“Max—”
“Out, Sam. I’ve let this go on long enough. I don’t know what’s goin’ on in that head of yours, but it isn’t my problem. Get out of my office and get Kari’s name out of your mouth. Hear me?”
“I can’t believe this. I can’t believe you.” Her gaze was heavy on my chest as her breathing got more harsh, her lips thinning out in a firm line. “You think you can walk all over me, ignore me, pretend like I’m no one to you—you’re wrong. Dead wrong.”
THIRTY-SIX
KARI
The kitchen smelled of spices as the pasta sauce simmered away on the stovetop. Garlic bread was heating in the oven, wine poured into wine glasses, and a green salad in a new bowl I’d picked up at Target on the table. Titus was asleep on the couch, something Max wouldn’t be very happy about, but he’d get over it.
The wind was whistling outside, the sky unusually bleak for Phoenix. The smell of the air, the feel of the cold air on the horizon always reminded me of my mother. I was young when she passed away, but I had a few clear memories, one of them being her at the stove, making the very same pasta sauce I had made.
Her life was cut short, way too short. She loved Jada and me, always baking things and buying us pretty dresses and dolls. She was my class mom in Kindergarten and my friends loved her. She was so pretty, always in heels and with perfect hair, just like June Cleaver.
One day it’d been raining. I remember sitting on a grey couch we had that overlooked the backyard. The water had gathered in the dips of the yard and I wanted to go jump in the puddles so bad, but I didn’t want to get all wet before dinner. I remembered my mom asking me, “Kare Bear, what’s wrong?” and I told her sadly what Ihad been thinking. She said to me, “You’re only going to have today once. Go play.”
And I did. I jumped and splashed and danced and carried on...and it was probably the last day of pure joy I had.
She died a few days after.
“Kari?”
I jumped at the sound of Max’s voice. I whirled around to see him standing at the doorway, his arms overhead and grabbing the doorframe. His shirt inched up, the bottom of his abs peeking out of his shirt.
It was divine.
“Hey, babe.” I smiled widely as the dimple in his cheek sank in. “How was work?”
The dimple disappeared as quickly as it had arrived. “Ugh,” he growled, bending down and grabbing a box. With a scowl, he walked through the kitchen and tossed a box on the counter. “I fired Sam today.”
“You did what?” I gasped.
“She’s losing her damn mind or something. I don’t know.” He ran his hands through his hair and looked like he didn’t want to continue, but knew he had to. “When I went by to check on her before we went to Payson...there was nothin’ wrong with her, Kar. She just blabbered on and on so I left. Then when we were up there, she kept calling and saying Blaine left her because he wanted you back.”
A lump sprang up in my throat. I tried to process that as quickly as possible, but it was like getting hit over the head with a two-by-four. Not that I had any inclination to run to Blaine, but just those words were something I’d dreamed of hearing for so long.
As the realization hit that I truly didn’t give one iota about those words now, a surge of happiness ran through me. I didn’t care what he wanted. I only cared about this dark-haired man in front of me.
“So today she walks into my office. Cane and I were talking about us gettin’engaged...”
“Bet she loved that,” I muttered, turning my back to him so I could stir the sauce.
He laughed. “Yeah, so much so that I fired her. I hate to admit this and I never would to him because God knows Cane’s ego doesn’t need boosted, but he might have been right about her all these years.”
I sat the spoon down on a little pad and turned around in surprise. “You think?”
“I do. Cane always said she played everyone; that’s why he hated her. I never really saw that, but I’m starting to see it now. She lets you see what she wants you to see, what she thinks will benefit her. And with me, she’s always played the damsel in distress because of, you know, what happened.” He looked down at the floor. “But you’re my number one now. She’s a big girl. She can take care of herself or stop putting herself into dumb situations.”
“I love when you say that.”
“What?”
“I’m your number one.”
He grinned. “And you’re my two. And three. And four...”
I smiled as I went towards the fridge to get the cheese. I glanced in the box Max had sat on the counter and stopped. “What’s this?” I asked, lifting a bracelet out of the box. A chill tore through me.
