The Billionaire's True Love

Chapter 3 - Sarah

Life on the island had its advantages, but a multi-hour ferry trip to Chicago was not one of them. Admittedly, there were other reasons to stay. Good reasons, I reminded myself as I tightened my coat tighter in the cold autumn breeze blowing from the water. Grandma needed me, and there was nothing I wouldn’t do for a woman who accepted me at sixteen after mom and dad died. I don’t remember much from the time I came to live with my grandmother. I probably suppressed it because of the horrible shock that befell me after my parents ’accident and because I suddenly found myself in unfamiliar territory. A posh tourist resort called Richmond Island could not be more different from the place I had previously called home. From Sidney’s suburbs to the belt of colonial America separated from the mainland by Illinois's bay.

"Oh, you have an accent." No, you have an accent. "You're from England, aren't you?" The hemisphere is wrong. "Hey, Sarah, say something with your Australian accent." Something.

I heard every joke and they asked me almost everything you can imagine, but I didn’t mind. Really. I knew people were just curious about how I got here and they tried to be kind. Recovering from the shock, I completed what they have known as excessive faculty right here at the, and later attended Suffolk University where I earned a diploma in indoors design. I did not recognize it then, however the ones had been good times. I had to leave my grandmother on the island while I lived in faraway Los Angeles. I suffered for my terrible mistake for a year and a half, until the day came when I no longer had to suffer. At least not in a physical sense. The sadness was still with me and will probably stay forever, but I was determined to continue with a positive attitude. And I promised myself I wouldn’t let the bad parts of the past hurt me. That was the goal I intended to stick to. Five months ago, I left Los Angeles and returned to Chicago, and then began the process of regaining my life. Grandma still lived in a cottage on Richmond Island where she immigrated from Australia as a young bride. Many times I have heard the locals tell the story of how my grandfather brought home an Australian woman for a wife as if she had come from another planet. Grandma and I shared the same citizenship - we were both born in Australia, but we called America our home. I lived in America for so long that it truly became home in my mind. 

I learned that kindness can cause an outburst of emotion. This is not the first time this has happened to me. My friend Zoe’s sincere condolences affected me in the same way when we met for the first time after I returned. Same with Eduard. If someone showed that they cared and said it in a heartfelt way, that goodness alone would have the power to pull those experiences, hopes, dreams, and memories back to the surface as if it all happened only yesterday. Even when I believed I had pushed her deep, my pain really just hovered beneath the surface, barely covered by the thinnest layer that even a breeze could blow. Tears welled up in my eyes before I could stop them. I gave in and let them leak. Sometimes I was weak and I couldn't suppress the loss ... so I would cry. I stood like that, watching the island get smaller and smaller until the ferry turned south so the island completely disappeared from my sight. I knew I would be returning exactly to this place on the ocean when I returned by ferry at five-thirty after work. I will wait for that moment when the island appears on the horizon after the captain turns north. I will breathe a sigh of relief when he appears insight, and my heart will be in place. It was a strange ritual, but it would happen to me every time I came and went from Richmond Island. It hurt a little to leave him every time, but that tiny enthusiasm I would feel on the way back would never let me down. The safety of the island provided me with refuge for my poor heart. 

Bear & Jameson was on Melrose Street where it was a little quieter than Madison Street, which was noisy thanks to the huge number of passers-by. However, the fact that the location was quieter had nothing to do with it, as clients looking for a designer in this neighborhood would usually not just walk in. The interior design business relied on a good reputation, the recommendations of former clients to their friends who had the money to pay for such a service. When I would walk, I would get off at Copley Station and follow Madison Street to the company where I worked. If the weather was ugly, I would go through Hynes because it was much closer. Today, however, it was not ugly. A sunny and dry autumn day is always welcome. I stopped at Starbucks to fix my makeup and, more importantly, satisfy my coffee addiction, before heading to the Bear & Jameson right next door. God, I loved that Starbucks was on our way. One of the nicest benefits of my job. It was the toilet line, so I checked the messages while I waited. I didn't expect the one from Martin. He wanted me to do a cocktail party tonight, from six to nine. My other job, waitressing for Rivers Catering, wasn’t my favorite, but it was well paid when I could cram it in here and there. I loved working at Bear & Jameson where I designed rooms for clients according to their visions, but I couldn’t survive with the salary of a younger designer. At least not yet. So I would take on the waiter jobs on the weekends and in the evenings if I was notified in time. Nine hours was not enough for me to agree on anything, and Martin knew that. First of all, I should spend the night somewhere, because the last ferry left the dock at half-past eight, and if I couldn’t get to it, then I got stuck in Chicago overnight. I would have stayed with Zoe, but my friend left town for my sister’s wedding and won’t be back all next week. I didn’t bring clothes for the next day, nor my black and white serving uniform. It was impossible to make it to Martin tonight.

