Chance

by Rachel Rise

  I ignored it because I couldn’t comprehend what I could say to him right then. I took a drink of what I thought was orange juice, only to find it was a Mimosa. I relaxed in the seat and continued to finish off the breakfast. My phone dinged to signal a message and that’s when I noticed I had ten missed calls and four text messages from him. The texts all said the same thing. Baby, I’m so sorry. Please forgive me. I love you and I will make this up to you. I shook my head and put my phone down. Too much had happened. Could we really take back everything we both did and said? I didn’t think so.

  I took my last bite of eggs and finished off my Mimosa and checked my pockets to make sure I had everything. “Phone? Check. License? Check. Money? Check. Car keys?” I frantically started searching for my car keys until it hit me. They would have needed the keys to get the car to the apartments. I wrote a message at the bottom of his note to me, then I looked around his Penthouse. It was nice while it lasted, but it was time to go back to the real world.

  I got on the elevator and took it down to the lobby, then left the apartment. I went out to the valet and smiled at him. I opened my mouth to tell him I didn’t have any kind of ticket, but he was quick to interrupt me.

  “Your vehicle will be here shortly Ms. Wilcox.”

  My mouth hung open. He knew my last name. It once again dawned on me that Nolan had been busy and got all his ducks in a row. While I waited for them to get my car, I glanced back up at the apartment and my eyes went to the glass windows of Nolan’s place. I barely noticed when the car arrived, but the guy cleared his throat, causing me to look at him.

  I smiled. “Thank you!” I reached in my pocket to give him money, but he held up his hands.

  “It’s covered, Ms. Wilcox. Good day!”

  I nodded, feeling a bit wobbly on my legs. I almost hated leaving without being able to say goodbye to him. “Thank you! Good day!” I walked around my car and got into the driver’s seat. I pulled out of the valet and headed home.

  Thoughts of Nolan kept running through my mind and I felt a little sad. I turned on the radio, hoping that it would drown out my thoughts, but Journey’s Faithfully came on the radio. I couldn’t even believe it. I quickly turned the station off, but as I drove I even started humming the tune. I wouldn’t be able to get it out of my mind.

  Nolan’s Penthouse was thirty minutes from my home and the time drug on until I finally turned onto my street. I hadn’t anticipated spotting Thomas’ beat up pickup truck in my driveway. I slowed to a halt at the curb and he got out. His eyes went to my car and I felt a tinge of panic. I slowly pulled into the driveway, turned the car off, and got out.

  “Hey!” he said.

  I nodded. “Hey!” I didn’t want to meet up with him like this, especially not after having sex with another man the night before.

  “Oh!” He hurried around his truck and reached into the window of his truck and retrieved a bouquet of roses. He brought them up to me. “These are for you!”

  I looked at them and slowly took them from his hand. “Thanks!”

  He nodded. “I’m so sorry, Charity,” he started. “I…” then his words suddenly fell off and his eyes went down my body, making me highly uncomfortable. “Isn’t that what you were wearing last night?” he asked. He looked up into my eyes and I started to sweat and my heart started pounding in my chest. I then nodded, because he would have seen right through me if I hadn’t.

  “I stayed at Michelle’s house,” I said, lying through my teeth. “After I left your place I drove around for a while and I didn’t want to be alone.” The lies kept coming.

  “Oh!” he said. He seemed to buy them right off, which surprised me. “I’m sorry we had that fight,” he said. “You know that I would want to do whatever makes you happy. You have to believe that.”

  I felt a lump in my throat as he poured out his heart and soul. “Thomas…” I started.

  He put out his hand, grabbing mine. “Just hear me out. Nothing in this world would make me happier than to one day marry you. I don’t know why I said what I did because when you left I was so broken. I love you and everything that our relationship accounts for. So, please…please don’t stay one more minute mad at me.” He looked like a sad puppy dog. I felt for him because everything he said was clearly from his heart.

  “I’m not mad at you,” I said. It was the truth. I had moved past being mad at him the minute I betrayed our relationship. I now felt guilt from myself, but I couldn’t harbor any ill feelings towards him. “I love you, too, Thomas,” I said, whispering the words slightly.

  He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a kiss. Thoughts of Nolan were still there as I kissed my boyfriend. I didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, but I did know that I had way too much going on in my mind to make any rash decisions. I needed some time to think, but right now I almost felt I needed to comfort Thomas.

  CHAPTER 7

  Nolan

  T

  he email came up and I skimmed through it, checking to see if there was any new information I needed going into the meeting on Monday. However, as I read through the email, I got lost in my own thoughts. I looked up and stared ahead, as a smile reached my lips. I didn’t want to leave Charity and I honestly wouldn’t have, if it wasn’t for the fact that I had several meetings that would occupy the time during my work week and sometimes Sunday was the best time I could concentrate; especially when I was the only one there.

