Denny held up his hand and started ticking off his supporting evidence. “First, you’ve been driving yourself to the office every day. You never do that, so that’s a bit suspect. Second, you haven’t been answering your phone when I call—only replying to texts. Third, I’ve never known you to have so many meetings at other locations. People generally come to you, not the other way around. Fourth . . .”
“I get the picture,” Mark acknowledged dryly. “It’s nothing personal; I just haven’t been very good company this week. I did bring you on this trip, though, so it’s not a case of complete avoidance.”
Denny smirked. “I figure that’s mainly because you don’t want to make your own arrangements everywhere you go, but I’ll let it slide.”
Mark looked out the window of the plane as they taxied down the runway and started climbing. When they’d finally reached the correct altitude, he asked softly, “How is she?”
Denny didn’t bother to pretend he didn’t know to whom the question pertained. “She hasn’t called me for anything, but I’ve managed to catch sight of her a few times at the office. She’s been there every day, according to Lydia, but she looks about like you do.”
“Who’s Lydia?” Mark asked, thinking the name sounded familiar, but unable to place it.
Lifting a brow, Denny said, “Crystal’s boss—who, incidentally, I promised you’d put in a good word for her with Jacob in exchange for a little information.”
“Okay,” Mark said automatically, before frowning. “Why would I do that? Oh, never mind, I remember Angel mentioning that Jacob had helped a coworker out with a car problem, and she had been rather taken with him. I’m assuming that was Lydia.”
“I’ve already mentioned it to Jacob and asked that he take one for the team, so he’ll handle that when he’s back in town,” Denny said as if he played matchmaker every day of the week.
“Can we get back to Angel?” Mark said impatiently.
“There isn’t much more to tell.” Denny shrugged. “Lydia said that she hadn’t missed any work but was quiet. She told her that you two were no longer seeing each other, but she didn’t want to talk any further about it. I saw her from a distance in the cafeteria yesterday, and she looked kind of washed-out—like you, actually.” Mark knew that he had dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep. Not holding Angel each night had been a difficult adjustment. Add in the fact that he worried about her almost every hour of the day, and it wasn’t conducive to any type of relaxation.
Mark pinched the bridge of his nose before opening his briefcase and attempting to distract himself with work. “Let’s go through some of these messages that you e-mailed over this morning.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way. Both of you are miserable without each other. Turn the plane around and go to her,” Denny advised earnestly.
Mark stared at his cousin, torn between the urge to hug him for caring and to choke him for meddling. Instead, he went the direct route that Denny couldn’t argue with. “Has my situation changed at all in the last week?”
Denny knew what—or whom—he was talking about immediately. “No,” he answered quietly, “not that I’m aware of.”
“And is that likely to happen?” Mark continued to drive his point home.
“Probably not,” Denny acknowledged.
“Then why are we still talking about it? You, better than anyone, know how bad it can get when my father goes on a real bender. He was fairly mild on Sunday, all things considered. Would you want to inflict that on your girlfriend or wife on a regular basis?”
Instead of answering the question, Denny growled, “I fucking hate this!”
“As do I,” Mark agreed. And truer words were never spoken. Instead of it getting easier without Angel, each day was worse to endure than the previous. He walked around feeling as if his shoes were made of lead and bullet holes riddled his heart. Work was his only escape, and he’d been at it like a maniac. When he was so tired, though, that he couldn’t go a moment longer, he’d remember how she looked that morning when she begged him not to walk away. She was the first woman in his life to say I love you to him, and he’d left her behind as if she didn’t matter. He was raw and gutted. In order to keep the light burning within her, he’d completely extinguished his own, and he had no idea if it would ever burn for anyone other than her again.