I had sent him a reply:

                     "I'm sorry, but he won't be able to, Martin. I'm already on land. You need to let me know in                                 advance to find a place to sleep, bring extra clothes, etc. - S ”

He is going to get a little pissed off, but what do I do? Life on the island had its drawbacks, and I couldn’t control the ferry schedule. There was not much demand for transportation to Richmond Island in the middle of the night. I fixed my makeup in front of a mirror at Starbucks, holding on to going under normal. If Eduardo doesn’t notice that I cried, then I’ll call the whole thing a success. I inherited straight blonde hair and very light brown eyes - which I was told were amber - from my mom. Grandma often reminded me that I looked a lot like her. I thought my mother was beautiful, so when my grandmother told me I could pass as my mother’s twin, I felt good inside. I looked at myself thoughtfully and decided I didn't look bad, just a little ... sad.

Because I was sad.

It was no coincidence that my favorite character from the animated film Inverted Reverse was Sadness. She was needed - an important part of everyone's life - and if you tried to push the Sorrow away from you, not letting her visit you here and there, then all the other parts of you would start to break down under the pressure to be sad. It all made perfect sense to me. Maybe I’ll take a look at it tonight after I visit Grandma on physical therapy.

"Good morning!" Eduardo attacked me with his standard greeting. "You look sexy, my condessa. Those boots seem to scream and f**k me until I can't take it anymore. "

I dropped my coffee at the front desk and unbuttoned my coat. "Good morning to you too, and don't scream anything like that."

"Oh, scream, darling. I bet you didn't even notice the piece of sunglasses squeaking outside, hmm?

”Eduardo waved at the glass front door of the building next to which the piece really stood, looking inside as he answered his cell phone. Through the window, I could only make out that he was a meter and eighty-eight, maybe a meter and ninety, dark-haired, in a very nice brownish-yellow woolen coat that he wore over an expensive gray suit, and that he had aviators. There were men the same as him in Chicago. I saw men like him every day, rushing from one company to another, trying to make progress, like everyone else.

"He's talking on his cell, not watching me, you fool."

"He was watching you. You walked past him and he weighed you well, honey. He liked you ”a serious expression informed me,“ and I adore when you speak nonsense to me in English.

”I could barely contain myself from bursting out laughing. I only met him when I started working at Bear & Jameson three ago, but we liked each other instantly. He knew everything about my past and was compassionate about my situation, always ready to give me support. He loved that I was Australian, so most of the time he called me Condesa - Countess in Spanish. The thing was, you had to learn to ignore Eduardo’s unheard of and bad comments he said about almost every topic that had no place in the business environment - and always at the most inopportune time - because it was simply part of his personality. A beautiful gay man from Puerto Rico with a big tongue, whom you just had to love. I shook my head slowly.

"Do Jon and Carlisle know you're fantasizing about pedestrians while you have to work?"

He snorted. - They do the identical aspect whilst they arrive here.  But there it is, Sarah right in front of me. "

-What's right in front of you?" I looked out the window again and noticed that the piece was gone.

- Male paradise," Eduardo sighed dreamily. "Big ... stiff ... d***s ... they just walk - they pass us all day. Ay, Dios Mio! ”He waved both hands in front of his face as if cooling off. I snapped and had to laugh out loud, otherwise, I would have exploded.

-They're probably not as rigid as you imagine them to be if they walk. I think it would be pretty painful to walk around all day with a stiff d**k. ”

-You're right there, Condesa, and please say the hard f**k again with your nice accent for me."

-No, I won't say it once more." Eduardo knew I wasn't nervous. It was an integral part of working with three gay interior designers. Such behavior came with the territory, and it suited me quite well.

