“I’ve come to stop you from making the biggest mistake of your life. Only you make me happy. Take me home with you tonight,” he commands as if nothing has changed.
“Marcus we can’t do this anymore,” I sigh out.
“Please, we need to talk, but away from here, from prying eyes and ears,” he says in a hushed tone.
“No, I have plans tonight,” I lie.
“Break them,” he commands again.
“No, I won’t,” I reply, we both know how stubborn I am and refuse to be told what to do. He stands and leaves without another word. I’m getting out of here. I turn off my computer, clear off my desk and grab my purse and get the hell out of here before he comes back looking for me. When I approach the elevators I can’t help but glance towards his office and he’s not in there. As I walk towards my car I spot him there, he’s waiting, stalking me.
“Marcus, stop stalking me,” I say and start to laugh. He silences me with a demanding kiss, pressing me against my car door and grinding my favorite part of his body against me. His kiss sucks the air out of my lungs and that familiar throb between my legs is heart stopping.
“Let me come over, I need you like I need air,” he breathes out huskily into my ear.
“God, Marcus. Please, we can’t do this,” I moan, pressing my forehead against him.
“I’ll meet you at home,” he says, caressing my face and then he walks off to his car. I don’t protest. The minute we get through my door, the inevitable happens between us. I let him take what he wants, I let him take what he needs from me. Our lust and desire for each other is unstoppable. I surrender to him every single time. This time the sex is urgent, passionate and sizzling hot. We both played with fire and got burned. We’re now both splayed out naked, sheets wrapped around our naked bodies and we’re coming down for our high.
“I love you Sophie. Admit you love me too, I know you do. If you didn’t you wouldn’t be so miserable without me. You wouldn’t be quitting Hunter and giving up everything you’ve worked so hard for. I won’t let you give up your career, I won’t let you give up on us. Admit it, damn it,” Marcus demands.
“Alright, I admit it. I love you. I miss what we had. I miss you warming my bed at night. I miss your hands on me. I miss having you love me. But it doesn’t change a thing Marcus. You’re going back to London and I’m going to marry John,” I practically scream all of this venom out at him. He sits up, stunned, like I’ve just slapped him across the face. All I did was tell him the cold hard truth. I’ve got to get him to let go of me, and I’ve got to let go of him. We both need to move on.
“Has he proposed?” he swallows out.
“Not yet but he’s close to. He’s taking me to Hawaii soon and I think that’s when he will pop the question.” I share something so personal, something I know will hurt him, but he left me no choice. He has to move on.
“So this was really the last time I will ever have you,” he says this as more of a statement, not a question. I need him to leave before I really break down. Why did he have to come back? Why couldn’t he let me leave peacefully?
“I guess you’ve made your choice then?” he asks as a heavy, heavy question that hangs so thick in the air I can almost touch it.
“Yes I have,” I say my voice strong and unwavering.
“Alright then, Sophie you have a heart of stone. It’s even harder and colder than my own.” He reaches for his clothes and gets dressed, never looking at me. How many times have we done this before? But this really will be the last, I know it in my heart and so does he now that I’ve been brutally honest with him. We would never have lasted I remind myself. I get up from my bed and throw my robe on to walk him out. My body shivers. He stops at my front door and turns to face me. He takes my face in his hands and looks deep into my soul.
“Have a nice life Sophie,” he says kissing me one last time and I close my eyes to commit our last kiss to memory. He leaves and never looks back.
Chapter 14
Marcus
I was going to ask her to marry me that night, that’s why I flew all the way back to California. To stop her from leaving Hunter Investments and to ask her to be my wife, I had a ring and everything. But first I wanted her to admit that she loved me, is that too much to ask? Well she admitted it, that she loved me that is. My happiness lasted a whole three seconds, because after she told me she loved me, she admitted something I wasn’t prepared for. She literally stabbed me in the heart when she told me she was marrying HIM. I’m surprised blood didn’t gush out from my chest. I know I’m being melodramatic, I guess you had to be there to understand what I’m saying, how I felt. For a brief moment I was still going to ask her after she told me he hadn’t proposed yet, but I thought better of it. I shouldn’t have to beg or convince her to marry me. Only a chump would do that, not Marcus Hunter. Besides, when I pressed her, if she had made her choice, she answered with an emphatic yes, she had chosen him. My blood pressure still drops when I think about that night. I literally had to stagger out of her apartment and down to my car. She broke me. I actually cried tears when I got in my car and I never cry. Come on a grown man like me crying over a girl, how pathetic is that?
So now I’m back in London and burying my sorrow in any beautiful girl who will let me. I’m never giving my heart away again.
I’m a broken man. I’ve gone back to my womanizing ways just like Sophie predicted I would. Maybe she was right about me all along. I thought I could change my ways, that I would change for her. I did change for her, until she stabbed me in the heart and left me bleeding when she told me she was marrying that other guy.