• • •
Crystal looked up as her office door opened. She plastered on a smile, but inwardly groaned as both Mia and Gwen walked in. God, she couldn’t handle another relationship postmortem right now. She was barely hanging on as it was. At least after the first day, Lydia had done her a favor and had not mentioned Mark again, even though she could see the concern in the woman’s eyes. “Hey, you two,” she said brightly. If you can’t dazzle them with brilliance, then baffle them with bullshit, she thought to herself. That was a saying she’d relied on a lot in the last week. Smiling and pretending everything was perfectly fine—when it was anything but.
“Oh God, she’s doing it again,” Mia groaned to Gwen. “It’s starting to kind of freak me out.”
“Me too,” Gwen whispered back loud enough for Crystal to hear, before turning to stare at her. “Honey, we don’t want to rain on your happy train, but we’re a bit worried about you.”
Crystal thought that statement was a bit comical, since Gwen looked as if she’d swallowed a beach ball and was presently rubbing her back while looking at Crystal in concern. “Shouldn’t I be saying that to you?” she asked, with real amusement this time.
“She’s deflecting.” Mia sighed. “It’s worse than I thought.”
Crystal bit her lip, trying to stay in her carefree zone while faced with her friend’s attempts to push her into reality. “I really should get back to work,” she said, pointing to the stack of papers on the corner of her desk. “Lydia needs this done by the afternoon.”
“We talked to her on the way in,” Gwen inserted. “She said to take all the time you needed.” To punctuate the fact that they weren’t leaving, each of the women took a seat in front of her desk and settled in. Shit.
Desperately grasping at straws, Crystal pointed out, “I don’t think we should be having a long personal conversation at work. We could meet up later and talk.”
Mia nodded. “Ordinarily, I’d agree, but since you’ve been blowing us off for days, obviously that isn’t going to happen. You run out of here like your ass is on fire in the afternoon and somehow manage to get by us in the lobby each morning. Then you hardly answer your phone in the evenings, or your door for that matter. So this is our last resort.”
“Honey, we’re worried about you,” Gwen added softly. “You told us about Mark on Monday, but after that, you’ve buried yourself in here. The few times one of us has managed to see you, you’ve been effusively happy, which we know is bullshit.”
Crystal had the words of denial on the tip of her tongue. She was all ready for a glib reply with a big smile for reassurance. Which was why she was so baffled when she opened her mouth and blurted out, “I’m dying inside without him. When my friends said stuff like that in high school, I thought they were pathetic. Now I understand the meaning of those words all too well. I’m working, eating some, and sleeping for the most part. I’m alive and doing most everything that I normally would, but a part of me isn’t there anymore. Which seems absurd, even to my ears, considering Mark and I were barely together a month. It wasn’t long enough to fall in love . . . was it?” she asked, needing someone to be the voice of reason, because it apparently wasn’t her right now.
Mia leaned forward to grip Crystal’s hand, stopping her from nervously shredding papers on the desk. “I knew Seth was different from anyone else I’d ever dated almost from the start. It took me a while longer to admit it, but it was what I consider love at first sight.” Smacking her lips, she grinned. “Well, maybe lust, followed quickly by the other L word.”
“Yep, me too,” Gwen agreed. “I was drawn to Dominic even while I was dating Mac.
If I’m honest, I may not have wanted to admit it at the time, but it was always him. When we were finally together as a couple, I knew in my heart that I was in love with him. I was scared because my romantic life had always been something of a disaster. But I know exactly what you’re saying about missing a part of yourself. “
“I think the next question here is what do you intend to do about it?” Mia demanded. “Mark may have some full-blown crazy in his family, but so do you, Crys.”
“No offense,” Gwen added sheepishly. “I’m sure your mother has her good days. . . .”
Shaking her head with a smile, despite herself Crystal said, “Um—no, she really doesn’t.”
“All righty, then.” Mia stood and began pacing the small office. “So you’ll talk to her and then move on to Mark’s parents. If you can show them all that you won’t be cowering in the corner like some wallflower, then Mark’s concerns won’t matter. He’ll know you’re capable of kicking ass and taking names whenever you want. Maybe we could even get you some of those platform boots—kind of like a uniform, or . . .”
