AllFreeNovel
Share Us
CHAPTER FIFTEEN: NATALEE
I gripped my bag, clutching every butterfly that whirled in my gut. It didn’t help that Scott wasn’t the ‘Surprise!’ type.
When Tamara had enlisted his help to throw me a surprise party once, he’d lasted as long as he could before he broke. His gray eyes had clouded over, making me wonder if he was about to break up with me. Instead, he spilled the beans in a single, blurted breath, sweating bullets and apologizing profusely for not keeping the secret.
Knowing that keeping secrets from me stressed him out was kinda adorable, and definitely a breath of fresh air after growing up in a household where everyone kept things to themselves.
Having a long day? Zip your lips and handle it. Wondering if you’re loved? Stop being a dummy, of course you’re loved! Why do you need to hear the words?
I carried that philosophy into my relationships throughout high school and college. I ended up saddled with guys who seemed to excel at being cagey and secretive.
I learned that secrets were pointless, because it all came out in the end.
I gave my head a shake and put all that bad juju behind me. Just to confirm I wasn’t doing something that would blow up in my face, I paused in front of the revolving door of Anderson International, an import conglomerate that had a hard on for Scott from the moment he interned junior year. It was understandable, since my Scott didn’t half ass on anything. He-
My mind wouldn’t let me walk past the lie that rippled across my face, turning my smile into something that wavered.
Doesn’t half ass on anything? Not exactly true. When was the last time he kissed you for longer than a millisecond?
When was the last time he touched you besides a quick hug as he headed out the door?
I quieted the voice that told me that this attempt would fall flat. Just like the dinner last week, when he took one look at the steak and wedge salad I prepared and came down with a spontaneous tummy ache. Or when I tried to be playful and sexy and answered the door in a lacy chemise and he’d been too tired to even keep his eyes on me. He had just enough energy to sigh and grunt that he was tired, though.
Tonight would be different. Just looking at my reflection was proof of that. Since I was primarily working out of my home kitchen unless we had big orders, my usual attire was a t-shirt, leggings, and a flour smudged apron. But tonight, I’d pulled out my special occasion dress, a dark colored thing that showed way more than it covered up. The breasts that he hand’t touched in weeks would be impossible not to notice since they were out in full force. The smooth fabric glazed over my hips and stopped right below my knee. But the show didn’t end there. I was in honest-to-God heels, the strappy things wrapping around my ankle and showing off a fresh pedicure.
I flipped my hair, painstakingly straightened for the occasion, and I had a brief moment of feeling like the women from those commercials with impossibly perfect hair. The confidence boost, along with the glass of wine I’d had before I grabbed the Uber, had me cycling through the door with a big ol’ grin on my face.
The minute I stepped into the artificial cool, what was left of my nerves calmed. Walking through the door was the hardest part, and memories smoothed the rest. The first time I’d visited the office, it had been in the daylight, warm and welcoming with the sun almost shining directly on us. Scott had wrapped his arms around my shoulders, trumpeting all the original artwork and bells and whistles like this was more than his office—it was his home. He’d introduced me to his coworkers as ‘the love of my life’.
I was the only one in the lobby at this hour. The lights were dimmed, the artwork in shadow. The security guard looked ready to perform a cavity search, the friendly one from that day nowhere to be found. Panic flared in my chest while the guard scrolled through the access list, but he found my name and gave me an ID card that would get me up to Scott’s corner office.
My guy.
My fiancé.
The badass who’d barely been with the company for a year, and already he was leaving his contemporaries in his dust. Burning the midnight oil while everyone else watched the clock obsessively, counting down the minutes until 5PM.
I landed on the 21st floor, shivering as I stepped out of the elevator. I didn’t remember them keeping the place so cold. It reminded me of the psychological games restaurants and cafes play so people don’t camp out. Uncomfortable seats. AC on full blast.
I gripped the bag slung over my shoulder, filled with wine, crackers, cheese, and salami. A little midnight snack before he had dessert: me.
The jubilant tap of my heels combined with the pounding in my ears, excitement shooting through me as I moved down the hall to Scott’s office. I pictured him hunched over his keyboard, the numbers talking to him in their own way. The glasses that he only wore at work, the thick rimmed ones that made him look like he was cosplaying as a sexy Harry Potter all grown up, were probably perched on the end of his nose.
It probably won’t be much of a surprise, I thought with a twinge, trying to walk a little softer. The heels would announce me soon enough since he needed virtual silence to do his thing. I hoped he’d be so in the zone that-
I came to an abrupt stop, the sound of something low and sultry drifting into the hallway. An amber sliver radiated from beneath the door.
The sound was coming from his office.
My stomach cramped like something in me was adding things up and something was off, but I’d never been a fan of math—and tonight wouldn’t be the night that things started clicking.
I tucked my hair behind my ears and continued toward the light. Toward him. He was probably just taking a break. Or wrapping up and headed home since I was climbing into the Uber around 11 and that was twenty minutes ago.
The music had grown from hints of a violin to a full orchestra, the notes spilling into the hall. My balled fist hovered, inches away from knocking.
When did he start listening to classical music? And why was he blasting it at 11:30 at night?
They were good questions that I would get the answers to, as soon as I stopped being such a scaredy cat.
I decided against the knock and just twisted the knob.
My stupid heart told me that I’d find him curled up in the executive chair that had been my birthday present to him, working on his vows. That maybe classical music was his guilty pleasure.
My eyes adjusted to the mood lighting, since I was expecting the painful glow of fluorescent bulbs...and reality tore my heart right out of my chest.
My fiancé, shockingly, didn’t look any worse for the wear since he’d left at 6am, then texted me a few hours ago that he was ‘burning the candle at both ends’.
In fact, he looked happier than I’d seen him in months...and it was because some woman was in his arms.
A woman with chocolate brown hair that nestled her serene face as she laid her cheek against his chest, swaying to music.
Wrapped up in a bliss that I’d been struggling to to recreate with a man who seemed to be happiest when we weren’t together.
And this was why.
She was why.
