by Whitley Cox
Tori did her best to beat down the fury that wanted to erupt like a volcano. She kept her voice low and level as she asked, “Why are you doing this? All I ever did was love you.”
His top lip curled. “Please. You were always looking for a way to end it. Nobody is ever good enough for Victoria Jones. Unlike the endless stream of schmucks before me, I decided to be the dumper rather than the dumpee.”
“Then why didn’t you just end it? Why didn’t you just hand me divorce papers instead of taking away everything from me? Cheating on me? Leaving me penniless and homeless.”
He shrugged. “It was Nicole’s idea.”
Typical Ken. Never the one at fault. Always quick to deflect the blame.
She nodded, not believing him for a second. “I’m sure.”
“Believe what you want,” he said, appearing almost bored. “I told her how you were always so focused on work and having a career rather than a family. Not her. We’re already trying for a baby. We have the same goals. Same priorities.”
Tori felt like she was going to be sick.
“It was her idea to throw all my things out of the apartment? Change the locks and drain our bank account? That seems more up your alley.”
An evil yet wistful glint flashed in his eyes. “She’s creative, I’ll give her that.”
She’s evil, Tori would give her that. “I wasn’t focused on my career. I was focused on yours. I put you through school! I worked three jobs, did all the cooking and the cleaning, and you promised that when you finished dental school, it would be my turn. I put my life, my education, my career on hold for you. And now you want to take more from me?”
“Wouldn’t you rather be rid of me completely?” The man was a psychopath.
Hoping that her glare was as hate-filled as she felt, she whispered, “Bring on the lawyers.” Then she headed to grab Gabe.
“You’ll be sorry. You had your chance to do the right thing. To be civil about this!” he called after her. “My lawyer is going to drag you through the mud. I know you’re sleeping with your boss. I know you’re sleeping with that kid’s dad. I’ve seen his car at your place.”
Tori spun around and hollered back through the rain, “Have you been stalking me?”
His mouth turned up into the ugliest sneer. “Keeping tabs.”
“You make me sick.”
“What’s he paying you for? Babysitting and sex? Are you a whore now, Tori? Been reduced to nothing more than a babysitter and the dad’s sidepiece.”
Lava everywhere. Ash filled the hole where her heart had once been. Molten hot rage flowed through her as she raced back up to Ken. Her hand came up and landed with a hard, wet smack across his cheek. It stung her palm, but the pain was comforting. She hoped to holy hell it felt ten times worse for him.
“Fucking bitch!”
She went for another smack, but he grabbed her arm this time. “I could charge you with assault,” he threatened, his grip on her arm firm and causing a sharp shard of pain to sprint up into her shoulder.
“Let go of me!” She wrenched free and squared off with him. “You’re an asshole.”
Contempt fell across his face. “And you appear to have lost your kid.” With a cackle, he popped up the collar of his coat, turned his back on her and left the park.
Tori spun around expecting to find Gabe still spinning around on the swing, or back up on the slide, but he was nowhere to be found. Night had fallen completely, and although there were a couple of street lamps lighting the park, it wasn’t enough.
Oh no!
“Gabe!” she called, racing around the park. The wind carried her voice away. She yelled louder. “Gabe!”
The rain picked up. Drops the size of gumballs hit her in the face. She was soaked through, but none of that mattered. She had to find him.
How could Ken leave her? Was he really that soulless?
Yes, the man has no heart.
A screech and horn honk from out on the street made her run out of the fenced park and to the sidewalk.
No!
Gabe was on the grassy median on the boulevard. Panic painted his face as he realized the danger he was in.
It was rush hour.
There were three lanes of traffic on either side.
The rain was coming down hard enough to blur even 20/20 vision, and he was not wearing any reflective clothing. His coat was dark blue, and his rain pants were black.
If she called his name, he could dart out into traffic to get to her.
Nobody was stopping. Because nobody saw him.
He just kept pacing, up and down the grass. She could tell, even across the road in the dark and rain, that he was crying. Anguish scrunched up his innocent features as he struggled to process his situation.
