Starting Over Trilogy Boxset

by Kennedy, Brenda

  I remove her arm off of mine. “Julia, it’s over for us.”

  “Well, off the record then. If that’s the case, you best be prepared to save Angel, because I’m going to fight for Jim’s freedom like I have never fought for anything in my whole life.”

  I down my drink and ask her, “Then what would happen if we did get back together and I fucked you right here — hard and fast, just the way I know you crave?”

  Her breathing picks up as she crosses her legs while licking her lips. “I’ll drop him as a client,” she says while staring at my mouth and leaning in closer to me, “and I’ll help the prosecution team reveal him for the piece of shit that he is,” she says breathlessly.

  My phone dings that I have a text. I slowly lean into Julia until my lips touch her ear. I whisper so softly that only she can hear me. “Well, sweetheart, you better get your best defense team together because my hard cock will never be inside you again.” I stand up from the barstool and toss some cash on the bar. “Well, Ms. Johnson, you have a very good evening. I need to get home because I have a very beautiful girl who needs saving.”

  I leave. As I go outside, Donovan is just pulling in the parking lot. I get into Donovan’s car and rest my head against the back of his seat and close my eyes.

  “You look like shit,” Donovan says while pulling out of the packed parking lot.

  “I just spent the last 30 minutes with a bitch from hell.”

  “Oh, Julia’s in there?” he says, laughing.

  “In the flesh,” I say raising my head and look over at him.

  “Really? Dude, I was only kidding. What is she doing in there?”

  “Looking to get laid, I would guess,” I say, laughing. “I think she’s hot and bothered, sucks to be her.”

  Donovan laughs but then says seriously, “Did you plan to meet her tonight?”

  “I got a text from her yesterday saying she wanted to see me, so I agreed to meet her. I was curious as to what she wanted and more curious to why she is defending that prick.”

  “What did she say?”

  “She said if we got back together she would drop him as a client, and if we didn’t she would make sure he got off on all charges,” I say, running my hands through my hair.

  “She is just as twisted as he is. So, what’s your plan?”

  “To make sure he doesn’t get within five feet of Angel.”

  “Kind of difficult to do since you guys are broken up, don’t you think?”

  “Difficult, but not impossible. Julia is a ruthless attorney, and I’m pretty sure that what happened in there tonight will piss her off enough she’ll bond that bastard out herself.”

  Donovan takes me to my penthouse. I haven’t been at the beach house since Angel left. I shower and climb into bed before I text Vincent.

  M: Thank you for installing the garage lights and the lamp post up at Angel’s today.

  V: No problem. Brea and I drove over by there tonight, and they really brightened up the place.

  M: Good, that was the plan. How did the appointment go today at the doctor’s?

  V: Brea is due October 1st, not November 1st like we originally thought.

  M: Wow, the wedding is October 22nd, right?

  V: Brea says it’s too late to change the date. Venues take months to get, and everything is already booked up for that time of year.

  M: Well, please let me know what I can do to ease some of the stress from you guys. You do have a lot going on.

  V: I love her so much. I would marry her today if she would let me. Pregnant or not — it doesn’t matter to me. She will be just as beautiful either way.

  M: You are very blessed, Vincent. I wish I didn’t, but I envy what you and Brea share.

  V: You’ll get your happy ending, too — just wait.

  M: I hope you’re right. I’ll see you later. Thanks again.

  V: Anytime, man. See ya.

  The next morning I call a taxi and get my car from Gecko’s parking lot. Then I stop by Sara and Brea’s office to see how everything is going. I drop off donuts, a bran muffin, and two coffees — one of them decaf for Brea. I know everyone is trying to get things back to normal. I offer to help them with answering phone calls since they are short on staff with Angel being out. They decline; they tell me that Angel wants to start working from home. Tomorrow they will be forwarding the office calls to Angel’s house. That is a great idea, I think to myself. Brea’s top seems to be fitting more snuggly than I remember, but I’m not about to mention it. I leave and drive by Angel’s. I decide to stop at Carl and Josephine’s when I see them outside doing yard work. I ask them to please keep an eye out for Angel and Maria and to call me if they need me.

