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Now she’s here, demanding I come back?
“She should be home with us. With the kids,” Bella snaps.
“So she can spend the rest of her life working for you?” Maverick asks. His tone is low and dangerous. “Sadie was held against her will, beaten, threatened with sexual assault, and nearly killed, yet you come in here—literally the day after you find out what happened—and demand she come back to make your life easier?”
Bella gapes at Maverick, clearly shocked he said anything.
“Bella is just coping,” Darren starts.
“No. Bella is unaccustomed to hearing the word no. Well, too bad. Sadie said it—twice now.”
“With all due respect, this has nothing to do with you,” Darren snaps. His cheeks have reddened, his own anger surfacing.
But he won’t be any match for Maverick. And if he doesn’t get it in check, he’s bound to find out the hard way.
“It has everything to do with me because it has everything to do with Sadie.”
“Because you want to keep her here,” Bella snaps before she turns to me, a nasty sneer on her face. “Really, Sadie? A bartender?”
“That’s enough!” I scream and shove to my feet. “I said no, Bella. And yes, a bartender. There is absolutely nothing wrong with Maverick. When I needed help, he was there. When I needed safety, he offered it. You want me to come back so you can sit around and pretend to work while I do everything else. It didn’t bother me before because I told myself that you appreciated everything I did, but now—” Tears fall down my cheeks in rapid succession. “Now I see that it wasn’t appreciation. It was control.” I shake my head.
Darren stands. “We’re sorry, Sadie. You’re so important, and we never want you to feel that you’re not. Bella, let’s go home. Thank you for your hospitality,” he adds to Maverick, though his sharp tone doesn’t match the words.
Bella stands. “When you change your mind, you know where to find us. Though I can’t be sure your job will be waiting for you when you get back.”
She leaves the bar, stomping as she goes. Darren rushes after her.
The moment that door closes, the strength I had vanishes like a puff of smoke. I crumble back down in the chair and cover my eyes with trembling hands.
Maverick’s chair scoots back slowly. His soft bootsteps lead away from me before I hear the soft click of the lock. Then, he comes back and turns my chair, kneeling right in front of me.
“I’m sorry,” he says. “I shouldn’t have gotten involved.”
“Are you kidding me?” I uncover my eyes and stare down at him. “You defended me, thank you.”
“She’s not a kind person.”
“I never thought she was cruel, though. I meant what I said before; she and Darren helped me so much when my parents passed. But now I…I can’t help but think it was only so I would finish and get back to work sooner.”
“That’s a reflection on them, not you, baby.” He cups my cheek, his thumb brushing away the tears.
“Those kids are good, though, Maverick. She knew what she was doing by using them.”
“She did, but you did, too. If you want to go back, I won’t blame you.”
“Do you want me to leave?” Did he see all of that as more chaos? More drama that I brought into his life? Has he changed his mind?
“Absolutely not. Sadie, you have become everything to me in the last week. I found myself rushing through evening chores here at the bar, just so I could get to sleep and wake up to see you.”
“Really?” My heart flips in my chest, the love I feel for this man growing tenfold.
“Really. I can’t imagine my life without you.”
“Me neither.”
He leans forward and rests his forehead against mine. For a moment, we remain just like that. The soft humming of the heater is the only sound, aside from our soft breathing and my hammering heart.
Love.
