A woman's dilemma - Episode 59

 

Claudia:

"God." I groan as I turn over to my stomach on the bed. The banging sound in my head makes it a real work to open my eyes.
"Claudia. Come on. Claudia." I hear someone touch my shoulder lightly and I growl.
"Go away Amy. I just fell asleep." I don't even open my eyes at this point but burrow deeper into the nice bed.
"No. You've been sleeping for almost eleven hours." What?
"Come on, open your eyes." I feel the hands from my shoulders touch my face and electric shoots straight up my brain and my eyes fly open.
"Christ!" I bark and jump away from Daniel's crouched form beside me . What is he doing in my room? I look down to account for my clothing and relax when I see that I'm fully dressed in last night's clothes.
"Just checking if you're okay. Here, open up." I feel my mouth opening up in obedience and he pushes a pill inside.
"Swallow." He says without breaking eye contact with me and I gulp the pill down. My face scrunch up in distaste.
"Drink this." Orange juice is pushed into my hands before I can ask for a drink. I can't argue with him now with the murderous pounding in my brain right now

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/a-woman-s-dilemma

. So I just focus on drinking the glass of orange juice.
"How do you feel now?" He asks when I drop the glass on the small table by the side of the bed. I go to tell him I'm just fine but he puts a finger up to stop me. I clamp my mouth shut as he pulls a banana out from his jacket pocket. I eye him in scrutiny.
"It helps to relieve hangovers." He's already peeling the banana and chucking it in my face before I can say anything. I tell my heart to slow down as soon as he puts his hand on my head. I drop the banana and bat his hand away and sigh.
"I'm all good Daniel. I'll have to ask you to leave my room now please. This is so very inappropriate. Did you sneak in?" I ramble off. He shakes his head and I frown. Amy let him in. I'm going to skin that skinny woman alive.
"Amy didn't let me in." He says like he can read my mind.
"She didn't?" I ask him. He shakes his head and the guilty look on his face tells me something worse is going on here.
"Spill." I demand.
"Well... She let me take you down to my suite." My eyes bulge out and my head whips around the room to survey it. Everything is the same in here.
"She didn't!" I exclaim as I start to rise from the bed. I stand a little too fast for my pounding head and it spins for a moment.
"Slow down!" Strong arms catch mine before face plant into the wall. My eyes clench shut to ward off the unwanted feeling he's drawing from me.
"I don't want you touching me." I say not too softly and the hurt on his face hurts me more than it does him. I swallow down hard and straighten up.
"Claudia..."
"Stop. Don't do this to the both of us. My head is pounding and I have a best friend to skin alive." I say wryly as I carefully let myself down from the bed. He's watching me with a pained look and I try not to look into those expressive eyes anymore as I make my way to the door.
"Claudia please." I stiffen with my hand on the door handle when his hands come around me from behind and he holds me to his chest. Tears sting the back of my eyes. Why is he making this so difficult? I just want to go up to my room and ball my eyes out.
"Daniel I..."
"Please. Look at me, I'm a mess." He tries to pull me around to face him but I plant my feet on the ground. I can't look at him right now.
"Let me go." I ball both my hands into fists beside me. I don't want to touch him.
"You said you want me last night." He says softly and I grind my teeth hard.
"I was drunk. I was probably babbling nonsense."
"No. You meant it Claudia. I know it. You can't hide from this. I can see the longing on your face. That's why you can't look at me right now. Isn't it?" He asks and I can't bring myself to deny it. I just shake my head and sniff back the persistent tears.
"Let me go." I say weakly.
"Look at me." I don't even know what this man has over my body but I feel myself turn to meet his eyes. I can't look away anymore. He's looking at me so tenderly. So passionately. Like no man has ever looked at me before. Like he can see right through my hard facade to the lonely woman who needs holding. I let him take both my hand and place them on his hot cheeks.
"I've missed you too damn much, Claw." The endearment or whatever it is, hits me hard and I pull my hand away from his face.
"God, what am I doing?" I mutter when he takes my hand back quickly.
"You want this. Why are you fighting this feeling so damn much when you feel it too, Claudia." He sounds frustrated.