She had to get to him.
She glanced up and down the road. The nearest crosswalk was too far away. It would take him out of her sight, and she couldn’t take her eyes off him. She wasn’t in enough reflective clothing either. It wasn’t safe for her to step out and stall cars so she could cross.
“TOOOOORI!”
She spun around at her name.
He spotted her, and he was calling her name.
“TOOOOOOOORI!”
He was saying her name.
The boy had never uttered a single word in his life, and he was calling her name.
“TOOOOOOOORI!” His eyes darted over the cars, and he took a hesitant step forward.
She held her hands out to stop him, shaking her head wildly. “NO!” She hollered back. “NOT SAFE! Stay!” He understood not safe. They’d used that before when crossing the road or walking down along the river or on the dock. He was no dummy when it came to safety.
So why had he run away and out into the road?
Sobs wracked his body, and he began to bounce on his heels, his head shaking violently. “TOOOOOOORI!”
Tires screeched on the other side of the road, and a dark car stopped mid-traffic, immediately tossing on its hazard lights.
Oh thank God. Someone finally saw him.
Relief flooded Tori’s body.
The driver’s side door opened and out stepped Mark.
Her heart stopped.
“What in the FUCK were you thinking?” Mark’s voice boomed around the high-ceiling living room back at the house. His face was red, twisted, and his eyes burned hot. The man didn’t look at her with an ounce of love or compassion. His heart was now full of rage, rage toward her and how her actions, her choices had endangered Gabe. He couldn’t make her feel any worse than she already did. She wanted to crawl into the nearest gutter and never come out.
Gabe had been given hot cocoa, supper, a bath and been put to bed. All the while Tori had done as she’d been told and sat on the couch in her wet clothes and waited for Mark to see to his son.
She felt like a child herself, waiting for the belt or wooden spoon.
Tears streamed down her face, and she shook her head. “I’m so sorry.”
“You’re sorry? You’re sorry? Sorry doesn’t fucking cut it. You nearly got my son killed.”
She nodded. “I know. It was Ken. He found us at the park and … ”
He cut her off. “So you let your personal problems compromise the safety of my child? You brought your personal bullshit to the workplace?” He paced back and forth in front of her, his face a scary shade of red and his hair standing straight up as if he’d run his fingers through it a dozen times and pulled on the ends. “You’re fucking fired!”
She lifted her head. “Mark … please.”
He held his hand up to stop her. “Don’t. Don’t even try. You let … our situation”—he pointed back and forth between the two of them—“cloud your responsibilities. You got lazy. Figured now that you’re fucking your boss you didn’t have to watch his son, didn’t have to do your fucking job! I pay you so fucking well, pay for your schooling, you should have your eyes glued to that child for the entire duration of your shift. But no, now that we started sleeping to
gether, you figured you could slack off. Mark won’t care that I fucked around on shift, not as long as I get down on my knees later tonight.”
A thousand arrows pierced her heart. How could he say those things to her? How could he think that? She fought back more tears, but it was a lost cause. Words choked out of her as she struggled with the idea of dropping to the floor and begging for a second chance. But she knew she’d never get one. The way he was looking at her, glowering at her, said he never wanted to see her again. She wiped the back of her wrist beneath her nose and whispered, “It wasn’t like that. Ken came, he threatened lawyers, demanded I give back my engagement ring. He was so cruel, so heartless. Then things got … physical.” She hung her head down.
“Did you kiss him in front of Gabe?” A new level of fury laced his tone. Was that jealousy as well?
Her head popped back up. “No! Of course not. I slapped him, and he grabbed my arm and twisted it.”
A modicum of relief glimmered in his eyes, and then it was gone. “So you were fighting with your ex when you should have been watching my kid?”
“I—I took my eyes off him for a second, I swear. He was right behind me on the swings. Gabe has never bolted from me before. He knows road safety. He’s a smart kid.”
“But he also has fucking autism and is unpredictable!”
