Like me, he’d been raised on a farm. He was a man’s man.
So much like my father it hurt sometimes.
“Thought you might not show,” he said as soon as I was out of the car.
“And risk the wrath of Sally?” I said with a chuckle, shoes crunching in the snow.
His laughter was booming. “You know, I’ve experienced it once. A long time ago when I came home later than I should have. I haven’t been a minute late since.”
We were smiling as we headed into the house. A quaint two-story brownstone that held the feeling of history. As soon as the door was open, we were hit with savory aromas. Their house smelled like the best Italian restaurant. I instantly felt relaxed.
I could hear her humming in the kitchen. “Dennis?” Her melodic voice swam through the hallway. “Did you pick up the basil?”
“Yes, dear,” Dennis said as we neared the kitchen.
Sally was in a floral dress with an apron tied around her waist. Her gray curls were wrapped up on top of her head, held back by a handkerchief. She spun when she heard us, a red-coated spatula in hand.
“Ah, Coley, you made it.”
She was the only person in the world who I’d ever let call me Coley. Wrapping my arms around her small frame, I picked her up for a big hug. She was giggling, swatting me on the back the way she always did.
“And here Dennis thought you weren’t going to show… but I know you,” she said, waggling her finger at me. “A heart of gold. All bark and hardly any bite.”
Dennis snorted. “Then you haven’t seen him in a boardroom meeting.”
Sally patted my chest, smiling up at me. How a woman could be as small as her, but fill up the entire room with light was beyond me.
“He doesn’t fool me,” she said with a smirk. “And I bet you aren’t fooling that woman of yours either.”
My head jerked around to Dennis. He looked like he’d just walked himself into a trap. A dog, tail tucked between his legs.
“What do you say I make us a drink. Whiskey?” he asked, trying to seem innocent.
I gave him a burning glare as I nodded.
“Oh, don’t get mad at him. You think that man has a chance of keeping a secret from me?” Sally said as she moved back to the stove. “Besides, I saw how you looked at her at that party of yours.”
The twinkle in her eyes doused any bit of discomfort I felt.
“What’s her name again?”
“Corinne.”
She was grinning. “You’re serious for her, aren’t you?” A giggle. “I shouldn’t even have to ask. Never, in all the time I’ve known you, have you ever been smitten. But the glow is there, in your eyes.”
I didn’t say anything. Partly because I didn’t want to admit it. Partly because I didn’t want more advice on how I should end it. How wrong it was. After the other night with Corinne, seeing the pain she was going through, I knew we were headed for doom. She was stuck in a tug-o-war. Although I could stop it, could keep her from hurting, I wasn’t strong enough to let her go.
I couldn’t give up.
“You know that expression, love always finds a way?” Sally’s gaze softened, reminding me of my mother. “It does. Love is life. Love is a seed planted. If that seed is strong enough, not even the freezing cold could stop it.”
God, I hoped she was right.
“Are you two still over there talking about all that gushy stuff?” Dennis asked a moment later, returning with our drinks.
I was glad for the intervention, not wanting to talk about Corinne. Not when everything was still so messy and confusing.
“Come,” Dennis said, ushering me into the living room. “Let’s watch the game.”
By the time dinner was finished, we were stretched out in our seats on the enclosed back porch, watching the sun set. Dennis had a little too much to drink. He was laughing a lot and talking nonstop… something he did when he was tipsy. Sally didn’t seem to mind as she held his hand, laughing at all his silly antics, wrapped in a thick blanket.
I just soaked it in, grateful I still had family.
“I’m retiring,” Dennis announced a moment later.
My heart thudded to a stop. “You are?”
He nodded. “Yep. Me and Sally are going to do what I promised her we’d do years ago—travel.”
“Paris first,” she said, the stars in her eyes as she squeezed his hand.
“That’s… I’m so happy for you,” I said. “You finally listened to your doctor?”
He chuckled. “Yeah, well, I’m not trying to put myself ten feet under. Not when I still have so much to do.”
Sally patted his hand.
“Who will replace you?” I asked, trying to wrap my mind around his company without him steering the ship.
He snorted. “Replace me? You know that can never happen.”
I chuckled.
There was a small moment of silence, his words sobering the moment. “Cole, the real reason I asked you over is because I wanted to talk about merging.”
It took me a moment to register what he meant. My eyebrows dipped. “But—”
“We’re competition… I know… but I can’t think of a better man to continue my legacy.”
“Dennis, I—”
The smile he wore was expansive and jolly. “You don’t have to say anything. Your shock alone is good enough for me. It’s not often I get to pull one over on you.”
I leaned back in my chair, overwhelmed. Merging two powerhouse companies was the stuff dreams were made of. It was a task I could handle. “You sure?” I asked, mind already buzzing with ideas.
“As sure as shit. But on one condition,” he added, not missing a beat.
I waited.
“My name has to be listed first.”
“Gladman and Blackwater,” I said, smirking. “It has a nice ring to it.”
“That it does,” he said, leaning back. “That it does.”
