Chapter 2 - Mara
“The car is waiting outside, ma’am,” Claire says. I look at my fiancé’s personal assistant and nod. Well, ex-fiancé’s personal assistant, I guess.
I zip up my last suitcase and stand it up. Claire makes a move towards me, but I hold up a hand.
“It’s okay, I’ll bring it down.”
“Sure,” she says. She’s a true professional. This whole time, she’s kept a straight face and helped me as much as she could as I moved out of this beautiful house. I’ve called this place home for the past two years, and now I’m being thrown out like some kind of squatter. Vincent didn’t even have the decency to come here himself. He sent his assistant to deal with me, and that stings almost as much as the breakup.
I swallow my bitterness and square my shoulders. Lifting my chin up, I wheel the last of my suitcases out the door. I hear it click shut behind me and Claire’s footsteps follow a few seconds later. We walk down the hallway in silence, both staring straight ahead. Not a word is spoken between us until we walk out the front door and get to the car. The driver grabs my suitcase from me and packs it into the trunk before opening the back door for me.
I have one foot already in the car when Claire clears her throat. I look at her, wondering what other ridiculous request Vincent has made. I almost feel sorry for her. She still has to put up with him.
“Miss McCoy,” she says, hesitating. “For what it’s worth, I thought you were wonderful. I’m sorry –”
“Don’t apologize, Claire,” I say as a pang passes through my heart. “It’s not you that should be sorry. And for the last time, call me Mara!”
There’s a hint of a grin on Claire’s face, and she nods her chin down once. “Mara, then. Good luck.”
I climb into the car as the driver shuts the door. He slides into the driver’s seat and thankfully doesn’t say a word to me as we head towards the airport. We drive through the winding roads, packed with mansion after mansion before we get onto the freeway. I watch the buildings go by and bid a silent goodbye to Silicon Valley.
Maybe this is for the best. I’m not a California girl. Never was, and probably never will be. I’ve never fit in here. I’m from a tiny town in the heart of the Adirondack mountains, where the trees are old and the mountains are older. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, leaning my head back on the headrest.
A tear falls from the corner of my eye and I quickly brush it away. I didn’t think it would end this way, and the shock of it still hurts almost more than the fact that it’s over. Like a fool, I thought Vincent actually loved me. I thought he’d wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. Like a fool, I thought the construction of the hotel at Lang Creek was secondary to our relationship. I thought that luxury hotel brought us together, and love united us – not the money the hotel would bring.
I was wrong.
It stings – the rejection. It makes my heart squeeze and my cheeks burn when I think about it. How could I be so stupid? I should have known at the very beginning. I saw Vincent’s demeanor change from cold and distant to charming the instant the hotel deal was on the table. I should have known it wasn't love.
I was nothing but a pawn that my parents used. Again.
Another tear escapes my eyes and I brush it away angrily. I set my jaw. I’m not going to let that happen again. I won’t be used and sold off to some rich businessman just so my parents can profit off it.
That hotel burning down was the best thing that ever happened to me. Now I know who Vincent is, and I won’t be married to him for the rest of my life. Now I know that my parents think they can use me for their own personal gain.
The bitterness seeps into my veins and I savor the taste of it. I’ve been such a fool. I’ve believed I was loved and appreciated for who I was, but I’ve only ever been loved for what I have. And now? What do I have? A broken engagement, no money, no prospects… I’ve got nothing. I have to go back to the people that put me in this position in the first place.
My parents got a tidy sum from the insurance check when the hotel burned down. That helped ease their fury at the whole thing. They still haven’t forgiven the Clarke brothers, but what can they do when the Sheriff himself won’t do anything about it?
I smile as I think of the small-town politics I’m about to fly back into. It’s like a hornet’s nest, and for the first time in my life I’m going back with my eyes wide open. I know who my parents are. I know how they’ve built their business and made their money, and I know that it hasn’t been from honest, hard work.
I don’t want to be a part of that – but for now, I need some time to get back on my feet. I’m still reeling from Vincent breaking off the engagement, and my head spins whenever I think of my parents.
I just need some time to figure everything out. I need to figure out who I am and what I want. I won’t be used in any other business deals. I won’t be sold off to the highest bidder and then returned when it all falls to pieces. I’m going to go back home and tell them exactly what I think of them.
The driver pulls up to the airport departures and hops out of the driver’s seat. By the time I’ve climbed out of the car, he’s found a trolley and started loading my bags onto it. He smiles at me sadly and touches his cap.
“Good luck, Miss McCoy.”
“Thanks, Will. Take care.”
I grab the handle on the trolley and set off towards the airport’s sliding glass doors without looking back. My heart is beating and my mouth feels dry as I check into my flight and make my way through security. I never thought I’d be this nervous to go home.
When the plane lifts off the runway, I watch the brown and green hills fall away beneath me. I catch a glimpse of the ocean before we turn east and I bid it another silent goodbye. My heart feels a little bit lighter when I think of the mountains I’m heading back to. My lips curl into a smile and I rest my head back in my seat. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. All I breathe is stale airplane air, but I can almost taste the sweet, fresh air of the Adirondack mountains. In a few short hours, I’ll be home.