  I show up at the office first with the food, drinks, and champagne. I carry everything in and find a table set up in the waiting area with a white linen cloth draped over it. There is a note on it with instructions from Carla about where to put everything and to not mess it up.

  Once the food and drinks are out on the table, I look around and I am very impressed with everything. The appointment book is lying out in the nurse’s station and the next few weeks are almost full. Very impressive, I think to myself.

  Carla and Cathy walk in first. “Didn’t mess up the table, I see,” Carla says, laughing.

  “It wasn’t hard not to with the detailed instructions you left for me. A first grader could have done it,” I say, walking over to greet them.

  “Everything looks great, and the appointment book is filled up, too. Very impressive.”

  Mom and Madison walk in next, followed by the rest of the office staff. Carla makes the introductions to the staff whom I am not familiar with. We eat and talk about our first week and what will be expected of everyone. Office hours are 8:00 to 5:00 with an hour off for lunch from 12:00 to 1:00. I open the champagne and make a toast to a great grand opening and to an even better working relationship. Everyone laughs and clinks their glasses together.

  I walk back into my office and look around. I sent a text to Angel saying that I hope she is having a great day, but she doesn’t reply. I’ll see her tonight, so I guess that will have to do.

  Once everyone is gone, I stay and clean up. I walk into each of the patient’s rooms and make sure all the medical equipment needed is in there. Mom and Madison painted a picture for each of the patient’s rooms to go with the themes. How they knew the themes of each room, I have no idea. My favorite patient room is the Norman Rockwell room. I have always loved his work; even as a child. There are a Thomas Kinkade lighthouse-themed room, a Doc McStuffins-themed room for children, and a sailboat-themed room.

  Sitting in my office chair, I pick up the boat that sits on my desk in the glass bottle. When I can’t take it any longer, I call my Dad to see if he has heard anything. He tells me Jim is still in the hospital with a severely damaged left arm and Julia is pushing hard for bond to set him free. Dad said she is forcing the whole thing that he was set up and it was premeditated because when he arrived at my house he knew Angel and the girls were taunting him wearing tee shirts about weapons, guns, and being fully loaded or something. Dad isn’t sure what any of that means and I don’t tell him. Dad hasn’t heard anything else.

  I go home and decide on a run and a workout before heading over to Angel’s. I call Maria and tell her I’m bringing dinner and not to cook. I order three chicken parmesan meals and one large antipasti salad to share from Mamma Onesti’s on 41 in Bradenton. The aroma from the food makes my mouth water on the drive to Angel’s.

  I pull up to Angel’s and the outside garage lights and the lamp post are lit, although it is still daylight out. I carry the food in and Angel is in her wheelchair with her back to me facing outside at the lanai. Maria takes the food from me, caresses my arm with her hand, and gives me a sad smile. I walk over to Angel and kneel by her chair. She doesn’t look over at me. She is looking at a newly placed bird feeder in her backyard. Josephine is also out in her flowerbed picking flowers. The sun is low in the ho
rizon, and it is starting to cool off.

  “I brought food. Would you like to eat outside tonight?”

  “That would be nice.”

  “You look beautiful, tonight and always.”

  “Thank you, Maria helped me with my shower earlier today.”

  “I would have helped you. It looks like she did all right. Did she wrap your casts up tightly?”

  “She used the plastic and tape you left here. I hope that’s all right.”

  “Of course, let me know when you need more.”

  Maria places a few lit candles on the lanai table and I open a bottle of red wine while Maria sets the table on the lanai for us.

  We eat dinner on the lanai together. Angel is quiet tonight, more than she has been in the past. Maria tells us that Josephine’s sisters are coming over this weekend to cook for Angel again. I tell them about the meet and greet with the office staff today and how great everything looked. I ask Angel if she would like to come over tomorrow to see the office and she tells me that she starts working from home tomorrow. She speaks with enthusiasm I haven’t seen in a while. The phone company came over today and installed a land line phone for her. I ask her where she is going to be working and she points to a table in her dining room.

