Endless Love

by Drake, Tabatha

  “Is that a mobile?” she asks, studying the box. “For a crib?”

  I slide it out, turning it over to check the pictures on the side. Bright and colorful animals hanging among shooting stars.

  “It is,” I confirm.

  Caleb takes it from me, looking confused. “Why did the mob send us a mobile?”

  I check the box again, finding a small envelope. “Sofia, I’m guessing…”

  I slide out the card and read it aloud.

  “For your peanut.”

  Caleb pauses. “What?”

  She takes it from my hand and reads it for herself. Her expression stays blank for a moment before she softly smiles.

  “It’s from my dad,” she says.

  I lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. “And… are you okay with that?” I ask.

  She nods. “I think so...”

  I take the box and set it down before pulling her in for a hug. She rests her head on my chest and I kiss her forehead, letting her stay here for as long as she needs.

  Caleb raises her head and wipes the silent tear from her cheek. “So…” She straightens up. “You said something about a taco truck?”

  I clap my hands and reach for the door. “Yes! You’re gonna love it. Milo’s a genius.”

  She kisses my cheek and walks out into the hallway.

  I pause in the doorway, taking another quick peek back into my condo.

  Make that our condo.

  But Caleb was absolutely right. In the end, it doesn’t matter where we are.

  As long as I’m with her.

  Chapter 33

  Fox

  Of all the funerals I’ve feared, this is the one I dreaded the most.

  Danielle Roxanne Roberts. The world knew her as Roxie.

  Fans traveled from all over the world to be here today and to say goodbye to the biggest star of their generation. The cemetery is barricaded off for privacy but the crowd outside the gate grows larger every minute. Shouting fans and flashing lights.

  She’d hate this.

  Fortunately, most people don’t have to attend their own funerals.

  Bennett spotted me as soon as the service began but he kept his distance until they lowered the casket. I stay off to the side, lingering beneath a tree a few rows down, until he finally makes his way over to me.

  He’s cleaned up since the last time I saw him. His face is shaved, and he’s gotten a haircut. His suit is sharp and fitting.

  Still got that angry look, though.

  “Hello, Bennett,” I say. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

  He looks at me with squinting eyes, almost as if he’s about to deck me right here. “Why are you here?” he asks.

  “I came to pay my respects.”

  “Bullshit,” he says. “You think I wouldn’t be able to identify my own daughter’s body?”

  I bite down. “Look, Bennett…”

  “This is theater, Fox,” he says. “Obviously, you got her so mixed-up in your drama, she couldn’t come back out again. Am I right?”

  I say nothing.

  “And if you’re here,” he says, “then that means you’ve got something to say. So, go right ahead and do it so I can go home.”

  I extend my hand to him.

  Bennett’s eyes fall and he stares at it for several moments before giving me a silent handshake.

  “I hope you find some peace, Bennett,” I say.

  He takes a deep breath and releases my hand. “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.” He shifts backward. “Just take care of my daughter, Fox.”

  Again, I say nothing as he walks off toward the casket again.

  I take one more look around the cemetery before heading back to the car. I unlock the doors and lower myself into the driver’s seat, happy to feel the cool rush of air conditioning strike my face.

  “How is he?” Dani asks from the passenger’s seat.

  I nod. “He’ll be all right, I think.”

  Her chest quivers as she exhales. Her eyes shimmer with unfallen tears as she looks through the heavily tinted windows at the close friends and family who were allowed to attend the private service.

  “Dani, are you sure about this?” I ask.

  She takes a moment. “I’m as sure as I was the last time you asked me. So, you know… kind of sure. Maybe.”

  I turn my palm up and she places her hand in mine.

  “Can’t back out now anyway,” she says, chuckling. “Once the casket is in the ground, it’s game over. Right? No coming back from that.”

  I squeeze her hand. “Dani.”

  “Except you, I guess. You had a funeral, too.”

  “Dani.”

