Never Let Me Go

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Never Let Me Go Page 25

by Kianna Alexander


  He sighed. “I didn’t just come up here to talk. I also came to listen. I want to know what’s bothering you, Von.”

  “That’s Yvonne, if you please. Or Ms. Markham.”

  He blew out a breath. “For fuck’s sake, Von.”

  She could tell his hackles were up, but she didn’t care. I’m not in the wrong here. I have a right to protect myself, to self-preservation. “I don’t have anything to say, so why don’t you just go ahead.”

  He sat in the rocking chair, glowering like a five-year-old denied a cookie. “Let’s be honest here. It doesn’t matter what I say, it’s gonna be wrong. So why don’t you just answer one question for me.”

  “Fine.” She tucked the last pair of slacks into the second bag and zipped them both.

  “What did she say to you?”

  She shook her head. “What makes you think it’s something Juliana said? And how is our conversation any of your business?” If Juliana had wanted to discuss his flaws in his presence, she wouldn’t have asked him to leave.

  “Because ever since she left, you’ve been closed off to me again.” He rocked the chair, shaking his head. “After we made love last night, I thought we’d gotten past that. But now we’re right back where we started.”

  “Making love doesn’t magically fix everything, Maxwell.” She sat down on the bed, her body slightly turned away from him.

  “I know that, Yvonne. That’s why I’m asking you what’s wrong. I can’t fix a problem I can’t identify.”

  She looked at the bedroom door, the carpet, the ceiling. Anything to keep from looking into the dark pools of his eyes. Knowing what she knew, looking at him simply hurt too much.

  “So you’re not going to say anything?”

  She responded with more silence.

  He sighed. “Come on, Yvonne. I know she didn’t sit here and tell you we’re getting back together, because that sure as hell isn’t going to happen.”

  She shook her head, still avoiding his gaze. “No, Maxwell. She doesn’t want you, and she made that quite clear.”

  His frustration evident, he said, “Then I don’t get it. Help me understand, Yvonne. Because I’m lost.”

  Finally, she turned his way. She looked at his mouth instead of into his eyes. “Did you ask her to get out of the military, Maxwell?”

  His gaze shifted to the left, then back to center. “Yes. Right before we broke up.”

  He admitted it. Now let’s find out the root of that request. “Why, then? Why were you so insistent that she give up her career?”

  He rested his elbows on the rocker’s arms, tented his fingers. “Military life is too unpredictable. Juliana was hardly ever around. There always seemed to be some work thing she had to do, training to attend, trips she had to take. It was a lot to deal with.”

  She felt her lips tighten, remembering Juliana’s words from earlier. If he was concerned about my safety, he never mentioned it to me. She shook her head. Does he have any idea how selfish he sounds right now? “Let me ask you something else, Maxwell. Before Juliana, how many other serious girlfriends did you have?”

  He rested his head in the crook of his right hand. “Oh, come on, Yvonne. What are you getting at?”

  “Just answer the question, please.”

  He groaned. “Three. I had three serious girlfriends before her.”

  “And how did your relationships end?”

  He closed his eyes, his chin jutting forward. “Let’s see. Since you wanna go through the annotated history of my love life, Cynthia was first, and she moved to New Jersey for a promotion. We broke up because I didn’t want to move with her. Next was Liz, who I broke up with when she got accepted into law school at Cambridge. Last, there was Amy. I had an important business dinner with a client, and I was expecting her to be there. Instead, she covered a shift for someone and didn’t take the time to inform me. I ended up with egg on my face at the dinner, we argued, and she left.”

  “Where did Amy work?”

  He shrugged. “At a pharmacy and as a volunteer firefighter. It was a pharmacy shift she took that night, though.”

  “Ugh, Maxwell.” She crinkled her nose. Forget all the elderly and sick folks who needed medication that night. He had an important social event, and she ruined it.

  “What?” He tilted his head, watching her through narrowed eyes. “I don’t see what you’re getting at.”

