Chapter Twenty-One

Isaac

That ugly monster that gnawed the inside of my gut wouldn’t cease. I loved my time with Maddie, and that fucking little monster inside of me wanted to constantly remind me that she wasn’t mine, she never was, and after she finds out the truth, she never will be.

My fist clenched tight, and I slammed it hard against my mahogany desk, alerting Beth to my agitated state. “What is it?” she asked, standing in my doorway with a look of fear in her eyes.

“I fucking hate myself, so I know she’s gonna hate me too,” I groaned.

Beth moved into the office, offering a hand on my shoulder, and a warm smile. “If it’s meant to be, it will be,” she spouted a fucking cliché that had never done me, or anyone else, any good.

“I wish it were that easy,” I sighed, turning to my partner, my friend. We had always had a professional relationship, never mixing personal life at the office, but now she was the only one that knew my secret, so I relied on her for support, comfort, and guidance. “She remembered that she loved me, back when we were in school, and on her trip here,” I revealed.

Beth took a step back, her head tilted to the side like a confused puppy, and her eyes narrowed on mine. “She actually remembered that?” she gasped.

“Yes. I’m so fucking stupid. If only I had been honest, maybe she would have trusted me anyway, and we would be together, forever,” I complained.

“Well, not much that can be done about that,” she said.

“Two more days until Christmas, and then it’s over. It could’ve been forever, but now it’s over in two fucking days,” I roared, slamming my fist back down on the hard desk.

“You don’t know that. If she truly loves you, she’ll remember that. Don’t think the worse,” Beth consoled.

I took a deep breath, knowing that she might be right. I doubted it highly, but there was a chance. “I have to close that case for Gallo before New Year’s Eve, and I’ve gotten nowhere, so maybe I need to postpone the trip anyway,” I blurted.

“I tried calling you last night, but you didn’t answer. I got the info Mr. Gallo needed,” she beamed, holding a red folder in her hand.

My heart sank deep as I took the folder, realizing that was my only excuse. I guess I could make up one; it’s not like I’ve been honest about much else lately. “So, is she another whore?” I snarled.

“On the contrary, she has actually cleaned up her act entirely,” Beth smiled.

I wasn’t sure why she thought that was such a good thing. If Paul Gallo got hitched, to a woman he trusted, then we’d stand to lose accounts from him at least six times a year, more when he was feeling really frisky.

“How can you prove someone is not doing something wrong?” I chuckled, amused by her positivity this morning.

“I tapped her phone, hacked into her cell and have gotten every call, text or social media post she’s had for the last six months, well before she met Paul. She’s clean, and she actually loves this guy. I even saw a text where her mother drooled over her daughter hooking up with money, and Tatiana’s response was, ‘I’ll sign a prenup if we marry, just so you won’t be able to badger me for money. I love him, and I don’t care if he had ten cents to his name.’ Strange, right?” she shook her head.

“Wow. I guess there is true love out there,” I laughed.

“Yes, there is, and it always prospers,” Beth smirked.

“Stop with the fuckin’ clichés already,” I insisted.

“Knock, knock,” Maddie mimicked her tap on the door. “Are you busy?” she asked, moving towards my office.

“Not at all. Thanks to Beth and her super skills, I don’t have a job today, or for the rest of the week for that matter.” I smiled at Maddie and then winked at Beth.

“Good, maybe I can steal you away early then,” Maddie grinned a little too eagerly.

“Did you walk here alone?” I questioned.

“Yes,” she sighed, obviously ready for my lecture.

“I know you can handle yourself, but I just worry. You could’ve called, and I would have come and picked you up,” I insisted.

“It’s like six blocks, eight at most,” Maddie giggled and shot Beth a knowing look, which made her giggle as well. Women, do they all just bond together because they have tits?

I wasn’t going to win this argument, that was clear with Beth jumping in to scold me for treating Maddie like a four-year-old.

She was holding something behind her back, something that looked like an envelope. “What is that?” I asked.

She pulled it from her back to the front and smiled wildly. “The invitation,” she bounced as she talked. “I want to go,” she pleaded.

It was hard to resist the most beautiful woman in the entire world, especially when she pushed her pouty lip out and batted those baby blues. “Why do you want to go to this? It’s a snorefest,” I protested.

“It really is,” Beth agreed. Thank you, Beth, for finally fuckin’ having my back!

“I don’t care; I want to go. We need to do something fun,” she whined.

Fuck!

“We haven’t had any fun?” I teased, moving closer to her with my hands opened and ready to grip her. She giggled as I snatched her by the waist and pulled her into me. “The sunset wasn’t fun?” I whispered in her ear.

She squirmed in my arms, pulling out of my embrace. “That was just us. I want to do something more social, with other people,” she insisted.

“Baby, this is a charity thing. I went years ago when a buddy from the force roped me into it, but not since. I may not even know anyone there. That’s why it’s addressed to just me; I get one every year, and every year I toss it in the trash,” I explained, hoping that may change her mind.

“Good, because I certainly won’t know anyone there. I don’t know anyone anywhere I go,” she laughed. It was the first time I’d ever seen her laugh at her problem. It was refreshing. She was happy, truly happy, so who was I to deny her more happiness in life? Hadn’t she had enough turmoil? Wasn’t she ready to face more, possibly worse than she’d already endured?

“Okay, fine,” I gave in.

Maddie squealed with delight, bouncing up and down with the invitation still gripped in her fingers. Beth rolled her eyes. “It really is boring,” she sighed.

“I need to find something to wear,” Maddie immediately blurted out once her bouncing stopped.

“What about your beautiful red dress? I love that dress,” I beamed.

Maddie shook her head and grinned in my direction. “Yes, I know how much you love that dress, but I want something new,” she insisted. “I can contact my bank and have them wire me money,” she smirked.

“That will take days; just take my card. Besides, all of your identification is missing, and anything you’d need to get it is back is in Portland,” I reminded her.

“Why did I leave everything behind if I was coming to stay?” she questioned.

“Because I was going to travel back with you to pack,” I quickly answered with a lie, another fuckin’ lie.

“Will you go with me?” Maddie turned to Beth.

“Sure, I’d love to,” she agreed quickly without so much as looking towards me for my reaction.

I pulled out my card and handed it to Maddie, who quickly thanked me with a kiss.