Incest/Taboo The Bitch and a Half

Elijah Wilkins sat in his living in the home he has shared with the cunt of a wife for the past twelve years. Five years ago, he had learned the two daughters that he thought were his weren't. You ask why he was still there, watching the ball game on the TV in the living room, if he knew his so-called wife was nothing more than a cheating slut and not off fucking woman after woman that he could talk into his bed. Simple. The man, his wife, was fucking is their district's State Congressman, and he used his power to keep him shackled to the slut.

Elijah didn't give a shit about what pull the man had; he would have divorced her ass right then and there. However, upon visiting a divorce lawyer, he was not pleased with what the woman had told him. He sure as hell wasn't about to give the bitch half of his money, the house he could care less about since he made far more than she ever did. He knew he could always buy a new one, nor was he going to be stuck paying child support for her two brats.

"Hey!" An annoying gnat buzzed in his ear as he watched the Quarterback for the Ravens toss the ball down the field. "I'm talking to you!" Over the years, Elijah has developed the habit of tuning her out as much as he could. That was until she moved in front of the TV, blocking his view. Which, as you might expect, rightly pissed him off.

"I don't give a shit what you have to say; now move that huge ass of yours out of my way," Elijah said in a cold, dispassionate voice.

"And here I was thinking I'd give you some of this later..." She was not expecting the retching motion Elijah did at the thought of having sex with her.

"Could you please not say such disgusting things?!" Elijah stated. "I wouldn't touch that worn-out thing you call a pussy even if it pissed out gold. I would have thought that after five years of not fucking your ass, you would get the damn hint!" he hissed. "Now, what the fuck do you want so I can go back to enjoying my game." A wicked smile formed on his face at how red her face had become it was priceless.

"If you were half the man..."

"It doesn't take much of a man to get a slut into his bed," Elijah stated with a snort and a wave. "Now, if that's all you got, I suggest you get the fuck out of my way because I seriously don't give a shit about what you have to say."

"Well, I'm going out; a man, a real man, is going to fuck me..."

"Yeah, see, that's all it is, fucking, nothing more, nothing less, now I won't ask again before I toss your ass out of the room," Elijah said, cutting her off once again.

"Just for that, it will be another year before I offer you sex!" Her stomps towards the door was loud as she went to get her nightly fucking.

"Yeah, see, that suits me just fine, Stella; your friends are more than eager to take me to their beds regularly. Have to say if your friends think so little of you, makes you wonder if they were really your friends at all! And I'm not your damn babysitter. I'm not watching after your damn little brats!" Elijah spat, only to have the front door slam. A scowl formed on his lips as the beer can moved away from his lips when the Buccaneers intercepted the ball and made a fifty-yard gain on the move. He hated the Buccaneers with a passion, and showing up his team wasn't helping his mood any. "What do you want?" he asked Stella's two daughters stood on his right. He had nothing against children per se; if he had his own, he knew he would have been a good father. However, the girls had taken up Stella's attitude, and he wasn't a fan of it. He wondered how the boys they would date later in life would put up with the snide attitudes they had.

"We're hungry!" the oldest huffed, taking up the stance that she had seen her mother do countless times with the man before her.

"So?" Elijah responded, not taking his eyes off the TV.

"You're supposed to feed us?!" chirped the youngest daughter.

"No, I'm not. I'm not your father, as you've pointed out numerous times. So why are you badgering me about it?" Elijah asked, finally looking over the two of them. "If you're hungry, you should have told your mother before she high-tailed it out of here or call your father. It's his duty to take care of his kids, not mine," he uttered, hoping they would just to ruin Stella's night. It would be the highlight of his night. He heard them scampering off to who knows where as he went back to his ball game. It was ten minutes later that, just as he sat back down, he screamed at the Ravens' when the pass had gotten intercepted at the five-minute mark of the fourth quarter. He continued to ignore them only to watch as the eldest one made her 'I'm not amused look' that she had picked up from her mother. "What do you want?" Elijah asked once the game went a commercial.