Slashing her hands in a cutting motion, Gwen looked at Mia and said, “Rein it in, Rambo. I think Crystal gets the point. There’s no need for us to dress her like Xena the Warrior Princess.”
Crystal waited until their bickering had subsided before saying, “I can deal with my mother, but Mark’s parents? I have no clue where to even find them if I wanted to. Plus, his father would probably squash me like a bug.”
“Oh, screw that old goat,” Mia snapped. “Why don’t you talk to his cousin—what’s his name? Kenny?”
“Denny,” Crystal answered absently. Pushing a hand through her hair, she stared at her friends before finally blowing out a breath. “Let me think about it, okay? I don’t want to take a bad situation and make it worse.”
“Absolutely,” Gwen encouraged softly. “Give it some thought and let us know how we can help you. Just don’t give up, Crys. I’ve seen you and Mark together, and you’re perfect for each other. You click.”
After the other women had left with promises to check on her later, Crystal relaxed back in her chair and thought of their suggestion to confront the three people responsible for taking Mark away from her. She’d never been a person who dealt well with conflict. As much as it pained her to admit it, Mark was correct in the respect that it would be hard on her if his parents continued to attack her. But she had learned that she wanted to be with someone who could meet her needs, both physically and emotionally. What it all boiled down to was she would either have to be stronger than she’d ever imagined possible or leave him without a fight so that he could someday find another woman who was willing to fight for him. And, oh, how the last thought stung.
Chapter Twenty-two
A charity fund-raiser was the last place that Mark wanted to be. He stood off to the side of the banquet room, brooding as he drank ridiculously expensive scotch from fine crystal. It had always seemed ironic to him that fund-raisers served only the best to help the less fortunate. Hell, why didn’t they just have a simple gathering and donate the event money? It would probably be enough to feed the homeless of Charleston for months.
He had already dropped off a check from the DeSanto Group and was preparing to make his exit when a hand wrapped around his arm. “Mark, I thought that was you,” said a vaguely familiar female voice. Turning, he gave his first genuine smile of the evening as Margot Rush beamed up at him. They’d grown up together and had connected from time to time when he was in town. She was a gorgeous woman, but he’d never had the desire to sleep with her, and luckily, she’d always felt the same. Much like his relationship with Ava Stone, Margot was a friend who he enjoyed spending time with when their paths crossed.
“It’s good to see to see you again, beautiful.” He grinned as he pulled her into an embrace before dropping a brief kiss on her upturned lips. That affectionate gesture was as far as it ever went with them. It felt comforting and familiar, which he very much appreciated tonight. As they stood catching up on each other’s lives, he could almost pretend for a moment that he wasn’t a truly miserable fuck. Seeing her tonight could well save him from another evening of staring at the walls at home and missing Angel. Maybe the tide was beginning to turn for him.
• • •
Crystal stood before the double doors of the Oceanix penthouse suite. Her stomach roiled, and she fought the urge to throw up in the opulent hallway. Ever since Denny had called to let her know that, strangely enough, the DeSantos were still in Myrtle Beach, she’d wanted to call a halt to this crazy plan to get Mark back. Really, how much of her would possibly be left after Marcus DeSanto chewed her up and spit her out? Denny had offered to accompany her, but that wouldn’t be the same. She would still be depending on someone else to fight her battles. Even if things went south—which they were likely to—at least she’d have the comfort of knowing that she’d tried.
So, taking a deep breath, she stood ramrod straight and knocked on the door. When it opened, she felt her shoulders slump slightly at the sight of Celine DeSanto staring at her in shock. Finally, her good manners appeared to kick in and she said smoothly, “This is surprising. Crystal, isn’t it?” Then looking around, she asked in confusion, “Is Mark with you?”
“No, he isn’t,” Crystal replied. “I wondered if I could speak to you for a few moments.”
