Uncontrollable Tempration

*One week later*

Adam Wilson

“Adam!” I heard Mason shout my name. I looked towards the direction and spotted him waving at me. He was with two other guys, probably his friends. He told me they would be joining us.

This is the second time I’m bowling with Mason. The first was just both of us last week and we had such a good time, we decided to do it again. This time he invited more of his friends he wanted me to meet.

Thankfully the bowling club wasn’t packed at all, unlike the last time. We could secure at least four bowling alleys to ourselves, one for each man.

“Mason.” I said while giving him a bro hug.

“This is Adam, he was once a victim at my hospital.” He said and I laughed. “These are my friends Fred and Hendrix.” I shook hands with them both.

I grabbed a beer bottle off the table where we were all seated. I usually don’t drink beer but I could manage one or two bottles.

“So what do you do Adam?” Hendrix asked.

“Uh, I own a company, it’s called Wilson & Co. We deal with aerospace, defence and security.”

“That sounds interesting.” Fred said.

“Yes and very innovative as well.” Hendrix added and we all laughed.

“Indeed” I smiled. I love to boast about what we do. “We provide different services from flight management systems, to tactical satellite communications, image and audio analysis, we even provide cyber security.”

“That’s amazing. And your office is here in New York?”

“Yes.” I brought out my business card and handed it to them both. “This is my card. You can come see me anytime if you need to discuss business, advice or any other thing at all.”

“That’s excellent but enough with the business talk.” Mason said. “Were here to bowl!”

“The looser pays for everything.” Hendrix said and we all agreed.

Apparently Mason was great at bowling, he beat me the first time. Most of his shots were strikes and he got a total of 270 points. He finished first while Hendrix was second with 239 points. Fred who had 201 points came third and well, I was last with just 175 points.

“Sorry man, lunch’s on you!” Fred patted me on the back.

“What happened Adam? I thought you were good at this?” Mason said. “Or is something snaking you? Are you still thinking of Sophia?” He whispered the last part.

“You’re bringing her up, I thought the plan was to keep her out of my mind. But yes, she might have been the cause of my distraction. Lately, I’ve been eating my heart out.” I said to him.

“Sorry man, but for now, Can you get me an egg mayo and pickle sandwich.” It was like he didn’t even hear what I said to him about Sophia.

“Are you serious?”

What a dick!

A waitress came and everyone placed their orders. The guys made sure to order large because they knew they weren’t paying.

“I’ll have the multi-grain with grilled turkey.” Fred said.

“I’ll go with the avocado sandwich.” Hendrix said as well.

For me, I chose two double BBQ Beef with sweet onions.

“Are you stress eating?” Mason smirked at me. I knew he was making fun of me again.

“No Mason. I am NOT stress eating.” I lied.

Lately I’ve been eaten a lot more than usual to counteract the stress I’ve had for the past few days.

“Adam, I am a doctor. I can tell what’s going on with you. You’re looked stressed out because you’ve been suffering from excessive longing, now you’ve resulted to comfort foods. You’ve even stopped shaving and now you’re growing a stubble. You’re a wreck.”

“What’s been happening to you Adam?” Hendrix asked.

“He’s whipped.” Mason answered for me. Hendrix and Fred looked at me astonishingly.

“I’m not whipped.”

“I must admit, she is really pretty. She’s the type you’d want to hold on to, plus she keeps it tight.” He wagged his eyebrows at me.

If it was okay to do so I would have smacked him in the face 50 times.

“So what’s her name?” Fred asked me.

“Sophia, Sophia Parker.” I admitted defeatedly.

“Hm, a pretty girl with a pretty name.”

“Yeah well here’s the catch, she’s his personal assistant at work.” At this point Fred groaned. “She’s really good at the job and he shouldn’t cross that line… although he wants to. I keep telling him it’s a bad idea.”

Mason told them the full story… well at least his version.

“What do you want from her Adam?” Hendrix asked me. “Do you just want her, or do you want to be with her?”

“I want to be with her.” I decided.

“Then what’s stopping you?”

That was a good question.

“It’s complicated. She doesn’t want to loose her job for a chance with me. Plus, I know she doesn’t trust me. I have quite a history with women, she’s witnessed it herself. Even though we’re both attracted to each other, she avoids me by dating other men. Sometimes I just think she deserves someone better than me.”

“Sounds like you’re giving up.” Hendrix said.

“I just don’t know what to do.” I sighed.

