Sleeping With The CEO
Chapter 73: Going Herbal

Chapter 73: Going Herbal

Emily, an eternal cynic when it came to a lot of things sleep-related ( which was to be expected seeing just how many had failed her) had long since looked at herbal remedies as myths. If chewing on a piece of root could solve all of her problems, then taking the concentrated thing in pill form would have long ago managed to cure her of the nightmares that plagued her every night.

But now she was desperate, as in, really really desperate, and desperation did to her what it did to most people. It made her begin to doubt her own logic, her own reasoning. It made her look at things that she had always clung to as facts and go...maybe, just maybe I might have been wrong.

Perhaps if I give this wild idea a go, it will help me out. Maybe if I try it I will find that I was just being biased and that I could have been enjoying the benefits of this thing that I have been dismissing for years.

That was the logic that Emily was using when she finally bit the bullet and walked into a herbalist’s shop. She did not just walk into the first random one that she came across. No, her sleep was too important for her to just wing it.

So she had done her research first, going through reviews and ratings online. She had searched until she had finally found a shop that a lot of people seemed to have nothing but good things to say when they talked about it.

And from the moment that Emily walked in, she understood why. The place felt...alive. There were actual plants, living plants, not just their cut-off bits, flowers in all their glorious colors out of full display. The light from outside streaming in from the giant windows up front.

It felt like taking a walk in an actual forest rather than walking into a building. Emily instantly liked it. What she did not like, however, was the fact that she could not see any workers around. Who was she supposed to ask when she needed something? No sooner had she thought that, there was a laugh from behind some giant leaves.

"Come on back here, sweet sugar, I do not bite," There was a slight rasp to the voice, one that came with age, and Emily’s guess of the woman being older was proven right when she pulled back the leaf.

Ayo, as she introduced herself, was old, her short hair completely white, contrasting nicely with her dark skin, her smile big, showing off the front tooth that she was missing, and she had been doing a lot of smiling ever since her eyes had settled on Emily.

Originally Emily had come in just for some tea. But she somehow ended up seated next to Ayo on the floor, chewing on a sweet leaf that Ayo had plucked from a nearby plant.

There was no talking, just Ayo randomly picking this bark, and that branch and crushing it all together with her mortar and pestle. Done with her leaf, Emily decided that it was time to get back on track.

"I-" But she was quickly shushed, Ayo going back to humming as she worked, and despite the fact that she was a paying customer and should be affronted, Emily found herself going quiet without complaint. A few more minutes of working passed, and then Ayo stopped, her smile back when she looked at Emily.

"There now, child, there is no need for you to say anything. I know the look of a person chased by night terrors when I see them," Emily was gobsmacked...what?! How had she known? Was it that obvious? Did everyone know? What if her mom already knew and was just staying quiet? Worrying every night because she too did not want to burden Emily, the same way that Emily was staying quiet to try and shield her mom. What if...

Her spiraling thoughts stopped when a hand slipped into hers.

"Take this," Ayo said, and Emily found herself holding the same mixture that Ayo had been making, it was placed in a little jar for her convenience.

"I am not very good at a lot of things. But the one gift that I do have, is the gift of reading people. And I could tell from the moment that you walked in that it has been many years since you have known a peaceful night’s sleep. Your body tires, yes, but so too does your soul," Warm hands cupped her face, and Ayo looked her straight in the eye, cataracts were forming in the old woman’s eyes, but somehow, Emily had never felt more seen than in the few seconds where their gazes were locked. When the moment ended, Ayo pulled away, she readjusted her loose robe like dress and turned her back to Emily. Leaning over, she turned her focus to a little plant that reminded Emily of a venus fly trap. Was it even legal to have those? Deciding she did not want to know either way, Emily looked around the store. Only turning back when Ayo cleared her throat. Then without looking back, she began to speak.

"Brew this and drink it once a day. It tastes and smells a tad too citrusy, but you will get used to it. I cannot take away your night terrors, they are much too much, even for me. Drink this, and you will not feel so drained during the day, but the tea will only hold for so long. Face your truth, that is the only way to get rid of your nightmares,"

Emily walked out of the store feeling both cheated and healed.

She had come in to buy some random tea to help her get some sleep. The store owner had admitted up front that she could not help, and yet Emily had still bought her concoction.

And...face your truth? What did that mean?

As she walked away from the shop, Emily did not see the customer that walked in shortly after her. And Derek Haven did not see her either.