"Here," the oldest said, holding out a phone to him. Where she got it, he didn't know nor care to know. He reached over and hung up the line when he saw who she had called. It amused him to know it irked the slimy bastard enough to instantly call back, given the caller ID read 'Daddy.' So Elijah just let it ring and ring and ring until the eldest answered the phone for him. His mind flashed back to when she was one, and she would smile like that to him as she was doing on the phone at that moment. "Yes, Daddy," she said in a soft, sweet voice before her light fingers switched the call to the speaker.

"Listen here, you, you get off your ass and fix my children something to eat. You should be fucking grateful..." Elijah didn't hear another word since he had just switched off the speaker. He wondered how long it would take the idiot to figure it out.

"Now shut your mouth and listen, little man, I don't give a shit what threats you say; you're a fucking politician that's all you do is make veiled threats and lies. So they mean very little to me; it's not my responsibility to take care of your bastard children," his grin spread ever wider when he heard Stella's 'Hey!' when he put it back on speaker, "that's yours asshole, you are their father. You slept with the slut now, own up to it. Would hate for the world to know what you truly are; I wonder, however, you would climb higher if they did."

"Go ahead, you have nothing..." An evil light danced in his eyes when the idiot gave him the go-ahead to ruin the man's life. He didn't think Christmas would come early.

"Copenhagen." Was the only word Elijah needed to say for the man to know he had the dirt on his ass. "You be amazed what a man who has five years of free time can find out."

"Take me off of speaker."

"Make it fast, or I'm ending this as fast as a fart in the wind."

"What do you want?"

"I want nothing from you," Elijah said, holding back the rest of what he had said. He had no wish for the man to know what was coming for him. He was just waiting for the right time to destroy the man that had destroyed his marriage. He knew the man was looking to run for higher office, and to Elijah's thinking what better way to destroy the man than on the national stage and shatter his dreams all at the same time. Elijah found it rather poetic if you asked him. "You have nothing I want."

"Very well, I'll send Stella home."

"Do whatever you fucking want. I don't care. Next time hire a fucking babysitter when you want to fuck the slut. I'm not your fucking goddam nanny," Elijah said, hanging up on the ass. He reached down and took the eldest one's hand and placed her phone in it when all they did was just gawk at him. "Now get out," he ordered so he could at least watch the next game in peace, even though his team lost the game. It was forty-five minutes into the game when he heard a car pulling up to his house. He would have gotten up to see who it was, but he had a guess who it was.

"Babies! I'm sorry, I thought he would make you something to eat. I should have realized he can't even do that right," Stella said, taking out her anger at having her night ruined because Elijah was in a bad mood. "Here, take this and go to the table," she spoke, handing her daughters the drink tray and bag. Watching them scurry off to the kitchen with their meal in hand. "Could you not have done a kind thing for them?"

"Why should I? When was the last time they did a kind thing for me? Why should I bend over backwards for a slut and her brats when neither treats me with kindness? So tell me, Stella, when a person has been living in a house who disrespects them every single fucking day of the week, do you really think they would have a kind fucking word to say to you?" Elijah stated, not even bothering to look at her.

"Well, you have to like it if you've put up with it this long..."

"Bitch, please, I haven't divorced your ass because I'm not giving you a damn cent of my money, and why would I move out when I'm the one paying for this house, you three on the other hand, are the freeloaders here, not I," Elijah stated, pointing the remote at the TV and shutting it off. The very air was far too foul for him to stay a moment longer.

"Where are you going? Since you've ruined my night, you'll just have to take his place..."

"Fuck off and die bitch," Elijah said as he walked past her.

"Fine, I'll just call him and invite..." She didn't get the last word out before her husband spun around so fast that Stella took a few steps back at the unbridled hatred in his eyes.

"If you ever think to bring that man here to my fucking house, you two will be nothing more than fucking missing people; feel me?"

"I was just teasing Elijah, honest," Stella said, holding up her hands, thinking she might have pushed a little too hard that evening. She felt her heart pounding in her chest. Sure, she knew what love there was between them was long gone Elijah made sure of that the day he found out the truth. Yet she did still care about him, and with Elijah always angry, she knew that would only lead to an early death. She jumped slightly when Elijah slammed his bedroom door closed. "How about we give him a few days alone, okay?" she stated, smiling at her daughters.