  “The sooner I get done, the sooner I get back to her,” I mumbled, as I looked back at my computer. I couldn’t remember the last time I had such a connection to a woman. Well, that was a lie, because I had never had this type of connection with a woman. It wasn’t just about the sex with her, because I had my share of sexual encounters over the course of my life. Some people would say too many encounters. You should consider settling down, many of my friends would chime in. Of course, most of those friends were females. I just always laughed it off and told them how marriage was great, as long as it was someone else’s marriage. I didn’t need that kind of baggage in my life. I was thirty years old and decided that women could give me one thing in life and it wasn’t the perfect little household.

  Yet, when the thoughts continued to come back to someone that I had only briefly had the privilege of knowing, it took me back a step. I shook my head and felt that tingling sensation throughout my body and I knew that I wanted to get back to her…more sooner than later.

  I heaved a sigh and logged out of my computer. I wasn’t getting much work done anyway and I was really kicking myself for leaving my place. I could have pulled up my email on my laptop, but it wasn’t as convenient and frankly, I didn’t expect to have so many thoughts of what I left behind.

  Just as I was leaving my office, I spotted the elevator door opening. I glanced at my watch. It was just after ten o’clock on a Sunday morning. I couldn’t fathom who was coming into work now. I looked up and spotted Francesca getting off the elevator. I groaned but put a smile on my face.

  “Hey, Boss,” she smiled and waved as she approached me.

  She always liked calling me boss, even though over the course of the past two years that Francesca was my personal assistant, we had definitely had moments that were friendlier than just boss/employee. I smiled and nodded. “What you doing here?” I asked. I couldn’t help my eyes as they took in her outfit. She was dressed in a floral print dress that had a V-neck that prominently showcased her cleavage and it stopped about two inches above her knees. Let’s just say that she didn’t exactly look like she’d just come from church.

  “Well, I was in the neighborhood and spotted your car out in the parking lot. I wanted to see if you needed anything.”

  I shook my head. “That was kind of you, but just heading out.”

  Her eyes lit up with recognition. “Well then, if that’s the case.” She winked at me and wrapped her hand around the back of my head. I was caught in a death grip on her lips. I slowly pushed her away. Her jaw
dropped, plain and simple she was surprised. “Um…what’s wrong?” she asked.

  “I have a busy day. I really need to get out of here.”

  She laughed. “It’s barely ten. Surely you can afford a half an hour.” She moved closer to me, but I was quick to dart away. I shook my head again.

  “I really can’t.”

  I could understand her surprise, as this would go down in the History books as the first time I said no to Francesca, hell the first time I said no to any woman. I just couldn’t stay somewhere and have sex with someone, just because it was the norm. My mind was elsewhere and Francesca would understand that if she knew what was going on in my mind.

  “Is something wrong?” she asked, pulling her sleeves back up on her shoulders. “Don’t you like my dress?”

  I sighed. I actually felt regret that I had these feelings. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings. I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. “The dress is great. Everything’s fine. I just have to run.”

  Her eyes widened as I moved past her and went to the elevator. I didn’t wait for her to convince me that I should stay because the truth was…I hadn’t changed overnight. I most likely would have stayed if she would have persistently pressed for me to. I just was glad I made my getaway.

  I rode the elevator down and didn’t look back. It was almost like I was half expecting Francesca to catch me and I wouldn’t be able to get out of her web if she did. I got to my car and jumped in, then started it up and tore out of the parking lot.

  Once I was certain that I wasn’t getting caught right then, I breathed a sigh of relief. I took the backroads to my apartment building and pulled around to the valet. I got out of the car and handed the valet my car keys.

  “Thanks, Mr. Baxter. Hope you have a great day!”

  I smiled at the valet and nodded. “You too, Max.” I headed into the apartment building and went to the elevator. Once I got on, I let the music relax me a bit, but the closer I got to the Penthouse the more anxious I was.

  When the door of the elevator opened and I stepped off, I was suddenly hit with silence.

  “Charity?” I called out. I went to my bedroom, she wasn’t there. I went to the pool room, she wasn’t there. I exited and went back in the living room. I couldn’t believe she was really gone. I walked over to the kitchen nook and looked down at the empty plate, then glanced over at the note I had written her. I picked it up and read what she had written.

  It was fun! Have a good life!

  Charity

  I dropped the note and shook my head. I honestly didn’t expect her to be gone, with nothing more than a simple goodbye note. It was possible I would never see her again and there was nothing I could do about that.

  CHAPTER 8

  One Year Later

  Nolan

  T

  he conference room was quiet as I looked around at the men sitting at the long table. I had just laid everything out there, gave them a two-hour speech of why our company would be best suited for their needs and now it was up to them. I couldn’t even begin to read their expressions.

  I took a deep breath and then took a step back from the table. “I can give you some time to think and discuss things or you can call us later.”

  Each man nodded and looked at the others, but none of the five guys made a move until the guy at the end of the table stood up. I understood him to be the voice of the group. Damon Worthington was the CEO of D&J Housing, a place I wanted to handle all their financial needs.

  He cleared his throat. “If you can give us a few minutes, we might have the decision made.”

  “Of course,” I said, bowing out of the conference room and heading to my office.

