His Forever 2-His girlfriend

12

Drey

Maybe punching Ron was not the most reasonable decision but after seeing those tears in Alisa's eyes again, I just completely lost it. She had had more than enough in the last 24 hours and to think that the one person I thought I could trust to look after her was also going to make her cry was just maddening.

Considering the fact that Ron was not exactly my favorite person well, control; was more difficult to attain anyways. She would be furious, I knew that but I would have to deal with that later, for now, I had to figure out a way to at least buy her father some more time for Alisa's sake.

The heat of the early morning sun was somewhat refreshing, promising of a dry day, but then again with the fluctuating weather these days I could not be too sure.

I groaned harshly, rubbing my temples and feeling irritated at the sound of emails popping left and right after I turned my computer on. It had been three days since I last thought about anything regarding work. With my whole attention on Alisa, it was impossible to even check the personal messages on my phone. And as much as I would much rather be with one person right now, I knew it was time to face reality.

And if I was deciding to be real, the truth was it was more than two days since I stopped being present at work. Maybe two months ago, starting precisely with the day Alisa ended our relationship. While I was sure that the company had enough to keep it steady for at least the next few months even without my input, there were responsibilities. Responsibilities that had to be catered for by me. And maybe it was the feeling that came from spending 3 nights with the woman I loved but suddenly I wanted to dive back in and get back the reins of my company.

The first email that popped up on my screen though just made me want to crawl back into my bottle of scotch. I considered that option for a moment but quickly brushed it off. If I was about to face yet another criticism from my father, some alcohol would at least help to keep me from going insane, but that would mean altering my clear head and the chance of giving my father even the littlest room for attack. One I knew he would take good advantage of. For now, I'd just have to reply him while I waited for the coffee I had Amanda bring.

Steeling myself for the worst, I opened the email and as I did, I could only imagine the fury raging through him as he sent the email.

That was the third f*****g meeting you missed this month, I did not spend these years raising you to ruin what I worked so hard for.

I knew how important that meeting was, losing three top investors in the span of one month was bad even for a company like ours. If I were someone else, or preferably if my father and I had a better relationship, I would have bothered to give an explanation, an apology might also have come in tow too. And while I knew that was the right thing to do to soothe Carlson's ego, the part of me that loved to tick my father off typed out: Good thing you didn't raise me then.

I could almost hear his fuming and disgust in his reply 3 seconds later. You will speak to me respectfully while you run my company. 

Need I remind you, that I own equal shares in the company and have brought Carlson Corp much higher than it was when I took over. Calm your horses pops. 

Ungrateful bastard!

It's Monday morning and I don't have the time for this.  And  I really did not. It was the first time we were actually communicating after he had nearly handed my company over to that snake and her father. 

Hoping he would take a hint, I moved on to the next message. It was only a minute later before my phone vibrated with a call. Of course, he would call. I was not surprised.

"What do you want from me, Harry?"

"Harry?" he scoffed, "finally you cut the bullshit of father,"

"Now it's your turn to cut the bullshit too, what do you want?" I snarled, holding on to my patience.

"What I want is for you to get your head out of your ass, I did not make you CEO drag the company down over some stupid crush with some girl."

Stupid crush? Ouch.

If I was not so used to his taunts and hurtful words, I would have bothered to consider how he just dismissed my feelings as stupid. "First off, let's get one thing clear, you did not make me CEO dad, I f*****g earned it. Secondly, Carlson corp is doing just fine, so relax."

"You lost a chance to be partners with the Daltons, a chance to expand even further, I am on the brink of a heart attack here so do not tell me to relax." he roared.

"Well you would be doing us all a favor," I said loud enough for him to hear. 

"What was that?!"

I pinched the bridge of my nose, wondering why I was still having this conversation. "I'm handling it."

"I can see how well you're handling it, with your c**k wrapped around that w***e of course." he spat.

It took every ounce of self-control to not slam the phone against the wall. But only because I had to make a few things clear to him. Again! "Do you want to rephrase that? Using more appropriate speech."

"What?"

"Call me when you're ready to speak about her more appropriately. And just in case you forgot, she has a name, Alisa. For now, I am handling the investors at the company, try not to die by a heart attack, or do die of one for all I care."

"You fucker..."

The line trilled before he could finish his sentence and I tossed my phone on the table, feeling a tad smug for leaving him as riled up as he had made me. Actually even more. 

The satisfaction was hollow though. It was only Monday and I was already starting my week so roughly. At least with all the time I had spent neglecting the business in self-pity, I knew I would easily come up with a solution to my problem.

First, I had to speak to Amanda, we had to figure a way to meet with the investors again. With our reputation, it should not be so hard to get them to reschedule, I only hoped we did so without some groveling.

As if on cue, a knock on the door drew my attention and Amanda entered after my invitation, stopping next to my desk. With her eyes everywhere except in my direction, she set the coffee cup on the table. "Your coffee Mr. Carlson,"

"Thank you, Amanda," I said in the most polite tone I have ever used on her.

After seeing her and Drew in a most suggestive situation this morning back at my house I could tell they had taken their relationship a few steps further in our absence this weekend. I was happy for them and had made that fact clear to both of them, though Amanda still looked like she would rather be swallowed by the earth than face me right now. A part of me, that part that had developed actual human feelings after being with Alisa, felt an unspoken obligation to be at least a little nicer to my brother's would-be girlfriend, hence my tone with her. By the way, Amanda was not that terrible of an assistant, actually, she was one of the best here in New York so it would not exactly kill me to be nicer to her or would I say more polite.

Amanda gave me a confused look, her lips shaped in an O and if she was curious why I was suddenly nicer, she did not ask. Instead, she cleared her throat before speaking again, "Is there anything else I can do for you, Mr. Carlson?"

