8 - Wallet and cards

"I want those papers on my desk by tomorrow." He barked on the phone, slightly furious with Donald, his assistant, who interrupted his morning with a problem they could have avoided if they had dealt with it correctly.

"Yes, Sir," Donald responded with a shaky and apologetic tone. "By the way, your father wants to see you." His assistant quickly added.

He had been expecting that. His father had been hounding him for days, but he had always managed to stay clear of him and avoid his calls.

"Fine!" But he could not keep dodging him. "Tell him that I'll come over tonight." Then, he ended the call.

He knew precisely what his father wanted from him. But he was not ready to give in to his demands. Nonetheless, did he have a choice?

"Hmm!" He heavily sighed, throwing his phone on the counter out of exasperation.

He grabbed the towel he had hastily tossed on the kitchen stool earlier and dried the sweat on his body. Then, he took a cold bottle of water from his fridge to cool himself down.

He just finished a lengthy, strenuous activity in his private gym as if he had been exorcising a demon that took over his body.

Fuck it! Isaac!

What was wrong with him?

"Charlie..." He mumbled, thinking of the woman he left still sleeping in his room.

She was trouble with a capital T.

He had managed to plague his mind since he bumped into her. For some reason, her image stuck in his mind. He could not shake her off, no matter how much he distracted himself.

"One night with her." He kept telling himself that was all he needed to get her off his system.

He believed she was just an itch that he needed to scratch. Then, he would be over her. But damn, when he woke up this morning, all he wanted to do was to get back in bed and do a repeat of last night.

"Don't be a fool." He reminded himself.

She was just another gold digger, just like the others, trying to trap him. But still, his mind kept nagging at him that she was different from the other women he slept with.

"What are you doing?" He chastised himself for his uncharacteristic behavior, running his fingers through his sleek hair.

He had three rules that he followed to avoid complicated relationships. He had never believed in commitment, marriage, and love.

First, he did not do sleepovers. He never brought any woman to his home. Lastly, he never slept with the same woman twice.

"But why is she here?" He wondered what made her different from the other women he had slept with.

For some reason, he had already broken two of his rules. Then again, he might have broken his last golden rule if he had not stopped himself earlier.

"Whose there?" He abruptly stopped his musing when a faint noise disrupted him. Then, everything went silent until his dog appeared and strode lazily toward him.

"Coco." It was just his dog. "Are you hungry?" He quickly took his bowl and filled it with his favorite snack. "Come on, boy." Patting his black Labrador on the head.

Immediately, his dog ate his treat while he grabbed another bottle of water from the fridge. "You want some water, Bud?"

Bark! Bark!

He had always been his partner and regular companion. He believed he was all he needed, not a complicated woman.

But the loud creak of his front door alerted him to an unexpected visitor. "Hey, Coco, why don't you check it out?" He rubbed his dog's neck as he knelt on the floor.

However, instead of following his command, his dog lay down and buried his head underneath his paws.

"Maybe I should replace you with a guard dog." He threatened Coco, but his unreliable friend only stared at him without a care. "Well, you're not much of a help."

He quickly stood up and walked around the counter, ready to greet his guest. Judging from the confident steps that echoed in the hallway, he already knew who it was.

"Why are you here, Ivan?" He asked his friend as soon as his head popped behind the opening.

"I should be asking you that question, my friend. Why are you here, Isaac? Shouldn't you be in the office at this time?" His friend asked sarcastically while checking his wristwatch.

Frankly, his friend had a point. Even if it was the weekend, he rarely stayed late at his home. Instead, he spent his time in the office or at a meeting somewhere.

"Don't tell me you overslept." His friend amusingly stated, visibly mocking him. "Oh! Coffee. Great!" He grabbed the other coffee that was still untouched on the counter.

"Hey, that's not yours." Isaac tried to stop his friend from drinking the coffee, but it was too late. "Never mind."

"Hmm! Wait a minute! Is there someone else here with you?" His friend suspiciously asked as his eyes roamed around his kitchen. He even peeked behind the counter.

Then, Ivan slammed his fist on the wooden surface, his lips moved into a devilish grin while his eyes twinkled, as if he had thought of the most brilliant idea in the world.

"Oh, I'll be damn. It was that chick from last night." He excitedly concluded. "I knew I recognized her at the lobby."

"What?" He asked, suddenly alerted by his friend's statement. "You saw her where?" He questioned, wondering if they were talking about the same person.

"At the lobby on my way here." He repeated, appearing surprised by his reaction.

Quickly, he strode out of his kitchen and ran toward his room. He wanted to check if the person his friend saw was the same woman he had slept with.

Did she leave without saying a word?

"Charlie?" He called out as his fingers turned the knob and opened the door.

But he already knew she was not there when he noticed her clothes were no longer on the chair where he had left them earlier.

His bed was in disarray, but he had not seen any signs of her in his room. It was as if she had never been there in the first place.

"Hey, man, what's wrong?" His friend followed him into his room. "Whoa! Don't tell me you brought her to your sacred place?" His friend taunted him, appearing intrigued.

As his best friend, he knew his friend was aware of his strict rules. And truthfully, he had never broken them until now.

"Stop it, Ivan! I was just drunk." But he knew his excuse was lame.

He had never allowed alcohol to cloud his judgment. Not last night, not ever. He believed something else was the cause of his odd behavior.

"Anyway, she's gone now. Good riddance!" He felt it should be his natural reaction. He should be happy that she left without a fuss.

Still, he could not help but feel disappointed that she left without saying goodbye.

But, of course, he would never admit that, not to his friend, not even to himself.

"Wait!" He finally noticed that something was missing in his room. "Where is my sweatshirt?" He quickly scanned the room.

He believed he tossed it earlier on the chair after returning from his jog at the park. He also remembered buying two coffees from the nearby coffee shop before he went to his private gym.

"Sweatshirt?" His friend scowled at him, questioning why he was making such a big deal. After all, it was just a piece of clothing he could easily replace.

Of course, he could not care less if she took it.

But—

"It has my wallet and cards."