“No,” she whispered, swiping the back of her hand across her cheeks. She kept her eyes lowered.
“Are you sure? If you need anything…”
With a vigorous shake of her head, she assured him his assistance wasn’t necessary. He hesitated for a moment before walking away. Lorena grabbed her suitcase, but she didn’t get far because she needed a moment to regroup. She ducked into the ice machine alcove and stared down at her simple dress, embarrassed when she thought about how she looked in comparison to the other woman in her tight, clingy outfit. How could she be so naive to think she could keep him satisfied? Look at the competition. Soft, curvy women like her chased after him all the time. She couldn’t even compete.
And how could she be so stupid to believe his lies? He’d fooled her into trusting him. He’d seemed so sincere.
He’s not worth it.
She repeated the words to herself, hoping if she said them enough, eventually she could trick herself into believing them. She sank to the cold floor, with an ache like a hole in her chest.
“I just need you to trust me a little bit, okay? You won’t regret taking me back. I promise.”
She buried her face in her hands.
He’d promised.
****
Matthew had quickly used the bathroom, and when he came out, he’d asked Reshemah who was at the door.
“A woman, but she came to the wrong room.” She put her fist on her hip. “Does this Lorena chick know how lucky she is?”
Her eyes traveled over him with regret. They’d had a long talk, and she now understood the nature of his relationship with Lorena and how important she was to him. As tempting as Reshemah was, she didn’t hold a candle to his woman.
“I’m the lucky one, believe me.” He put his arm around her shoulders. “Come on, I’ll buy you dinner. For old times’ sake.”
Reshemah pouted. “I’d rather have sex.”
“Dinner’s all I’m offering tonight, hot stuff.” They exited the room and walked down the hall, past the nook with the ice machine. “What are you doing in this sexy outfit and no panties, anyway? Are you trying to drive all these geeks wild?”
Reshemah huffed, but didn’t remove his arm from around her shoulders. “There’s only one man I want to drive wild, and it’s you.”
Matthew chuckled and shook his head. He could always trust her to speak her mind, no matter what.
****
Lorena peered out and watched Matthew and the other woman walk around the corner, with his arm thrown casually around her shoulders and his head bent close to hers.
She’d heard everything they’d said: Sexy outfit…No panties…There’s only one man I want to drive wild, and it’s you.
He’d laughed, probably anticipating their night together when they returned to his room.
Fresh tears sprang to her eyes. She couldn’t hide out here forever, but right now she needed the short reprieve. She would head back to the airport to catch the next flight out, but she couldn’t move right now. She needed a little time to recover from having her heart shattered into a million pieces.
Again.
Chapter Thirteen
“Hey, where are you?” Matthew said into his phone.
He sat in the back of a taxi, cruising up the highway on his way home. When he called Lorena last night after his dinner with Reshemah, the phone rang numerous times and then went to voice mail. He left her a message, but she never returned his call. He’d called her once already this morning. Now her phone was rolling straight to voice mail.
“I’m back. I got an earlier flight, and I want to see my woman.” He tried to keep the despondency from his voice by using humor. He didn’t quite make it. Five days was too long without his baby. He rested his head against the seat and closed his eyes. “Call me. I miss you. Can’t wait to see you.”
By midafternoon, when he didn’t hear from Lorena, Matthew began to worry. It was unusual for her to not answer her phone, and she hadn’t returned any of his calls. He called Antonio and Cassidy, but when they both said they hadn’t talked to her, either, he went to her house.
Matthew peeped through the garage window and saw Lorena’s car, but that didn’t mean she was home. She could have walked to the store. He doubted she’d taken a run in the afternoon heat. She usually ran early in the day or late in the day, when the sun was down.
Another call to her phone sent him straight to voice mail, and he hung up without leaving a message this time. If she had her phone turned off, she may not get any of his calls for a long time. He walked to the back of the house. There, he rapped on the back door, but still no response. He peeped through the windows, but the blinds were all closed.
