Strictly Business

Strictly Business: Chapter 15

With the blood rushing in her ears and her head pounding, Elizabeth stormed into Shane's bedroom. All thoughts of her lunch meeting and work went out of her head. He was lying in his bed reading a magazine. "Shane Preston, did you or did you not beat up Nicholas?!" 

"I may have," he replied coolly not looking at her and flipped a page over. 

"Why?" her voice was dangerously quiet. 

Shane did not answer her but he was no longer reading the words on the page he was staring at. 

"Answer me!!" Elizabeth had never been this furious. She was so angry she could barely notice the migraine that was starting to rage against her head. 

"I have warned him time and again to back off but clearly he does not need to hear it, he needs to feel it." Shane tried to keep his voice even. Figures that weasel will act all victimised, he thought angrily. 

"Oh my god, I can't keep arguing with you over this. You are a barbarian! You don't listen! You think violence is the solution to our problems?!" Elizabeth paced, too incensed to just stand there. 

"I don't listen? Who is the one who keeps on seeing that snake even though I've warned her numerous times NOT to?!" Shane retorted angrily, jumping up from his bed and standing in front of her, glowering. 

"There is nothing between us! That is just your insane possessiveness talking. I have every right to make friends, you do not own me!" 

"Friends?! You think that was what he was after? Your friendship? When will you wake up and see the truth? 

"The truth? The truth is that Nicholas has been nothing but respectful with me and you, YOU are just maligning him because you can't stand to lose!" 

"Argh!! How could you not see that all that is an act?! Last night he nearly..." Shane caught himself in time 

"What? What did he do? Can't think of something quick enough to malign him with?? All we had was a nightcap at his apartment, what's wrong with that?!" Elizabeth challenged. 

"Right I'm maligning him, I'm the bad guy. YOU are so stubborn!!!" 

And YOU are incredibly selfish. You don't care about my feelings or the hard work that everyone's been putting in for the Eco-City project. He is not only my friend, he is also a very important member of the panel for the tender! You have no idea what your stupid show of machismo has cost us and you don't even care!" Elizabeth shouted, the pounding in her head grew even stronger. 

"Oh really? Maybe I shouldn't have bothered about the two of you then. Maybe you love your precious Eco-City project so much you're willing to sleep around for it!" 

Elizabeth looked like she could have slapped him, instead her eyes hardened as if turned to bits of green stone. "I don't want to talk to you any more, I can't keep having this argument with you over and over again. You're giving me a headache," she muttered in a strained voice, walking away. 

"Oh headache! The universal women's excuse for avoiding everything! 

Elizabeth ignored him and staggered towards her own room, gasping. Her whole head was in agony, it was as if someone is taking a chisel and hammer to her head. Her legs felt like lead as she stumbled towards the bathroom. Leaning onto the sink for support, she filled a crystal tumbler with water from the faucet. A wave of nausea rolled over her and she retched into the sink. The migraine had progressed to stabbing pains behind her eyeballs and she was beginning to see spots. Clutching the tumbler, she tried to walk back to her bed to get her pills but another wave of nausea caused her to lurch, the tumbler slipping out of her numb fingers landing in a resounding crash on the floor. Elizabeth collapsed.