Chapter Twenty-Seven
Anthony
I still keep my head up as I carry the cardboard box with my few possessions from what used to be my office to the elevator. My cheeks burn as I walk past desk after desk, knowing that everyone will know everything, if they don’t already. Open office doors reveal people who must’ve heard Dad’s tirade, and they’re at least trying to make it look like they’re not straining for a look at me as I leave in defeat. Same thing for the heads popping up over the tops of cubicles. And just twenty minutes ago they were congratulating me. Life turns on a dime.
I can’t let myself relax until I’m in the elevator with the doors closed. Nobody can see me in there. I don’t have to pretend not to care what they think. Normally, I wouldn’t. I really wouldn’t. But this on top of everything else, it’s just too much to smile my way through.
At least my car is waiting for me at the curb. I wouldn’t want to wait around on Madison Avenue holding a box full of office supplies, hoping for a cab. I’d be the universal symbol for somebody who just got canned.
“Anthony!” I hear my name and turn to find Chloe rushing to me. “I hoped I would catch you.”
I force myself not to snap at her. “What do you want? I’m not really in the mood to talk.”
“What if it’s about Jane?”
That gets my attention and sends my pulse racing. “What is it?”
“I noticed she didn’t come in this morning. I guess she’ll never be back.”
“No. She quit.” I shake my head. “Anyway, it’s not like it matters, because she wouldn’t have a job now that I’m fired.”
Chloe frowns. “She quit? But she loved her job.”
“Yeah, well, sometimes things just don’t work out, do they?” I can’t rehash this with her, and definitely not on the sidewalk.
“Did you do something to screw it up again?”
“Did I?” I can’t help but laugh.
Her expression doesn’t shift as she puts her hands on her hips. “Yeah. Did you? Because I know how much she cares about you. She wouldn’t have quit on you if you hadn’t done something to really ruin things.”
I sigh. She’d hear it from Jane anyway. “She saw a picture of me and my ex kissing. Some asshole paparazzi snapped it about an hour before you guys found me at the club. It turned into some whole big thing and ended with her walking out.”
“Dammit.” She wraps her arms around her thin body to protect against the cold air, but she doesn’t go back inside. She must really care.
“It’s over. I have to resign myself to that.”
“No! You can’t give up that easily.”
“Chloe, you don’t know. Okay? You just don’t.” My voice gets sharp.
“What don’t I know?” she shouts over the noise of the traffic going up and down the street.
“You don’t know how she looked. I broke her heart. I didn’t mean to, I swear to God. I wouldn’t hurt her for anything in the world, but I did because I’m a selfish bastard.” I’m surprised to feel my eyes burning. “I…I love her.”
Her face softens. “Then you have to fight for her.”
I shake my head even though this is eerily similar to what Jane said. That as soon as things were tough, I ran. Still... “It’s a waste of time, Chloe. She made it pretty clear that she never wants to see me again.”
“Anthony.” She reaches out, putting a hand on my arm. “Did she tell you what happened to her when she was a kid?”
That sick feeling in my stomach comes rushing back, followed by the rage that made me track down that bastard uncle. I nod.
“That closed her off to men and relationships. She’s been afraid ever since. Until now.”
“Until me, you mean.” I feel lower than dirt as I remember the trust she put in me...and then how I threw her past back in her face like a spoiled brat.
“Yes. Until you.” Chloe looks me straight in the eye with the sort of no-nonsense stare that tells me she won’t take any shit from me. “Which means if you really love her like you say you do, you have to fight for her. Prove that she can trust you.”
I can’t help but shake my head. “It’s not that easy. This isn’t the movies. What am I supposed to do?”
“Go to her, you idiot! Let her know that you choose her. Show her what she means to you. Don’t just tell her. Do whatever you have to do for her to know that you’re in this with her. That you’ll do whatever it takes. She’s too important to let slip through your fingers, Anthony.”
“I know that,” I snap. “You don’t have to tell me.”
“Apparently I do, or you’d already be on your way to her apartment.” She spins on her heel and stalks back toward the door.
Damn.
I turn back to the car and know I have a decision to make. I can go home and lick my wounds, mope around like a little kid who hadn’t gotten his way, or I can fight for the woman I love.
It’s a no-brainer.
Twenty minutes later, I jump out of the car and run all the way up to Jane’s apartment. I have to talk to her, face-to-face. I have to prove to her that her trust isn’t misplaced. That I’m done running just because something is difficult. That I can be the man she deserves.
“Jane?” I’m practically banging the door down, but no one’s answering.
“Hey!” I turn at the sound of a semi-hostile voice in the hall. “What are you trying to do? Break in?” The woman is older, heavyset, and wears the sort of expression that tells me she doesn’t take shit from anyone.
“Sorry, ma’am. I was looking for Jane.”
“She left.”
My heart drops. “Left? Like, left for good?”
“No.” She rolls her eyes. “I mean left for an appointment or something. I was coming in with my groceries when she was leaving. She almost knocked me over when she ran past, down the hall. And she’s usually such a polite girl.”
I frown. “What was the hurry? Did she say?”
“Something about going to the office. An offer she couldn’t refuse, I don’t know.” The woman waves a dismissive hand. “Like that makes up for being rude.”
I absently thank the woman, but she’s already closing her door. I’d been so ready to work things out that Jane’s absence threw me for a loop. An offer she couldn’t refuse. What’s that supposed to mean?