He didn’t want one of the neighbors to get the wrong idea and call the police, so he went back to the front and lingered in the driveway, unsure what to do next. Finally, he decided he’d just have to wait for her to get back to him. He climbed into the truck, and was about to start his vehicle, when the front door flung open. She was home.
The smile that came to his face died a sudden death when Lorena stormed out and dumped an armful of clothes in the driveway. His clothes. Pants and shirts he kept hung on one side of her closet lay in a clump with the hangers still attached.
“What are you doing?” Matthew yelled out the window.
She marched back into the house, and he descended from his SUV to follow her, but she came barreling out again, almost mowing him over in her haste. She dropped shoes and more clothes onto the pile. This set had been taken from the drawer she’d set aside for him in her dresser.
“What is wrong with you, woman?” he demanded.
She swung around on him. “Me? What’s wrong with you? You can’t help yourself, can you? You’re a liar, a cheat, and an oversexed pig!”
She lapsed into Spanish, her hands flailing wildly in the air as she gave him a piece of her mind in a language he didn’t speak. Of course, he didn’t have to be fluent in Spanish to know nothing she said was complimentary.
When she finally stopped yelling, she skewered him with an angry stare. “How could you, Matthew? Trust you? I can’t trust you as far as I can throw you.”
She called him by his full name. Not a good sign. “What did I do?”
“Did you or did you not have a woman in your hotel room last night?”
Oh no. Matthew lifted his hands, palms out toward her. “Wait a minute. Wait a minute—”
“Answer the question!”
“I did, but I can explain.”
Lorena shook her head vigorously, uninterested in his explanation. “‘I love you,’ you said. ‘Trust me,’ you said.” She shook her head again in disbelief. “How could you, Matthew? How could you do this to me again?”
The pain in her voice tore at him. He took a good look at her. Her pretty brown eyes looked red and puffy, as though she’d been crying. Because of something she thought he’d done.
“No, no, you’ve got this all wrong. Reshemah’s a friend.”
“So you’ve never had sex with her?”
“Ah—I—”
She cupped her hand to her ear. “What? I can’t hear you.”
Matthew sighed. He felt as if he’d been strapped into a scary roller coaster ride against his will, with no way of getting off. “Okay, yes, I’ve had sex with her, but not last night. I swear. How do you even know about her?”
Her brown eyes locked on to his. “I saw you.”
Confused, Matthew asked, “What do you mean you saw me?”
“Foolish me.” She laughed, but it wasn’t really a laugh. More like a hysterical cackle. “I booked a last-minute flight to New York after the luncheon yesterday. I wanted to surprise you, but I got the surprise. I came to your room, and she opened the door.”
Lorena had been the woman at the door last night!
He’d done some grimy things in his past he wasn’t proud of, but this time he was innocent. The one time he actually did what was right, he ended up looking guilty. How iro
nic.
“I don’t know what you think you saw.”
“Oh, we’re playing that game now? Do you think I’ve forgotten all the excuses I’ve heard you brag about using? ‘It wasn’t me. I was in bed asleep.’ ‘That was my twin.’ ‘That was one of my friends you saw. We look a lot alike.’ Are any of those correct? Tell me, Matthew, what excuse do you plan to use this time? Or will you get creative and come up with a brand new one?”
“Lorena, I swear, I didn’t do anything. You have to believe me.”
“Oh my, you’re really good. Bravísimo!” She clapped. “You sound so sincere. You even look the part. Take a bow for your great performance.”
“Listen to me. You didn’t see what you think you did. Yes, she was in my room, but nothing happened. I turned her down.”
“I’m supposed to believe you turned down the miniskirt-wearing hot mama—with no panties on—I saw in your room? ¿Crees que soy estúpida?”
Matthew clutched his head. “I don’t even know what you just said. Speak to me in English.”
“I said, do you think I’m stupid?”
