Chapter 16
Sally got in the office early the next day and Silas was not in yet. She began looking over the resumes and started taking notes on each candidate.
As the time went by she wondered where Silas was. She tried calling his cell phone, but it went to voicemail. Sally left a message for him.
Silas, it is Sally, just wondering where you are. You aren’t in yet and well, you aren’t answering your phone. Just let me know that you’re okay.
She hung up trying to focus once more on the spreadsheet she had made.
When lunch time came around, she still didn’t see or hear from Silas.
She went to see Melissa to ask her where a good place to eat for lunch was.
“Hey Melissa I was wondering is there a good place to eat nearby?” Sally asked the young girl.
“Well there is a little shop around the corner, but they are a little expensive. I personally bring my lunch as often as I can. They serve hamburgers which are pretty decent.” Melissa explained.
As Sally turned to walk out she asked Melissa, “Oh do you have any idea where Mr. McComb is today?”
“Oh didn’t he let you know? He got called away on emergency business. He won’t be back for a few weeks.”
Sally turned bright red.
“I’m sure he didn’t get around to telling you because you’re new and he’s not used to dealing with anyone but me!” She chuckled.
Sally couldn’t help but feel hurt. It made her wonder if she really had just been another notch on his bed post. Maybe his “emergency” was meeting with Jackie and trying to work out their marriage. Her heart ached as she thought of the many things that might be going on.
She tried to cheer herself up by remembering what their love making had been like, but it didn’t work. When the food came, she had already lost her appetite.
She worked in silence the rest of the day, trying to not think of Silas. However, his scent still lingered in the air and it made her sad.
Maybe he’s just busy, she tried convince herself. That didn’t ring very true; surely if he wouldn’t be working straight through the day, wouldn’t he take a moment for a break to let Sally know he was okay if he truly cared about her?
She went from angry to sad many times throughout the day. When she got home, she warmed up the Chinese from the other night and picked at it. She had no appetite and was extremely depressed.
Putting the food away, she picked up the phone and called the only people she knew for sure who loved her.
“Hey sweetie how are you?” Her mom said as she answered the phone.
Sally took a deep breath and tried to make sure her voice didn’t betray her. “I’m okay mom. Did you win at bingo?” Sally asked.
“Nope but I’m going to another one tonight. The grand prize is worth $75,000.” Her mom said.
Thankfully her mom was too excited about bingo to hear the cracking in Sally’s voice. “I’m sorry honey, I’ll be home tomorrow night if you want to call than and catch me up.” Her mom said.
“It is okay mom, is dad there?” Sally asked.
“Sure, here you go, love you Sally.”
“Love you too mom.”
“Hey honey, two nights in a row, aren’t we lucky!” Her dad came on the line.
Sally broke down in tears almost immediately, “Oh dad I think you were right. He lied to me and simply convinced me that there was more so he could have sex with me.”
“What? Did you talk to him?” Her father asked.
“I couldn’t he didn’t come in today, he got called away on emergency business.” Sally explained.
“Well Sally, that doesn’t mean he was lying to you. It just means he’s a business man who had to take care of his company.”
“But why wouldn’t he call me and let me know?”
“I don’t know sweetheart. But you should never assume anything. Wait until you hear from him. Perhaps there is a good reason he couldn’t call you. You’ve already made the jump and slept with him and last night you were so sure that he had been telling you the truth. Don’t let one little bump in the road convince you otherwise. Patience and understanding are very important in any relationship my dear.”
She sighed, “Yeah dad I know, but I can’t help but think of the worst scenario. And can’t stand not hearing from him. All I want to do is hear his voice and know I wasn’t wrong to sleep with him.”
“Honey it’s a bit too late to talk about that. You’ve already made your choice. At least give him a chance to explain when he does call you. Maybe he’s not used to your working for him yet so he called the other girl instead.” Her dad commented.
“That’s what she said too. But if you love someone don’t you want to talk to them?”