  “Of course you don’t.” She stood then, grabbing her bags, and headed for the door.

  “Wait. Can you just explain it to me, since I’m obviously missing the point here?”

  She blew out a breath, stopping in the doorway. “Maxwell, can you name one time, just one, where you were there for your girlfriend when it came to her career? Her professional accomplishments?”

  He opened his mouth, then closed it. Tipping the rocker back, he looked up at the ceiling.

  She stood there, tapping her foot on the carpet, saying nothing.

  Several long, silent moments passed by before he spoke again. “Can you give me an example?”

  Feeling her shoulders slump, she shook her head. Hoisting the bags, she left the room and went down the stairs. He followed her.

  She ignored him.

  At her car, she opened the trunk and tossed the bags inside. As she turned toward the driver’s side door, he stood in front of her.

  “Maxwell, trust me. You don’t want to keep playing this game with me, where you block my path.”

  He stepped aside. “Yvonne, please. I just want—”

  “That’s just it, Maxwell! It’s all about you and what you want. It always has been, hasn’t it?”

  He blinked a few times, then took a step back. “That’s not true, Yvonne.”

  “Yes, it is.” She felt the tears gathering in her eyes and cursed every one of them. She didn’t want him to see her cry, didn’t want him to see how much he’d hurt her. “When have you ever gone out of your way for a woman? I mean really, Maxwell, when have you ever truly supported her dreams?”

  “I’ve…I’ve never stood in anyone’s way, Yvonne. I wouldn’t do that.”

  “That’s not the same thing, and you know it.” She opened the car door, placing it between her body and his. “Face it, Maxwell. You just can’t get behind a woman’s dream. Not when it doesn’t fit into your own convenient little life plan.”

  “Yvonne, please.” There was a sadness in his eyes that tugged at her heart.

  “I’ll keep working for you, at least until you can hire someone else to look after Sasha, but that’s all I can promise you.”

  “Look, you’ve gotta listen to me. Just…”

  There was nothing he could say, nothing that would change her mind. “It’s over. We’re not a couple anymore.”

  “Don’t say that!”

  She steeled herself against the searing pain as best she could. I have to be strong now, strong enough to walk away before he destroys me. Shaking her head, she got into the car and closed the door “I can’t do this, Maxwell. I’ve already been with a man who didn’t believe in my work, who stopped taking me seriously the moment my work didn’t benefit him.” She blinked away the tears clouding her vision as she started the car. “I won’t do that to myself ever again.”

  His jaw was tight. “If that’s really what you think of me, why am I even standing here?”

  She shrugged, ignoring the tears rolling down her cheeks. “I don’t know, Maxwell. But I’m sure you don’t want your wealthy neighbors to witness the drama happening in your driveway. So I’m leaving.” Putting the car in reverse, she backed up a bit so she could clear the curb. Then she drove off down the long, winding driveway.

  Looking in the rearview mirror through the haze of her tears, she saw him still standing there.

  She drove on until he was out of sight, then left his home, his neighborhood
, and his selfishness behind her.

  Chapter 21

  Sunday, Maxwell reclined on a lounge chair, letting the midmorning sun beat down on his weary body. Wrightsville Beach had very little foot traffic today, typical of an early March day when the water was still too cold for swimming or surfing. The umbrella over his head, along with the sunglasses he wore, protected him from the glare, while a white tee and track pants protected his skin from the cool breeze coming off the water. His feet dangled off the sides of the lounger, and he could feel the chilly grains of sand that had infiltrated his closed-toe sandals but couldn’t be bothered to do anything about it.

  “Max!”

  “Huh?” He heard his friend calling his name but didn’t look toward the sound.

  Orion snapped his fingers three times in quick succession. “Bro, do you want me to just dangle this beer at you, or are you gonna take it?”

  Returning to reality, Maxwell took the bottle of Corona from Orion’s hand. “Thanks, man.” He looked at his friend, seated on a matching lounger to his left “Sorry about that, O.”