“No, I don’t think you’re stupid. I think you’re angry, and you’re not going to listen to anything I have to say right now.”
“You’re absolutely correct. In fact, I never want to hear anything you have to say ever again.”
Foreboding rushed through him. “You don’t mean that.”
“Oh, I do. It’s over. Done. I’m breaking up with you this time, Matthew, and I’m telling you to your face. I’m not taking the coward’s way out by sending you a text. Don’t you ever, ever come near me again. I never want to hear your voice. I never want to see your face. How does it feel to get dumped, Mr. Player of the Year? Lose my number. Forget my name. Let’s pretend we don’t even know each other, because obviously we don’t.”
Her voice wobbled on the last sentence, and he latched on to it in desperation, taking it as a sign he still had a chance to convince her to change her mind. She stormed by him, and he reached for her, but she snatched her hand away, clawing him in the process.
She turned furious eyes filled with tears on him. “Don’t touch me! I never want to see you again. Do you understand me? Never.”
The door slammed. Dumbfounded, Matthew stared at it.
He hadn’t appreciated how much he’d hurt her the first time until now. The damage went deep, amplified by her own insecurities. She’d given him her virginity, given him her love, and he’d returned it with little explanation.
Somewhere in his head, he knew he should walk away, but he was afraid to leave. If he did, there’d be no going back. She’d be lost to him forever.
He took in the clothes heaped on the ground and corrected his thought. He’d already lost her.
With slow, heavy steps, Matthew made his way over to the pile. He grabbed as much of his belongings as he could in his arms, trudged over to the SUV, and dumped them in the back. He went back and picked up the few remaining items and dumped them in, too.
When he started his vehicle, he sat for a moment. He didn’t feel much, but he knew he would later. He’d stop at the store on the way home and pick up some liquor. He didn’t care about the brand or type. He’d use anything to stop the storm of pain sure to come once the shock wore off.
****
Lorena sat on the floor with her back against the door and her knees drawn up to her chin. She heard Matthew drive off, and she curled into a tighter ball and squeezed her eyes shut.
She’d told him off. She should feel better, getting it off her chest, but she didn’t because she’d loved and lost him for a second time. An anguished sob preceded a torrent of tears down her cheeks.
How could she ever recover this time?
Chapter Fourteen
“It stinks in here.” The voice of Matthew’s sister disturbed the peace and quiet of his bedroom.
She’d used her spare key to enter his apartment. He couldn’t see her because the room was dark and his head buried under a pile of pillows. To block out the sun that came in through the sheer drapes, he’d pinned a blanket over the windows.
He heard her trip over the pile of pizza boxes on the floor. At least he thought she did, until he heard a slew of curse words from the mouth of his older brother, Derrick. Great. They’d both shown up uninvited to disturb his self-imposed solitary confinement.
“Let’s get some light in here,” Derrick said. He pulled down the blanket and opened the curtains to let in the sunlight.
Under the pillows, Matthew muttered a protest, shrinking from the rays like a vampire. Otherwise, he remained in the same position, hoping they’d go out the way they came.
“Good grief, have you only been eating pizza for the past week?” Cassidy asked. He heard her kick some of the boxes scattered on the floor.
She yanked the sheet down his body. Immediately after doing so, she let out a screech and pulled it back over him. “Why didn’t you tell me you were naked under there! Oh, my eyes. My eyes,” she moaned.
Derrick chuckled. “You should be happy he was on his stomach and not his back.” He kicked the bed. “Come on, Matt. Enough of this.”
“Would the two of you please leave?” His voice was muffled, and he wasn’t even sure they understood what he said.
“We’re not leaving.”
“It’s time to get back to work before someone else takes your position,” Cassidy said. The one drawback to working at the same company as his sister meant she always knew when he missed work.
“I’m on vacation,” Matthew said. He had plenty of leave saved up. He could stay out for a couple of months if he wanted to.
