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“Iamready.”
He dragged his gaze over to me, blatantly looked me up and down again, and then said, “Oh.”
I ignored the burning in my chest as I shut down my computer and tried to focus on the task at hand. Eli constantly weaponized my physical appearance, and though I thought my frustration with it would dissolve over the years, it had only grown unchecked and unburdened, like cancer cells. Meeting with Axel face-to-face was going to be hard enough. Now I’d have Eli there, breathing down my neck, analyzing every interaction, judging my every word. If I’d been looking for a perfect way to ruin my day, this is what I would have chosen.
“Let’s go.” I grabbed my purse from my desk drawer and twitched the drape of my silk blouse into place as I rose. Eli fell into step beside me as we walked toward the elevator. He nodded and waved to assistants as we went, acting like a prince. He kept his hand pressed to the small of my back until we were inside the elevator with the doors shut, when I stepped away from him. Eli buried his attention in his phone. We didn’t speak, and I was thankful for it. Between this headache and the upcoming hurricane, I needed every chance I could get to sneak some breathing room.
Our car waited at the curb outside, the sleek, black sedan our chariot through midday traffic. We were less than a half mile away, but no amount of money could make traffic move faster—and the building in question didn’t have a helipad. Eli and I settled wordlessly into the backseat. Each of us was absorbed in our own worlds, two completely disparate halves trying to prove to the outside world we were a whole.
This was the norm, and it had never felt right. Eli had been hand-picked by my parents, and I’d gone along with it, because it was the only path forward. I’d figured I’d get used to it. To him. After all, didn’t everyone else in our circle get used to it after long enough? But six years into our marriage, there was no getting used to it. Not even close. Eli’s monitoring of my activities and outward presentation rivaled my father’s. I only needed one overbearing father in this lifetime.
And if I had my way, I’d be removing one overbearing husband from that list soon.
But could I go through with it? On the one hand, even contemplating the idea made me feel foolish. Wrong, even, when I supposedly had what everybody else would ever dream of. The wealthy, successful husband. Name recognition. Powerful family members. Allies and partners across the globe. Enough money to buy whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.
But those trapping weren’t what mattered. This much, I knew for certain.
There was a gaping hole in my heart that Axel had left behind, and no amount of wealth or business success could distract me from its ache.
The uptown trip passed quickly as I buried myself in my thoughts. When we pulled up to the fifteen-story brick building, my muscles tensed.Here goes nothing.
Eli and I went to the big double doors at the front. He had the key and worked on opening it up as I watched for Axel. The big doors creaked open. The building had been unused for roughly six months, so there was no telling what we might find inside.
A two-toned black Escalade pulled up to the curb. The tinted windows didn’t allow us to see inside, but I knew from the way my forearms prickled that it had to be Axel. A moment later, the back door opened.
“Oh good, the clown is here,” Eli muttered as he came to my side.
Shiny black dress shoes touched the sidewalk. Broad shoulders stretched beneath a navy-blue suit.
Dark brown hair…but wait. That didn’t make sense. Axel had dirty blond hair. As he turned, I realized I was looking at Trace.
I rolled my lips inward, fighting the urge to shout my greeting. Damian stepped out next.Shit.I hadn’t counted on all the brothers being here. This made things worse. Now I had to face down the extended family of my hard decision eight years ago. Axel pushed open the front passenger door and joined his brothers. The last thread of my composure was stretched nearly to snapping. I absent-mindedly fingered the diamond pendant around my neck.
“Guess theclownsare here,” Eli corrected.
The three of them were all dressed to perfection—tailored suits in varying shades of blue, shiny shoes, the trendiest sunglasses. They conferred briefly amongst themselves, the tight melons of Axel’s ass snagging my attention as he leaned in to say something to Damian.
They turned toward us, Trace leading the way. Axel slid to the back, his face neutral, hands stuffed in his pockets.
“Hello there!” I clapped my hands together, smiling brightly. For the first time, it wasn’t forced. I was genuinely glad to see them. I’d never stopped rooting for them or wanting the best for these three. “Trace, Damian, Axel. So glad we could all make this last-minute meeting work.”
“This building looks great so far,” Trace said, tipping his head back to look up at the façade. “We’re just glad Axel could get in to make the offer before someone else scooped it up.”
“We best move quickly,” Eli said. “There are offers flying in for this property.”
“That’s why you originally wanted us to wait over a week to see this place then, right?” Axel asked. “Because time is so much of the essence.”
Electricity snapped through the air. Shots had been fired and we weresecondsinto the showing.
“Let’s go inside,” I blurted. “I can’t wait for you to see this place. And I’d love to know a little bit more about what you plan to use it for. This building has a unique footprint, so the fact that it aligns with your plans is intriguing.”
I led our group into the building. Eli stayed close to my side, his hand on the small of my back as we walked into the cavernous foyer. Our footsteps echoed eerily through the abandoned reception hall. There were still remnants of the previous tenants—a planter with a fake palm tree, an empty reception desk, signs pointing toward the elevators.
"We want our charity headquarters to be here,” Damian said. Trace and Axel had started a slow trek to examine different parts of the foyer. “It will be a bit of a mixed-use scenario. Offices, but also social functions. It was the ballroom that snagged our attention.”
“Sounds so noble,” Eli commented.
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. I kept my hands clasped in front of me as I smiled at Damian. “I’ve been following the work that your charity does.”