Chapter 24
Corinne
It was a chilly February morning. I was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping on a cup of coffee, waking up for the day.
Jack was still asleep. He hadn’t come home on time last night. Thursday night.
But for some reason, I didn’t care.
Things hadn’t been the same since the fight.
Seeing Jessica had awoken something in me. Something I’d been denying to myself for far too long. I went along with Jack because I loved him. Because he was a wanderer. Because I didn’t have a backbone.
But that night, I found it.
Every doubt in my marriage I’d tried to ignore. Overlook. They were taking up space in the forefront of my mind more often than not. Before, I’d push them away, just like Mom would tell me to, but now…
Now, I wanted to think for myself.
I didn’t want to ignore the wedge between our marriage anymore. I wasn’t enough for him. That was plain and simple. If I were, his desire to be with someone else wouldn’t have been there.
The question was, what did I do with that knowledge?
File for divorce?
Leave?
Abandon my vows?
My parents would be ashamed. I’d… I’d be ashamed. And… as pathetic and as hard as it was to admit to myself, I’d be left with nothing. No career. No money. Nothing to call my own. Maybe that was where things went wrong. I should have never given up my career. I was good at it. I was happy in it. It gave me something that was my own. A purpose.
I let myself become background noise in his life. An afterthought. I couldn’t place all the blame on him. As much as he gave up, so did I. The fight just wasn’t there. I kept trying to fix something that was already broken.
When a marriage was cracked, the trust lost, couples could do their best to seal the cracks, but they’d always be there, the foundation weaker than it was before. Waiting for the slightest amount of pressure that would crumble it into a thousand pieces.
That was where we’d found ourselves. Our marriag
e on the edge of an abyss, just waiting for the final shove that would send it into oblivion.
I sat my mug down.
I had to get a job, for me.
Later that night, I was reading in our room when Jack stumbled through the door. It was nearing one in the morning. He was drunk. Again. The third time this week.
He tripped over his feet when trying to pry off his shoes, but caught himself on the doorframe, mumbling something incoherent.
“Hey,” he slurred as he tried loosening his tie. It took a few tries before he managed to pull it off and toss it on the floor, then he began unbuttoning his shirt.
“Hi.” I didn’t bother taking my attention from my book. There was no point in it.
“Just hi?” It was a hiss, words slithering from his mouth.
Rolling my eyes, I took in a bracing breath. “How was your night?” I asked, turning the page.
He grunted, the sound sloppy. “Do you even care, Corinne?” The N sound was exaggerated. Elongated with disgust.
I placed my bookmark in, and then set my book on my nightstand. “Jack, please. Not tonight.”
“Jack, please,” he mimicked, squinting his face. Flicking the air.
He plopped down on his side of the bed and unclasped his watch, slamming it on his nightstand. A hiccup, and then, “I want to know his name.”
This again.
I picked my book back up. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—engage.
“Corinne.” Still with the exaggeration.
“Jack,” I said flatly. The syllables a careful warning.
He turned a little until I saw the side of his face. His eyes were glazed over, the muscles in his face slack. “Who is he?”
I didn’t say anything. Just clutched my book, the words on the page blending together.
He spun all the way around, his gaze dark again. “It’s only fair. You’ve seen her. You know who she is. You said no lies.”
“I haven’t lied,” I said calmly, pulse thudding in my ears. “I’m just not giving his name. It’s pointless.”
“So it’s someone I know? Maybe a friend of mine. It has to be. Why else keep the name from me?” He shook his head, and I could feel the air thickening between us. “You know… I can’t even look at my friends straight anymore without worrying it could be them. It’s like this paranoia seeping into everything.”
I sat my book down, trying to calm my racing heart. I wasn’t ready. I didn’t want to lie to him, but I also didn’t want to hurt him, and telling him the truth when he was drunk was a dangerous combination. “It’s not any of your friends.”
His eyes locked on mine, and then clenched tight as if he were trying to calm himself. “Then who?”
Why was he doing this? Tormenting himself? Me? There used to be a time when I’d console him. Fight for him. I just… I didn’t have it in me anymore.
“I think I know who it is,” he continued, the syllables in his words thick. Tangling up in each other.
“I doubt it.” I got up to go to the bathroom. It had become my hiding spot. My escape.
He hiccupped again, leaning back against his pillow. “It’s… it’s Cole Blackwater, isn’t it?” His eyes were heavy, lids drooping as he fought to keep them open.
I froze in place, scared he’d heard my pulse screaming in my ears. He had to have.
“You know, I didn’t notice it at first. The fact he was gone every Thursday. But then he was looking at you…” He drifted off. There was a long pause. I thought maybe he’d fallen asleep. His breathing had slowed.
I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t. If I said no, it would be a lie. If I said yes, then Jack would know it was his boss I was sleeping with, and how would that help the situation?
I crawled back into bed.
“I just wanna know,” he said, stirring, his eyes fastened shut.
I let him wrap his arms around me. Let him fall asleep on my lap, grateful to have dodged the conversation. I prayed he wouldn’t remember come morning. I didn’t want him to suffer.
