Soft Wife Life

Chapter 1

Sydney

As much as possible, I let my right-hand man, Tom, handle most of the transactions because it’s just plain boring for me. I'd rather go to a casino and gamble, drink liquor, and have sex. That’s much more fun and exciting.

Right now, I’m watching as he’s having a hard time settling things with this female client. I don’t know if he’s distracted by her looks, or if he still doesn’t know how to handle transactions like this.

For Christ's sake! He’s been with me for so long. Why can’t he do just this one thing right?

I make my way toward them because I’m getting tired of watching Tom messing things up. This stupid guy can’t even handle a woman like her.

The client looks hesitant. I even heard her tell him a while ago that she’d give it some time to consider as she has a lot of other options. Basically, she’s saying that everything that Tom’s saying is not that convincing.

Well, I can’t let this be a failed deal. I need to step in and talk to her myself.

The client sees me walking toward them and is now looking at me intently. I can’t blame her. I easily get anyone I want because of my looks alone.

"Hi. I’m sorry about him. It’s his first day," I lie to cover up Tom’s mess. I give him a signal to leave the room, then I sit right next to our client.

I lean closer to her and a grin sneaks along my lips. "So... how can I help you?" I tilt my head to scan her, making her fidget in her seat.

It takes her a while before she finally answers. At that moment, I knew I got her. "Uhm, about your guns..."

"Yes?" I say in a low voice, placing my hands on hers and gently brushing it with my thumb.

I hear her gasp, making my lips curl up more.

We continue talking in that position, and after a few minutes, I’m able to convince her and make her sign a deal with our company. She was impressed with me and showered me with a couple of compliments.

Of course, I’m the CEO of Sharpe Guns and Ammo. I don’t let a single transaction go to waste.

"So, is that all, Ms. Zoe? Thank you for trusting us," I say, resting my hand on her elbow.

"Yes. Thank you, Mr. Sharpe. Call me for updates about our deal," she replies, giving me her calling card.

"Tom, please escort our beautiful client outside," I call. I give her a wink before he enters and assists her to the exit.

After the lady gets out of the mansion, Tom comes back and enters the room again. "Woah... I don’t know if I should be glad or not that you’re my boss. You’re a professional manipulator."

I smirk. "You have a lot of reasons to be glad I’m your boss, Tom," I reply.

He shakes his head at me, and I ignore him. I toss the calling card that the lady gave me earlier into a glass dome full of different cards from clients like her who are smitten by me. When I’ve got nothing to do, I randomly pick a card from that bowl and call whoever it is on that card to have some fun.

***

We’ve been doing business all day. I suddenly feel like going to my usual gambling spot to relieve some stress and have some fun.

I take a bath and change my clothes. This is what I’m looking forward to every day. Going out and enjoying life.

Tom and my henchmen will be going with me, so I book a private room and invite a few people to play with.

"Ahh... finally. This is life," I say as we enter the private room of my favorite casino.

From that moment, all we did was have fun and gamble. I’m playing Texas Hold’em with the people I invited, and as usual, I always win. I’m Sydney Sharpe, and I always get what I want.

We’re now doing another round since they say they want to try and beat me. The dealer opens the last card, the river, and it’s an ace of hearts. The other face-up cards are a three of spades, a seven of diamonds, a four of hearts, and a king of spades.

The only players left are me and this man in front of me. He looks at me, trying to check my reaction.

“All-in,” he says as he pushes all his chips forward.

“Call,” I reply. I have nothing to lose, even if I don’t win this round.

We both show our hands. I watch as he opens his cards, and he has a three of clubs and a five of clubs, giving him a pair. While I have an ace of diamonds and a six of clubs, so I have a pair as well.

But because my pair is higher...

"I win!"

"I think you’re cheating," he says, looking at me with brows furrowed. “How can you always win?”

I snort. "Why do you say so? You’re just not good." I smirk at him and I raise my glass of liquor to tease him. I collect the chips on my side of the table with a grin.

Oh! How I love seeing the face of misery and frustration with every person who loses to me. It’s a sight to see. “Don’t blame me for your incompetency. It’s not my fault that you can’t beat me,” I add.

He can’t seem to stand it, so he walks out, and the room is filled with laughter.

We continue to play, gamble, and drink with the hookers in our room. Tom and my henchmen are also having fun playing poker and enjoying the night.

I’m drinking my liquor when one of the girls leans her face closer to mine, so we start kissing. 

This is what I want. To have fun.

