Chapter 6: The Snake

Anna's eyes popped open and she realized that it was morning. John slept beside her soundly. While they'd slept his fingers had worked her robe open and his fingers were wrapped around her breast. Anna tried to ignore the heat spreading over her body at his touch. She had barely been able to sleep after hearing that she had to face Isabel again.

In the past she'd often allowed herself to be a pushover where Isabel was concerned, now she knew she couldn't do that again.

A voice in the hallway drew her attention as the door to the room began to open slowly. The door stopped opening as the voice cut through the cracked open door.

"Why are you calling me?" Isabel's voice hissed through the crack in the door. "You're going to blow this!"

"Listen, no one's losing their job, you idiot, Anna has no idea." Her voice faded away and Anna could hear the birdlike squawks of the person on the other end of the phone.

"No Erin! The only thing you were paid to do was make her jealous, not sit there all night and do nothing."

Anna's mind spun as she realized that Isabel was talking to John's secretary Erin. That woman was already on her list for trying to hang all over John. She had been the cause of the fight last night, well one of them. The other one was apparently outside her door.

"You are worthless," Isabel hissed stopping the squawking coming from the phone. "You will do what I say when I say and nothing else."

Isabel listened for a moment and then started to screech before catching herself and lowering her voice.

"You do, and I will make your life hell. You know I can, don't you?"

"That's what I thought," Isabel said snidely, her voice was chilling. Anna remembered that tone from childhood, condescending, and belittling.

"Don't call me again. I will call you." Isabel ended the call without niceties and Anna shivered. She laid back on the bed reeling. Isabel had been cruel during childhood but Anna had always believed somewhere deep inside that she loved her a little, now she knew that Isabel saw her as the means to an end.

The door to their room creaked open and a blonde head poked through the crack. The long hair swung forward covering the woman's face as she looked around. Blue eyes, identical to her own swept over the room as she stepped inside and widened in shock to see her in bed beside John.

"Bitch probably thought I would be gone." Anna thought to herself as she pushed her red hair out of her face and stared her cousin down. She sat up, making sure to move closer to John as she did. She smiled widely, knowing it would drive her crazy.

"What are you doing here?" Isabel hissed as she motioned to Anna. "You're supposed to be gone! "You told me last night that you were done with the way John acts and now here you are in bed with him."

Anna got up and walked slowly toward the door tying her robe sash as she walked. She desperately wanted to give herself time to control the rage that was coursing through her. Anna had always backed down from Isabel in the past but now was a different day. She counted to ten hoping that was enough to calm her temper.

"I'm not sure why you would think that?" she said as calmly as possible as she reached the door "I'm right where I should be." "Why are you here?" She asked with a tilt of her head.

Isabel's perfectly made-up face cringed in confusion as she stared at Anna as if she'd never seen her before.

"I... I wanted to make sure you hadn't forgotten anything." Isabel fumbled out looking shocked at Anna's forcefulness. Anna wasn't sure how she'd thought Isabel had ever cared about her. "I thought you were leaving for good after what happened last night."

"Nope," Anna said looking her dead in the eye "I decided to actually ask my husband."

"But he was all over his secretary!" "How can you still be here with him?"

"No!" Anna said forcefully as she pushed Isabel further into the hallway. "His secretary was all over him and John confirmed it." "I guess sometimes things aren't always what they seem."

Isabel was speechless. Her mouth opened and shut like a fish gasping for air. Her slender hands wrung together nervously. The door was thrown open and both women jumped in shock as John filled the doorway his hands wrapping around Anna's silk-clad waist from behind. He nuzzled his lips across her ear making her shiver and Anna smiled.

One dark eyebrow rose as he turned to Isabel standing stone still in the doorway.

"What's going on here?"