“Maddy?” There’s no hiding the tremor in my voice, or the thick, sticky quality of my words. And if all that isn’t bad enough, I hiccup a sob at the end of his name.
Instantly in full protector mode, Maddox asks, “Mira? What’s wrong? Are you okay? Where are you?” His concern for me nearly rips me in half.
“Can I stay with you and Isla for a while?”
Heavy silence falls over the line, and then my brother’s voice takes on a brutal quality that would be terrifying if it wasn’t in defense of me. “What the fuck did Wright do?”
“I can’t—I don’t… Just, can you pick me up from the airport in three hours? Please?”
“Of course, Mi-Mi. Of course I can. Are you okay?”
Maddox growls when I sob through the phone.
“No, I don’t think I am. But I will be.”
Somehow, I will be.
I just need to hold it together long enough to get out of here and home to Maddox. Then I can let myself break. Then I can figure out what in the hell happened. Then I can tell my brother about my stupid, drunken marriage to his best friend.
And once I’ve done all that, I’ll file for divorce and never,everlet myself do something so life-alteringly stupid. Ever again.
forty-two
GRIFFIN
Shit.Shit, shit, shit!
Breakaway Hockey’s head of marketing lets out a shriek as the elevator lurches, the lights inside flicker, then the whole thing shudders to a stop and goes dark. Silence fills the dark car, broken only by Serena’s increasingly fast breaths.
“You okay, Miss Kent?”
Her laugh is breathy and a little wild. “Serena. Seriously, please call me Serena.”
“Right. You doing okay, Serena? You sound like you’re freaking out a little.” She’s not the only one. The meeting with Breakaway went longer than expected, and I have to bust ass if I’m going to make it to Mira’s pitch on time.
And Iwillmake it there on time. I promised my wife, and I keep my promises.
Serena sounds a little wheezy this time when she says, “I’m uh, I’m a little claustrophobic. Especially if it’s dark.”
Well, shit.
“Why don’t you turn your phone’s flashlight on? I’m sure that would help, right?”
She does another one of those borderline-crazy laughs. “I’m sure it would, but I left my phone up on my desk since I thought I’d just be walking you out and going right back up. I’m sure the elevator will start working again any minute.”
I sure as hell hope so. I take out my phone to text Mira and let her know I’m running late and why, typing out a quick message telling my girl I’m stuck in an elevator with the head of marketing, that I’m sorry, and I’ll get there as soon as possible.
Except, the message fails to send.
“Shit.”
Serena looks my way, and even in the dim light of my cell phone screen, I can see the sweat beading on her brow. She looks tense. I’m down to seventeen percent battery life, and I need to conserve it, but what kind of asshole would I be if I turned it off and put it in my pocket when it could help this poor woman stop panicking?
“This whole building sucks for cell service, but the elevator is a straight-up black hole,” she tells me with a commiserating wince. “I don’t think you’ll be able to text or call anyone for help.”
As if saying that made her realize something, she reaches over and pushes the red emergency button. A ringing sound fills the car, and soon a man is answering, his voice filtering out of the speaker on the wall panel and filling the space. He asks if there’s an emergency, and after Serena explains that we’re stuck and the power is out, promises help is on the way.
“How long do you think it will take for them to get us out of here?” the poor woman to my left asks, hugging herself like a scared child. She’s shaking now, slight tremors racking her body.
