Crystal jumped after I knocked on the door. “Oh, God! Gavin, you scared me.”
I gave her a quick kiss and sat down next to her. “What are you working on?”
She threw her pen on the desk and buried her face in her hands. “Everything. I had no idea that running a business was so much work! I’m trying to figure out payroll, and then one of the yoga instructors wants a day off, so I’m trying to find someone to cover that class. Normally, I would do it myself, but it’s at the same time as Annie’s Wednesday morning pregnancy yoga class. Two other instructors are available, but neither of them wants to be here in the morning. On top of that, there’s a leaky faucet in the ladies’ room that every student has complained about, and I can’t get a handyman out here until next week!”
“I’m so sorry, honey, and don’t you have to teach a class this afternoon too?”
Crystal pulled her hands away from her face. “I have to teach four classes this afternoon, all of which are an hour long. Two are mine, and two are Annie’s, and I’m still learning a few of the poses. During the last pregnancy class, a woman sniped at me that only a pregnant woman should be teaching it since I have no idea what they’re going through. God, some women can be so bitchy.”
I knew that Crystal would be upset about me leaving, and I thought about waiting to tell her at a better time, but I decided to just get it off of my chest.
“If I had known it was this bad, then I would have come down later. Should I leave?”
“No, you’re fine. What’s up?”
I counted to ten and then told her everything. “Mr. Truman is sending me to Hawaii on business, and he doesn’t know how long it’ll be. He’s guessing a few months.”
It wasn’t hard to see the sadness in Crystal’s eyes. “Are you serious, Gavin? Normally you just go away for a week or two?”
“Yes, but they’re also doing construction on some properties in addition to buying others. That’s why it’s going to be a little longer.”
Crystal sat back in her chair. “But your job is to close deals, right? Why are you getting involved in construction?”
“Mr. Truman just wants me to overlook it to make sure we don’t get screwed over; that’s all. He said that I’m the best guy for the job, and I’m good at talking people down. I’ll know more about it tomorrow. I just wanted to tell you as soon as I found out.”
Crystal seemed to be taking it a little better as she stared at her mound of paperwork. “It’s not like I have all of the time in the world, anyway. I looked at the schedule, and until she gives birth, I’ll be working Monday through Saturday, anywhere from twelve to sixteen-hour days. That only leaves me Sunday for any personal errands, and I know damn well that I’ll just be sleeping all day.”
Even though she seemed to be genuinely understanding about the situation, my biggest concern was that she’d put up a wall with me while I was gone. Crystal was the type of woman who never wanted to get hurt again, and the longer I was away, the more likely it would happen.
I had no other choice, though. “Thank you for being so understanding, Crystal. I guess it’s good that we’re still in the honeymoon phase of our relationship and don’t have to deal with the stress of kids yet, huh?”
That made her laugh pretty hard. “You got that right. Thank you again for telling me right away. Communication is so important in a relationship, Gavin, so please promise me that you’ll keep ours open.”
We both stood up, and I gave her a long, intense hug. “I promise, Crystal.”
21
Crystal
One Month Later
As the students from my last yoga class of the morning left, I sat on the floor and leaned back against the mirror. The cold glass felt good against my head, but it still didn’t make me feel like my old self.
I felt so tired.
Ever since Annie’s doctor had ordered her on bed-rest, I had been working sixteen hours a day, six days a week. Every morning, I went directly downstairs after brushing my teeth and washing my face. It had gotten so bad that I was showering at night and sleeping in my work clothes for the next day. For most people, the paperwork would have been easy, but I struggled with payroll most of all—something I definitely didn’t want to mess up.
Doing paperwork was more effortless in the morning before classes started, because by the time the last group of students left at night, it took all I had not to pass out from exhaustion right on the floor. I was back to taking power naps in my office and yoga rooms when they weren’t in use. On more than one occasion, another instructor had to wake me up to teach a class.
I couldn’t even remember the last time I had eaten a hot meal. My nutrition was nothing but coffee, protein bars, and energy shots. If Gavin hadn’t been in Hawaii and was able to take me out to restaurants, where would I have found the time? I hated that he was so far away from me, but I was too tired to be depressed.
I took a sip from my water bottle and waited for a few minutes, hoping it would make me feel better. The longer I waited for it to kick in, the more I realized that something was wrong with me. It wasn’t just exhaustion.
That morning I had woken up with an upset stomach and a pounding headache. At first, I attributed it to needing fluids and a day off to reenergize my internal battery. Yet as I had gone about the poses in class, I found myself getting so dizzy that I couldn’t stand up.
Vertigo was usually a sign that I’d be getting my period, but I didn’t think I was due yet.
I had to stop doing the poses because I was one backbend away from hurling my protein bar all over the floor. Instead, I was instructing while sitting on a chair.