  After dinner, Maria tells me she will clean up. I grab a blanket and hand it to Angel.

  “What’s this for? I’m not cold.”

  “I thought we could take a walk; it’s a beautiful evening.”

  She doesn’t say anything, and I push her along the sidewalk and into the Siesta Key Village. Music is playing from every restaurant, kids are eating ice cream cones, and the smell of suntan lotion fills the air. People are eating, drinking, and laughing. I love the relaxed atmosphere that comes with the beach.

  The sun has already set, but the sky still has a hint of color to it. An empty bench is near the park, and I sit on the bench beside Angel’s wheelchair. I reach for her hand and she doesn’t respond to it, like she used to. I hold it anyway, intertwining our fingers together. I know she is trying to distance herself from me, but that isn’t going to work.

  “Mason?” she finally says, turning to look at me.

  “Angel?” I say, smiling at her. I can see a hint of a smile on her face.

  “You do know we broke up, right?”

  “So I have been told.”

  “You have to stop coming over with dinner.”

  “I haven’t eaten, and I was hungry. I thought it would be rude of me to bring food for myself and no one else.”

  “Really?”

  “Really.”

  “The doctor called today and moved my appointment up. I see him next Friday. I’m hoping I’ll get my cast off then — well, my arm cast anyway.”

  “Really? That would be great. I wonder why he moved your appointment up sooner.”

  “I don’t know and I didn’t ask.”

  “Come on, Beauty, let’s get some ice cream and head back. My girl needs her rest; she starts work tomorrow.”

  “Your girl?”

  “Yup, my girl.”

  Once Angel is changed and in bed, I kiss her goodnight and tell her I’ll see her tomorrow evening. I wish her luck at her job and she laughs at me. Before leaving her bedroom, I place a bottle of water and some books on her night stand next to the TV remote and cell phone that is on the charger. Closing her bedroom door tightly before leaving, I tell her I love her.

  Chapter Seven: Jim, Again (Saving Angel)

  Angel

  I wake up to my alarm clock and a text message from Mason. I can’t help but smile. He makes my day better, just hearing from him. Being away from him makes me wish I had killed Jim when I had the chance.

  M: Good morning, Beauty. I hope you have a great day at work.

  I want to reply but don’t. If I want to keep him safe, I need to be serious about distancing myself.

  Maria comes in and helps me with my bath and helps get me dressed for the day. She pushes me out into the living room and stops. I look around and look back at Maria. A large, beautiful, white, shabby-chic desk is facing the large lanai doors. Maria scoots me closer to it so I can get a better look. Sitting on top of the desk is my laptop, a box of tissues, a business phone, a large calendar, a lamp, pens and paper, and a black and white photo of Mason and me framed in a white, shabby-chic picture frame. Beside the desk is a small refrigerator. I bend down to open it; it is stuffed full with cranberry juice, apple juice, and water.

  I pick up the picture of me and Mason. It was taken the night we all went to O’Leary’s Tiki Bar. I am wearing a yellow sundress, and Mason is wearing a white polo shirt. It was the night I got drunk and asked Mason to stay the night with me. The night that Mason stayed and slept on my couch.

  I hold the picture to my chest.

  “Maria, Mason did this?”

  “He did. He was here all night moving things in and arranging them. He wanted you to have a nice work space, and he knows how much you like being outside. He even got an extension for the phone line. He brought over a business phone so you could answer more than one call if you needed.

  “God, I have never met anyone like him before. I love him so much.”

  “Angel, he knows that, and he knows the reason why you are not together.”

  “Then why won’t he listen and stay away? It’s for his own good.”

  Ding dong, ding dong. The doorbell chimes.

  “It’s a little early for company,” Maria says, walking to the front door.

  Maria closes the door behind her and brings me a beautiful vase of fresh daisies. “Delivery for Miss Angel Perez,” she says, smiling.