Chapter 25
Corinne
Valentine’s Day fell on a Thursday. When I woke, I thought I’d feel the romance stirring in my veins, but it felt like any other Thursday.
Thursday had become a disconnect from the real world. A fantasy. Another life I didn’t live with my husband. I’d grown so used to it I barely even thought about him when the day arrived.
Picking through my closet, I felt a stirring of excitement in my stomach. What would Cole have planned? He told me last Thursday that he had a surprise for me. I couldn’t remember the last time I had something to look forward to.
I settled on a pair of jeans and a red cardigan. It was doubtful we’d be getting out, and he told me he liked it better when I dressed down. It was late in the afternoon, so a coat would be needed.
“Hey,” Jack said once he was out of the shower. Moving closer, he kissed me on the cheek. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”
“Same to you,” I said, offering a strange smile. He remembered. That was a first.
“You know… we can skip today… if you want. Maybe catch a movie and go to dinner.”
“You don’t have plans?” I asked, confused. I’d found the small Pandora bag he’d hid in his closet. I hadn’t meant to. I was vacuuming. At first, I was excited. The last time Jack had given me a surprise was years ago. I opened it even though I should have waited. It was my flaw.
Inside was a bracelet with two charms. A bird and an ice cream cone.
My heart had dropped to its knees.
The gelato shop.
It had to be for her.
“I can cancel them,” he said, reaching for my hand. “I just… I want you to be happy. Things have been so tense lately…”
It was strange how his touch did nothing to my skin anymore.
“I am happy,” I said, squeezing his hand. “Go have fun.”
And then, I left.
Cole met me on the elevator with red roses in hand.
I took them, smelling them as the doors slid shut behind me.
“I missed you,” he said, already pinning me to the corner, running his lips down my neck.
“Same.” I dropped the roses. Wrapped a leg around him, kissing him deeply until the elevator dinged and the doors opened.
“You ready for your surprise?” he asked, holding my hand as we headed to the front door.
I was nervous, and I didn’t know why. The kind of nervous that made my blood rush and my skin heat up. Felt unsteady and wobbly, my nerves pumped full of excitement.
When he opened the door, everything was just as it always was.
“Close your eyes,” he said. A moment later, I felt his hands covering them. He walked me forward. Turned a little, and then continued leading me. “Here,” he said, removing his hands.
I opened my eyes. My hand covered my mouth as I gasped. There must have been hundreds of candles lit all around his bedroom. The bed had thousands of red petals scattered across it and on the floor. So many I couldn’t even see the blanket.
“Cole, I—”
He wrapped his arms around my waist. “You’re my red rose. The most beautiful blooming rose.”
I shifted in his arms to kiss him, but this kiss was softer. A thank you. Precious and intimate.
When he pulled away, his smile was glowing. “I’ve also had a bunch of menus sent up from every restaurant in town. You pick, and I’ll call to order in for us.”
Stunned silent, I felt almost taken aback. Like I didn’t deserve this kind of treatment. It was all so much… so perfect.
He laughed when he registered the shock on my face. “I want tonight to be special, Corinne, because you’re special.”
We headed to the kitchen where the menus were scattered across the counter. He left me standing there, shuffling through them, to put on some music. The sultry notes of a saxophone curled through the speakers, wrapping around me like a caress. More candles were lit along the countertop, the subtle sway of the fla
mes soothing.
I narrowed it down to two places. Both I’d been dying to try, but never had because Jack hated seafood.
“Ah… so you’re in the mood for sushi?”
My mouth was already watering. “It’s been a while since I’ve had any.”
He pointed to one of the menus. “They’ve got the best rolls. The freshest, finest quality fish.”
“Then there it is,” I said, handing him the menu so he could pick what he wanted.
Instead, he pulled out his phone and dialed. “Hi. This is Cole Blackwater. I’d like to place an order.” A pause. “Yes. I’ll take one of everything on your menu.” Another pause as my mouth fell open. “Yes. I’ll send my driver. Thank you.”
He closed my mouth.
“You said it’s been a while… might as well try it all.”
I didn’t even want to think about the bill.
He chuckled again. “Corinne… it’s just sushi.”
“Cole, I—”
“I know,” he said, taking my hands in his. “You’re not used to being spoiled. It’s okay. Just enjoy it, okay?”
I nodded, still at a loss for words.
“How about we watch a movie?” he asked, pulling me toward the couch. “Anything in mind?”
I laughed.
“What?”
“You’re going to think it’s funny.”
“Tell me,” he said, already grinning wide.
I was thinking about my conversation with Macy. “Pretty Woman.”
His eyes twinkled as he wrapped his arm around me. “Pretty Woman, it is.”
We were halfway through the movie by the time the food arrived. After pausing it, we moved the coffee table back and spread the many cartons across a sheet on the floor. An indoor picnic with all the finest delights a sushi lover could ask for. We laughed as I struggled to work my chopsticks the right way. Fed each other pieces from our favorite rolls, nodding in delight as the flavors melted on our tongues.