"Ooh. Mexico. Very romantic. How's he holding up?"
"He's nervous about the outcome of the investigation. Funny thing, Lilah said that Dynex hasn't started the process. He's supposed to return to work in two weeks. I think they'll postpone the date."
"Well, that's suspect." Alex raised a brow.
"It is. Nic and Jeff are playing dirty games. Lilah believes that she's found something. I'm not optimistic. Nic is a Teflon-coated bitch. Nothing will stick to her. The police could videotape her robbing a bank, and she would keep her job."
"Go, Kellan!" Alex stood, clutching her fists, her attention back on the game. Kellan made his second attempt at a goal. I breathed a sigh of relief when the ball sailed clear over the goalie's head. The entire bleachers stood and applauded my nephew. The little shit took a bow.
"Finally. Now I can go home with two cheerful boys." A wicked smile landed on her lips. "When Garrett comes to dinner, what do you suggest we serve him? A crown roast with all the fixings? Or do you think he can handle chitterlings?"
"Chitlins." I grinned then paused for a beat. "I like him. How did I get here? This was supposed to be a fling."
"What's the quote? 'You can close your eyes to something you don't want to see, but you can't close your heart for something you don't want to feel.' Jazzy, there's no fooling the heart. You've got to go with it."
After the twins' celebratory brunch, I returned to my townhome to pack for an afternoon flight to Chicago. Garrett and I planned to spend the next few days exploring Chicago. After a week and a half at home, I missed him more than I imagined.
I bounded off the plane and floated to the passenger pickup area. My feet moved to the rhythm of my thumping heart as I speed-walked to Garrett's car and landed in his arms. We kissed at the trunk until airport security yelled over that we needed to move.
Giddy like a schoolgirl, I chattered nonstop the entire drive from the airport to his parking garage. He smiled and patiently listened as I brought him up-to-speed that I accepted ER Wallace's severance package and about watching my nephews play soccer.
We parked my bags in the master bedroom and headed to a nearby Korean barbecue restaurant. Throughout dinner, Garrett was lost in his thoughts. He smiled at my jokes and answered my questions, but it felt like there was a lot on his mind. I understood his morose attitude; job related struggles were mentally and physically draining. I'd walked through the past week and a half with a phony smile plastered on my face. Every morning began with a cleansing cry in the shower. I dried my tears, pasted on a smile, and proceeded with life.
"Hey. What's going on? Are you okay?" I placed a hand over his and searched his eyes for a hint to his feelings.
"I'm distracted. Finish telling me your plans for the next three months." He flashed a gentle smile as he fingered a strand of my hair.
My concern knocked him back to the old Garrett. We laughed and chatted about our time apart. I'd thought that he had returned to normal.
Back at the condo, I stretched out on the sectional and picked up the television remote.
"What are you in the mood for? A Nicholas Sparks chick-flick? Or a DeNiro, Pesci, and Pacino mashup? You decide."
He placed his hand over the remote and turned the television off. I saw the dark circles rimming his eyes, as if he hadn't caught a wink of sleep. He scraped a hand through his hair, avoiding eye contact. This suspension must have affected him harder than I expected.
"Babe, we need to talk."
My chest felt as if someone reached in, grabbed my heart, and squeezed until it broke into a million tiny pieces. Never in the history of mankind had a conversation beginning with "we need to talk" ended well. This couldn't be good. I let out a nervous laugh.
"What's going on?"
He took a deep breath and stared at the wall behind me. "I'm going back to Dynex on Monday."
"That's great, but we expected the findings would find no evidence of any wrongdoing. What happened?" I expelled the breath I'd held for the last three minutes. My chest continued to throb. I knew in my heart, that wasn't what he wanted to talk about.
"Jeff called yesterday. He asked me to come in a week earlier than planned. That means we'll have to postpone the trip to Mexico. Is that okay?"
"Well, I'm disappointed about the trip, but you're excited to go back to work. Right?"
"Yeah. I guess."
"Babe, I'm happy for you." I shifted in my seat to kiss him on the cheek.
"That's not what I wanted to talk about. I mean, there's more. A lot more."
My smile faded as I braced myself for the anvil to fall. He took my hand and faced me, searching my face for a reaction.
"On New Year's Eve, I went to a party at Tony Jones' house. The entire leadership team was there. I went because it was the right thing for my career. There was drinking and dancing." He paused. "I didn't expect to meet anyone."
My heart clanged loudly in my chest. Fuck. I'd been through this song and dance before. Garrett was going to tell me he was dating someone else.
"I ended up hooking up with Nicolette Sewell."
He said it so quiet and fast that it wasn't immediately clear what he was confessing. Then realization hit me. Garrett dated Nic. I searched his eyes for a hint that it was a joke.
"Nic Sewell is the ex?" I sputtered, disappointment rising in my chest.
"She didn't take the end of our relationship well." He choked out a laugh, a sneer clouding his handsome features. "As you know, she's unreasonable when she doesn't get her way. She's spent the last six months threatening my job and making my life hell. Now that she knows we're together, she's gone off the deep end."
This time, he looked me in the eye, and I got it. Without saying a word, I pulled my hand from his and rose from the sofa. Without looking back, I walked to his bedroom with him trailing on my heels. I picked up my cell phone from the charging station, whizzing from website to website until I found a red-eye back to Atlanta. I booked a flight, leaving in three hours.
Dragging my suitcase from the walk-in closet, I started pulling my clothes off the hangers and throwing them in my bag.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm taking my black ass back to Atlanta."
"Stay and talk with me."
"Oh. Now you want to talk? I should have learned about this weeks ago. At the very least, when we ran into her at the restaurant. I could have prepared myself. I would have known what I was up against. I've spent the past week searching for an explanation of why I was fired. I've lost everything. I had an accomplished career that mattered to me. And you . . . You're the golden boy that gets to return and save the day." I wiped the tears away with the back of my hand. I pointed my thumb to my chest. "Meanwhile, I'm punished for loving you. I'm so fucking naïve. I'm going home."
He blinked, stunned by my confession. Strong, warm arms wrapped around me from behind, holding me close. His soft breath misted the back of my neck. I cursed myself as my body sank against the familiar heat. His heart raced and pounded against my back. It felt as if it would beat out of his chest.