To think, just a few months ago I was asking Sophie to live with me and we thought we might be expecting a child together. I wanted to marry her, make her my wife. I never came out and told her, I knew it might scare her away. Then when she told me she was marrying someone else, I wasn’t going to ask her then to marry me. It would have seemed like I was begging, I will never beg a girl to marry me, never should I have to. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was the happiest I had ever been in my life with her. We both were in denial of how strong our love was for each other. It wasn’t until the bitter end that I realized how much she must have loved me, I don’t even think she realized it either, but her tears didn’t lie. Not a day goes by when I don’t think about her and wonder how she’s doing. But I know it’s too late for us, she’s made it clear that no matter how her heart felt for me she was moving on, she chose him.
My heart will never be the same since I let her in.
Chapter 15
Sophie
It’s been months since that last night Marcus walked out of my life forever. I still torture myself when I’m alone and listen to Without You Here by the Goo Goo Dolls, Happy by Surface and when I’m a glutton for punishment I blast Sex On Fire by Kings of Leon. All these songs bring back my memories of my time with Marcus. I get stuck listening to the song Sad by Maroon 5 and the lyrics break my heart all over again.
Some nights, after a long day, I think about him. Wondering if I tried everything I could. I’m scared there might not be another love like this. I’m hanging on by a thin, thin thread. I never gave Marcus the words that he needed to hear. I’m trying not to look back, wondering if the road I chose is the right one.
As predicted, John proposed on the beach in Hawaii and I accepted. I heard through the grapevine that Marcus has been sowing his oats all over London, back to his old ways of doing what he does best, confirming that I was right to end it for good with him. Between his partying and string of endless women, it was best to let him walk away, thank you Mr. Hunter for putting an ocean between us.
*****
I never understood why if two people really loved each other, what could possibly stop them from being together? As long as they were both single. Now I know a reason why and it tears my heart out. Marcus’s drinking problem and his occasional recreational drug use is what stopped me from truly being with him, committing to him f
orever. If he didn’t do those things I would have blissfully been able to say yes to him. Call me a fool, but I felt confident as a woman that I was enough for him and that he never would have cheated on me. He could put his womanizing ways behind him for me. I believed that, but I can’t live with an alcoholic, or drug user the rest of my life, nor am I going to spend a lifetime trying to change him. People don’t change, they have to want to. I know that much. I believe he does truly love me and I finally admitted to him as well as to myself that I will always love him. He’s the bad boy I’m not willing to take a chance on. Would we really have lasted a lifetime? I sincerely doubt it and those closest to me warned me to see the writing on the wall. I wouldn’t want to have kids with him, so with a heavy heart I made my decision to marry John. Although Marcus will always have a piece of my heart.
*****
John just took me out to dinner tonight for my birthday. We went to Villa Blanca, my favorite place to be wined and dined. I also love to people watch and see the rich and beautiful of Beverly Hills. We are now back at my place watching my all time favorite movie, Bridget Jones’s Diary, when my phone rings. I answer it and it’s Marcus. We haven’t spoken since that night.
“Hi Sophie,” he says in that all too familiar bedroom voice I used to love hearing every night.
“Hi,” I reply, not even saying his name because John is sitting right next to me and my heart starts racing.
“I just wanted to call and wish you a Happy Birthday,” he says, his voice wavering, like he’s nervous.
“Thank you,” is all I say. Then there is a long pause, I don’t know what else to say, especially with John sitting right next to me. He’s acting like he is engrossed in the movie.
“Well, goodbye,” Marcus finally says on the other end.
“Goodbye,” I say softly, hanging up. John doesn’t say a single word. Not even a who was that, nothing. He asks me no questions, so I will not have to tell him any lies.
The next night when I’m home alone, I call Marcus back. I felt bad that I couldn’t talk to him when he was reaching out to me. It was so touching that he thought of me on my birthday.
“Hello,” his sexy bedroom voice hits me between my thighs.
“Hi Marcus.”
“Hi Sophie,” he sighs out.
“Thanks for calling me yesterday and remembering my birthday. That was very sweet of you,” I say.
“I could tell you were not alone. Are you officially engaged now?” he asks. His question catches me off guard, but it makes me realize that even now, months later, he still hurts inside from our break up. I know I do.
“Yes,” I reply.
“Are you happy?” he presses. I pause a moment before answering.
“Yes.”
“I miss you Sophie, I miss what we had together. It was beautiful,” he says, tugging at my heart strings.
“I miss you too,” I feel my voice break and I need to blink back my tears. I didn’t think I would be affected like this at hearing his voice again.
“Well, goodbye Sophie,” he says. I pause a moment and take a deep breath.
“Goodbye Marcus.”
I never blamed Marcus for breaking my heart, I accept full responsibility for breaking my own heart.
I’m living the life of Bridget Jones, I chose Colin Firth over Hugh Grant. John is a wonderful, wonderful man. I couldn’t ask for a better fiancée, soon to be husband. Watch the movie and you’ll see what I mean.
~To Be Continued~
~~PLAYLIST~~
Love Somebody – Maroon 5
Sex On Fire – Kings of Leon
Without You Here – Goo Goo Dolls
Sad - Maroon 5
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Love Dies Hard Three - Book 3 (Billionaire Romance Series) (Hard To Love) Page 4