The incessant ringing in my ear worsens with each passing second. Sylvia is talking to me –trying to get me to respond, but I am unable to speak or move. I can hear my brother screaming into the phone, but I cannot make out the words any better than the words coming out of Sylvia’s mouth. My stomach is doing flips. I swear I might lose my lunch. I am staring at the reporter on the television as she tells all about how my company of vitamin and energy supplements is being accused of poisoning people due to company negligence. Someone is dead from taking my supplements. There is some lawyer taking on the poisoning victims or a pro-Bono case. It’s like all of a sudden my life is crashing all around me. My head starts to spin. What am I going to do? My multi-billion-dollar company is getting sued.

“James!” I hear Sylvia shout, followed by a gentle shaking as she snaps me back into reality. The ringing in my ear slowly subsides. “James, what’s happening?” she asks, clearly concerned for me.

Sylvia and I have not known one another for very long, but thus far our so-called relationship has been fun and exciting. She is one of the models for a competing supplement company –the CEO I am currently sleeping with, but that relationship is just a couple of rich and athletic people who use each other for sexual satisfaction. My still fairly new relationship with Sylvia is a step above that, I would say, but we have not exactly communicated what that means just yet, and thanks to this little interruption we have yet so sleep together –and I was so damn close. Despite the fact that Sylvia and I have just met, I can see in her eyes a legitimate concern for me. It, if only for a moment, makes me feel a little better to see that she has my back.

“Eddie,” I say into the phone to my older brother who had called to tell me all about the travesty that has befallen me, “Let me call you back. I’m about to head that way.”

Eddie grumbles something, but I am not listening to what it is he has to say right now. I’m still trying to piece together my sanity long enough to find my clothes. I hand up the phone and place it down on my nightstand. “Are you going to be okay?” Sylvia asks; she is standing in nothing but her underwear on as she stares at my television. She is searching for her bra while keeping one eye on the television to make sure she soaks up everything that is taking place.

“I don’t know,” I say honestly. “I’m worried.” My mind is running a million miles an hour. I can’t think straight. Pants. Where are my pants? I got my phone out of my pants just a second ago…

I locate my pants and start to put them on when my own underwear smacks me in the side of the head. “Hey, genius, you might want to put these on first.” We got all our clothes off, but we did not have time to do the deed. Fuck me.

“R-right,” I say, my voice shaking slightly. Okay, underwear and then pants. That makes more sense. I am out of it so much to the extent that I don’t even think that we’re in my flat, so I could just grab a new outfit –but for some reason, I rummage around our blankets and the floor for what I had been wearing before mine and Sylvia’s round of love-making. Yeah, my mind is pretty much gone.

Shirt. Okay, we’re getting somewhere now. My fingers feel numb as I struggle with the buttons. I see Sylvia searching for my suit jacket, and she brings it to me. I sit on the side of the bed while I finish buttoning up my shirt and throwing on my jacket. She brings me my tie, my socks, and my shoes. “If you give me a second to get dressed-” she starts to say, but I cut her off.

“No. You can stay here.” I say, “You don’t need to be around all of this craziness. I’d rather not drag you into it.”

“Are you sure?” she asks.

“Yeah. Make yourself at home.” I say as I put on my socks and my shoes. “I’m sorry I have to run out on you. This was not how I pictured our date night turning out-”

“It’s okay.” She says with a tremendous amount of assurance in her tone, “Really. It’s okay. Go do what you need to do.”

I stand, but before I can leave she takes me into her arms, and I can’t resist but to take a moment to stroke her bare back with my hands. She gives me a kiss. “Thank you,” I say, glad to see that she so understands that I have to run out on her.

“You… you didn’t know your supplements were dangerous before you sent them out to the market, did you?” she asks as though a hint of her is worried that I am some corrupt businessman unwilling to take a loss on some faulty drugs.

“No.” I say in a confident and reassuring tone, “I had no idea. And thanks for that –getting me prepped for the reporters, right?”

“Right.” She says and releases a slight, forced laugh as though she is just trying to lighten the mood.

I kiss her several times before pulling myself apart from her. I really hate that I have to leave. It’s getting late too, but that is not stopping a collection of reporters from showing up at Shattered INC. I am really not looking forward to talking to those reporters; I’m also not looking forward to talking to the police or to my lawyer. This is going to be a headache. A part of me really does want Sylvia to come with me just so I have some moral support, but I don’t want to subject to her any sort of scrutiny by the local media outlets. She does not deserve that sort of bullshit in her life right now.

“I’ll be back as soon as I can be.” I say, “If you have to leave, would you mind locking up for me?”

She smiles and pulls me back into yet another warm embrace, “James, I’ll be here for you when you get back.” She says it in this really sexy voice that makes me quiver slightly. It makes me twice as regretful that I have to leave. I am definitely up for round two, but I definitely can’t be the immature playboy today. Today I have to play the role of a professional CEO. I can’t let Eddie down just because someone wants to sleep with me. Yes, aren’t I mature, tonight? “I’ve got your back, James.” She promises and gives me another kiss.

I kiss her again and force myself to pull away. I grab my keys, deciding that I don’t have time to call my personal driver and wait on him. I need to get to the company as soon as possible to relieve Eddie of some of the stress he’s under trying to fight off the media. He and I are not exactly on the best of terms right now, so I don’t want to make it worse. “Thank you, Sylvia,” I say and take my private elevator down to the main floor.

I dart to where my driver parks my car in a nearby parking deck, and I load up quick. I’m not really sure what to expect exactly when I get to the company. I just know that I should probably try to think of something to say to the reporters for when I get there. I just don’t know what. I pull out onto the road, driving faster than I probably should. I’m panicking, I know. I call Eddie. I need someone to talk me through this, and he’s a lot smarter than me, I’ll admit. Hopefully, he can’t help me prep for my conversation with the reporters. Fuck my life.