Keeping Her

Emily 1

"You know, it’s been years since you’ve brought someone home for the holidays. Your Grandma is getting worried. She thinks your gay for God sakes!” My mom huffs into the phone as if being gay in 2023 is the worst thing that could happen to our family. She doesn’t mention the fact that my brother is in jail for money laundering and my sister hasn’t spoken to us since we staged an intervention with her about her husband being on the verge of abusive. 

“Yes, Mom. I do think it’s a bit presumptuous to bring someone I’ve been seeing for just a few weeks home to meet our family” I say, knowing damn well the only male I’ve been seeing lately is the Uber Eats man that brings me dinner most nights. I know she just wants me to be happy but when most conversations end like this lately it gets….old. She has no idea what I am dealing with at work with the long hours trying to keep the lunatic I call my boss in check and happy. The man is exhausting and a perfectionist, a HOT perfectionist but I refuse to fixate on that right now. “I just want you to be happy” she breaks me free from my side conversation from myself and I sigh. “I know, mom, and I appreciate that. I am happy but that doesn’t mean I need a man to be at my side. I will see what I can do, how’s that?” “Oh sweetie, that’s amazing! The table will be set for him, and I look forward to seeing you both in a month!”  “Ya, ok Mom, love you and talk to you soon” I sigh and hang up the phone. Honestly this woman is relentless. 

I don’t have much time to think about it long before my phone chimes with a text: 

I need you at the courthouse at 2:00 with the Miranda file. DO NOT BE LATE. 

That text serves as a reminder of partially why I’m single being that I’m married to my job and don’t have a lot of free time to be putting those right swipes to good use. I swear this man is the most self- centered, egotistical ass hat in all of Chicago. He clearly wasn’t taught that a simple thank you can go a long way. I put on a fake smile and send back: 

Ok, I have also put on your calendar a meeting for 4:00 today with the newest pro bono client.

I finished my lunch and put the phone away. I know I won’t get a response to my text because he would not be bothered to honor me with a reply unless he needed something else. Someone like him cant waste his precious time on someone like me. 

I head up the elevator to my desk and when the doors open I groan. This broad again?! I swear she cannot take a hint. It’s Dante’s latest victim, Veronica. She’s a lawyer in the city as well. Dressed in a pinstripe skirt suit she does look like the perfect match for Dante, but its so glaringly obvious that he does not like her and she cannot take the hint. I know that he isn’t expecting her and most likely wont even see her but here she is. I walk past Patty, the receptionist while she stops at the desk. “I’m here to see Dante” she says with her best fake smile. She puts on the fakest smile every time she shows up here and it makes me sick. She's the same type Dante always goes for. You can tell he refuses to get into a deeper relationship and just grabs onto someone for the ......companionship. Great now I'm thinking about him being someone's....companion and its not a bad daydream honestly. He just oozes sexiness. He's the type of guy you look at and just KNOW what he would be like in bed. Yum. "I'm torn from my sexy daydream by Patty's agitates voice "Well I'm sorry Victoria, but you can just show up here unannounced and expect to see him. Besides he isn't even here and you would know that if you waited for him to call you back instead of just showing up and acting like he will drop everything to see you." Veronica's face turns red and she grits out "My name is Veronica and I will not be talked to this way by my boyfriends secretaries". She waves us off and pulls out her phone "Dante WILL be hearing about this" she seethes and turns on her 3" Louiboutins. I cover my mouth trying not to squeak with laughter before she gets to the door and Patty shoots me a wink. "That should teach her. It doesn't matter to me she'll be gone in a week anyways." Ain't that the truth. I silently wonder what it would be like to get wrapped up in Dante Roberts web if even for a little bit. To be able to see a side of him not a lot of people get. I glance at the clock and realize it's already 1:30 and I need to get to the courthouse.