“We’re not leaving until you get out of this bed. You can’t hide forever,” Derrick said. “I told you this would happen, didn’t I? I tried to warn you, but I guess there’s no way to really prepare for the unexpected. Love is crazy like that. It hits you when you least expect it.”
“Obviously he can’t handle it,” Cassidy declared. “He’s so whooped he can’t even get out of bed.”
“Come on, Cass. You’re being too hard on him.”
“Well, look at him. He’s a pathetic shell of his former self. I’m embarrassed.”
They were talking as if he couldn’t even hear them.
“He’s never been in love before. It’s hit him hard. You said yourself Lorena’s going through the same thing.”
“Yes, but she’s keeping busy. She’s not hiding out and eating crap all day. Look at all these boxes. Pizza, Chinese, pizza again.”
“Give the man a break,” Derrick said.
“No. You know what, I’m going to encourage Lorena to forget about him because he’s obviously not the right man for her. You know, she mentioned something about Lewis calling her again. Maybe she’ll give him a second chance…”
Matthew sat up, tossing the pillows off of him with such force that two landed on the floor. “Like hell she will,” he growled. He squinted, letting his eyes adjust to the light.
Derrick stood with his back to the window, and Cassidy had her hand braced on his shoulder.
“Told ya,” she said smugly, holding out her palm to Derrick. “Reverse psychology works every time.”
Derrick fished in his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He took out a bill and slapped it in Cassidy’s palm. “You have known him longer.”
“The two of you are evil,” Matthew said.
“I prefer crafty,” Cassidy said with smile.
“All right, you’re crafty, and you’ve made your point. Now get out.”
“Gladly. It stinks in here.”
“I heard you the first time.”
Matthew rubbed a hand across the whiskers on his jaw. He hadn’t shaved in days and hadn’t bothered to check his appearance. He probably looked like a mountain man.
Cassidy watched him with concern in her eyes. “You’re okay, aren’t you?”
He knew she was thinking about the day, years ago, when their lives had changed when they lost their mo
ther.
He smiled reassuringly at her. “Of course. You know me. I’m down, but I’m not out. I needed time to think, that’s all.”
She smiled, relieved. “In that case, a little bird told me Lorena’s working in her office today, but you didn’t hear that from me.”
“Thanks, Cass.”
Derrick followed behind Cassidy, but he stopped at the door. “By the way, I heard about the incident with those two guys. If you ever have any more problems, let me know. I know people who know people.”
Derrick’s stepfather had left him a fortune. With access to that kind of money, Matthew didn’t doubt he knew of a way to make problems disappear.
“I’m good. Lorena’s dad took care of it weeks ago, but I’ll let you know if I have any recurring issues.”
“Bye, Matt,” Cassidy hollered from somewhere down the hall.
“Leave your key,” he hollered back.
“Not a chance.”
Matthew smiled and shook his head. He didn’t know what he’d do without his siblings.
****
Lorena stood in front of the file cabinet in her office, the contents of the drawer staring up at her. She’d forgotten why she’d even opened it. This happened frequently nowadays—this strange lapse in short-term memory. One minute she’d be in the midst of completing a task, the next minute she’d find herself floundering in confusion, unable to recall what she was doing or why.
She slammed the drawer closed and blinked back tears. She removed her glasses and set them on top of the cabinet. All her good intentions of catching up on work had been shot to hell. She couldn’t concentrate any more today than she’d been able to all week. She’d even lost a potential client a few days ago because she’d written the time of their meeting on the wrong date—for the second time.
Dropping her face into her hands, she wondered when the pain would end and when she could get back to being her old self. She was sick with missing him, but there was no cure for this type of ailment.
She realized she wasn’t alone when she heard a faint rustling at the door. She swung around, and the reason for her misery stood framed in the doorway looking as pitifully miserable as she felt. Her heart tripped over itself, but she squared her shoulders and ground an imaginary boot into the wings of joy that sprouted at the sight of him.
Here Comes Trouble Page 11