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He gave me an odd look. “It was pretty fucking perfect, don’t you think? Weren’t you the victim when he was fucking his wife on his desk? Isn’t that what you told me?” Looking between them, it dawned on me.
“This isn’t about justice for me, though, is it?” Aiden looked down at me with contempt.
“It wasn’t about him. It had nothing to do with him until you brought him into it!” he countered.
“I didn’t invite him here!” I whirled on Aiden. “You thought I wanted this? That I am capable of this!”
“You didn’t plan on having him out there when I fucked you?” He seemed genuinely unbelieving as I studied him.
“Jesus, Aiden, and you would go along with it? This is who you are?”
I looked back to Devin, who was now standing, drink in hand, an odd expression passing over him. Grabbing my purse, I walked out to him, unable to deal anymore with the look on his face. “I didn’t know, Devin. I swear to God I didn’t know you were sitting there.” I couldn’t look at him as I pleaded my worthless case. I heard glass shatter, looked in that direction, and saw the splintered remnants of Devin’s glass had fallen short of Aiden’s step out of the conference room.
What was I thinking having Aiden meet me at the fucking Admiral’s Club where Devin and I met? I was sure Devin would think this was purposeful.
Everything went in slow motion from that moment on as Devin rushed Aiden in a bloodthirsty rage. It dawned on me then that the look I saw on Devin’s face was resolve; he intended to kill him. I heard the sick crunch of bones as I braced myself for war. Devin landed blow after blow as Aiden took the first few in an attempt to taunt him.
“Come on, cousin, you can do better than that,” Aiden urged as he took another solid blow to the face.
I screamed as they crashed through the glass table in front of me, Devin getting the better of him before Aiden—who had him in both weight and size—landed a hard blow to his midsection, knocking him off balance. Devin recovered in mere seconds, unfazed as I rushed to him before he went back in.
“Please, Devin, stop. Please. Stop. I’m so sorry, stop!” I was pushed out of the way as he roared, moving toward Aiden, his intent clear. I screamed for help as a bloody and now defeated Aiden took blow after blow, his face reddening with each one. Several people came running in from what looked like a private party to aid in breaking them up. Devin was uncontrollable, as it took five men to finally pull him off. I stood, mouth gaping, at the animal Devin had turned into, his eyes fixed on Aiden. Cedric came in moments later, sheer panic written on his features.
“YOU’RE LATE!” I screamed at him as he gave me a sharp nod in guilt before pulling me away. I looked to a bloody and battered Aiden who seemed pleased with himself for getting the best of Devin’s temper, while Devin looked to me completely broken. I let out a sob as Cedric pulled me out of the door.
§§
“Where were you?” I was berating Cedric as I tried to wrap my mind around what had just happened.
“Downstairs with Taylor. I was only there for five minutes. You were safe inside the room with Mr. McIntyre.”
“Not really,” I said, the adrenaline crash making me dizzy as Carson drove us home. “I’ll never be safe with a McIntyre, and that’s the sad truth of it.”
Aiden
thought me capable of being a monster, and now Devin saw me as one, as I had him. I ignored my emotion from the look on Devin’s face as I purposefully numbed myself.
No more. It was all over, and I did not intend to entertain any of it further.
Aiden wasn’t perfect and his only flaw that I knew of lay within his contempt for a man I still loved. It made him the bad guy, and I’d had enough of the bad guy. I took a trusty Xanax from my purse and saluted Cedric with the bottle while throwing my phone out the window and into the Atlantic as we crossed the bridge.
“You are going to be so bored.” I toasted him as he took the bottle away, allowing me my one pill.
There was absolutely nothing to think about or mull over. I was completely done with both men. I had never been more certain.
As I slipped into a medicated sleep an hour later, I was thankful for the pull into darkness.
“In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.” —Albert Camus
§§
ONE MONTH LATER
Six miles was a personal best for me, and I had hit it every morning for the last week. I was in the best shape of my life just by pushing a little harder. Cedric high fived me as we slowed ourselves to a stop. He was in amazingly great shape. He’d started joining me in the ocean and in the gym. We’d actually gotten to know each other pretty well in the last month. Though he refused to give up aerosol cheese, I had talked him into making better food choices. My health was a priority and hobby, and I felt amazing.
It had taken absolutely no time for me to accept that every day was Monday. All my emails were filtered by Taylor, and I made sure I had absolutely no knowledge of whether or not either man had tried to contact me. I changed my phone number, and no one was allowed past my newly installed gate. This isolation had been by choice. I alone created the poison, and I alone created the remedy.
And of the latter, I was proud. It had been completely quiet as far as the threat on my life. Cedric had mentioned they were close to catching the driver of the car, and I knew it was just a matter of time. I still had some trust left, and my greatest allies were Taylor and Cedric.
