“Yeah.” Felicia’s smile felt forced as if the topic of Orlando wasn’t one she was eager to discuss. “I’m here often picking up and dropping off paperwork.”
Great. Danica would now have to deal with the possibility of running into her again in any of the upcoming inevitable appearances she’d still have to make before the judge. She could only hope now that Orlando would follow through with his assurance that he wouldn’t be taking any more of Felicia’s calls. Last thing she wanted was to give Felicia a reason to feel the need to reach out to him.
“Ah.” Danica nodded, not sure what to follow up with, but she didn’t want the subject back on her. “How’ve you been?”
“Good.” Felicia smiled, though Danica didn’t miss the slight lift of her chin. “Busy, busy.” She motioned to the paperwork in her hands again. “Well, it was good to see you, but I gotta get back to work.”
Relieved, Danica waved her off. Just as abruptly as they’d nearly collided into each other, they were both off in different directions. Clearly, the girl didn’t want to stick around and have the subject veer toward the only thing they’d ever had in common. Good-bye, Felicia.
As usual for a Monday, the county offices were packed. The hearing had gone well, but Danica still wasn’t clear. She’d have to be back next month after jumping through a few more hoops, but Blaine promised her they were getting close. Danica walked slowly through the long parking lot, contemplating what lay ahead. Sure, she was closer to being free of her past mistakes but not close enough. “Will you give me just a minute, please?”
Once again Danica had been so lost in thought she hadn’t even noticed the person passing alongside her wasn’t passing her but walking with her. She glanced up, instantly feeling annoyed, despite Ted looking as dapper and handsome as always in his crisp navy-blue suit. “I don’t have a minute,” she said as she continued walking. “I have to get to work.”
“Where are you parked?” She motioned to the parking lot ahead of them, even though she was parked way over at the very end of it. “I’ll walk you to your car, then. I’ll keep this short. I promise.”
Looking straight ahead, Danica crossed her arms in front of her, refraining from rolling her eyes. But she reminded herself to be mindful that, if it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t even be this close to getting her felony charges reduced. Not for a long time anyway because it’d be that long before she could afford to do so on her own. So, she’d at least be civil, but that was the most she’d give him.
“Look. I know I fucked up, okay? I should’ve never put my hands on you. I should’ve never spoken to you the way I did. I should’ve never tried to dictate your life. I’ll do anything to make up for it. We can start over from the beginning, and it’ll be different. I know what it’s like now to lose you, and I’d do anything to keep it from happening again.”
Like make sure to never give Danica the chance to sneak out of his house the way she had? Danica chuckled, shaking her head even as he went on. It was the same thing she’d heard before. Ted continued to make every promise under the sun and pleaded for a second chance the whole walk to her car. By the time they reached it, she’d heard all about how much he’d changed. How he’d seen the error of his ways and he just wanted a chance to prove it to her. Civil. Remember how bad you need Blaine.
“We’re too different, Ted,” Danica finally replied as she reached for the handle of her car door. “You’re this up-and-coming politician, and I’m a hood rat, remember?” She gasped when he dropped to a knee.
“Look at me,” he said, holding out his hands to either side of him, his expression as pained as she’d ever seen it. “I’m begging you to forgive me, Danica. I was an idiot and I see it now. I swear. But I’ve been so fucking miserable ever since you left. I can’t eat. I can’t sleep. I need you back, baby. Please. We can do it slowly. You don’t have to move back—”
“Stop.” Danica shook her head, glancing around, hoping his making a spectacle hadn’t caught the eye of too many, and spoke through her teeth. “I can’t, okay.”
“Danica, please.” He reached out for her, his red-rimmed eyes all out flooding. “Don’t do this to me.”
Panicking, Danica took his hand. “Stand up,” she hissed, glancing around again as he stood up, swatting away his tears. “Stop this right now, Ted.” Only he would go to these lengths to get his way. “This isn’t gonna happen, okay. You need to stop with this. Stop following me—”
“I didn’t follow you here.” He wiped at the corner of his eye, glancing away with a sniffle, looking a little embarrassed suddenly. “I work here, remember?” He motioned to the city offices adjacent to the courthouse. “Blaine told me you’d be in court today, but it’s all he’d tell me. Said, if I wanted to know any details about the case, I’d have to ask you. I was looking out, and I saw you walking out of the courthouse. I figured it might be my only chance. But it’s not the only reason why I’m here. Regardless of what’s going on with us, I still care about you, baby, and I wanted to know how it went.”
Danica nodded, remembering how the thought of possibly running into him whenever she’d have to appear in court again had crossed her mind when she’d first broken things off, especially given who her attorney was. But there’d been so many other things inundating her mind since then that she’d forgotten all about it. Only because she wouldn’t be a complete ingrate, and she had nothing to lose in doing so, she gave him a quick update on what was going on with her case. “There are still some loose ends that need to be taken care of before the DA will sign off on agreeing to reduce my felony to a misdemeanor. I come back to court next month.”
No sooner was she done explaining a little more about what needed to be done in the next month than he was back to trying to convince her to give him another chance. “I can give you your space.” Ted sniffed again, though he’d since managed to compose himself. “It’s what I’ve been doing, right? It’s just, that seeing you again . . .” He shook his head. “I had no idea how hard this would be. I’m just asking for one last chance.”
Dani shook her head but not as adamantly as she wanted to. He might be an asshole, but she kept reminding herself his son was the one helping her get her life back in order—at Ted’s expense. Still, she didn’t want him using the excuse of wanting to know how her case was going, so she’d give him something. “I’ll talk to Blaine and tell him it’s okay for him to share with you what’s going on with my case.”
Ted stared at her, looking hurt. He was a jerk, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew what that meant. There’d be no excuse for him to be staking out the courthouse next time she was there. His eyes flooded again, and it was all Danica could take. “I gotta go, Ted.”
“Can I just hug you good-bye? One last time?” Leaning into him because at that point she’d do anything to get the hell out of there already, Danica meant to just make it a quick one. Of course, Ted wouldn’t make it that easy for her. He pulled her to him, bringing his arms completely around and embracing her firmly, the smell of his expensive cologne inundating her senses. Not wanting to make a scene and jerk herself away from him, she gave in instead but refused to hug him as he hugged her. Instead, she tapped his back gently, rolling her eyes in the process. “I love you,” he whispered into her ear. “So much.” Just like that, she went completely tense again then pulled away. He wiped at the corner of his eye but turned away, avoiding looking at her. “Take care,” he said before walking away in a hurry.