  She turns her head, pausing for a moment before finally looking at me.

  “We’ll do whatever you want,” I say. “Just say the word and we’ll go back.”

  Dani looks out the window. She stares at the lines of tombstones stretched out in both directions with soft, pensive eyes.

  “No,” she says. “Let her stay dead.”

  I raise her hand to my mouth and kiss her knuckles. “It’s not game over, Dani. You can’t think of it like that. You’re still here. I’m still here.”

  “We’re surviving,” she says. “Even if only for the sake of existing in the same world together.”

  “Exactly,” I say. “That might not sound like much right now but it’s a lot.”

  She nods. “No,” she says, her face calmer. “It’s everything.”

  I lean over the seat and she meets me in the middle. I kiss her cheek first, one soft peck before shifting over to her lips.

  “So…” She sits back and stares at the road ahead. “Where do you go after you die?” she asks.

  “Well…” I turn the ignition and the car roars with life. “There’s only one place I’d go.”

  Dani smiles. “Then, let’s go.”

  * * *

  I turn off onto a dirt road and glance over at Dani’s smiling face. She bounces with eager anticipation and I can’t help but feel a touch of it myself as I navigate the familiar back roads.

  The farmhouse comes into view, looking exactly like it did all those times before. Two stories tall, white. A small cabin off the driveway. A rocking chair on the porch.

  The front door opens as we park and Barbara Clark steps outside, drying her hands on a dishtowel. Her husky, Sammy, rushes out under her feet and plants himself between her and our car.

  I get out and she squints her wrinkled eyes. “Fox?” she asks. “Is that you?”

  I nod. “Yeah, it’s me.”

  “Hell, son… I almost didn’t recognize you without that awful beard.”

  I laugh. “It’s nice to see you, too, Mrs. Clark.”

  Dani climbs out of the passenger’s side and Mrs. Clark’s jaw drops.

  “My god, Dani?” She gasps. “I heard you were dead!”

  Dani walks onto the porch, easily passing Sammy’s smell test. “If anybody asks, I am,” she says.

  “Duly noted, honey.”

  They hug as I step closer to the porch, stopping dead in my tracks a few feet away from Sammy.

  The dog regards me for a moment. I expect to hear his growl any second now.

  Finally, he lowers down to the porch and exhales. I guess I don’t smell like a threat to him anymore.

  I scratch his head as I pass, and Mrs. Clark opens her arms to me for a hug far tighter than I was expecting.

  “You two hungry?” she asks as she steps back. “I’ve got a stew brewing.”

  “I’m starving,” Dani says. “Thank you.”

  I nod. “You don’t mind if we stay a while, do you?”

  Mrs. Clark gestures to the cabin. “I haven’t touched it since you two left last. Stay as long as you want. You know I appreciate the help.”

  “Thank you,” I say.

  “Yes,” Dani says. “Thank you very much.”

  Mrs. Clark opens the door and Sammy runs in first. “Come on in when you’re ready,” she says. “I wanna
hear about why Dani’s dead.”

  Dani takes a step forward, but I grab her hand, guiding her down the porch stairs. She walks with me to the cabin, both of us glancing around the farm as we go.

  Our memories here are a mixed bag, unfortunately. There are moments here I’d rather forget about, but we have the rest of our lives to replace those with new ones and build a whole future together.

  As husband and wife.

  I stop outside the cabin and pick Dani up, happily cradling her in my arms. She grins and pushes the door open.

  We pause on the outside. She wraps her arms around my neck and kisses me softly, immersing us a little deeper in the moment.

  “I love you,” I say, “Mrs. Fitzpatrick.”

  She brushes our lips together. “I love you, too, Mr. Fitzpatrick.”

  One more kiss and I carry her over the threshold into the cabin.

  The Epilogues

  Five Years Later

  Lilah

  As I take a sip from my drink, I gaze at Ethan over the rim of my glass. He smiles, locking his big, brown eyes with mine beneath the soft, golden lights of the Botsford Plaza bar.

