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Maxwell Callisterlowered his impressive frame onto the stool and nodded for a drink tobe brought over.
"I’m on myway back from a conference in Italy. Alessia is in Hawaii with a fewfriends and has taken our son with her. We promise to make it up forthe New Year. I had to go and sort things out." He sipped thewhiskey and looked at the man he considered a good friend. "Hereyou are drinking at midnight. Anything I should be concerned about?"
"No. Unlike you,I don’t have a wife and kid to go home to." It wascausally said, but Maxwell knew him enough to realize the sentencecarried weight.
"Not for lack ofavailable candidates." He murmured just as casually.
"That's theproblem." He swept a hand to encompass the elegant room. "Iused to dream about being in a place like this."
Maxwell turned totake in the sight as well. "Yeah. Men like us often stay on theoutside looking in. Now, we’re on the inside and sometimes findourselves wondering what the hell was all the fuss about.”
Nash laughed softly,appreciating his friend’s dry sense of humor. “You’reabsolutely right. We pay a fortune to belong, or to say we belonghere, and as much as the facilities are worth the exorbitant fee, Ifind myself wondering what all the fuss about."
"We pay tobelong." Maxwell's eyes glimmered in self-mockery. "My wifeis class itself. She comes from a very distinguished family and, whenI met her, I found myself doing things I swore I wouldn’t do. Isaw her and thought about amusing myself by being with someone likeher.
The fricking joke wason me. The minute I touched her, it was all over for me. I was donefor. I knew right then and there that I’d never be able to bewith another woman as long as I live. I had to see her in secret andit pissed me off, but I couldn’t stop. It was beyond me."He shook his head in wonder.
"Just likethat?"
"Just likethat." Maxwell eyed him thoughtfully. "When you meet theright person, you’ll know. Alessia consumed every waking momentand I couldn’t sleep because she wasn’t next to me. Itwas frustrating as hell."
Carefully picking uphis glass, Nash brought it to his lips and took a sip. "Whydidn't you stay away from her?"
Maxwell laughedsoftly. "I tried that. When she told me she wasn’t joiningme in Italy, I told her we were done."
"And?"
"I tried beingwith someone else, to get her out of my heart and mind. Then sheshowed up at an outdoor show in the park and I had to have her. Sheshowed up with some spineless asshole and I didn’t care.
I had her withoutusing anything and she was pregnant, only I didn’t realize it.I’d made up my mind to storm her house and get her to talk tome." He shook his head. "The reality was, and still is, Ican’t live without her." He looked at Nash. "Itappears this is a familiar story."
"Not the same."He denied harshly. “I’m going to get over her if it's thelast thing I do."
His friend stared athim until he looked away, expression haunted. "Want my advice?"
"No." Hesaid tersely.
"I’m goingto give it anyway. Embrace it."
"That's it?"Nash asked mockingly. "How profound."
"It might soundsimple, but the more you fight what you’re feeling the worseit’ll be for you. Take it from someone who knows."
"It's not thesame." Nash insisted. "It only happened once."
"Once is all ittakes." Draining his glass, he rose, slapping his friend on theshoulder. "Drinking isn’t going to solve the problem.Believe me, I tried."
Chapter 9
The clash came thefirst week they got back from the break. She received the email onher office account that he’d finally agreed to an interview.
The excitementgenerated at his somewhat reluctant acquiescence, made her forgettemporarily the quandary she’d put herself in. Michael had beenbugging her about it, and she’d firmly told him she didn’twant to talk about it.
The time spent withher mother over the past few days had been pleasant enough. There hadbeen several flare ups and episodes where she’d forgotten whoshe was and where she was, but they’d worked through it.
She’d justsettled in her office and was about to call the rest of the team infor a meeting, when she opened her email. It was from him, well, notfrom him exactly, but his assistant.
The woman had sent apolitely worded note saying that the date planned for the interviewwasn’t convenient. 'Mr. Hamilton will be out of town from theeighth of January to the fifteenth for a very important meeting. Ifthe interview can be rescheduled, then he suggests you try and do so.If not, then he wishes you to convey his apologies.'
