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I’ve never beena man who fails.
Who quits.
I’m learning today I’m also a man not afraid to beg the woman he loves not to leave him.
My pulse drums against my throat as I follow Sierra down the stairs and through the bar, biting my tongue to keep my mouth shut in front of customers. As soon as we’re outside, customers be damned, I’m still pleading with her.
Begging her not to leave.
She doesn’t stop until she makes it to her Lexus. “Maliki, just—”
Weight settles on my heart as I take in the hurt on her face.
I did this to her.
Now, I need to fix it.
“Look at you!” I yell. “Neither one of us wants this! I’ve never made you doubt my feelings for you, my loyalty to you. Not once!”
“Until today. Why did you smell like her? Why were you there until after midnight?”
“Don’t fucking believe her lies,” I hiss, lowering my voice as people start walking into the bar.
Her sadness swerves into anger. “You might’ve turned her down then, but what about the next time and the next? When you’re with her,seeing your daughter, all I’ll think about is whether you’re sleeping with her. Had you not hidden this or stayed at her house until midnight, things would be different. I don’t trust you and refuse to let myself go through that pain again. You lied about this, something I would’ve understood. Who knows what else you’ve lied about?”
I duck my head down to her level, my arms spreading to each side of her body, my hands resting on her car. “Please.”
She shoves me away, opens her door, and gets in.
She leaves me.
As fast as Sierra railroaded herself into my life, she’s walked out.
* * *
Liz is waitingfor me in my apartment.
I don’t know how long I stayed in the parking lot, praying she’d come back, but all I saw were customers ready to have a good time.
I’ve called.
I’ve texted.
I’ve left voice mails.
She’s gone.
I should’ve never hidden it.
That much is obvious.
I didn’t know what to do. I’d never had to answer to anyone, to explain to anyone, never shared a life like I did with her.
“I told you this would blow back in your face,” Liz says, frustration in her tone.
“She left. You should be happy.” I plod around her and yank a bottle of vodka from the cabinet.
“Please, I don’t feel sorry for you. I feel sorry for her.”