  Orion shook his head. “Yeah, man. I’d say ‘sorry’ is a pretty good descriptor of your mood. What’s the matter with you?”

  Maxwell cracked open the bottle, taking a long swig before answering. “I’m disappointed I didn’t get to bring Sasha with me this time. I was looking forward to having a little fun with her, you know?”

  Nodding, Orion looked out over the water. “Yeah, I can understand that. I’m sure li’l shorty would have had a great time playing out here.”

  Maxwell smiled, picturing her sitting in the sand. “I even bought her the little toys for digging in the sand and building castles, the whole nine. The guys at the Crown site told me all the stuff she’d probably like, and I’ve got a boatload of it in the back of my ride. I’m kinda sad she didn’t get to come out here and use it.”

  “Yeah, I get it. But you know y’all are welcome to come down here and crash at the condo, like, whenever.” Orion turned up his own bottle of beer, taking a deep swallow. “It’s not like this weekend was your one and only shot to get some beach time in with her.”

  “I appreciate the open invite, O. And trust me, I’m definitely going to bring her down here the next chance I get.”

  “Good deal. And now that we established your intentions pertaining to getting the youngster some quality beach time, you can tell me what’s really got your face all screwed up.” Orion lifted his arms above his head and spread them wide, gesturing to their surroundings. “You’re on the beach, man. It’s a beautiful day. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the waves are crashing.” He swung one arm around, pointing at him. “And then there’s you, sitting here looking like somebody kicked you in the shins and stole your lunch money.”

  Maxwell sighed. That’s the one downside to the close relationship I share with my line brothers. They might know me a little too well. “I don’t wanna talk about it, O.”

  Orion scoffed. “Well, tough cookies, bro. You can’t come down here pouting that hard and expect me not to ask you about it.” He sat sideways on his lounger, folding his arms over his chest and eyeing him pointedly. “So what’s the damn problem, Max?”

  Maxwell closed his eyes, inhaled. It’s obvious O ain’t gonna let this go. “It’s Von. We broke up.”

  “Damn! You managed to fuck it up that quick? That’s gotta be a new record or something.”

  He glared at his friend. “O, don’t play with me about this.”

  “I’m sorry, bro.” Orion held up his hands in front of him. “I was just trying to lighten your mood. Anyway, just tell me what happened.”

  Maxwell closed his eyes briefly, not wanting to relive the moment Von had driven off his property and turned her back on everything they’d shared. But he steeled himself and recounted the story to Orion. When he’d finished, he waited for his friend to respond.

  Orion sat, blinking and staring straight ahead for a few moments before uttering his single-word reaction. “Yikes.”

  “You’ve got that right. I can’t believe things between us went south so fast. We were really just getting started.” Maxwell’s shoulders slumped, his chest tightening with emotion. Because as much as he hated to admit it, Yvonne’s declaration that they weren’t a couple anymore had hurt him deeply. “I didn’t even realize how invested I was in the idea of us having a future together until she told me it was over.”

  “You’re in love with her, right?”

  No use in trying to hide that now. “Yes, definitely.”

  “And I’m assuming you told her that?”

  He nodded. “Yes. I let her know how I felt before the first time we made love.”

  Orion scratched his chin. “Okay, bro. I gotta ask you something else, and this is just based on what I’m hearing from you.”

  Maxwell leaned forward on the lounger. “Okay, ask it.”

  “Did you ever say anything to her about her plans to open the day care center? Like, sit down and have a real conversation about it?”

  He thought for a moment, pressing his lips together. “I don’t think so. At least nothing too deep.”

  Orion’s brow arched. “Why not?”

  Maxwell shrugged. “Why would I? It’s not really my place to consult with her about that unless she asks for my help with it. Like if she wanted construction advice or something, I’d help her out.”

  Orion blew out a breath, shaking his head. “That’s not what I mean. Hasn’t she been talking to you about her plans since the beginning?”

