I looked up at him through my thick lashes, smiling. “Am I?”
“Of course. When we’re not together, all I can think about is the next time we can be together.”
“Me too,” I admitted.
Whenever he stared at me, his blue eyes enveloped me. Whenever he touched me, my skin sizzled. Thoughts of him overtook my mind and memories of him made my boring past seem worthwhile. I knew I shouldn’t have allowed myself to develop strong feelings for him, but I couldn’t help it. And as a result, I couldn’t muster up the courage to leave him when I knew I needed to.
“Everything is going to work out, trust me.”
I nodded. I had no choice but to believe him; I needed that hope for our relationship. Without hope, our sneaking around had no end- and our relationship had no purpose.
We finished washing up and I slipped back into my dirty dress, giggling.
“It’s ruined.”
“I’ll get you another one,” he said as he walked me to the door.
Luke looked out of the window before opening the door.
“No reporters,” he said with a smile.
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay? Amy isn’t coming home tonight.”
“No, I don’t want to risk it.”
He walked me to my car, and we kissed goodbye for a final time.
*
When I got home, I fell asleep to sweet dreams. Unfortunately, a loud knocking on my front door woke me up early the next morning. I slipped on a robe and groggily walked to the front door, my body still in a haze from the night before.
“What the hell?” I said to myself as I opened the door, staring at the two officers who stood before me.
“Stephanie Jensen?” one of the men said.
“Uh, yes?”
The two men flashed shiny badges in my face. “I’m Detective Florence, and this is Detective Jones. We’d like to ask you a few questions; may we come in?”
“What’s this about?”
“Amy Allsworth.”
That bitch called the cops on me. She was trying to file charges when she was the one who started the fight? I rolled my eyes at the investigators and invited them in. I plopped down on my couch and stared at the men, enjoying my last few moments of comfort before they arrested me and threw me into a concrete cell.
Both men pulled out little notepads.
“Can you tell us where you were yesterday between the hours of eight p.m. and midnight?” Jones asked.
What did that have to do with the fight?
“I was uh, here. And then I made a pit stop.”
“What kind of pit stop?”
“My friend set me up on a date, but he didn’t show. So I went to his house to confront him.”
“And what time was that?” Florence asked.
“I got to his house around nine thirty.”
“And did you come straight home after the confrontation?”
I shifted in my seat at Florence’s question. “May I ask what this is about?”
Jones cleared his throat. “We recovered a body early this morning that indicates it is Mrs. Allsworth. The time of death is estimated to be between eight last night to midnight.”
My eyes nearly popped out of my skull. I could hear my frantic heartbeat as I shot glances between the two men. “What? D-do you think I had something to do with it?”
“We’re exploring all possibilities at this point. We received information that you two were involved in a physical altercation a couple of nights ago.”
I gently rubbed my black eye. “So am I a suspect?”
Jones shrugged, his demeanor remaining aloof. “Merely a person of interest.”
Jones mouth continued moving, but I couldn’t hear what he was saying. All I could think about was the conversation I’d had with Luke the night before, and how he reassured me that his wife wasn’t going to be a problem much longer. Did he have something to do with this? I shook the thought away.
“I’m sorry, what did you ask me?”
“Did you come straight home after the confrontation with your no-show date?”
I gulped. I was sure the cops knew who I was and my relationship with the Allsworths. But admitting that I was with Luke the last night was just going to add fuel to the fire that was already burning in my direction. But they would find out eventually.
“After I left the guy’s house, I um, went to the governor’s mansion. I was there until about one in the morning. With Luke.”
The men nodded, making no attempt to hide the surprised look on their faces. I shifted in my seat as they jotted a bunch of notes down.
“So both men will be able to confirm your whereabouts?”
I nodded. “The guy lives downtown on Cherry Street. The brick house at the end.”
My non-blind date from last night wasn’t going to take too kindly to my drama, though. I prayed that the details of the investigation remained private, or the media attention wasn’t going anywhere any time soon.
The men looked at each other and exchanged some type of silent communication. They both stood at the same time. Florence handed me a business card.
“Thank you for your time. If you remember anything else, please give me a call. We’ll be in touch.”
I walked them to the door, and then sucked in a large gulp of air once the door closed behind them. I couldn’t believe it. She was dead? I didn’t like her very much, but I certainly didn’t wish death on her.
Who would be so brazen as to kill the governor’s wife? It seemed like Luke’s life was spiraling out of control. And I was in the middle of it all. How did my life end up like this?
With shaking hands, I reached for my phone and dialed Monet. She probably wasn’t awake yet, but I was going to call her until she picked up.
“Hello?” she said groggily.
“Nay!” I cried hoarsely.
Her voice perked up. “Steph, what’s wrong?”
I told her about Amy, and my exploits with Luke last night after her friend stood me up.
“Oh my God. Luke did it.”
I gasped. “Don’t say that.”
“Who else could get close enough to her to kill her? Who else would want her dead? He gets sympathy from the public, doesn’t have to go through a controversial divorce, and he gets to have you now.”