The next morning...

Most people would be a little annoyed with waking up early, showering, shaving, and heading off to work on a Monday morning, but not Elijah. Elijah sighed happily as he slid out of his car when he got to work. It was only on the weekdays he was happy since he could limit his exposure to his whore of a wife and her little spawns. You would think this strange, yet it was about the only thing keeping him from ringing the slut's neck. So instead of cutting out at five or six like ninety-nine percent of the other employees did, he stayed until seven or seven-thirty, then would head to a bar and grill, order his dinner, watch a bit of sports, ogle the hot waitresses (he's a horny man, sue him), and not pull into his driveway until nine or ten every weeknight.

"Morning, Mr. Wilkins," the receptionist greeted as he walked through the front doors of their office building.

"Janice, when are you going to let me sweep you off your feet?" Elijah asked, flirting with the young twenty-something woman. He found her smile very pretty, especially when she blushed like she was doing at the time.

"Always the kidder, Mr. Wilkins," Janice said, while she was flattered, yet she knew her boyfriend would be very upset if she took Elijah up on his offer. Something that was very tempting to her, given how she thought Elijah was a very handsome man. There were a few times a week she daydreamed what it would be like to experience what his years had taught him about sex.

"I never kid, Janice," Elijah said, flashing her a smile as he took the message slips she held out to him.

"But I thought you were married?" Janice spoke, a little confused. She was sure she had heard he was married when she went up to the break room.

"Only on paper," Elijah said, waving the slips over his left shoulder.

"Huh?!" Janice muttered, very, very confused, wondering what he meant by that as she watched how the elevator doors dinged as they rolled open, and he stepped in as he was sent up to the fifth floor where his office lay.

His briefcase slid along the surface of his desk before coming to a rest on top of it. Since he's been staying far later than anyone except the security guards that roamed the building in the off hours. Some of them he had gotten to know over the years.

He and a few of them got to become friends one day when he really stayed late, yet he wasn't working; he was watching the game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Detroit Lions on the seventy-inch TV that was in the board conference room. He had already cleared it with the CEO beforehand. He wasn't about to risk his job over some simple slight. He was hurrying back in with the pizza he had ordered when the game was ten minutes in and on a commercial break. That's when he heard the game coming from the hidden area where the guards' station was.

"Hey..." Elijah noted how they jumped in their seats when he stuck his head in the doorway. "I'm watching the game up in the board conference room; if y'all want, you can join me. I got pizza and breadsticks if you're hungry as well," he said, throwing out the offer to them, knowing how boring their night must be. He felt his eyebrow raise when the two men looked at one another and talked for a few seconds then began to throw a rock and a scissor. He hoped when he was the man's age, he was that spry as the man jumped out of his seat.

"I'm George," he introduced himself as he walked beside Elijah as they ambled quickly towards the elevator bank.

"Elijah, what was that back there?" Elijah inquired, nodding towards the guard station.

"Oh," a chuckle escaped his lips, "we worked out a deal. We each get to watch a quarter on the TV since someone has to watch the cameras."

"Ah, makes sense..." Elijah was brought out of his daydream by the knock on the door.

"Yes?" Elijah said, his eyes flickered over to the doorway, and there stood Josh, the assistant director in the other department, on the floor his own was in.

"Thought the Directors were supposed to be at a meeting today?" Josh asked, confused.

"Oh? You mean they left me out! How rude!" Elijah exclaimed in mock indignation.

"Ha! Like anyone would make you Director of anything, even in your own porno," Josh said jokingly.

"Why you got to cut me to the quick, man, so cold," Elijah said, shaking his head, playing along.

"Just call it like I see them," Josh said, amused as he brought his coffee cup to his lips. "So, how was your weekend?"

"Other than losing fifty bucks to Lisa down in HR, it was fine," Elijah grumbled. "That linebacker for the Buccaneers, he got lucky."