"Well there are a few," I leaned back in my chair, "you haven't filled me in on my schedule for today."

She raised a brow, "I figured you would not want to hear it, after the last..."

"I know. I was in no mood for any business meetings last week," I cleared my throat and sucked in a breath but after the weekend I had, I am deciding to change my mind."

She only gave a small nod, one filled with unspoken understanding, "That is great news." She held up her tablet and scrolled through quickly, then filled me in on all I had to do for today. Meetings, boardroom, expansion, and all the boring stuff that constituted being a CEO. It was a pill I had to swallow as much as I hated it.

Speaking of bitter pills, I still had to figure a way to get back the Daltons as investors or risk a visit from my father. While I was not bothered about him and could handle him capably, that was one drama in my life I was not ready for. I had too much on my plate already, which meant we had to get back the Dalton brothers.

"Thank you, Amanda," I nodded after she finished speaking. "I'll let you know if I have anything else planned for the day. In the meantime though, how does a reschedule with the Dalton brothers sound?"

"If I'm being honest sir, not so good. They were furious when I informed them we were canceling the meeting without something they considered a very reasonable reason." she sighed, shaking her head slowly, "I'm not so sure they will be so interested but I can get back to them and see what I find."

Shit. I raked my fingers through my hair. "Yeah, check in on them again and let me know what they say."

"Of course." clutching her tablet in her arm, she pivoted, heading for the door.

"Amanda?" I called, stopping her in her tracks. She turned to face me with a brow raised, "Check on Tokyo and San Blas, I need updates on them too."

She nodded again with understanding, before slipping through the doors. With all the problems I had to deal with those were my greatest and I could not risk either of them being mishandled. Thankfully, I could trust Amanda to take care of it, leaving me more room to think about other issues.

Issues like how the hell I was supposed to get the Dalton brothers to agree to meet again and more importantly, what to do about Alisa's father.

After researching for a few hours through the internet, and coming up with only a handful of useful information, I decided my most reliable course of action would be to speak to someone with a better knowledge of Alisa's father's illness. And who best to do that than a person with a good knowledge of his health history.

"Leah Armstrong. JFK medical center." a female spoke after the third ring.

"Drey Carlson. I am calling regarding one of your patients, Frank Emmerson." I paused, waiting for a response.

"Oh," she made a small almost unnoticeable noise. "Drey Carlson, you say?"

"Yes."

She paused briefly and I could hear the brief taps of a keyboard and then a click before she spoke again. "And you're related to the patient?"

I cleared my throat softly, I expected this question, but did not exactly plan a reply. "Not directly."

"Well in that case I'm sorry, I cannot offer any information about him. I am only allowed to give information to direct family members."

"Actually, I am related to him, just not..."

"His son?" she cut me short, sounding impatient already.

"No," I answered.

"Brother?" now she was just pissing me off.

With a sigh, I gave the answer. 

"Then enjoy the rest of your day Mr. Carlson."

"Wait. Don't hang up." I loosened the cherry-colored tie around my neck as I got to my feet. What I was about to do would help me get the information I needed to help Alisa's father, I just had to remember to tell her that when she found out. "Alisa and I are married."

"What?!" her reaction did not make it any easier to keep the lie up.

"It's something we still like to keep private, considering her father's health and the rumors on the news lately, but yeah she's my wife and I'm sure I do not need to explain who that makes me to Frank, do I?" I kept my tone cool, I was not about to waste this opportunity by leaving any doubts.

"N-no." she stuttered, "you don't have to. I just never thought she was married. Congratulations, it's—that's great news."

"As I said, our privacy is important. At least for now. Actually, I was with her at the hospital the last time she visited and the news you gave her is still very devastating for both of us."

"Oh, that's right. I think I saw you. My apologies for my reaction," she chuckled, "just hospital policies. But what can I do for you, sir?"

"I want to know what can be done to help. Anything to help him get better. My wife is not ready to lose her father yet, and neither am I."

"I really want to tell you otherwise Mr. Carlson. There are options, but I do not want to raise your hope for no reason. He really is dying." her tone reflected a sudden sadness.

"You just said there are options," I asked, deciding to hold on to any ray of hope.

"Yes, but..."

"Good. Can you make it to a meeting here in New York, I'd like to discuss these options in person."

"I really don't think that's a good idea. Especially for Alisa."

"I would rather give it a shot Dr. Leah. You're the doctor here and you just said there are options. I will never forgive myself if I lost even one chance to save him. So again, for Alisa's sake, let's talk in person."

There was a silent pause for a few seconds, followed by a deep sigh. "I have a few errands to run in New York on Friday. We can talk then."

"Perfect." I grinned, throwing a punch in the air. "Thank you very much, just let me know when and where you want to meet. I'll have it arranged."

"Of course."

As I set my phone back on the table, a sense of hope, mixed with relief and satisfaction filled me. All I wanted to do was pick my phone back up and break the good news to Alisa. But I did not want to have a  case of counting my eggs before they hatched so I resisted that urge. There was hope, and maybe I could get a chance to save him after all.

Friday could not come any sooner and suddenly I wanted to tick off everything I had to do on my schedule today.

A soft knock on the door broke me free from my thoughts as I took my seat back, ready to dive back into work. "Enter."

Amanda strutted in and this time, she had a different look on her face. She placed her hand over the speaker of the burner phone she was holding as she expelled heavy breaths.

"What's wrong Amanda?"

"We have a problem," she said simply. "A big one."

"The Daltons?"

When she shook her head, I suddenly got a picture of what the problem was. And I hoped with every fiber of my being it was the easier problem, the one I could sort out with a check having my signature on it. "San Bias?"

Please say yes.

Another head shake. "Tokyo."

Fuck!