I shook my head, trying to shake away my growing suspicions. “He couldn’t… that’s not something he could do.”
“You never know what people are capable of until they are backed in corner. It’s not too late to end things with him. But once you do, you need to mean it. This shit is too heavy, girl. He’s not worth all of this. Get your life back.”
I hung up with her and paced around in my living room. As I started putting the pieces together, I realized that they were creating a picture that I didn’t want to see. I needed to get my mind off of Luke.
Unfortunately, I had nowhere to go and nothing to do. It was extremely early in the morning, but there was no way I was going to be able to fall back asleep. I couldn’t even turn on the TV and watch the morning news, because my face would be all over it.
I sighed before scanning my bookshelf for a book to read. I settled back in bed with a glass of wine and a Danielle Steele book- drinking before noon was starting to become a habit.
An hour into my book, my cell phone rang. I didn’t have to look at the screen to know who it was. And I wasn’t going to answer. Once it stopped ringing, I put it on silent and continued my book, drinking wine until I fell asleep again.
For the second time that day, knocking on my door woke me up. It wasn’t as insistent as the detective’s knock, so I didn’t think it was the police again. I put my robe back on and headed to the door, my hangover still in full force.
“Hey you,” Greg said once I opened the door.
“Hi.”
What was he doing here? He had a plastic bag in his hands. I got a waft of the steam that was coming from the bag and it smelled like Chinese food.
/> “May I come in?”
I stepped to the side and allowed him in. He walked in my house like he owned the place and headed for my kitchen. It was a mess, and I was a mess. I wasn’t prepared for company. I watched as he pulled out two plastic containers and turned to face me.
“General Tso’s and sesame chicken. I hope you like one of them?”
I scratched my head and tightened my robe around my body. “Greg, what are you doing here?”
His face sobered up and he gazed me over intently. “I figured you probably haven’t been eating much, so I brought you dinner. You could use a friend right now. There’s a lot going on, and I want you to know that I’m here for you; I’m not going anywhere.”
I had a friend- Monet. I didn’t need him. Still, seeing him was nice. “Why do you care so much?”
He sighed, folding his muscular arms across his broad chest as he leaned against the counter. Wow, he was thick. Was he that big on our date? I didn’t notice.
“Because I’ve made my fair share of mistakes. The world is turning against you, but I know that you aren’t a bad person just because you had a lapse in judgment. I could’ve used a friend in my corner when I was going through my issues; I hope you’ll allow me to be there for you.”
I wouldn’t call my time with Luke a “lapse in judgment,” but I didn’t tell Greg that. Greg was such a perfect guy; why couldn’t I invest fully with him? He was attractive, had a great job, and seemed to be a sensitive partner. He was everything I was looking for. And now he was giving me yet another chance.
As I watched him prepare me a plate of food, I realized that it was now or never. My relationship with Luke couldn’t continue when I had suspicions about his involvement in his wife’s death. And even if we could be together, what kind of future would we have?
Constant ridicule from the public, feelings of guilt whenever I looked in the mirror, and his career would suffer by having someone like me at his arm. I wasn’t a part of his lifestyle.
Greg was just the man for me. We’d been talking online for a few weeks, so I knew we had a lot in common. We looked good together, and I was sure that over time I would develop strong feelings for him. It just felt so strange having to start over.
I smiled when he presented me with a plate of food, and he followed me to the couch to watch a movie while we ate. I was where I was supposed to be. In the morning, I was going to change my cell phone number, and officially rid my life of everything related to Luke: everything he’d bought me, all the lingerie I’d bought for him, and all of the pictures of us I had in my phone.
It was nice to be in the company of a man I didn’t have to sneak around with. We could walk out in public, hand in hand. We could go on a romantic date alone, and not have to have other people with us to deter suspicion. We could be… normal.
I patted Greg on the leg during a commercial break during our movie. “Thank you.”
He smiled, and I allowed myself to get lost in the beauty of it. “Any time. I didn’t want to eat alone tonight, so I should be thanking you as well.”
Sitting there with him was the beginning of something amazing; I could feel it. After our movie ended, he cleaned up the dishes and turned to face me.
“I have to work in the morning, so I’m going to head out.”
I frowned. “Okay. Thanks again for coming over.”
He stuck a hand in his pocket and looked at me sheepishly. “Can I come by to check on you after work tomorrow?”
“I’d like that.”
I walked him to the door and we hugged goodbye. I chuckled when I closed the door behind him. Greg was just what I needed. He came into my life at just the right time. Things were finally starting to look up.
*
It was getting late, but I still wasn’t tired. Restless, I sat back on the couch and risked turning on the late night news. Of course, they were talking about Amy’s death. My stomach churned as I listened to them going over the details, but it didn’t seem like they had much to go on so far.
They replayed a press conference Luke held earlier in the day, requesting prayers and privacy as he dealt with the investigation and mourning. He made a small speech and didn’t take any questions, which was the smart thing to do. Any questions probably would have been regarding his affair.