"Who Fabian Kline? I told you they were going to win," Josh gloated. "So you hear about the opening down in Tennessee?" Elijah noted the interest in Josh's eyes; of course, he knew about it. The whole middle management knew about it. It was the break they had all been waiting for to climb to the board and the huge paycheck that came with it. However, he seriously doubted he would land it, so he wasn't expecting much.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Don't tell anyone, but I heard they're looking at someone in this office," Josh whispered low.

"And how would you know that?" Elijah asked, leaning back in his chair.

"You know Mrs. Roberts' assistant?"

"Yeah," Elijah said, elongating the word as his eyebrow rose.

"Well... we've been dating for a while, and over some hot pillow talk, she let it slip," Josh said, looking a little embarrassed.

"What?! You and that hot little thing?! You fucking with me, right?" Elijah said, poking fun at his friend. "You sure she hasn't been brainwashed or something?"

"Funny," Josh grumbled.

"So, then, if it came from Roberts, then it has to be real. Who do you think it could be?" Elijah asked, keeping an eye on the time since his boss liked to take a stroll around the department, and he was the first one he started at.

"No clue; wouldn't be surprised if Sherill got it with the grace of her back," Josh muttered low, repeating the ongoing rumor of people seeing her out with one of the higher-ups.

"Hmm... that could be trouble if that were to happen," Elijah mused; it wasn't a secret that Sherill was kind of a fast woman, and she made no excuses for it. He didn't judge her; as far as he knew, Sherill was single. She was free to do whatever she wanted, in his opinion. His eyes flickered over to his clock, noting four minutes before his boss arrived. Josh saw the look and gave his parting words, knowing it was his turn to get lunch for the two of them.

Since his work is well caught up, it only took him three hours to do, unless something came in that was urgent. He puttered around his office doing some little workouts so as not to cause him to sweat so he wouldn't fall asleep at work. The sun had started its descent to the horizon at the hour of three-thirty that afternoon. Elijah was watching Money Talk on his computer, seeing how well his investments were doing. His eyes quickly came to attention as they flickered up at the knock on his door, pausing and closing out his web browser and making it look like he was working as he told whoever it was to enter.

"Hey," Janice's sweet voice filled his ears as the door inched open.

"Hello, Janice, what brings you all the way up here?" Elijah asked, perking up. It wasn't every day an extremely attractive woman came looking for him.

"I'm sorry to bother you, and I know we don't socialize outside of work much, but ever since I've started here, there's been this little dark chip on your shoulder, and this morning, after what you said. It's been bugging me all day, and I can't figure it out, so please tell me to fuck off if it's too personal, but could you please elaborate on what you meant 'Only on paper,'" Janice said, sitting down in the offered seat Elijah gestured to.

"Really, that's how you see me?" Elijah mused.

"Well, yeah, you laugh and smile, but your eyes don't show it most of the time," Janice said with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Are you trying to diagnose me?" Elijah joked.

"Nah, if I was to do that, a hernia exam would be in order," Janice flirted with a wiggle of her eyebrows. Instantly she thought she had overstepped when a shocked look was plastered to his face before she saw the amusement in his eyes.

"Good one, so you want to know?" Elijah asked, getting a nod out of her.

"Only if you want to, no pressure," Janice reassured him. It was her turn to look shocked as Elijah began his tale. Then disgusted when Elijah told her he thought it was around their eighth month of marriage when she first cheated on him and that it wasn't until his wife's two daughters were seven and five that he learned they weren't his when the oldest had badly broken her leg and needed a blood transfusion. When the doctor told them, they had to transfuse a pint of AB into her. Which instantly got Elijah's hair on end. From what he told her, he had asked the doctor if a parent with O type and the other with A type could make an offspring with AB blood? Elijah told her the doctor looked at him like an idiot before the doctor realized what he was inferring.

He told her Stella was oblivious to his question since she was fawning all over her daughter. After following the doctor out of the room, the man told him the truth. So with that knowledge, Elijah had ordered two DNA tests, not that he didn't believe what his gut was telling him, yet he needed proof of the fraud that had been committed against him for so long. Then, he went into detail about what he had learned and what the likely outcome would be if he divorced his wife. So he told her that he wasn't going to let one cent of his money be used any longer for her pleasure. So, in essence, he had separated himself from his wife. "I'm sorry, Elijah, I just can't believe some women would do that to another human being. Do you at least know whose ass to kick when you're ready to jump ship?"