Celine looked uncertain before glancing behind her and lowering her voice. “Give me five minutes and I’ll meet you in the coffee shop in the lobby.”
Please tell me she won’t be bringing her husband, Crystal prayed inwardly as she took the elevator back down to the bottom floor. She walked past some of the swank boutiques before finding the place that Celine had indicated. She ordered a vanilla latte and found a quiet table in the corner.
Surprisingly, Celine was on time, and after giving her a nod of acknowledgment, she bought a drink for herself, and then slowly approached, pulling out a chair. Crystal had to give the other woman credit. Even on short notice, she looked cool, elegant, and polished. Plus, she could have easily passed for Mark’s sister rather than his mother. Her hair didn’t appear to have any gray and her figure was one that most women would envy. Aside from her coloring, though, it was her eyes that resembled her son the most. Striving to keep the quaver from her voice, Crystal said, “Thank for you agreeing to see me. I know I should have called first, but . . .”
“You wanted to have the upper hand?” Celine inserted, looking faintly amused and maybe a tad impressed. Although possibly that was wishful thinking on Crystal’s part.
“I had hoped it would make it more difficult to turn me away,” Crystal corrected before adding, “But a phone call would have certainly been easier, I think.”
Celine picked up her coffee and took a sip before leveling another direct look at her. “You’re here about what happened at Mark’s, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I am,” she agreed without hesitation. “You see, I love your son and he loves me. But that scene with your husband was the catalyst that split us apart.”
The other woman swallowed audibly before picking up her cup once again with an unsteady hand. “I didn’t want to come that day. I tried my best to talk Marcus out of it, but as usual, he acted without thinking it through.” Looking at Crystal with eyes that seemed to plead for understanding, she continued. “I’ve loved Marcus for most of my life. We were best friends before he finally saw me as more. And since that moment, we’ve rarely been apart for more than a day. Loving him doesn’t mean that I’m blind to his demons. It’s because of them that I never planned to have children.” When Crystal gasped, Celine smiled sadly. “I love my son, but I realized early on that Marcus and I didn’t lead a life that would make us good parents. Unfortunately, though, sometimes things don’t turn out as you plan. One oversight on our part led to a surprise pregnancy, and nine months later, Mark was born.”
“What happened afterward?” Crystal prodded when the other woman paused as if lost in
time.
“For a while, things were good,” Celine said. “Marcus wasn’t drinking as much and seemed to dote on Mark. Then as our son got older and turned into some kind of child prodigy, things went downhill. Marcus’s father picked up on Mark’s intelligence, and that turn of events signaled the end of the peace in our household. From then on, Marcus mostly ignored his son, but as he got older, they began butting heads. As that became a regular occurrence, Marcus’s drinking picked up as well. Then, when the DeSanto Group was left to Mark, that was it. Since then, I’ve watched the husband I love play a cat-and-mouse game with the son I’ve never known how to save.”
Crystal’s head was spinning as Celine finished the summary of Mark’s life. From the boy who was never wanted to the man who no one had ever stood up for. It broke her heart. He’d been defending himself since he was a child, and now he was trying to protect her in the only way he knew how. Oh, my love. Crystal didn’t think she had anything to lose by being completely honest with Celine, so she admitted, “Mark left me because he doesn’t want his father to inflict the same pain on me that he has on him. He’s afraid that I’ll grow to hate him after a while and can’t bear the thought.”
Celine gave up all pretense of drinking her coffee. For the first time, Crystal thought the woman probably looked close to her real age. There was a fatigue about her now that had little to do with sleep. She was a woman who had buried her head in the sand for years and was now having to face the consequences of her actions. “I don’t know what to do,” she murmured. “I’m tired of living this way, but Marcus would implode fully without me. We both have our own . . . lives at times, but we always come back to each other.”
“How about your son?” Crystal snapped, tired of hearing excuses made for the older man. Had anyone even considered some tough love where he was concerned? God knows giving her mother some of that was next up on her agenda.