“You already said you weren’t sure what his feelings were, and maybe he’s not used to someone caring about him like this. From what you told me last night he and his wife really didn’t care to talk to one another very often.”
“No, often times he wouldn’t talk to her for days and only in passing. Your right, I am jumping to the worst conclusions.” Sally admitted.
“Remember don’t assume anything, it makes an ass out of you.”
“Thanks dad, I honestly feel much better, I’ll just be patient and wait for him to call me and explain everything.” She stated, but the words didn’t quite reach her heart. She still felt a bit betrayed that he hadn’t called her yet.
***
Sally changed her clothes. She was going to check out the gym they had in the building. A nice run would make her too tired to think of Silas and hopefully get some sleep.
Hopping on the treadmill she titled the incline up and speed up the machine so she was going at a nice pace. Her body screamed out in agony as she pushed herself harder than ever.
She had tried to keep a nice program of running in between studying through the years. But she still would miss the gym several times a week and right now she was paying the price.
After she was done she went and back and took a shower. Once she was done she checked her phone. She didn’t even know if Silas knew her number for sure, but surely he would have heard her message and responded by now.
Sally decided to try him again and when the phone picked up she got excited, until she heard a female’s voice. “Hello.”
“Hi I was calling for Silas is he there?” She asked.
“He’s in the shower right now, can I ask whose calling?” The female asked
“Who is this?” Sally asked her curiosity getting the best of her.
“Jackie, his wife, and to whom am I speaking with?”
Sally’s heart sank, “I’m Sally his new executive assistant. I just wanted to update him on the progress of the resumes.” Sally barely got out as her heart felt like it was breaking into a million pieces.
“I’ll have him call you when he’s out of the shower.” Jackie hung up without another word.
Sally sunk to the bed that still smelled like Silas and their love making. How could she be so stupid? She had so many questions she was unsure she would have the answers to. She didn’t want to face Silas again. She couldn’t look at the man who she had given herself to freely only to be betrayed by him.
She lay on the bed curling up with the pillow that smelled far too much like him and cried herself to sleep. She shut her phone off so that all her calls would go directly to voicemail.
***
That night she was tortured by dreams of Jackie and Silas making love. The images burned themselves into her brain, and by morning she felt like she wouldn’t be able to work, so she called in sick.
Staying at home, she tried to plan her next move. Of course, she would need to find another job if she wanted to stay in New York. There was no way she could work with him anymore. Her heart would break every time she saw him.
She eventually pulled up her computer and started looking for jobs. After a few hours of sending her resumes to other companies she closed her laptop and once more cried herself to sleep. She didn’t want to even talk to her parents.
She turned on phone only to find that her voicemail was empty.
Sally couldn’t stand the pain of knowing Silas was with Jackie and that he still hadn’t called her. Clearly he had changed his mind about the divorce and went back to his cheating wife.
Well if that’s what he wants so be it. I don’t need to be the other woman. I can find another man who truly loves me, Sally thought, but didn’t feel much conviction in her thoughts. She still missed him so badly, and just wanted to know why he had lied to her.
Her phone rang a little later and she picked it up, “Hello.”
“Hi is this Sally Yates?” The male voice asked her.
“Yes it is.”
“Great this is Jacob Young, I am the hiring manager at Symbol Technology. We got your resume today and would love to meet you tomorrow. Is noon a good time for you to come to our office?”
“Sure, I’ll be there at noon. See you then.”
She took a shower to try and wash off the feel of Silas, but it didn’t work. She could still feel his hot touch on her skin, and his kisses that had left her tender in many areas.
She would go into work tomorrow and finish up the resumes, and leave him with the spreadsheet. She still believed that this new division of his was brilliant and hoped it would succeed. Not for him, but for the many people his new brand of medicines might be able to help in the future.
Sally planned on going to the interview on her lunch hour. If it worked out well, she would send her resignation letter to his email and be done with him.