  Maxwell thought back on their conversations, snippets of them passing through his mind. “Yeah, man. She’s mentioned it several times in passing.”

  “Why do you think she keeps bringing it up, Max?”

  He released a wry chuckle. “You’re asking me? I’m the last person on the planet to consult about why women do anything.”

  “Damn straight,” Orion retorted. “Because if you can’t see the reasoning behind what she’s been saying to you, then you really are completely fucking clueless, bro.”

  Feeling his brow crinkle with confusion, Maxwell snapped, “Okay then, Orion. Break it down for me.”

  Orion tilted his head to one side, rubbed his hands together. “Gladly, because you clearly need my help. Listen, it’s like this. When y’all were arguing, she had you run down all your serious relationships and how they ended.”

  “Yeah, so?”

  “Shut up, Max, and let me finish. She wasn’t doing that for no reason, bro. She was collecting evidence to prove her theory.”

  “What theory would that be, oh wise one?” Maxwell’s irritation grew with each passing second, warring with his pain and loneliness.

  Orion rolled his eyes. “I’m gonna tell you if you stop flapping your gums. Her theory is that you don’t have it in you to be a supportive partner, that she can’t count on you to really get behind her dream.”

  Maxwell opened his mouth, ready to cuss Orion out, then snapped it shut when he realized she’d said almost exactly those same words to him before she left. “She said…that I couldn’t support a woman’s dreams if they didn’t fit my ‘convenient little plans.’ That’s what she said to me.”

  “Sweet, sweet vindication.” Orion threw both hands in the air. “See what I mean?”

  Maxwell cringed. “I mean, I guess.”

  “Let’s put it another way, then. Do you support her dream, Max? Do you wanna see her open this business and be successful at it?”

  “I mean, yeah. I’d be okay with it.”

  Orion pressed his palm to his face. “That’s it right there. That’s the attitude that got you in this mess. Do you hear yourself right now?”

  Maxwell sat up straight, his back and shoulders tight with tension. “What so wrong with what I said?”

  “If the tables were turned, and you were just get
ting ready to establish Devers Architectural, would you want a partner who was just okay with you pursuing your passion? Or would you want somebody who was as excited about it as you? Somebody who’d be cheering you on every step of the way? Who’d celebrate your wins and help you figure things out when shit goes to the left?” Orion gave him a pointed stare. “What would you want, Max?”

  Maxwell closed his eyes against the harsh glare of reality, from which his sunglasses offered no protection. “Oh shit.” When he opened them again, Orion gave him the slow blink.

  “You’ve given her nothing in terms of concrete proof that you support her, yet you expect her to take things to the next level with you?”

  Maxwell looked away from Orion’s direct stare.

  “I rest my case.”

  Falling against the backrest, Maxwell groaned aloud. “I really fucked this up, didn’t I?”

  “Yep. You absolutely, positively, thoroughly played yourself.”

  He couldn’t even get annoyed this time, because he knew his friend was right. “Well, how do I fix this?”

  “I don’t know if you can fix it, Max. But whatever you do, you’d better made damn sure you show her you’re ready to fully support her. Because just telling her ain’t gonna do it at this point.”

  “How?” He blew out a breath. “What if I can’t figure out the right way to do that?”

  Orion shrugged. “It’s either you figure it out or let her move on to the next man who’s gonna do right by her.” He steepled his fingers. “I admit I don’t know her that well, but she seems like a hell of a good woman. It wouldn’t be right for you to hold her back from happiness if you can’t get it together.”

  “Ouch.” Those words stung worse than sunburn, and there was no salve to soothe it, either. Nothing short of winning Yvonne back would relieve the ache Maxwell felt inside, the emptiness of losing her presence in his life. His gaze fixed on the waves rolling toward the shore, he started to formulate a plan. “Listen, I gotta try to fix this. I might need your help.”

  “I got your back, at least up until she tells you to kick rocks again. If that happens, I’m out.”

 

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