“Please … don’t do this.”
He glared down at her. “Effective immediately, I no longer require your services.” He spun around, showing her his back. “You’re dismissed. I will have my accountant pay you for the time you’ve already worked this month.”
Then he stood there, staring out the window into the dark, waiting for her to leave, unwilling to hear anything else she had to say, unwilling to even look at her.
Mark Herron was done with her.
She’d lost everything—Mark, Gabe, her job, her education. Why not say her piece? Stand up for herself. She hadn’t done it nearly enough with Ken, and look where that got her. Even if she and Mark were over, she needed to keep building and strengthening her spine, keep striving for her independence. Besides, she couldn’t lose more, she’s already lost everything. She couldn’t get more fired. Taking a deep breath, she stood up and faced his back. “There were two of us in this relationship, Mark. You and me. The boss and the employee.”
He didn’t turn around, but she noticed his body stiffen.
“I messed up and I’m owning that, but you’re not without guilt here either. You treated me like your dirty little mistress. You used me. As much as you said you weren’t going to do that, you did. You wanted to maintain the status quo because it’s what worked for you. It’s what was easy for you. To hell with what I wanted. I’m sure that if I’d allowed it you would have been fine keeping me on as a side-piece until Gabe was eighteen. Nothing more than an employee during the week and your secret mistress on the weekends. No muss no fuss.” She shook her head, watching the way his back muscles tensed as the truth of her words hit him. “You can be mad at me for taking my eyes off Gabe for a moment, and I deserve that. I messed up. But don’t you dare accuse me of using our relationship as a means to slack off on my job. I am good at my job. In fact, I am great at my job, and you know it. What you just said to me, what you accused me of was hurtful, cruel and unacceptable. I honestly didn’t think you were capable of such cruelty, but I guess I was wrong.” Her throat ached from holding back tears. “I was wrong about a lot.” She sniffed, wiping the back of her wrist beneath her nose. She could cry more once she got in her car. But right now, she had to get it all off her chest. Say her piece, especially since she’d probably never see him again.
Pushing her chest out and shoulders back, she stared at the back of his head, her chin up, her breathing steady. “I might deserve to be fired, but you don’t deserve me. Keep your money. I don’t want it. Please tell Gabe that I’m sorry, and that I love him.” A tear trickled down her cheek at the thought of never seeing that sweet little boy again and a sob clutched her chest causing her to choke. She had to get out of there.
She let out a shaky breath, but her heart felt just a fraction lighter. Unlike when she’d split up with Ken, this time she’d stood up for herself. This time she defended herself and put the man, the asshole in his place. And it felt good.
She stopped on the threshold that led out to the hallway and gave one last look at him, willing him to turn around and see that they were both at fault but could get past this. That they had something amazing and it wasn’t worth ending it over a mistake. But he didn’t. He didn’t so much as flinch.
She gripped the doorjamb to steady herself, taking a deep breath she said what she’d hoped she’d never have to say, least of all to him. “Goodbye, Mark. And good luck.” She stared at his back, his hands now clasped behind him, his body rigid, consumed with rage.
She swallowed down the hurt, the anger and the fear of the unknown and left. Only this time, she held her head high and she didn’t look back.
14
Emmett blew out a breath before tipping his coffee up and taking a sip. “That’s rough, bro.”
Mark ran his fingers through his hair. He’d taken the last week off at work in order to deal with Gabe, and today was his first day back. He was exhausted. He hadn’t found a new therapist or educational assistant, and Gabe’s teacher was finding Gabe too difficult to manage at school without one-on-one support. He was acting out, being aggressive with other kids, hurting himself. It was like when Cheyenne had left all over again. Mark had kept Gabe home from school for a few days, meeting with Janice Sparks and discussing the dismissal of Tori.
Janice had been none to pleased with Mark and the fact that he’d fired Tori over her first offense, especially since her accomplishments far outweighed her one mishap. She encouraged him to reconsider and contact Tori, but he’d simply changed the subject.
