Tucker barks when he hears Delaney’s car coming up the driveway. He does his cute little jump-thing where just his front legs come off the ground when he knows it’s her. We’re having lobsters and steamers over here tonight—I didn’t end up seeing her last night because she said she had an upset stomach. I offered to bring her some Tums or ginger ale or something, but she told me she was all set and planned to go to bed early to sleep it off.
Her Sonata sounds louder than usual. I’ll have my mechanic take a look at it tomorrow. Makes me laugh, how attached she is to that car—every time I’ve asked her what kind of vehicle she’d like to have, she always answers she already has the vehicle she wants. I’d still like to get her a new one.
I’d like to get her lots of things.
I open the door, already smiling because I know I’m going to see her.
Only something’s wrong.
Delaney looks pale and tired, with purplish crescents under her eyes. She looks like she’s been crying. Jesus, I don’t like this.
But whatever it is, I’m going to fix it.
“Hey.” I reach out for her hand, gently pulling her toward me.
She doesn’t look up. I take her chin in my hands and tip her head back. Reluctantly, her eyes meet mine. What I see in them makes my gut roil with uneasiness.
T-Man ambles over to greet her, pushing his nose against her leg. She rubs his ears, bending down to kiss the top of his head, and for some reason this simple act makes my heart clench.
I close the door behind her. She looks up at me, her voice low and colorless. “I’m not going to stay long.”
“What’s wrong? Sprite, you’re scaring the shit out of me.”
There’s a flash of pain in her face. “I’m sorry.” She looks down at Tucker as she speaks. There is a dull resignation to her tone. “Damon—I can’t do this anymore. I can’t keep seeing you.”
It feels like she’s tugged a thread inside me. I feel myself—my world that includes her—start to unravel. “Come in and sit down so we can talk.”
“There’s really nothing to talk about. We have to face the fact that your mother has too much power over you. She doesn’t want me with you. She made that crystal clear when she came to see me yesterday. I’m not going to be responsible for coming between the two of you and costing you your professional and financial future.”
“Wait a minute—my mother came to see you?” What the fuck. Fury starts to crowd out my fear, thinking of Gloria and her bullying tactics. And how perfectly timed this all was, with her flying to Moscow this morning for a week-long trip with our yacht broker. Drop the bomb and head for the hills.
Delaney nods, her lips in a tight line. “She is firmly convinced I am not suitable for you and threatened to cut you off if I kept seeing you.”
“Jesus fucking Christ...I’m the one who can fucking decide who’s suitable for me.”
“I just can’t do this to you, Damon.” Her voice has dropped to a whisper. There is misery etched on her face, and seeing this sends fresh fury pouring through me. She doesn’t deserve this. But I’ve got to convince her to stay with me.
“Delaney, I don’t give a fuck what kind of threats my mother made—you need to let me deal with her.” I take a step toward her, wanting to hold her, but she presses back against the wall and wraps her arms around herself.
“And there’s something else. You can’t just give me the building at the end of the contract. I’m making money now with the café, so I’m going to start sending you payments—like a mortgage.”
A coldness settles into my bones. She trying to cut ties with me—revert back to the business deal this once was. “Jesus, no. That’s ridiculous, and I won’t accept it. We had a deal.”
“It turned out that you didn’t need to pay me all that money,” she says softly. She looks so serious, so sad and achingly beautiful, I have all I can do not to sweep her in my arms and kiss her fears away.
“We had no way of knowing that Portia would turn out to be gay.”
“I’m not talking about that. It’s because...” Her voice breaks, and I feel something inside me break as well. “...because it ended up not being faking, for me.”
I look at her steadily, hold her eyes in my gaze so she can see what’s in it. “For me as well.”
She takes a deep, shaky breath and squares her shoulders. “But the reality is, we need to just stop here. Our contract ends next week anyway, and I hope you’ll agree to just go our separate ways a little early.”
Tucker slumps against her, panting and looking up at her adoringly. I feel a twist in my gut, knowing how attached he is to her. I can’t fucking let her go.
“Delaney. Don’t do this.” My voice is harsh—I don’t mean for it to be, but what I’m feeling cuts so deeply, it makes my words sharp.
Her eyes are brimming. “Damon, this is not what I want. But this is what I have to do. There’s no other way. Please, if you care about me at all, you’ll just let this end.”
The anguish on her face sends stabs of pain to my stunned heart. I’m immobilized by what she’s asking of me—ripped apart inside by what I want and what I know she wants, but needing to solidify a plan about how to fix this once and for all so that she’ll stay with me. Where she belongs.
She bends down and takes Tucker’s face in her hands, putting her forehead on his and whispering something to him. Then it’s like she can’t get out of my house fast enough. She straightens up, blinking hard. “Thank you, Damon. For everything.”
She has her hand on the doorknob, and I’m fighting every fucking urge I have to stop her. I’ll respect her wishes for now, but just until my mother returns from overseas. I know the only way Delaney will soften her stance is when my mother no longer has me under her control.
I’m going to make that happen.
“Delaney...this isn’t the end. I swear to you, it isn’t.”
She allows herself to glance back at me before leaving, and I see a spark of hope in her eyes. And then, she’s gone.
Later, I can’t stand the stillness of the house and take myself outside to the stillness of the sea where at least I can feel I’m part of something. I haul my kayak into the water, dipping the paddle in forcefully like I’m going somewhere.
But all I can do is drift.