-MARTIN, I have already explained to you why I can not. I do not live in Chicago. I have nowhere to spend the night. If you plan to call me because you need me to work for you, you will have to let me know at least twenty-four hours early next time. ”Really, the man seemed to be stupid. What was so unclear about the situation? I would rather say he did not care.

-Why can't you spend the night with a friend?" Martin suggested.

-Zoe is not home, and even if she is, there's still a problem with her clothes." I felt like slapping him.

Then Eduardo, who had a habit of eavesdropping on all the conversations in the office if he could, said: "You can sleepover with me if you have nowhere else to go." Too bad he said that quite loudly.

"I heard that," Martin informed me. "So, agreed?"

I just kept quiet, glaring at Eduard. I'll pay him back for this in a moment.

"Sarah?"

"Yes, Martin?"

"I will see you at six then. I will send you the address when we end the conversation. "

"Hang on. I didn't wear a black and white uniform. "

"What are you wearing now?"

If Martin had been in my field of vision, he would have cringed painfully from my deadly gaze. “I wear an emerald blouse with a black skirt and boots over my knees. Totally unfit for serving. As I said, I can't come. "

“Go and buy a white blouse during your lunch break and put on your boots. It’s kind of a company thing and a big number of the guests are going to men. I'm sure they'll like the boots on your beautiful long legs. "

Ughhhh. What a slimy asshole. "I'll pretend your comment about my work wasn't sexually suggestive, so we'll switch to pay, okay, Martin?" Serving in heeled boots won't be easy, and I'll spend money on a T-shirt. If Martin doesn't like it, let him f**k off.

Eduardo giggled and raised both thumbs.

"Double, Sarah, just come."

As much as I wanted to refuse, the extra money would come in handy. "Okay, I'll do it, but, Martin, if you need me in the future, let me know earlier so I can plan an overnight stay." If it's at all next time. Maybe it would be good to look for a new job. After I finished the call, I pointed my finger at Eduardo and gave him just a slightly less violent version of my deadly look.

 "You're in trouble if you haven't figured it out. Go tell the bosses that we're going to buy a blouse and we'll return with their lunch. And you will pay mine today. ”Then I smiled as I got up from the table to pull on my coat.

"Yes, my condeso," Eduardo sang before rushing to the second floor to pick up a lunch order from Bear & Jameson. While he was busy upstairs, I was supposed to let Grandma know I wasn’t coming to see her tonight. She will be very amused when she hears me sleeping with Eduardo, though. I tried to visit her every night at least briefly and I didn’t want her to wonder where I was when I didn’t show up. My call went through the front desk, which didn’t surprise me. Grandma would rarely stay in her room, especially when they would happen what activities. 

“Richmond Therapy Center, you got Lila. How can I help you?"

"Hi, Lilah, this is Sarah."

"Your grandmother is now in painting class, working on the seascape."

"Oh, it sounds wonderful and I can't wait to see it. Can you please tell her I'm working for Martin tonight? She will understand, and tell her that I will visit her tomorrow as usual. "

"No problem, Sarah, and thank you for letting us know not to worry because you know she would worry."

Placing Grandma temporarily in a nursing home while recovering from knee surgery was our only option. I couldn’t leave her all day in the hut, trapped in a wheelchair, while I worked in Chicago. She didn’t complain, but I knew she would rather be home, like everyone else. I wish I could pay someone to take care of her at home, but that just wasn’t possible with her limited income, nor with mine.

When the Richmond property closed she had to retire, her cash needed to be carefully allocated to survive. She was not old, she was sixty-one years old, and I felt that she greatly missed work, as well as socializing with her colleagues. Moreover, the fall that was the reason for the knee replacement happened after she lost her job, while she was mortally bored alone in the hut. Thank God her friend Sylvie was supposed to come for tea later that day, so she found her grandmother at the bottom of the basement stairs — frightened and in terrible pain.

I often asked myself if the Richards family who employed my grandmother felt any remorse for dismissing a faithful maid after more than three decades with almost no thanks and greetings. No pension or severance pay - she received nothing. Poor thing, I thought. Selfish assholes, too. There was no excuse for their behavior. None. Richmond Island was first and foremost a place where wealthy people, with summer cottages worth millions of dollars, came to vacation during the summer. Unfortunately, it became additionally an area where many humans labored difficult to serve the ones identical wealthy humans, for this reason slightly making sure their survival.