“What are you going to do?” Will asked.
“I have no clue.” Mark wished his coffee was Irish. He’d been hitting the bourbon hard the last few nights. It was the only thing that seemed to help him sleep. Not that he slept much or very well.
The three of them were sitting having coffee at the coffee shop across the street from the hospital. Emmett was done his shift, Will started in an hour, and Mark was on a break. It was a rarity that they all managed to get away at the same time during the day, but after Mark had abruptly taken time off from work, his buddies had rallied and insisted on coffee. Riley was off on paternity leave, as his wife, Daisy, had just had their second child.
“Have you heard from her?” Emmett asked.
Mark shook his head. “No, and I doubt I will. Not after the way I treated her, the things I said.”
“You were angry,” Will added. “She has to realize that.”
“Would Amber be so understanding?” Mark asked. Will’s wife, Amber, was a fiery redhead who was barely five feet tall if that. She ran her family’s construction business and didn’t take shit from anyone, particularly men.
Will’s eyes bugged out. “Hell no. She would have told me to fuck right off. Or her new favorite saying, one she learned from our nieces, ‘Sit on a fork and spin.’”
Emmett snorted. “Kids!”
Will shook his head. “Glad I’m just an uncle. I couldn’t handle that shit every day.”
“Ah, it’s not so bad. Particularly if you get one as cute as mine,” Emmett joked.
“Fine. Josie is an exception. I’d take your kid in a heartbeat. But only because she loves her Uncle Will so much. Says I’m cooler than her daddy.”
Emmett bit into his Danish. “That’s because you bought her fucking horseback riding lessons for her birthday.”
Will’s smile was devious, and he raised his paper cup in the air to toast himself. “Best gift ever. Give them an experience, but make the parents take them to it. Over and over and over again.” His laugh grew the longer Emmett glared at him.
Emmett sobered and fixed his gaze on Mark. “Are you going to hire somebody else for Gabe
?”
Mark exhaled, his eyes catching on something, more like someone across the road. Both men followed his eyes.
“Is it her?” Will asked, leaning forward and peering out the window.
Mark shook his head. “I thought it was. But that woman just has the same coat and hair color as Tori.” She wasn’t as beautiful as Tori, though. Couldn’t hold a candle to her.
“Dude, you should go talk to her. Apologize. Explain that you overreacted,” Emmett said. “She’s a smart woman. She’ll understand.”
Mark made a noise in his throat. “This coming from the man who has given her the cold shoulder since day one.”
Emmett made a face of remorse. “I’m sorry. You now I’m just looking out for you and Gabe. But I probably let my own shit and anger over Tiff and Huntley or whatever cloud my judgment and acceptance of Tori.”
“Sure did,” Mark said quietly.
Emmett’s lip twisted. “Sorry.”
Mark glanced at his watch. He had to be getting back to the hospital. He had an appointment with an oncology patient in twenty minutes. “I accused her of being lazy in her job because she was sleeping with me.”
Will whistled and averted his eyes.
Emmett winced.
“I know I fucked up. She and that strong spine of hers made sure to tell me that before she slammed my front door.”
“Who’s with Gabe right now?” Emmett asked.
“My mother. But she can only handle him for so long. I’m going to have to head home early. The respite worker will come for a bit tomorrow and Saturday night so I can go to Liam’s.”
His friends nodded.
“Well, I’m off tomorrow,” Emmett offered. “If you want me and Josie to pop by for a bit and watch him, we can.”
Mark pushed out his chair and stood up. “Thanks.” He tossed his cup into the recycling. “I’ve got to get back.”
Will’s hand shot out, and he stopped Mark from moving. “Dude, deny it all you want, but you love her.”
Mark didn’t say anything. Of course he loved her. He’d given up denying it the moment he realized he’d lost her. He’d fallen hard for Tori. Then he’d gone and said things so unforgivable, the universe had probably deemed him unworthy of love for the rest of his life. Destined to live the rest of his days alone and miserable until it consumed him.