For Nick (25 page)

“Go after her, Zach,” Cami encouraged. “Make things right again.”

He didn’t need another prompting. It would feel good to get everything out in the open with Andie. It was a long overdue conversation.

Zach ran out of the room, intent on pursuing Andie. Once he stepped out of the building into the cool night air, he saw her in the distance. She’d made it much farther than he would have guessed. He had to run at full pace to catch up with her. He passed her discarded shoes and had to smile. She hated heels. Any excuse to dump them would have suited her just fine. He found himself wishing he was the handsome prince chasing after his Cinderella.

Ah, fairy tales. If only. Unfortunately, the shoe didn’t fit.

Upon reaching her, he stood in her path, blocking her way. He was completely taken aback to see that she was crying.

Crying!

Really crying. Not just a little whimper either. She was sobbing, her breath came in short gasps and tears rolled down her cheeks. Feeling stunned and a little confused, he blurted out the first thing that came to his mind.

“Where are you going?”

To his utter surprise, her reply was an even whisper.

“As far away from you as I can possibly get. Leave me alone.”

She turned to walk away from him, but he caught her, grabbing her by the arm. She was sobbing, crying in a manner he’d never seen anyone cry before. He didn’t understand, not at all. Something wasn’t right. These were not the tears of a con-artist, a woman out to cheat a man of his every dime. These were real tears, he’d swear by it. “Why are you crying?” He couldn’t hide his bewilderment.

Her words were not so clear this time. “My husband is k-kissing another woman, flaunting it in f-front of me for the whole w-world to see…I think I’m allowed.”

Zach stared into her eyes, seeing the pain his actions had caused.

“You’re hurting m-me,” she gasped.

He let go of her arm, not realizing his grasp had become unyielding. “I’m sorry.” She was really upset. He’d never seen her like this before. She could hardly catch her breath. She was crying…over him? Something wasn’t right. Could he have misjudged her?

No, of course not. He’d seen her with his own eyes. She was a superb actress. He’d do well to not forget that little fact. “We don’t have that kind of relationship and you know it,” he spat.

Andie looked away from him and for a moment cried even harder, if that was possible. His confusion deepened and this time his stomach clenched painfully. He thought again, she was crying over him? Not just crying, gut-wrenching sobs, deep, racking, whole body spasms that left her gasping for air. Can anyone fake that kind of emotion? He didn’t think so. She wasn’t just crying, she was breaking down in front of his eyes.

“Yeah…I know, but I’m a s-stupid little girl, a f-fool, a complete idiot. I thought we had something, I thought there was something between us.” Her sobs slowly quieted as she stared at him intently and whispered, “I thought we were falling in love.”

We were
, he wanted to say, but held his tongue just in time. He was almost taken in. Almost. Then he remembered what she really was.

His anger kindled, Zach held her by the shoulders as he said, “You can quit with the wounded wife act. I’m not buying it. Don’t you get it, Andie? I saw you! I saw you with my own two eyes. Curiosity got the best of me and I followed you one day. I wanted to know where you were going and I got my answer. I saw you with
him
, your
lover
. I saw you run to each other and embrace. I saw him twirl you in the air. I saw you walk into his sorry excuse for a home and you didn’t come out for several hours…several hours, Andie! Do you think I don’t know what you were doing in there? Did you kiss him like you kissed me? Did you?” He gave her no time to answer. “Where did all the money go, Andie? Where? To him? Did you give it all to
him
? Do you spend your days in his arms, laughing at the stupid rich man who would have given you anything? Do you? Just how far were you willing to go with this charade? How much did you think you could take me for? Well, it didn’t work. I’ve known for quite some time now just what kind of a woman you really are; a liar and a cheat. I’d rather rot in hell than spend another moment with you,” he snarled. It felt good to get it all out, to tell her that he knew everything.

Andie took a step backwards as if the force of his words had hit her like a blow. She was speechless for several seconds as they stared into each other’s eyes, both breathing hard. Tears still poured down her face as she shook her head in the negative, her face a mask of incomprehension. Finally, she whispered, “Is that why you stopped talking to me? Is that why you ended things between us?”

