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“So, sleeping with my sister wasn’t enough, you have to go and fuck my parents too? They don’t deserve to lose everything they worked so hard for,” he started, his face as red as a tomato.
My own blood bubbled as I looked at him in disbelief, scrunching my brows and flaring my nose, trying to grab ahold of my temper.
“Did you watch the news? Or are you set on deafening yourself to the truth? Your parents are the ones who made false claims against me, my company, my partners, and Tiffany. They did it and challenged us to a lawsuit, and they’re the ones destroying everything. What about me? Am I supposed to lose everything I worked so hard to build, that my father worked so hard to build, over a few lies?” I asked.
“None of this would be happening if you hadn’t been a perv and slept with a twenty-one-year-old when you’re nearly forty!” Chris shouted, and I found myself rising from my seat.
“You said it yourself, twenty-one! Last time I checked, that made her an adult, Chris, and it wasn’t anything like what your father is trying to paint. We both consented, and we did nothing wrong. None of us did, and your family wants to destroy our entire lives over our private CONSENSUAL sex life? Have you guys lost your mind?” I yelled.
“So, you don’t think you did anything wrong?” he yelled back, rising from his seat as well, meeting my challenge. “You don’t think you did anything wrong?!” he asked again. “What kind of sick person are you to think it’s okay for all three of you to get together and fuck one woman as if she’s your little fucking sex toy that you can play with. As if she doesn’t mean anything to you. And to go behind my back and choose my little sister for something like that? As if our friend…” He paused. “Twenty-one or not? You’re fucking disgusting!”
The pure revulsion in his eyes and the hate in his voice gave me pause, and I lowered my voice. “Is that what you think she is to us?” I asked. “She’s not just…”
“I can’t stand here and listen to this. I better leave before I end up with my own fucking lawsuit on my hands,” Chris said, shutting me up and storming out the door.
“Wait, Chris,” I stuttered, moving off after him.
No wonder he was so mad if that was what he thought we saw in his little sister. He didn’t understand that our affections… my affections for her were genuine. He didn’t know. But maybe if he did, he’d feel differently. Sure, it would still be a lot to digest but if he knew how much we valued her, it could change everything. I took off running after him.
“Chris! Wait,” I yelled, but he was too deafened by his rage to hear me as he ran into Anthony who was carrying a hot cup of coffee. The liquid scalded them both, and they howled.
“Shit.” Anthony gritted his teeth in pain.
“Dumb fuck!” Chris yelled, his eyes red with rage as he shoved Anthony into the chest with all his power, sending him flying to the floor. One glance at Anthony told me that he was more than a little humiliated, but my focus was on Chris.
“Fuck off, Jared,” he yelled over his shoulders without looking at me.
Swearing, he hit at the stain the coffee made, grumbling to himself. He was in the elevator and closing it before I could say anything, but it was my goal to help him understand that while it was wrong of us to go behind his back, the image he had in his head of his sister and us was false. My heart raced as I ran to the staircase, taking the stairs two at a time, trying to end up on the ground floor before him. By the time I swung open the downstairs door, sweat stung my eyes, my shirt was coming out of my pants, and my tie was swung over my shoulder. I looked wrecked, and he was already on his way out the door just as Mario was on his way in.
“Oh, for fuck sake!” he yelled at the sight of him, puffing his cheeks as he seemed to almost foam at the mouth in frustration and anger.
“Chris.” Mario stared at him stunned before jumping in front of him to try to get his attention. I had given up on trying. As fit as I was physically, emotionally and mentally, I was drained.
“Chris! Look at me,” Mario said as Chris bounced into his body, moving him out of his path. “Chris, don’t you know that I’d never hurt her!” Mario threw his arms up in the air in what could have only been exasperation. The same exasperation that had me sweating the fuck out of these clothes, utterly lost and confused, staring at them while feeling the eyes of my workers burn holes in my jacket.
Chris paused and hope was rebirthed inside me. What I expected to see when he turned around was forgiveness and understanding. He heard it in Mario’s voice what I wanted to tell him. That Tiffany was far too valuable to us to ever wish to cause pain. But that was too presumptuous of me. When he faced Mario, he was redder than he’d been before, and his green eyes seemed black when he looked from him to me.
“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay the fuck away from me,” he growled, digging his nails into the palm of his hand as he balled up his fist. It seemed to take everything he had inside him to spin around and keep making his way to the car when more than likely, he wanted to plant his fist into Mario’s face.
Mario ran his hand through his usually perfectly gelled hair, ruffling it up in the way we only saw it when he was at home or in Tiffany’s bed. His gesture made me take note of my appearance, and I straightened my tie, trying to remain as dignified as I possibly could while looking back at my employees who had just seen me desperate for the first time. I was pretty certain that my goal to come back to the office today to regain their respect had not been accomplished.
Chapter 13
Mario
Itwasjustonthe tip of my tongue again. Gah! I almost said it.
‘Don’t you know I’d never hurt her! I love her!’
My love for Tiffany was almost professed on the entryway of Crawford & Beam. And if I weren’t so fucking scared of loving her, it wouldn’t have been a big deal. Especially under different circumstances but fuck, man. Look at Chris and Jared. Me. We were all losing it. An ache gripped the side of my head, and the nausea was back again.
We fucked Chris up, man. His eyes looked as though sleep was a long-lost friend who he hadn’t seen in years. And his now lost friends slept comfortably last night in his sister’s bed, in spite of it all.
His skin was paler except for when he was flushed red with fury. He lost weight for sure. In just one week, his clothes seemed to be a tad bit baggier than before. And with this new lawsuit against his parents, this could only get worse for him. He didn’t deserve this, man. He was a father with two kids. He was a husband. And he was my best friend, despite how much he hated me at the moment. Despite how lowly he thought of me, of us, I still loved him and hoped he wasn’t drinking himself to bits over this. His children needed him, his wife needed him, and his job needed him. Fuck, man, I felt sick.
Loving Tiffany didn’t just mean having to accept that I’d never be her one and only, but loving Tiffany meant breaking Chris. It meant crumbling organizations, tearing apart units of family and friendship. Loving her meant risking everything. And yet I couldn’t stop. Deep down, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to.
Sure, it scared me but fuck it, I loved her. Her smile lit me up and waking up next to her felt like beautiful chords being thrown together to create the most wonderful music.