"Oh, yeah," Elijah said, the smile that he had matched the evil light in his eyes at the thought of what he was going to do when the fool announced his attention to run for higher office. He might not be able to beat the ever-loving shit out of the man due to his bodyguards, and he doubted he could take four men down. If he could, the man would most likely make a run for it like the coward he was. So he began pondering on a way to destroy the man without raising a fist. This led to five years of digging up as much dirt as he could verify for a legal sense, which if he had it his way, half of what he found would have led the man to a very long jail sentence. Yet it was his family's money that kept his ass out of jail and not rotting like the scum he was.

"Damn... it's like that, is it?" Janice asked, a little shocked by the look on Elijah's face.

"Mmmhmm," Elijah hummed.

"So then you haven't been laid in all that time?" Janice inquired, trying not to be too intruding.

"Oh no, I've just been playing her game, I just hide it better since she had no idea until last night," Elijah said, chuckling to himself.

"Ah, well, I should get back; I'm sorry this came out of nowhere; just when my mind gets focused on something, it just won't..." Rolling her hand, leaving the rest unsaid as she rose from her seat. "If you're ever in the city, just, you know, get a drink or something, call me, I might need a night out."

"I usually go to the jazz and blues club on fifth street on Fridays; if you're around, drop in," Elijah said, thinking that was never going to happen as his eyes dropped to her ass as she turned and left his office. He hoped whoever her boyfriend was knew how lucky he was.

The dinging of his car's dash sang out as he sat in it before closing the door about to head home for the day. He sat for a few minutes, allowing the engine to get warm during that time of night. He was not eager for the polar vortex that was about to settle in for the long haul, or that was what the weatherman on the radio was reporting as he waited for his seat warmer to kick on. He was about to back out when his cell phone rang; looking at the screen, confusion set in as to who would be calling him at that hour. "Yes, hello?"

"Mr. Wilkins, may I call you Elijah?" asked the strange female voice on the phone.

"Only when you tell me who you are," Elijah retorted as he looped around the parking deck.

"Do forgive me, my name is Dana Lasher, and I was wondering if you could meet me here in thirty minutes," Elijah brought his car to a stop as she named the restaurant, "unless you're busy. I know it's late, but it's important that you meet me."

"Why? Why would I meet a complete stranger?"

"It's important to your future Elijah." His eyes were racing to and fro, given he knew where she wanted to meet and that it was not a cheap place to eat; even a meal for two could cost from one-fifty to three hundred dollars. His mind raced as to why some strange woman would want him to meet her there. He knew it had to be a trap set up by his wife and her fuck buddy.

"And just how am I supposed to know it's you and not some wacko?"

"Just ask the hostess to show you to my table, but I will tell you what I will be wearing to ease your mind." He pressed his lips together as he nodded along, thinking his wife and her lover had set him up with a hooker to entrap him for what purpose he hadn't the foggiest. Agreeing to meet with Dana in thirty minutes and made his way out of the parking deck and onto the street, heading towards the city center.

Elijah followed after the hostess, his eyes scanning the room, looking for anything out of place or just downright strange. He knew he was going into this blind, yet he thought that was why she was meeting with him so late in the evening for anything business-related. He eyed her without seeming to do so as he caught sight of her sitting alone at a table for two. He had to admit the woman had a very pleasant smile when she rose to greet him.

"Good evening, Elijah; I'm glad you could come out and meet me so late at night. I hope your wife will understand why the late hour," Dana said, holding out her hand to him as he neared.

"She wouldn't care either way. Nice to meet you, Mrs. Lasher," Elijah said, noticing the ring on her left hand.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Dana said, she did hate to see people's marriages just break apart.

"So, mind telling me why I'm here?" Elijah asked, hoping she couldn't see his phone in his breast pocket recording everything just in case he had been indeed set up.

"Here, so you know what I'm about to say is truthful," Dana said, holding out her company ID card, watching him examine it and how his eyes went wide when he noted her official title at their company.

