by Aspen Drake
Carly loves me. I know she does. But she loves Max more. She needs him more. Carly needs his gentle cuddles more than my firm embrace. She needs his silly jokes more than my commanding presence. She needs Max more than she needs me.
It'll be hard on Max too. He and I have been best friends since we were kids. He’ll be hurt and pissed, but he'll have Carly.
They’ll help each other move on.
They'll take care of each other.
They’ll get their happily ever after.
I drop a hundred dollar bill on the table and slide out of the booth, heading toward the back. A server is walking out with a tray of drinks, and I hold up another hundred-dollar bill. “Where’s your back exit?”
Her eyes lock on the cash for a moment before her she snatches it up. “Straight down that hall.”
I walk out of the building, tossing my cell phone in the dumpster as I go, determined to leave behind the only two people in this world that truly matter to me.
Chapter Twenty
Mason
By Monday afternoon, I can't stand the wait any longer. I don't want to call Beth and get her in trouble, but I do need to know that she's okay.
Giving in to my stress, I do the only thing I can think of and call her sister Amy.
“Mason, hi.” Amy's voice isn't as perky as it usually is.
I wonder if she's already talked to her sister and knows what happened. “Hi, Amy. I'm sorry to bother you, but I was just wondering if you've talked to Beth in the past few days.”
“Yeah, I have. Why?”
“Well, is she okay?”
“Um, yeah.”
There's some hesitation in Amy's voice that isn't usually there.
“Are you sure? When I sent her a text the other night, she seemed upset.”
“She’s alright, Mason.” Amy’s voice softens and I feel a little better. She wouldn’t lie if her sister were in trouble. “I promise. She's just working through some stuff and needs some space. I promise she'll get in touch with you soon. Okay?”
“Yeah, okay. Thanks.” I hang up the phone and almost throw it. I shouldn’t be pissed that Amy won't tell me what's going on, but I am. I still feel uneasy about whether Beth is really okay.
There's obviously something going on that they don't want to talk to me about. Whatever. If she's not interested, she should just say so. It's silly to play these games.
I slip my phone into my pocket and go out front. “Hey, Aaron.”
“Yeah, Mase.”
“You want to go back to Refuge tonight? I could use a drink.”
His eyes light up with excitement. “Yeah. That sounds great. I'll be done by seven. Does that work?”
“Yup. Just call when you're ready. I'm going over to Fierce to say hi to Carly.”
“Sure thing.”
Fierce Salon is just a few doors down from Creamy’s. This late in the evening, Carly is usually finishing up with her last client, and the salon is quiet enough that I can sit and visit for a few minutes without disturbing anyone.
When I walk in, Paige is at the front desk with a big smile for me. “Hi, Mason. How are you?”
“I'm good, Paige. How's it going?”
“I’m great.” Her eyes flutter and her chin drops.
No, thanks, jailbait. “Hey, is Carly busy?” I peek around her desk and look for my sister.
“Yeah, good timing. Carly's almost finished with her last client. You can go in and have a seat next to her, if you want.”
“Thanks.” I head toward my sister’s station and drop into the empty chair beside her client. A young woman is in her chair, talking a mile a minute about the car her daddy just bought for her sweet sixteenth birthday.
It sounds more expensive than my condo.
“Hey, sis.”
“Hi, Mase.”
Carly looks at me with a sad smile then turns back to her client and runs some sort of flat iron through her hair. When the girl finally takes a breather, I look up at my sister.
“How's it going?”
She doesn’t even look up. “I’m almost done here. We can talk in a minute.”
Well, that sounds ominous. Carly usually tells her life story to every person that sits in her chair. I can’t imagine what would be so private that she wouldn't want to talk about it in front of her client. In fact, the only thing that she keeps somewhat private is her polyamorous relationship.
This can't be good.
Ten minutes later, the girl is paid up and Carly grabs my hand, dragging me into Nate's office. We sit on the sofa and her eyes fill with tears.
“Noah left.”
“What? What do you mean?”
Carly's tears pour down her cheeks, and she wraps her arms around her stomach, rocking forward like she's in physical pain. “He just left. He didn't tell us why…”
“Wait, how do you know he left? Did you check the hospitals? Maybe he was in an accident?”
“No, he left us.” She shakes her head and a sob wracks through her body. “When I was in New York, he told Max he had meetings and then just disappeared. Max traced his phone and his bank accounts when he never came home. Noah’s phone was found in a dumpster at a bar I was at with Cami on Thursday night.”
“He was there?”
Carly nods her head. “And he pulled out $50,000 in cash from a bank in New York City the next day. We haven't heard a word from him. Why would he leave us?”
My mind is spinning. “Wait, what happened in this bar? Did you talk to him?”
“No!” She cries out even louder. “I didn't even see him. If he was there, I didn't know it.”
“What were you doing? Were you with another guy? Could he have seen or heard something that would've upset him?”
“No, of course not.” Carly shakes her head and wipes her cheeks with the sleeve of her shirt. “It was just me and Cami having drinks. We didn’t even talk to any guys, I swear.”
She blows out a deep breath and I know there’s more to the story. “The only thing we did talk about is how I was feeling sad about not having the opportunity to have a real wedding. We had a model call for a full wedding party and it just got me thinking about having a wedding someday. Max thinks Noah overheard us and decided to remove himself from the relationship so Max and I could get married. He’s said stupid stuff like that before, but we didn’t think he was serious. We thought he loved us.”
“Car.” I take her hand and wrap mine around it. “He does love you. You have to know that.”
“I thought so too,” she says quietly, “but how could he leave us if he loves us? I don't understand it.”
“I’m sorry, sis.” I scoot closer and hold her in my arms. “What are you going to do?”
“The only thing we can do. We’re going to find him. Max is a mess, and I can’t eat. I feel sick all the time. We need him home.”
“What if he doesn’t want to be found?” I don’t want to hurt her feelings, but maybe he changed his mind. It would be a shock, but it’s possible.
“Then he has to tell us that to our faces. Max and I need Noah with us, and we’re not giving up on him until he is.”
“Tell me what I can do to help. If he means that much to you…and to Max…then I’ll do anything I can to help.”
The story continues in: Rise.
If you enjoyed Knead, please consider leaving a review. I’d truly appreciate it. Love you all and thanks for your support!
–Aspen
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Books by Aspen Drake
Fierce Salon
Wash
Rinse
Repeat
Creamy’s Bakery
Knead
Rise
(July 2016)
Heat
(October 2016)
/> Aspen Drake, Knead: Contemporary Romance (Creamy's Bakery Book 1)