“What do you think?” Zach said fiercely.

Disbelief covered her features and for a moment her face crumpled and she let out a few sobs before saying quietly, yet firmly, “I want out of this m-marriage. I don’t ever want to s-see you again. Leave m-me alone.”

She turned from him and he stopped her, grabbing her upper arm, gently this time. “That’s it? I think you owe me an explanation,” he demanded.

“I owe you nothing!” she screamed.

He was surprised at her vehemence. But it didn’t stop his next words. His face was an inch from hers as he told her with an eerie calm, “Wrong! I own you, my dear. You are bought and paid for. You can’t leave this marriage. If you do, I swear to you right now, I will prosecute for breach of contract.” He wouldn’t really, not after everything they’d been through. But it was his only way of lashing out, of making her hurt as much as he was hurting.

Andie could hardly catch her breath at his words as her face held an agonized expression, and he wondered for a brief second if he could be wrong about her.

“Go ahead!” she challenged. “I don’t care. Nothing you do can make my life any more of a
hell
than it already is,” she screamed. She turned her back on him and began to sob in earnest, completely breaking down.

In spite of everything, his heart softened. Whatever she’d done, she clearly felt horrible about it. He couldn’t help himself. He wrapped his arms around her. “I’m sorry, Andie. I swear I would never do that to you. I would never hurt you. No matter what, I couldn’t do that to you. I’m so sorry. I don’t care about the contract.” He couldn’t get her earlier words out of his mind
. I thought we were falling in love.
They echoed in his mind repeatedly.

When her sobs had subsided, she deliberately took a few steps away. She turned and faced him, tears still sliding down her face in large droplets. Even though her breath came in quick, sharp intakes, she was eerily calm as she said to him softly, “I can only assume the man you saw me with was my father-in-law, Charles. Jack’s father. He is the only man I see.” Her eyes looked into the distance for a second. “He’s always been physically affectionate with me since the day I met him, it’s just his nature. We are…basically the only family each other have left.” She hesitated. “I love him.” Another long pause as her eyes held his. “But…it’s a father-daughter relationship. I can see how it could be misconstrued from a distance, though.” She took a deep breath. “I promised to be faithful to you and regardless of the fact that this is a business arrangement, I have kept that promise,” she told him bluntly and then added, “Too bad you can’t say the same.”

Ouch. Unfortunately, she was partly right. Only he didn’t have that kind of relationship with Cami. Of course, she didn’t know that. “How do I know you’re telling me the truth?” he said quietly in an attempt to soften his words. He wanted what she was saying to be true so much, he could taste it. Maybe she was still taking him for a ride. How could he believe her?

“You don’t,” she responded flatly. Her next words were soft, yet filled with emotion. “You don’t trust me. That was our fatal flaw. You can’t have a marriage, real or otherwise, without trust. We did everything backwards, Zach. Got married, became friends, became intimate, and then love began to enter the equation. At least on one side it did. I know,” she raised her hands in the air, “I know, don’t remind me, the deal was ‘no romantic entanglements.’ I’m afraid that’s the one part of the bargain I didn’t uphold, I admit it. So sue me. I don’t care. I just want out. I don’t want to play this game with you anymore. I can’t do it. I just can’t do it anymore.”

Her words left him feeling bowled over. She loved him? She wasn’t seeing anyone? She wasn’t trying to take him for everything he owned? If that was true then…then…

Memories flashed through his mind. Andie, trying desperately to repair their relationship. Andie, constantly trying to talk to him. Andie, attempting to meet him for lunch day after day. Andie, looking at him with eyes that said it all.

He’d been so blind. And yet, his heart soared.

She continued. “I don’t want anything from you, Zach. I don’t want your money. Your involvement in my life is completely up to you. I won’t force anything upon you that you don’t want.”

Huh? What was that supposed to mean?

“I’ll pay you back the money, every cent. It will take me my entire life. I don’t care, put me on a payment plan. I swear to pay it all back. Please, just release me from this mockery of a marriage.” She started to cry again. “I don’t want to live like this anymore. You’re obviously unhappy. Let’s put ourselves out of our misery. It’s time to call it quits and go our separate ways.”