"Sorry, ma'am, what would the Vice-President of the Board want with me so late in the evening?" Elijah asked; he had no idea what he had done to garner their attention.

"I understand. I'd be suspicious, too, if some strange man asked me to meet him at some location out of the blue. I was going to speak to you tomorrow morning, yet something has happened, and I need to fly back..." Elijah watched how she looked at her watch and counted the hours. He could see the worry in her eyes, so he knew it wasn't anything to do with the company. He did feel for her. "I assume you've heard about the opening down in Tennessee, yes?"

"Yes, I have," Elijah said, taking a dry swallow, wondering if this was going where he thought it was going.

"Seems you've made quite the impression on your superiors, and they put forward your name amongst others for the position. We didn't necessarily spy on all of our applicants; we simply had people watching you and their work ethic as we went through each of the files. We've gone over the budget in your department and saw where you made some interesting cuts that proved to be very beneficial to us to cut down on waste. So, after a month of observation and a long debate amongst the board members, we're promoting you to it. You'll have to leave tomorrow and spend two weeks down there so you can get to know your employees and how that office operates. While you're there, we can furnish you with a condo or give you a monthly living allowance that should cover half your rent or mortgage. The Assistant Director of the department you're going to be running will have all the paperwork waiting for you when you get down there. I'm sorry that I have to cut this short, but I must be going. I've already paid for your meal, so order whatever you want within reason, and before I walk off with them, this is your plane ticket; keep your rental receipt and we'll reimburse you once you complete your move. Mr. Wilkins, congratulations, I hope it works out for you."

"And you too, Mrs. Lasher, and I hope whatever is wrong gets better soon," Elijah said, shaking the woman's hand, nodding in understanding when she mouthed the word 'Thank you.' Once she turned her back to him, he just dropped into his seat in stupefaction. He did not see this coming! He jumped in his seat when his cell phone when off in his pocket, his hands moved rapidly over his chest in his startlement.

"Yes?"

"Sorry, I forgot one more thing. You can choose your own personal assistant, or we can supply you with one from the secretarial pool company-wide."

"Ah, thank you, I'll definitely need at least a temporary one for the two weeks; I'll have to give some thought to a permanent one."

"I'll make the call on the plane, and sorry for such a rush."

"It's entirely understandable; if you weren't worried, I'd be worried about you," Elijah joked just to lighten her mood for her flight home.

"Goodnight, Elijah." With that, the line went dead, and he was once again stupefied at the idea he had just become one of the higher-ups. He kept the meal under one hundred and twenty dollars before he could be found lazily driving home in no rush now that he knew he finally had his out. He knew, given he talked to another divorce lawyer if there was a law not living with his wife and not having to pay her a cent if he didn't file a divorce. Elijah was happily relieved to know that there wasn't. He wasn't about to give anyone evidence that they could use against him. As he pulled onto the off-ramp, he began calculating how much sleep I could get after packing his bags for his two-week trip.

He was in the middle of packing when he heard footsteps approaching his room. He was daydreaming about the type of women he would be able to meet down there. He knew she was standing behind him; he just chose to ignore her.

"Going somewhere?" Stella asked, knowing this wasn't the time he liked to go on vacation given the road conditions.

"Vacation."

"But you don't like driving in this kind of weather when a huge storm is coming in," Stella stammered, flabbergasted that he was actually breaking his pattern after so many years of knowing him.

"Yeah, why I'm getting out. HR says I have to use up what vacation time I have before the end of the year. So, instead of dealing with negative ten-degree weather, I thought somewhere warm," Elijah said, waving at his bags all so he could get her out of his room.

"Oh, why?"

"Have no idea," Elijah shrugged.

"Anyway, be careful out there, and when will you be back," Stella inquired; she knew that look of his like he didn't believe she cared when he came back as long as the bills were paid.

"Two weeks," Elijah said, zipping up his bag, looking to his left as his phone buzzed and his boss's name appeared on its screen.

