Chapter 9

The medication took effect quickly and Alex slept soundly. In the morning, if he was still in a lot of pain, the doctor would be called.

Camilla watched as he slept, while she was sitting in the recliner next to his bed. Despite his slightly puffy face, he looked relaxed and she could see another Alex right there. He didn't look like the same self-assured man, the powerful CEO of Strauss's Company, the country's largest hotel chain, expanding overseas. Looking at his form on the bed, he didn't look any different than any other human being.

She leaned back in her chair and looked around the room. Like the rest of the house, there was nothing too personal about the decor. Neutral colors, both on the walls and furniture. A king size bed with a dark headboard, an eight-door built-in closet, in the same shade as the headboard. A dark wood desk, a more beige recliner, a nightstand just like the rest of everything that was made of wood in there. There was a rug the same color as the armchair Camilla was sitting on. The floor was porcelain, white. In fact, come to think of it, the room resembled a hotel room.

She went to the door in the corner and saw that it was the bathroom. Very spacious and all white, with a porcelain floor. The taps were golden. There was a jacuzzi in one corner, and next to it was a shower room with two showers inside. Albert had gone upstairs to hand her a toothbrush, after all, she hadn't gone home to get hers. Alex's hotels offered these toiletries in the bathroom, so it was no surprise there were some kits at his house. She finished brushing her teeth and went back to her room and sat back in her armchair and fiddled with her phone.

Camilla closed her eyes and didn't even notice when she fell asleep. However, since her cell phone's alarm clock was set to go off every day, Monday through Friday, and she had clearly forgotten that little detail, she was awakened by the incessant noise of the device. Though, not the only awakened. When she opened her eyes, bewildered, Alex was complaining and covering his head with one of the pillows.

"For God's sake, someone turn this shit off! My head is going to explode!" He complained, and his voice was muffled by the fabric of the pillowcase.

"Oh, wait..." Camilla said, looking for her device. It was tucked into the side of the chair, between the seat and the armrest. When she, still lacking good motor coordination due to being sleepy, tried to pick up her cell phone, she ended up pushing it down. Now the cell phone was screaming, but she couldn't get it out of the place where it had fallen. Suddenly, she felt a hand gripping her arm and gently pulling her to the side.

Alex grabbed the armchair by the armrests and tilted it, shook it, until the phone fell to the floor. He returned the chair to its place and went back to bed, grumbling. He threw himself on the bed, covering himself with the blanket. But then, a few seconds later, he uncovered his head and looked at her, intending to ask what was she doing in the armchair, not in the bed. In that moment, Camilla could see the damage from last night's fall.

The right side of Alex's face was reddened around the edges, and closer to the cheekbone, it was purple. His eye was also hit by the swelling. Camilla couldn't hide her face of surprise and pity. Alex caught her expression and brought his hand to his bruised face and winced in pain. He got out of bed and went into the bathroom to look at himself in the sink mirror.

"I'll let Albert know you're awake." Camilla said, leaving the room. As she closed the door, she could hear Alex pouting.

She couldn't remember whether to go right or left to get to the stairs. Opting for the right, she went straight and, luckily, it was the correct choice. She went downstairs and then realized she had no idea where the kitchen was. Lucky for her, looking out the window, she saw the man from last night, Thomaz. She tapped the glass to get his attention. He saw her and walked over to her.

"Good morning, Miss." He greeted her, but without holding out his hands, which were inside thick, dirt-covered gloves.

"Good Morning. Thomaz, right?" She asked and he nodded. "I would like to know where Albert is. Alex has awaken."

"Oh, he must be in the back of the house. Come, I'll take you there. Just a moment." Thomaz took off his gloves and entered the house, asking Camilla to follow him down a corridor to the right of the stairs she had come down. There was the kitchen, large, and in a room a little further into it, a smaller kitchen, Albert was sitting, eating.

"Good morning, Albert!" Camilla said, and the man immediately stood up, turning to her.

"Miss, Good Morning!"

"I just came to let you know that Alex is awake."

"Thank you very much. Usually he tells me by the cell phone when he wakes up after hours." Albert said, looking at the device and not seeing any notifications.

"Must be because he's in the bathroom looking at last night's damage." She said and looked down. The other two men looked at each other and understood that the boss might be in a foul mood this morning. Camilla thanked Thomaz for his help and turned to go back to Alex's room.

"Ah, you're finally back!" Alex said, his back to the door, facing the window. However, it had the curtains still closed.

"Yes, I went to warn Albert that you were awake." Camilla was approaching him.

"Stop right there!" He ordered and she stopped moving.

"What happened?" she asked, startled.

"I'm not okay for you to approach me and look at me." He said, speaking low. Camilla twisted her mouth.

"Oh, please, give me a break! I've already seen your deformed face." She joked, whereupon he immediately turned to face her, clearly hurt and outraged.

"Deformed?"

"I'm looking at it now, Alex." He realized that and turned to the window again. Camilla took a deep breath and walked over to him.

"Can you stop the drama? Alex, you got hurt and it's normal for your face to look like this. And I don't know why you're having a fury fit... you look like a futile little girl."

"How dare you call me a futile little girl?" he asked, offended.

Before she could answer, Albert knocked on the door to warn that breakfast was ready. He would leave it there at the door, for them. Camilla answered 'ok', waited a few seconds and went to get the food. Albert knew that Alex wouldn't want to be seen 'ugly', so he didn't invite them to eat at the table, as Alex usually did.