  “So, you said you’re a photographer?” he asks, his English accent thick like velvet.

  Luckily, I’m immune to it.

  “Yeah,” I answer.

  He casually glides his fingertip in and out of a ring of condensation gathering beneath his pint glass on the bar. “What kind of things do you photograph?”

  “All kinds of things.”

  He chuckles. “Like…?”

  I press my painted lips together. “I’m in London for a wedding,” I say. “A friend of mine is about to go into labor, so I’ll probably get tagged to do some newborn pictures soon.”

  “Sounds nice.”

  “It pays the bills.”

  “What do you like to do for fun?” he asks.

  I let my eyes drop to his chest. “This, mostly,” I say.

  He smirks as I admire the lines of his suit jacket and salmon pink tie. It’s loose around his neck, but only slightly as if he wanted to appear casual and aloof. A single man out on the town after a long day at the office.

  It’d be a near-perfect persona if it weren’t for that pesky indentation of his wedding band at the base of his left ring finger.

  Ethan catches me staring at it and he exhales. “We’re separated,” he says.

  “Does your spouse know that?” I ask.

  He looks at my left hand, his brow raised high. “Does yours?”

  I curl my hand, shamefully obscuring the diamond ring on my finger.

  Shit.

  “He will soon.” I fidget. I clear my throat. I tug a little harder on the little ball of string. “I’m sorry. I should probably just… go.”

  “Wait.” Ethan lays his hand on mine. “Is this your first time? Drawing outside the lines, I mean…”

  I swallow hard as I settle back onto the barstool. “Yeah,” I answer, chuckling slightly. “Can you believe he’s the only man I’ve ever been with?”

  He blinks with surprise. “No.”

  “Yes.”

  “You?”

  “Stop.”

  “Sorry, you’re just… unbelievably gorgeous. You could have any man you wanted with a snap of your fingers.”

  I blush. “Thanks.”

  Ethan shifts closer, moving his hand up my arm toward my elbow. “I know it’s none of my business, but… your husband must be dumb as rocks if he’d let you stray like this.”

  I laugh. “He’s not the brightest bulb, that’s for sure.”

  “Bloody hell, woman, get on with it.”

  I ignore the chirp from my earpiece.

  Ethan bites his lip as his eyes drift toward my cleavage. “I’m going to be very honest with you, Emily, and I fully expect to get the rest of that rum and coke tossed in my face for it, but…” He pauses, expecting a laugh. I give him one. “I would like nothing more than to take you upstairs and do anything that loser husband of yours won’t do.”

  I feign a bit of hesitation. “Anything?”

  “Anything.” He licks his lips. “I’ll be your slave all night long.”

  How predictable.

  I swallow hard. I take a long sip of liquid courage. I give my ring one last lingering glance before nodding and grabbing my clutch off the bar.

  “Okay,” I say. “Let’s go.”

  Ethan shuffles quickly off his stool. He drops a few quid on the bar, enough to pay for his drink and mine. What a gentleman.

  We walk out of the bar together. Ethan places his hand on the small of my back, courageously drifting lower the closer we get to the golden elevators. By the time we get there, his hand practically lives on my left cheek.

  I tap the call button and the doors instantly open for us. For a moment, I hesitate, but I take a quick breath, focusing on the job.

  We step on and I hit 14 on the wall. Another couple boards the elevator along with us. A sneer of disappointment paints Ethan’s face. I guess he was hoping for a little pre-game action with my back to the wall and his tongue down my throat.

  I smile. Happy memories.

  But my smile fades quickly.

  We ride the elevator up to the 14th floor. I search my clutch for my room key as I step off and Ethan’s hand quickly finds my ass again.

  “Handsy,” I tease.

  “Sorry,” he says, not really sorry. “Just can’t help myself.”

  I stop at my door with my keycard in hand. “It’s all right. I’m still a little… nervous, I guess.”

