Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45901 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45901 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Not having anywhere else to go, I made my way to the big Orc’s house. I wasn’t really in the right frame of mind to see him, either. But I couldn’t bear the thought of going back to the office so soon and I didn’t really have anywhere else to be.
And this is where we came in. Sorry for the long intro, but I had to tell you about Tark. Speaking of my Orc boyfriend, he seemed to know something was wrong with me the minute he opened the front door.
“What’s wrong, baby? What happened to make you so upset?” he asked, frowning at me.
“What makes you think I’m upset?” I said, trying to sound like I was fine—like I didn’t care. I didn’t want to look weak in front of him. I had this idea that if he knew what had happened at work, he might start to agree with my boss’s assessment of me—that I was nothing but a weak-willed, fat, stupid, no good—
Okay, I had to stop thinking of myself like that. I knew for sure I wasn’t stupid—it was just so hard to remember anything good about myself when all I heard at work was an endless stream of negatives.
Tark followed me into his house, insisting that he wanted to know what was wrong.
“I know when you’re upset,” he told me. “I can see it in your eyes and the way you hold yourself. Please, baby…” He knelt before me, getting down on my level, and took my shoulders in his hands. “Please, just tell me—was it that fucking boss of yours again?”
This time I couldn’t deny it. I think the look of concern on his face was my final undoing. Suddenly, I couldn’t hold the misery and shame inside any longer. Nodding my head, I felt my face crumple as the tears started.
“He…he said some things to me about…about m-my weight. Right in front of my c-coworkers,” I whispered, the words coming out choppy because of my sobs.
Mr. Price had always yelled at me in private before—having him degrade me in front of Katrina and Jeremy felt like too much—more than I could bear.
Tark’s face darkened.
“That fucker! I’ll fucking kill him!”
“No, you c-can’t!” I exclaimed though my sobs. “The police would start asking what…what happened to him. And an unhappy assistant would be a…a p-prime suspect!”
“Goddess damn it!” he growled and ran a hand through his hair. Then he took a deep breath and rose to his feet.
I was afraid at first that he was going to leave the house and go hunting for Mr. Price after all. Instead, he scooped me into his arms and went to sit on the couch.
I pressed my face to his chest as the sobs choked me. All of the pain and hurt and humiliation…I couldn’t hold it inside anymore. It was too much…just too much.
Tark didn’t say anything at first. He just rubbed my trembling back and shoulders soothingly with his big, warm hands and let me cry.
“It’s okay, Babygirl,” I heard him murmur at last. “It’s okay—let it out. Just let it all out.”
Somehow his acceptance of my grief and pain made it easier to do exactly that. I hadn’t had anyone hold me while I cried since I was a little girl. I knew I was getting Tark’s T-shirt soaked with tears, but he didn’t seem to care. He just held me tight and let me cry.
At last the sobs tapered off and I began to feel better—though I was sure I looked like a mess. My eye make up was probably all smeared but I did feel more like myself.
“You okay, Babygirl?” Tark rumbled, looking down at me with concern in his golden eyes.
Hesitantly, I nodded.
“I…I think so. Better than I was, anyway.”
“You want to talk about it?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.
I shook my head.
“It’s just the same kind of thing—except this time instead of saying nasty things to me while we were alone, he did it in front of my coworkers. It was just really, really humiliating.”
His face twisted.
“I hate that you have to go somewhere and be treated like that every day! What the fuck is wrong with humans, letting that happen to you?”
I sighed.
“I don’t know. I told you—my boss is the CEO’s brother so there’s nothing I can do about it. And I can’t quit—I’d owe over a hundred thousand dollars and I don’t have that kind of money.”
“Well you can’t go on like this!” he protested.
I shook my head.
“Please—I don’t want to talk about it. I’m almost halfway through school—if I can just make it for four more years I’ll be a Pharmacist and then I’ll be free.”
“Will you, though?” he asked skeptically. “Be free, I mean. I thought you said you were still under contract to that human company even after you graduate.”