"I'll go, get laid once in a while, while you're there." Were Stella's parting words as she closed the door behind her. At that moment, she knew there would never be any kind of civil relationship with him. "Goodbye, Elijah," Stella said to the closed door.

"Hey, sir, kind of late for a personal call," Elijah said once he answered his phone.

"Hey, Elijah, I know you got a plane to catch in the morning, but at least stop by and say your goodbyes; you've been a part of this family for a long time. We're going to miss you around here, but I'm glad you got the job. And if no one's told you yet, the week of September the sixth through the twentieth mark those dates off."

"Why?" Elijah asked, confused.

"That's the yearly company retreat to some tropic resort or another. Last year we were in Thailand. I know, crazy, huh?!"

"Thailand, really?!"

"Yeah, given how global the company is they do different hemispheres each year. That's just last year... but I could go on, and you need to pack. So I'll see you in the morning."

"Later, Paul."

Elijah was walking hurriedly towards the entrance to his former job. While his flight wasn't until eleven that morning, it was starting to look nasty outside, so he would rather get to the airport very early than deal with the heavy, blinding snow that they were calling for. As he entered the door, for a moment, he stopped as he looked at Janice, suddenly realizing he was actually going to miss her.

"Hey! I heard! Congratulations!" Janice uttered, waving him over to her desk.

"Hey, yeah, it's so soon; it's been barely eight hours since I've been told. So... hey, question, the higher-ups are letting me choose if I want to bring my own personal assistant or just let them do that. So... how do you like what you do?" Elijah asked innocently.

"And how much are we talking about?" Janice asked, getting down to business. Her eyes followed how he reached over her desk and picked up her pad. Her eyes couldn't believe what she was seeing as the number fifty thousand peered back at her. She knew how cheaper it was in Tennessee than Maine, given she spent the summers of her youth over the border from her childhood home in Mississippi. "It's tempting, Elijah, yet I don't have that kind of money to move that far south."

"If you do want the job, the company will cover the cost of the move; they even have a company that will ship it for you on retainer. See Julie Ann in HR if you're interested; if not, it's been nice knowing you," Elijah said, holding out his hand to her. He was not expecting Janice to get up and scurry out from around her desk and hug him.

"Even if I don't take the job, I want you to know, if you ever need to talk, call. I would like to be your friend if you let me," Janice said bashfully as she backed away from him. While she did find him attractive, after what he told her, she just wanted him to know he wasn't alone. "Hope you don't wait too long," she said shyly as Elijah took the slip of paper with her cell phone on it. She chewed on her lip as she watched him disappear around the corner where the elevators were located. She spun her index around until she got to Julie Ann's extension just to be sure Elijah was right about it.

Her mind was still in flux as she left work that day. She wrapped herself deeper in her coat as she walked towards the train station that would take her over to the small inlet island where her apartment was located. She never really got used to the cold. Yet when she graduated with her boyfriend, who wanted to move north and find work as a logger. That was five years ago. She was still working the same low-wage job the month after she arrived in town, and Tony was too stubborn to call his folks to ask for money to move back if they wanted to;

Tony didn't. Janice, however, was beginning to think about moving back home. Nonetheless, it would take months, if not years, for her to save up enough money to move that far with whatever she could save every month. She really didn't have much in the way of things; most of it was just clothes if she really got down to it. She could always buy new furniture for the apartment she would have to find. If she did, which Julie Ann said was covered, use a U-Haul and make the drive. The real question is if her boyfriend would go with her or not. She did love them, yet over the years, his stubbornness has hurt them far more often than not. If she was truthful to herself, she just felt they both were just phoning it in, as the saying goes. As she arrived home to their small, cramped apartment, noticing the TV on and the voices of men's laughter.

"Hey," Tony uttered a greeting with a jut of his chin at her. That's all she had gotten for months now.

"Tony, I need to speak with you; it's important," Janice said sternly.

"Okay, Jan," Tony said, handing the remote to his buddy who had come over since his work had closed down due to the storm coming in. "What's wrong?" he asked, closing their bedroom door.

"Nothing... I hope. I got offered a promotion to be Mr. Wilkins' personal assistant down in Tennessee with a huge pay raise... and I'm going to take it," Janice said, making sure he didn't just blow her off like he had done so many times when she brought up the subject.

