire was gone.

Charles moved like a man performing a chore, not a lover making love.

The man I was married to for the past two years, who was always inventive in his lovemaking skill, was grunting in annoyance. And I laid under his weight, barely doing anything, because he was too mechanical, detached, and unlike him.

And it was unusual.

I was naked, in bed with him, on our matrimonial bed. And he was beside me, grunting heavily like a wounded bear. Like being with him wasn't good enough as it used to be.

I wanted to be pinned to the wall, kissed until my lips trembled, and held until I forgot about how terrible my day had gone.

Instead, he pulled his weight off my body and I felt my heart sink with dissatisfaction. That was all?

He didn’t kiss my forehead or pull me close like he used to. I watched as he rolled to hiss side, grunting like a man irritated by the woman he used to adore.

“Is something wrong?” he asked, his tone harsh and accusing. “You texted that you wanted.”

He didn't ask like he was concerned, it looked like he was pissed and blaming me for the abrupt act. I should be the one angry. He had pulled out mid-sex, leaving me unsatisfied. Besides, when did I have to text my husband before he cared to touch me?

Something was goddamned wrong.

He kept ruining my mood with the way he held me, even the way he spoke. And he wouldn't even look into my eyes. It felt like he was distracted.

I pulled the sheets over my breasts and sat up.

Maybe I was imagining it.

“No…nothing, Charly. I’m just tired from work, that’s it. We had a new boss come in-”

But he was gone. Not from the room but from the conversation, from me.

He was no longer listening.

The past couple of years with Charles Baker had been like that. When did things change? Probably right before he asked me to marry him. But I was so much in love to understand how much it would affect me.

He was back to his phone, uninterested in what I had to say. Now that dull blue glow from his screen, that I had grown to hate, stood in the way of a proper conversation with him. There was a time he used to be interested in everything I said, even my underwear picks. But these days, it felt like every word he spoke was billed in thousands of dollars and I wasn't worth spending a dime on.

I wanted to tell him about the new boss, the stress, and how I missed my former boss, Old man Kane.

***

Today's meeting with the new CEO, Alex Kane, had been a disaster.

After all the efforts of compiling the quarterly bills - I had even ignored Charly's attitude and put all my energy on it last night, wanting it to be perfect for the new boss.

“Are you really the best here?” he had snarled at me.

I watched as he slammed the files on the table, my heart shattering in effect.

“S-sir..”

He was up, his raised hand stopping me from explaining myself.

“This cannot be the yearly profit of the company.”

If only he could let me explain myself, I would let him know that his father always asked for a quarterly review. But I was already too moody to explain myself.

That morning, Charles had left without taking the cup of coffee I had prepared for him. He was gone without a word. And to top my frustration, a tall, beautiful lady had walked in on us, rudely interrupting the conversation. Alex's angry glare vanished as he shifted his gaze from me to the woman.

There was a time Charly looked at me the way Alex looked at the woman. There was a time when my shadow stole his attention. But now, I was almost like a piece of furniture in the house. Or a pretty painting, once admired, but now fading in the background.

The lady had ignored my presence and moved to Alex, kissing him passionately right in front of me. I stood there, foolishly, and watched, hungry for something that was passionate with Charles.

I didn’t even realise I had been staring until I heard him clear his throat.

“What are you still doing here, gawking?”

I stuttered, stumbled. Stuttered again, and blushed with embarrassment as I rushed to the table for the files. The lady beside him laughed at my clumsiness and I felt embarrassed.

Stupid me.

“I’m sorry, sir”, I said, scrambling out of the office.

I was just coming out when I bumped into Patra.

“Watch where you’re going, babe.” She stopped when she saw the flush on my face. “He has that same effect on you, doesn't he?”

If the effect she meant was the ability to piss someone off, she was fucking right. Everyone knew Alex Kane for one thing: he was the city’s number one fuckboy. And now, I have to deal with having him as my boss.

“Come,” she added.

She dragged me to the bathroom and I knew Patra was ready to offload something abominable.