His face was genuinely pained as he spoke, and I felt a tugging in my chest as I watched him speak about his wife’s death. Whether they had issues or not, I was sure a part of him still loved her.
On top of his grief, I was sure the police were barraging him with questions. I shook my head and clicked off the television; how could I ever think he had something to do with this? I panicked earlier, and my mind was trying to piece together what was happening. But I knew Luke well, and I honestly couldn’t believe that he would do something like that.
I walked into my bedroom and saw a light flashing on my phone. I knew I had missed calls, and I knew they were from him, but I went to check it anyway. He’d been calling me all day.
I knew that I needed to continue to ignore him, but I wanted to hear his voice. I wanted to make sure he was okay with everything going on. Calling him didn’t mean that I was opening myself up to him again; I was just checking on a friend who was going through something traumatic. I sighed and put the phone to my ear.
He answered on the first ring. “Oh God, baby. I’ve been trying to reach you all day!”
“I know. I was just calling to see how you are doing. The police were here this morning, so I figured they questioned you as well.”
“Yeah, today has been crazy. I need to see you.”
My eyebrows shot up. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Besides, I think you and I need to cool it for a while.”
He paused for a long time. I looked at the phone to make sure he was still on the other end.
“What are you saying?” he finally whispered.
“It’s time to end things, Luke. We’ve had a lot of fun, but it’s time to get back to real life now.”
“Fun? Stephanie, I love you. How can you reduce the last few years to just fun?”
My heart raced in my chest. I loved him too, but we weren’t good for each other. I had another chance with a man who was good for me, and I had to do the right thing.
“I’m sorry-”
“I don’t want to hear that. We can finally be together, and you’re calling it quits?”
I laughed in disbelief at his lack of concern for his dead wife. “How can you be so cold? Your wife isn’t even buried yet! Do you even care that she’s dead?”
“Of course I do, how could you even ask me that? But her death doesn’t change the feelings I have for you. The past couple of days have been hard for the both of us; we can finally be together. And we can heal together.”
I locked my jaw shut, not wanting to blurt out the first thing that came to my mind. Because the first thought that occurred to me was that I thought his words made sense. If we stuck together, maintained a united front, I knew we would endure. But it wasn’t right; not like this.
“It’s time to move on, Luke.”
“Please, I can’t lose both of you. This is too much for me right now; I need you here with me. Steph-”
I hung up the phone before I caved to his words. I noticed that I had missed calls from several other numbers. None of them looked familiar, but I had a few new voicemails, so I put the phone back to my ear to listen to them.
“Miss Jensen, my name is Robert Greco. I’m an attorney at Stein, Ernest, and Associates. In light of your recent troubles, we would like to represent you-” Delete. How the hell did this guy get my number? I listened to the next message.
“My name is Adrian Fischer. I’m a correspondent with MSNBC, and I’d like to schedule a sit down interview with you-” What? Delete.
“You’re a goddamned whore and you are going to pay for your sins-”
My eyes widened and I deleted the rest of the messages without even listening to them after that. My num
ber was definitely getting changed in the morning- to a private number.
I took a quick shower and got back into bed, my new favorite place. Despite my racing mind, I was still able to fall asleep.
I woke up early the next morning and made myself a big breakfast. I had no plans for the day, but I was sick of self-wallowing, especially since my situation was turning around. I’d finally broken things off with Luke, and my relationship with Greg was off to a good start.
There was a lightness to my steps that I hadn’t felt in a long time, the feeling that I was stepping out of the black hole of sin and en route to a brighter future. I went into my bedroom to grab my phone. I needed to call Monet to give her an update. As I unlocked my phone, there was a heavy knock on the door.
I walked to the door and rolled my eyes when I looked through the peephole.
“I can see your shadow. Open the door.”
I cracked the door open, leaving the chain on. I stared into Luke’s deranged eyes through the small opening. “What is it?”
“Let me in.”
“No. What do you want?”
“What do you mean? I’m here for you!”
I looked away. “I meant what I said yesterday.”
“No, you didn’t. I can see it in your eyes. We can't end things like this, not after all of this time.”
My phone vibrated in my hand, and I looked down at the screen. It was Greg.
“Let me in, Stephanie.”
I looked up at the man I’d foolishly fallen for, his eyes begging me to open the door. I put my hand on the chain, my mind blazing as I thought about what I should do. Did I want to let him in, or answer Greg’s call?
I jumped when he kicked the door, a loud bang echoing in the hallway.
“Damn it, I just lost Amy, I can't lose you too!” His voice was cracking as he spoke; I could tell he was desperate.
I bit down on my lower lip to try to stop it from trembling.
“Goodbye, Luke.”
I closed the door and answered my phone, relief washing over me. By closing the door on Luke, I was choosing to have a future. And it was looking to be an amazing thing.
I hope you enjoyed part 1. Feedback is always appreciated.
Let Go (BWWM Interracial Romance) Page 4