"What I feel has nothing to do with this situation." A stray tear escape the confine of my eyelid at this. And with this, I pull free of his hold and run out of his suite like I'm being pursued. I don't hear his footfalls and I think he's not coming after me but I don't stop till I get into the elevator on his floor and punch in my floor number. It's empty probably because it's breakfast time and I'm happy for the respite.
 I place my hot cheeks against the cold wall of the elevator as I let the waterworks out. I don't even know if I'm crying from frustration or pain but I just can't stop. The elevator reached my floor too soon and it opens up.
 I take in a relaxing breath that does nothing to relax me before wiping my face clean of tears.
"I'm going to kill her." I mutter under my breath as I make my way towards our suite. I don't even know where my key card is and I'm glad to find the door is locked as I push my way in.
 Where is she? I don't find anyone in the sitting area and for a second I wonder if she's gone out with Benedict. But then the sound of her laughter filters into the ears from the room. Of course she's in here with the man. I'm not letting her have her fun after she let Daniel take me to his room!
"Benedict can't save you from my wrath this morning I'll..." I stop short when I push the door open and find her alone on her bed and on the phone. She looks at me warily and her smile drops.
"I'll call you back when I talk to her. Okay bye Benedict." She's saying and I roll my eyes. Of course he's the one on the other side of the line. I notice the bouquet of flowers beside her on the bed and a small smirk creeps on my face.
"Having fun with Benson's brother?" I ask her. Her face visibly pales and she tries to sputter something out but fails to say anything I can decipher.
"That was mean." She finally gets out and I shrug.
"So was leaving my drunk ass with Daniel." I snap.
"Oh, you didn't give me a say in the matter. You actually begged me to leave with him you drunk ass buffon!" She snaps and we both pause. Amy just insulted me. I expect her to start apologising but she just shrugs and I burst into a fit of giggle. I double over and laugh so hard, a few tears fall.
"Don't tell me you're still drunk." She says dryly and I love my friend so much more. I like this new spine on her. Not that I didn't like her lovable personality before but this is just an epic addition I love as well.
"Did I really beg to go with the man?" I fall to the bed beside Amy and she laughs so loud, I cringe.
"We're a mess." Amy says after a long silence.
"Why are you a mess?" I turn to ask her.
"Come on. Benson and Benedict. I don't even know what I'm doing with Benedict. He sent me flowers and a cake this morning." She point to an half eaten cake in the corner and I smile fondly.
"At least you have to commitment to Benson. I'm suppose to be engaged to Benjamin and here I am getting drunk and begging to be taken to another man's room. I'm the mess."
"Let's just agree that we are both mess, Claudia." she says wryly.
"I'm more of a mess though."
"Yeah. You win. You're the mess of the year." I hit her shoulder playfully and we laugh lightly.
"I should just say this Claudia. It seems to me that commitment is the only thing in your relationship with Benjamin. Now, that isn't so much of a bad thing if it's what you want and not the feelings and passion Daniel clearly shares with you."
"I don't know Amy." I press my knuckles to my eyes and sigh. My hangover is coming back with a vengeance.
"Sometime it's okay to let this organ lead than this one" she points to my chest then my head before continuing with her point."
"Because our heart help us live while the head help us survive. You get what I'm trying to say right?" She asks me and I nod because I do.
"Good. Now let's go to the spa. I already booked us an appointment." She starts to pull my hand and I growl.
"Why spa? I wanna sleep some more and eat and bathe. And not in that exact order." I whine.
"There's a party at the hotel tonight.

Read " Falling For Innocence " by the same author ( Ameh juliet )

. We've been invited." She all but squeals and I start to shake my head.
"I'm not sure I want to go." I have had enough of partying last night if that can be called partying but still.
"I'm not hearing any of that. I already booked us an appointment. And you're going. We came here for a vacation. School starts soon and I need destressing." She pouts at me and I know she's working her innocent charms right now.
"Okay, okay." I say resigned.
"Yes! Now go get dressed. Up " she pulls me up.
"I need food first." I complain.
"We'll eat at the spa. I'll order. Now go get dressed. You reek of alcohol." She wrinkle her nose. I sniff my dress and cringe. She's right.