  It would be a huge bonus for Westchester Hills Finance Incorporated if we landed the deal. We weren’t hurting in the sense that this was our only hope, but this would be our safety net. I grabbed a pen from my desk and nervously tapped it, while I waited for their decision. Five minutes went by, then ten. I was getting more frustrated with the wait than anything. When I heard a knock on my door I hoped it would be one of the men saying they reached their decision. Instead, Francesca was leaning against my door.

  She smiled with that sexy smile she always gave me when she wanted something, then slowly sauntered over to the desk. “How’d it go?” she asked.

  I smiled and shrugged. “Let’s just say that I couldn’t have possibly said anything else to get the point across.” I stopped tapping my pen and tossed it to the side and leaned back in my swivel rocking chair and started to rock. I looked at her and she leaned against my desk, presenting herself in the way she always could.

  Francesca was my go-to woman. Besides being my personal assistant, she was the one that easily would give me whatever I asked, so I tended to rely on her. In my time of need, she was always there. At this moment, I could only wish we were locked up in a room and forgetting our responsibilities and pleasuring one another as we had so many times before. That was my life to this day. In the past year, I did have one serious girlfriend. The relationship lasted three months. That was serious for me. She decided she wasn’t happy and flew to Vegas and married her pool boy. I’d laugh if it wasn’t so cliché.

  Francesca seemed to get me and I supposed that’s why I always wrapped back around to her because it was easy and there were no strings to attach us to one another. “What are you thinking, Boss?” she asked me.

  I smiled and chuckled. “I shouldn’t even go there.”

  I sat up straight and she looked intrigued by my response. She opened her mouth when my phone started ringing. I looked at the caller ID and noticed the conference room’s number. I held up my finger and pushed the speaker button to answer the call.

  “Yes? This is Nolan Baxter.”

  “Nolan, it’s Damon. Will you please come back to the conference room?”

  “I’ll be right there.” I disconnected the call and stood up. I leaned into Francesca’s cheek and gave her a light peck. “Wish us luck!”

  She smiled and I left my office and went back to the conference room. Once I was inside it didn’t take much to learn of their verdict. Damon walked over to me and shook my hand. “We would love to do business with your company.”

  I felt a wave of relief wash over me. “You will not be disappointed,” I said.

  The other men stood up and we shook hands and it was a very happy time. I escorted them out of the conference room and directed them to where they could sign all the necessary paperwork, then went back to my office. Francesca was still there just waiting for me. I held out my arms and told her of the good news. She was just as excited as I was and we hugged. When she pulled apart I could tell she had more on her mind than hugging, but I had so much that needed to be done, that I immediately cut those thoughts off.

  “Let’s go out and celebrate,” she said.

  I nodded in agreement. “Sounds like a good idea. Where do you want to go?” I asked.

  She shrugged. “Somewhere nice and fancy.” Fancy was the operative word. Francesca never denied that her fascination with me had more to do with the money, than the looks. I didn’t mind really. It was just something I was used to knowing about her.

  I nodded. “Well, how about that club on Linux Boulevard?” I offered.

  She frowned. “Not sure I know of the one.”

  I gave out the directions to her until she seemed to understand. “I think it just opened for business a couple months ago. I have friends that said it’s nice.”

  She nodded. “Ahhhh…yes. I think I heard that it’s really swanky and a lot of rich people spend their time there. That’s perfect.”

  I rolled my eyes but tried to make it very casual, so she wouldn’t see my irritation. “Okay, then I can pick you up around seven thirty?”

  “Actually, I’ll meet you there,” she responded.

  I frowned and took a seat behind my desk. That was unusual. She usually liked being chauffeured by me. “Hmmm…okay,�
�� I slowly stated.

  She shot me a look. “Why do you say it like that?” she asked.

  I shrugged. “Just surprised, that’s all. But if you would rather meet, then so be it. We’ll meet there at seven thirty.”

  She nodded. “Yep. Sounds like a plan!” She then turned and left my office, but I still questioned the reason she wanted to meet, instead of going together. I shrugged it off and went back to work. I was on a high and nothing would deter me from that.

  CHAPTER 9

  Charity

  I

  pulled into the driveway and my eyes went to Thomas’ blue pickup truck. I didn’t know why he was home and not working on his latest construction job. I turned off the ignition and grabbed my purse, then got out of the car. I walked up the sidewalk, my high heels tapping out a rhythm on the pavement. It’d been a long day at work. There were so many changes going on, with upper management either leaving or getting promoted and being pushed out of our office, half the time my head was spinning. Tonight was no exception.

  I opened up the front door and was hit with the sound of the TV. The volume was up at least two decibels higher than it needed to be. I walked around the corner and peeked my head in the living room. Thomas was watching a cartoon and laughing like he was a little kid. He looked up and smiled. “Hey, Babe. Welcome home!”

  I still couldn’t get used to him calling my house, home. But after some discussion and practical thinking we took the plunge two months earlier and now it was like we were cohabitating, but that was about all. I smiled. “Hey!” I then dropped my purse on the chair and turned back to him. “What are you doing home?” I asked, interested in learning of his answer.