Zach suddenly felt panic rise up from the very core of his being. He didn’t want to lose her. She was so…so vehement, so fervent, and yet, so defeated, so…resigned. Didn’t she want to fight for him anymore?

No. She was giving up and he could hardly blame her. He’d put her through hell.

She continued. “All you had to do was ask, Zach. I would’ve told you everything. Why didn’t you just ask me? All this time, I thought you hated me and I couldn’t figure out why.”

He blurted out the words he’d always wanted to say to her then. “Andie…please…wait. Give me a second chance. I’ve misjudged you.” He was still reeling from the news. He’d cast her in the role of villain for so long, he could hardly wrap his mind around the idea. “Things were so good between us. I want that back. I saw red when I thought you were playing me. I was wrong. I see that now. I’m sorry.” He cursed himself for the clumsy manner in which the words came out. Everything was changing for him in a matter of minutes. How could he have been so wrong about her? He noted the way her eyes widened at his words. He’d surprised her.

“No!” she screamed as she shook her head in the negative. Her chest rose and fell with emotion. “No,” she said again. She began to pace back and forth, her words spilling forth as if he wasn’t there, as if she was talking to herself. He wasn’t quite sure what he was witnessing, a mental breakdown, perhaps. Whatever it was, she was alarming him. “You don’t understand, you don’t understand, I can’t do this, I can’t do this…it’s too much, it’s too much.” Then she screamed, “It’s too much!”

She stopped suddenly and faced him, her eyes fierce. “I was happier than I’ve been in a long time. I was falling in love with you. I thought you felt the same. You don’t know how much I needed you.”

She began to sob again, agonizing moans that broke his heart.

“But then something went wrong and it was bad and I don’t need more bad in my life. You don’t understand. You wouldn’t talk to me, you wouldn’t even look at me and I needed you. I needed you!” she screamed and began to pace again. “I can’t do this. It’s too much.” Her hands covered her face and she wiped at her tears angrily. She stopped again and said to him, her eyes slightly wild, “I can’t do this. You don’t understand. You know nothing about me.” Her voice lowered to a whisper. “You know nothing.”

It was then that he wondered what exactly was going on in her life. All this time he’d assumed she was having an affair. If that wasn’t the case, then where did she go day after day?

“Tell me,” he asked somberly.

“It’s too late.”

“It’s not too late.”

“It’s too late!” she screamed again and then broke down crying. “There are things I needed to tell you! Things that concerned you and you wouldn’t give me the time of day. It’s too late, Zach. Leave me alone. I just want to be alone.” She began to walk away from him.

“No, Andie, please…let’s talk this out. Please give me another chance. I was wrong. I’m so sorry.”

She ignored him and kept on walking. They were in the middle of downtown and the surrounding area held some pretty tough neighborhoods.

“Andie, please, if you want to be alone, then so be it, but at least let me get you some place safe.”

Still ignoring him, she kept walking, then broke into a run. Zach followed. “Andie,” he yelled. “Please wait.” Andie ran faster. With each pounding footstep, one word sounded in his mind over and over.

Love. Love. Love. Love.

Andie loved him. She wasn’t cheating on him. Everything they’d shared was real.

Very real.

-21-

Zach felt helpless as Andie ran from him. He pursued her, not wanting to leave her alone. Unexpectedly, she changed directions, running across the street, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings.

“No!”

He heard the screeching sound of tires as the unsuspecting driver slammed down on his brakes. But it was too late. The car hit Andie and she fell to the street as if she were a rag doll.

He was at her side in seconds.

Please be okay, please
.
What have I done? I destroyed her, I quite literally shattered her. She was so upset, so distraught. She was beside herself. How could I have done such a thing?

She was unconscious, lifeless. His fingers found her pulse and he breathed a sigh of relief when he felt the slow beat. The driver stood behind him, calling 911.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t see her till it was too late. She just came out of nowhere, I’m so sorry,” he babbled.

Help would be here soon. He ripped off his jacket and placed it under her head where a small pool of blood had formed. The sight made him light-headed. His hands shook and his heart raced. He couldn’t let it get to him now. He had to be strong for Andie.