  Ethan drifts closer, his breath warm and pungent on my cheek. “Don’t worry, love,” he whispers. I try not to roll my eyes. “I’ll take it slow…”

  I unlock the door and gesture him inside. “After you.”

  Ethan smiles victoriously before pushing the door open wide…

  And running right into his wife.

  “Annie?!” he gasps.

  Her eyes glisten with tears. “We’re separated?!”

  “Baby, it’s not what it looks like!”

  I feign surprise as I close the door and plant myself in front of it. “Uh-oh,” I say flatly. “Is this your wife? Oh, dear…”

  Annie rolls her fists. “I knew it! I knew something was going on during your little business trips!”

  “Baby—”

  “Don’t call me that, you pig!”

  I look past them toward the man sitting at the writing desk on the other side of the suite. Bright, blue eyes. Trimmed, blond hair. A devilish smirk sharp enough to cut glass.

  Archer.

  He removes his headphones and stands up, easily making his towering presence known to the room.

  Ethan scowls. “Who the hell is this guy?!”

  Archer buttons his jacket. “I’m the dumb as rocks husband who foolishly let my wife stray into the arms of another man.”

  I scoff. “Oh, please. If I were gonna cheat on you, it wouldn’t be with this dude.”

  “It wouldn’t?” Ethan asks.

  Annie’s jaw drops. “Are you actually offended by that?!”

  “Well…”

  I slip around them as Annie’s fists collide with his chest. The bickering continues while I make my way toward Archer. “You get all that?” I ask him.

  He nods at the laptop on the desk. “Every word.”

  “Sweet.” I reach deep into my cleavage to yank out the microphone buried between my tits. “Because this is itchy as fuck. We have got to get new tape.”

  “Wait, you hired a detective?” Ethan asks.

  “Yes!” Annie says.

  “Why?”

  “Why?! Because I can’t trust you anymore, that’s why!”

  “God, you always do this, Annie. Ever since your mother died, you’ve been such a—”

  “How dare you—”

  I cringe. “Well, this could take a while…”

  Archer nods.

  Archer

  I stare at Lilah across the office and, as usual,
I lose all track of time.

  She changed out of that skimpy dress from the hotel in favor of a pair of jeans and a vintage t-shirt, but I’ve come to love this look of hers above all others. My wife is at her most beautiful when she’s comfortable and relaxed. A messy brunette bun. Faded lipstick. The sassy librarian with shadows dancing across her face.

  “Stop that.”

  I blink twice, quickly noticing that she’s glaring at me over the rims of her glasses. “Stop what?” I ask with a smirk.

  Lilah rolls her eyes before looking back at the computer monitor. She clicks the mouse twice. The printer across the room spurs with life, spitting out a half dozen sheets before falling back to sleep.

  She slides her glasses off and sets them on the desk as she stands up. “You’re staring at me,” she says as she makes her way toward the printer.

  “Yeah, well, I like what I see,” I say.

  Lilah gathers the papers off the tray and chortles. “You just gonna look or are you gonna touch?” she asks.

  “I wasn’t sure you’d want to after that.”

  “You kidding? Nothing juices me up more than putting a cheating mutt in the doghouse where he belongs.”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  She pauses, lightly chewing on her lip before spinning toward the file cabinet. “I’m fine,” she says, placing her back to me.

  Definitely not fine.

  I rise off the couch and walk over to stand behind her.

  “Lilah.”

  “Ms. Annie’s case is officially signed, sealed, and delivered,” she says, filing the papers away. “Just need to send out the final invoice.”

  “Do it tomorrow,” I say. “Look at me.”

  “Arch, I’m fine.”

  “Then, look at me.”

  Lilah closes the cabinet, shoving just a little too hard and proving my point. I rest my hands on her stiff shoulders and they sink, but only slightly.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper, dropping my touch to her waist. She embraces my arms as I wrap them around her, accepting the apology. “Say you’re fine again and I’ll drop it, I promise.”