“Do what makes you happy Adam.” Mason held my shoulder. “But don’t do what you’ll regret.”

“I agree, but go for her if you feel she’s the one.” Fred said to me.

“Thanks guys.”

The food came and we all ate.

I got a text message from one of my clients reminding me about a meeting in Michigan which was few days from now.

“Mason can I talk to you for a second?” I asked him.

“Yeah, sure.” He said wiping his hands.

I pulled him away from the others.

“I have a meeting to attend in Michigan. And I can’t go alone.”

“So… what? You want me to come with you?” He asked me stupidly.

“No, but if I asked would you?”

“Hell no.”

“Okay. I figured. Anyway, I need Sophia to come with me but she’s on leave.”

“You want to disturb the poor girl whose father is ill because you’re too scared to go to a meeting alone?”

“Im not scared! I’m just not used to it. I promised to stay away from her for one week and it’s been a week already. I need to see her, maybe I should ask her if she’ll go with me. She loves travelling.”

“Why don’t you just ask her on the phone, rather than travelling all the way to See her?”

“Her phone is off remember? And I don’t have her parent’s house number. Plus, I want to see her.”

“Okay Adam. Just don’t make things worse between you two when you get there. And for pete’s sake, please shave.”

****

Sophia Parker

Lately, I’ve been spending a lot of time at hospitals. First with Mr Wilson, now with my dad. I’m so sick of the environment.

I was currently in the waiting room with my mum. We both held each other while we hoped for the best.

Dad did not have just an ordinary stroke, the doctor called it a hemorrhagic stroke! It happens when an artery in the brain leaks blood or ruptures. They managed to find the cause of the bleeding and control it for just a few hours but after a while, the bleeding only got worse. Dad has always been a victim of high blood pressure which was the reason for the worsened condition so the doctors prescribed some medicine to lower his blood pressure.

He is currently undergoing three surgeries. The doctors called them aneurysm clipping, coil embolization, and arteriovenous malformation repair. If the surgery is successful, he advised mum to ensure he has a heart-healthy eating lifestyle, manage stress and do physical activities like aerobics.

Mum was looking at a paper the doctor gave to her. The paper held useful information about eating healthy.

“Apparently, the doctor said we should only drink skimmed milk.” She frowned.

I could understand because I hated skimmed milk as well. I could manage semi-skimmed though.

“I know it’s tasteless and all but it’s good for the health.” I smiled at her, trying to sound positive.

“Okay, listen to this. ‘Fish high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, tuna, and trout, about twice a week.’ But your dad doesn’t like fish! He’s scared of the bones!” She complained and I laughed.

“He’ll have to get used to it.”

“This food rota is horrible! Look at this! Lima beans, chickpeas, broccoli, corn tortillas, brown rice!”

“Are you really going to follow that mum?” I winced at the names she called.

“I have to. So we don’t end up in the hospital again.”

The doctors came out just then and walked towards us. We both stood up, waiting for the good or bad news.

“Mrs Parker.” He referred to my mum. “I am pleased to say that your husband is okay and the surgery went well. But he’ll have to stay with us in the hospital for a while.”

I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard what the doctors said. My mum broke down crying happily.

“Oh, thank you so much for everything! How long would he be retained?” She asked.

“We’re not sure about that ma’am but until he recovers fully and we’re sure that he is stable. We would let you know as soon as possible.”

“Thank you doctors!” I told them before they went away.

I hugged my mum and wiped away her tears. She knew that it was up to me to pay the bill for the surgery. I was the only child and my parents were not very rich. They had savings but it was not enough to pay half of what we needed to pay. I also had savings but I just needed a few more to complete the bill. I overheard the doctors saying that the three surgeries were going to cost about $30, 000.

I may have to go back to work earlier than I ought to, it’s been a week and few days since I left New York and I know I’m not going to be paid for my absence.

Right now, I need every single penny I can get.

“Sophia honey, why don’t you go back home and prepare dinner. I need to stay and make sure that your father is okay. You were here all through yesterday and I want you to leave early. I’ll see you at home later okay?”

I wanted to protest but I agreed. Even though I wanted my mum to come home with me, eat and rest. I didn’t want her to get stressed out here alone. I checked the time and it was 3:20pm.

“Do you have the keys?” I asked.

“Yes honey, I do. I’ll be coming in through the back door from the garden.” She said.

“Okay mum.” I kissed her and she smiled at me.

“See you later.” She said.