Chapter 2

Haley

Everyone is passing by hurriedly.

It’s a busy day at the emergency room. It’s always like this, but the case today is a bit different. Children of ages ranging from four to eight years old were rushed here; they seem to have food poisoning.

I am now taking a quick water break at our nurses' station after working double shifts today.

"You okay?" asks Kristine, one of my friends at the hospital. I look at her and nod while taking a deep breath in and out. "You’re working double shifts, right? When will you be off?"

"Yeah," I answer and smile at her. "I’ll be off in a while. My working hours are done, and I’m just resting before heading home."

To be honest, I felt like I was losing my breath, so I came to the nurse station after making rounds and aiding my patients’ needs.

I make rounds frequently during my shifts and check the patients every hour to monitor and see if they need anything and what the progress of their recovery is. There are also times that I help in the emergency room whenever needed.

And that’s how my work as a nurse usually is.

I feel so tired, but I like it this way. I always want to keep myself busy, even though it means that I’m spending more time here in the hospital than in my apartment.

Even on my rest days, I’m still working. That’s why I usually get nagged by my friends for being hard-working.

Sighing, I get up and prepare to leave the station. I can finally go home.

Suddenly, a doctor comes over to us and interrupts my departure. "Is there someone here who can stay for another shift? We’re badly in need of nurses. The number of children being rushed to the emergency room is increasing, and we need a hand."

Looking around, I can see that we really do have very few nurses available for the day. "I can work another shift, Doc. The patients need us," I volunteer, nodding.

The doctor nods back as he looks at me. "Great! Let’s go," he says hastily.

I see more nurses rushing to the emergency room, and we do the same. Everyone’s in a hurry to accommodate and help the patients that are continuously coming in.

When we got to the emergency room, I’m shocked to see the situation.

Many children lie in hospital beds, crying in agony. It breaks my heart to see them suffer. They’re too young.

There are still more arriving, and I’m afraid there won’t be enough beds for them.

I quickly approach one of the children vomiting and assist her. I hand her a glass of water and make her sip a little to avoid dehydration.

"Can you tell where you are hurting?" I ask.

The child does not respond and continues to groan. One of the doctors approaches us, and he starts assessing the child's symptoms and makes her drink some medicine. I then inject an IV fluid to help alleviate the symptoms and pain she is feeling.

Afterward, I run to wash my hands and assist another patient who is continuously vomiting and whimpering in pain.

***

I’m walking toward the nurses’ station to drink some water... again. My third shift is now over, and I’m dead tired from working in the emergency room.

"You look like you’ll pass out any minute," Louis comments after seeing me. He’s also one of my friends. He, Kristine, and I are close, and I’m happy to have people like them who always have my back.

I sit on the empty chair and start massaging my temples. I feel so exhausted.

"Yeah. I’ll probably pass out in bed later," I reply, chuckling.

After a few moments of rest, I get up to gather my belongings and head home.

My stomach is aching, but my body hurts more. "I want to eat... but I just want to lay in bed," I murmur to myself.

Today is absolutely nerve-wracking. I’m glad we were able to pull it off and respond to the patient's needs. I really hope those children will recover soon. It must have been so hard for them.

As I reach my apartment, I can see a man lying on my doorstep.

I sigh, realizing that it’s my drunkard father. "What are you doing there?" I ask in a low voice.

I’m so tired after today, and I was hoping to have a little rest, but now, I need to take care of him.

"Come on, Dad. Get up," I say as I help him stand up. He’s so heavy.

When we finally got inside the apartment, I guide him to lie on the sofa. "Dad, I told you not to drink too much."

Shaking my head, I go to the bathroom to get a damp towel. I’m used to this; I’ve been taking care of him since I was twelve.

Even if he’s like this, I still love him so much.

"Next time, don’t drink too much. What if something bad happens to you?" I keep talking to him even though I know he won’t respond and is fast asleep.

After covering him with a blanket so he won’t get cold, I make my way to my room and change my clothes to rest.

This is my everyday routine.

I lie in my bed and look at the ceiling, my thoughts getting louder in my head.

I only have three hours until my next shift, but here I am, eyes wide open.

But I’ll survive. I’m used to living like this. I wear out my body from working, taking care of my father, and resting for a bit before working again.

I've worked so hard my entire life. I’m already twenty-eight years old, but I've never felt free or experienced what people my age do. I’m just stuck with my usual routine.

Maybe my story is just starting.

I smile at the thought.

Someday, I know that my story will be great, and I’ll have my happy ending.