"Yeah... I've noticed that you've wanted to move back home, but Jan, I like my job, I love this city. If you can't live here any longer, I'll understand if you need to move closer to your folks. I know I'm just as guilty for the distance that's formed between us. I can't say you didn't try to spice things back up. You did. I'm sorry it didn't work out for us, and if you need help, let me know I'll do what I can. I do still care for you, and I'm not looking over my shoulder for your Dad for the rest of my life if something were to happen to you," Tony said with a small, sad smile on his lips. He did love her, yet not the kind of love one needs to build a marriage on. For a few moments, Janice's soft sobs filled the room as they had their last hug as a couple before Tony broke away. "I'll sleep on the sofa until you've moved out," he uttered as he closed the bedroom door and the door to their relationship.

It was the Wednesday of his first week doing his on-the-job training. So far, he has eased into his position with as little amount of speed bumps as he could imagine. Now if he could only get the temp to stay off her phone for more than two minutes, Elijah could take solace in the fact she wasn't calling her friends. In his free time he's been looking for a place to stay while he was lodging at one of the company's apartments in the meantime. So far he was finding he was enjoying the city he now found himself in. He knew he was giving off that tourist vibe when he's been out and about looking at places. Nonetheless, if he hadn't, he wouldn't have found a blues bar. His curiosity got the better of him, as he stopped at the bar just to check it out. While very early, he did like the feel the bar was giving off. Elijah couldn't wait for his new company car to arrive; they had told him his car budget was ninety thousand dollars and he chose a very nice BMW. He had no idea what he was going to do with his old car since he had decided to live in a condo instead of buying a house since it was just going to be him for a long time. The cold he had left behind had yet to reach them, and he was going to enjoy the warmth until it did.

Once he was done for the day, Elijah pulled out the list of places he hadn't looked at yet that were within his living expense budget. The sound of his rental's engine resounded off the concrete walls of the parking deck. Ever since he's arrived, he hasn't felt an ounce of anger. Of which he was happy about. All that anger was getting tiring. There was another purpose as to why he was out every night hunting for a condo, and that was to learn the roads so he wouldn't seem like an idiot driving around. On instinct, he reached over and took the call that was ringing through the speakers of his car.

"Hello?" Elijah answered, making sure he hadn't past his turn-off.

"Hey, this is Janice, I thought you would call." Elijah didn't know why yet he did feel a smile forming at the sound of her voice.

"Hey, I was, just been busy settling in, so can I ask how did you get my number?"

"Josh is dating my friend, and I knew you two hung out, so I asked her if she could get it for me. You know, I always thought a man was the one who gave out their number and wondered if the woman was going to call or not." Elijah had to admit her pout was a little cute.

"I swear I was going to call you after I was done with my condo hunting for the night. So I see you're resourceful; good to know," Elijah said; he didn't know why, but he could have sworn he could feel her smile. "So I hear the storm is bad up there."

"Oh yeah, didn't even bother going in today, I had two feet drop over the night calling for another foot tonight, but at least most of the storm will have moved out by tomorrow afternoon. I'm jealous of you right now; I'd kill for fifty-degree weather right now."

"So, have you thought about the job offer?"

"Hey..." Janice got real quiet for a second, "listen, can you handle us being friends if we work together?"

"I'm not the one you need to ask since I would be your boss. Are you okay with that?"

"I don't have a problem with it if you're okay with it."

"But can you stand living in Tennessee?"

"Oh honey," his cock went from zero to sixty at the sexiest deep southern bell accent that flowed through his speakers, "I was born and raised in Mississippi. Tennessee will feel more like home than the ass crack of Maine. But I have a favor I'd like to ask if..." Janice drew out the word, "say I did take the job. Could you give me a lift to my hotel? Since I don't have a car at the moment."

"Well..." His mind began to ponder if he should do what he was pondering at that moment, "I'm coming back next Sunday. On Monday I'm loading up while my wife is gone. Rather not deal with her hassle, if you're interested in the job, you can hitch a ride with me."​