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“Hey sweet cheeks, how are you … whoa, you look awful.” Jeffrey stared at the laptop he had moved to the kitchen for his weekly call to Amanda. He figured he could get the day’s dishes done while waiting and had nearly completed drying them before she came online nearly forty minutes late.
Blurry eyes, looking worse than her New Year’s hangover, bore through the screen from the other side of the world. Both elbows were on the home office desk, her hands holding the mug he had sent her with the gauge going down the sign with increments of “Don’t talk, Still not human, I will growl, Another cup.” No breakfast plate or bowl was in sight, per normal. After a small sip, she snarled, “Next time I go to Monaco, I am taking you.”
“What do you … oh, I take it we ‘won’ at roulette.”
“If the last five days of morning sickness is anything to go by.” She rubbed her forehead. “The kit came back positive too, and I made an appointment yesterday to get the final official opinion. It’s two weeks from now, the only time they had an opening at the same time as my schedule.”
“That sucks, the morning sickness.”
“Yes it does.” She took a sip from his gift, the slightly green cast to her cheeks remaining as she tried swallowing. “The managers didn’t like me running out of the 10 am meeting yesterday.”
“Fortunately, you are the boss, so they can suck it up.”
Amanda laughed a quick bark. “That is true. But if it keeps up, they are going to report back to the US and then all hell will break out.”
“You just tell them you are going to continue to mind their business, so that is all they need to worry about.” Jeffrey set aside the towel he had been drying with to lean over the laptop for emphasis. “I got the kid covered, so nothing else is their business. Get the dates and stuff from the doctor, and I will start working on coming and helping out.”
Amanda sipped her coffee, slowly, the green finally receding. “You shouldn’t need a visa, but work is going to be a chore. And you will need a passport too.”
“Nah, I got a passport already to visit my parents.” He smiled at the camera. “Army brat, remember? And working remotely is fine from the United States or Copenhagen, so I won’t need vacation; just get me an office with a door over there.” Jeffrey stopped and reached out to touch the screen. “I will be there for you.”
Her dark eyes softened, a crooked smile touching her lips, right before her watch started beeping. Amanda tapped it off. “Sorry for the short call today, but hugging the porcelain altar had priority.”
“Well, I appreciate the worship, Mistress Troglodyte.”
“You better,” she threatened before the screen went blank.
Words 487; first published 3/24/2019
The complete Red Mug series:
3/17/19 – Red Mug
3/24/19 – Green Cheeks
3/31/19 – Copenhagen Blue
4/7/19 – Clear Glass
4/14/19 – Gold Bands