Captive

Chapter 27

Bridget had not heard from Nathan since he dropped her at her apartment the Saturday morning after their evening in the hotel. She knew he was a busy man, but he typically contacted her to apologize when he had to run off in a hurry. It was now Wednesday, and his silence caused concern. She tried to focus on her work, but the lack of communication was disconcerting. This was not like him; he usually sent her multiple text messages and called her at least once a day. She sat in her hotel room, pouring over sales reports and product information for her seven o'clock meeting with this week's sales team.

She hated her new position because she was no longer part of the action. True, her training made her teams successful, but she longed for the excitement and anticipation of presentations. She missed the smell of hospital corridors and the enthusiastic sales pitches she made to potential buyer. Moreover, she felt like a teacher again, and in essence, she was. She was instructing new employees on how to sweet talk and convince skeptical doctors to order supplies from her company. Bridget wanted to be on the floor once again, speaking personally with clients and making hefty commissions.

At her staff meeting, she answered questions and crunched numbers with her team. They were an uninterested group, or at least, Bridget thought they were uninterested because they really only cared about going out after hours to have drinks. She thought herself unsuitable for the management position, and despite the pay increase, she often considered asking for a demotion. She knew Nathan would never go for that. He wanted her to be of higher-rank to justify their now-public relationship to the board of directors. She did not necessarily understand why he cared what the other members thought since he out rightly owned the company. Still, she did not argue because he made her happy because she wanted to be with him. After the meeting, she went back to her room, pulled out her tablet, and started reading another e-book. She was about two chapters in when her cell phone rang. Nathan's photo popped upon the screen, so she enthusiastically answered it.

"Hello, my love!" she said cheerfully.

"Hi, honey. Sorry I haven't called. I've been really busy with work," he replied. His tone seemed too dull to be honest.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. Just some unruly patients and insubordinate employees. Nothing you should worry about. How was your day?"

"Boring. I just got back from my staff meeting a little bit ago."

"You had a meeting this late?"

"It's a new group of employees. While their numbers look good, they are a little sloppy in their execution. Yes, they've increased sales, but the amount of product per sale is still low."

"And by low, you mean not where your product numbers were."

She sighed, "Exactly. They need a little more guidance before they'll be able to score big."

"Don't you think you're being too hard on them?"

"No, Nathan, I really don't." She changed the subject. "When will I see you again?"

"This weekend. Sound good?"

"Absolutely. What will we do?"

"Oh, I don't know. I'm sure you'll find something. You always do." He chuckled. "Hey, I have a question."

"What's up?"

"Have you ever considered corrective surgery for your eyes?"

"You mean like Lasik eye surgery?"

"Something like that."

"I've thought about it, but I'm not sure I could sit through it. They keep you awake for that, and there's no way I could stand to see huge needles coming at my eyes."