When she had locked the door and was sure no one was there, she dropped a heavy sigh.

“He’s so fucking hot! I can’t breathe when he’s talking. I don’t even care if he’s yelling at me. Those eyes…” Patra was saying dreamingly.

Alex Kane was good looking, alright. Hot. Like a Greek god. And his eyes.

They were blue. Sea blue.

But I didn't think much about it. He was a fuck boy. And that was my opinion. Men like him would never steal my attention

“Everyone’s talking about him. You get lucky to be the first person he calls to his office,” Patra called.

I wished I was getting called by Charles and he was apologising over an expensive box of jewellery and a passionate sex.

“You’re still blushing so hard,” I said, still angry at the way he had spoken to me. I was jealous that he was enjoying his fucking life. That was the second lady waltzing into his office. Believe me, I had heard the moans from the first and I was left in my small office, trying to reach my fucking husband.

I had texted him, requesting we have sex after work.

And, yes. It had gotten so bad that I had to remind Charles for sex. And the sex only ended up ruining the rest of my day.

“He’s a fine man! A Greek god!” Patra had replied

“And I'm married to the best man in the world.” I said, quoting a phrase I had believed some time in the past. “Besides there's nothing attractive about a man who treats women like toys.”

Alex's reputation came before his arrival as CEO. Everyone, at least I, knew he was a fuck boy, changing women like he changed clothes. “Sex is…a sacred act of love between two people who care for each other.”

Saying it left a sour taste in my tongue.

“You had to remind me of Charly.” I added with a sigh.

She placed her hand on her waist. “Charly? Really? What’s wrong with you and Charly?”

It’s something I had been denying for a long time. The truth is, we were drifting apart. And Charly was the cause. He was always stuck to that goddamned phone of his, laughing at something or interested in some article.

“I’m getting bored.”

Patra was frowning. “You called him a hot man only yesterday and now Charles Baker is boring to you?”

I shook my head. “It’s been happening for a long time, Pat. Charles is…distant. He’s always on his phone, reading some news or laughing at a joke.”

“He don’t share the joke with you?”

Patra had that motherly defense posture right now. One hand was on the bathroom sink, the other still on her waist and her face was twisted into disgust.

“I’m too angry to join him. For fuck sake, Patra, I’m trying to have a conversation and he’s laughing over something on his phone.”

“He’s cheating.”

She dropped it like a hot potato. Never in the five years of knowing Charles Baker would I imagine that he would cheat on me. I shook my head confidently.

“No way.”

A chuckle escaped Patra’s lips. “You trust them men?”

No. Every other man could be a dickhead. But not Charles Baker. He could be going through a tough time at the company. It certainly was no girl. Not with this hot ass wife he had.

As though Patra was reading my mind - or had gotten accustomed to the way I thought, she said, “Even if your pussy is made of gold, men will still cheat with some low ass bitch.”

And Patra had successfully made my day.

I placed my hand on Patra’s shoulder. “You need to heal. Go for therapy. Not all men end up like your ex.”

I grabbed my file and walked out from her sight, making sure to twist my waist, just to prove a point. No one could ever handle the kind of body I had. It was that body that caught Charles Baker’s eyes five years ago and still kept him in bed with me.

I shouldn’t have told Patra about my problems. At least, not until she was over her ex.

***

Patra’s words hunted me as I lay in bed beside Charly that night. I was still mad at Charles for faulting our abrupt love making on me

But I couldn’t imagine my husband was having a secret affair. Yet curiosity pushed me. And it finally won when I saw a glow in the dark.

It was his phone.

Charly was snoring beside me, unbothered by the storm in my chest. I stared at the wall where the blue glow from his phone reflected, contemplating on whether to reach for the phone or ignore it.

Darkness soon filled the room and I tried to sleep. But another beep woke me up

That’s it.

I pulled myself from bed and walked over to his bedside table. A message was coming in as I reached for the phone. My eyes caught it before it vanished.

‘Hey babe, I’m missing you tonight’