  I eagerly take them from her. I smell them before placing them on my desk behind the picture of me and Mason. I open the card and grin.

  Angel,

  Beautiful flowers for my beautiful girl. Have a great first day at work.

  I love you, Mason

  “Maria, would you get my cell phone for me, please?”

  A: Mason, thank you so much for everything. The flowers, the desk… just everything is so beautiful.

  M: Angel, you are more than welcome. I’m just glad you like it.

  Excited to get back to work, I start right away. The insurance company has been busy and short staffed, thanks to me. Plus Sara and Brea have taken off a lot of time from work the last few weeks, again because of me. I stay busy, breaking only for lunch. I reach down into the refrigerator for a cranberry juice. It’s nice having beverages within my reach again; I have been so dependent on others for everything.

  Yesterday after lunch I called the doctor and insisted he see me next week. I told him if he didn’t remove my cast, I would do it myself. I have got to start being less dependent on others. Once my cast is off, I am going to get Maria to go back to California. Her life is also at risk, and I won’t have that. Mason said he’ll be over tonight. I wish he would take the hint; it’s over! I need to do something so he knows that I mean it. I am sick of being all over the place when it comes to him. I love him, but I am not going to be with him. He won’t like what I have to say tonight, but I have to do it.

  I get back to work and stop for the night only after Brea calls. I inform her about my day at work and tell her I have four new insurance policies, one new claim, and several call-in payments. She wants to see if I want to go to dinner with Sara and her; I decline. My days of being someone else’s burden are over.

  Looking over at the black and white photo of Mason and me, I pick it up. We look so happy. It was taken of us unawares when we were looking at each other. It looks like he was talking and I was laughing at whatever it was he was saying. I open my desk drawer to hide the picture in there, and I am surprised to see the top drawer is full of red suckers — my favorite.

  I close my eyes and let the tears fall. Any other time in my life, I swear, I would love Mason like I have never loved anyone. He is everything I have ever wanted. I don’t deserve to be loved the way that he loves me. If something were to happen to hi
m because of me, I would never forgive myself. I decide it’s now or never.

  A: Could you come over here, please? I need to see you.

  M: I’m on my way.

  I ask Maria if she would mind giving Mason and me some alone time. She smiles, hugs me, and tells me she will be back in a couple of hours. She has the wrong idea, but I don’t tell her.

  Mason shows up wearing jeans and a white button-up shirt. Even dressed casually, he looks handsome. His hair is messed, and he is sporting a 5 o’clock shadow. This look is sexy on him. He walks in with a bottle of white wine and a dimpled smile.

  “I’m glad you came right over.”

  “Did you think I wouldn’t? I couldn’t get here fast enough.”

  “I texted you because I need to talk to you.”

  “All right, it sounds serious. Do you want to talk here or out on the lanai?”

  “Here’s good.”

  Mason walks into the kitchen and opens the wine. He pours two glasses before walking back over to me. I take it and take a big gulp, wishing I had drunk something before he came over. Whoever called alcohol liquid courage was so right.

  “Mason, I need to talk to you.”

  “All right, I’m listening,” he says.

  I take a large drink before saying, “Mason, this isn’t working out for me anymore.”

  “Angel, I know you’re frightened.”

  “No, Mason, it’s more than that.”

  “Angel, I’m not going anywhere. I’m not worried about Jim….”

  “I’m seeing someone.”

  “Wh— … what?”

  “I’m sorry, I’m seeing someone. There’s no nice way to tell you.”

  Mason stands and runs his hands through his hair as he walks away from me. “Angel, please don’t say that,” he says, turning back to look at me.

  “It’s true. I’m seeing someone else. I’m sorry.”

  “Since when?”

  “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Damn it, Angel. I said since when?”

  “I was seeing him before we started dating. Do you want details? Do you want to know the things we do when we are together? Do you want to know what he feels like when I hug him, kiss him? Do you want to know how often we have made love, or the last time we were together?”