His End Game (MMG #1) (40 page)

I was disappointed he wasn’t there and a little worried. With the blow out at the bar I couldn’t help but wonder if he was okay with everything. “Did he say why he was taking the rest of the day off?”

“Nope, just to tell you that he would be back before lunchtime. Listen sweetheart, while we have some privacy, can we talk?”

My heart dropped at the sound of his voice. “Sure, what’s up?”

“First, I want to hear how things are going with you and Max.”

“Good,” I said, making sure my voice sounded cheery.

There is no way I’m telling him about yesterday
.

“Are you happy?”

I nodded my head. “I am.”

“Is there a reason why you aren’t being honest with me?”

He’s good…

“For the most part I am being honest,” I sighed. “I am happier than I have been in a really long time, but at the same time I am frustrated, confused and…. well, frustrated,” I shrugged.

“I can see that. Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not really, at least, not until I talk more with Max. We are just figuring each other out and it’s…”

He smiled. “Frustrating? Well, if you need to talk, I am always here.”

“Thanks dad.”

“I’ve been doing some thinking and I wanted your opinion.”

“About?”

“I’m thinking about selling my place in Raleigh.”

My eyes shot to his and flared in excitement. “You’re moving here?”

“I was thinking about it, if that is okay with you?”

“That would be awesome!” I shouted, throwing my arms around him. “When will your stuff be here?”

“Well, that’s what I wanted to show you.”

He handed me the papers. From what I could tell, they were pictures of condominiums. “What are these?”

“Condos for sale.”

“But, I thought you would just move in here with me?”

“Ellie, as much as I love being here with you, and I do, I am a single man in my early forties and currently living with his twenty-three year old daughter. That’s just not right. I want to live closer to you so I thought I would check out the condos in the area. I have narrowed it down to these four and wanted you to help me choose.”

“What’s wrong with living here with me? I know a lot of kids who live with their parents.”

“Yes, but usually it is the parent taking in their kid because they have to. How many single fathers do you know that are
living with their single daughters and her boyfriend and best friend? I sure don’t know of any.”

Hmmm, I have to think about this. I’m sure I must know someone
…..

“Essentially Ellie, what he is saying is that you are a gigantic cock-block and as much as he loves you, he needs his personal space in order to score with the ladies. That about cover it Samuel?” Piper asked, from behind the sofa, startling us both.

“Yes Piper. As usual, so eloquently put.” I could tell he was trying not to laugh.

She grinned at him. “Always glad to help, Sammy.”

Piper left around eleven to go help Polly and Lena buy party decorations for tomorrow night. Since I had practically done all of the party planning, I didn’t feel guilty about spending the afternoon with Max.

When I hadn’t heard from him by lunch time, I contemplated giving him a call, but was feeling a little gun shy after yesterday’s oh so happy events. I had my phone in hand when I heard his truck in the drive.

He walked in carrying a bag of groceries and looking like sex on a stick.

“Hey,” I meekly said, and shot him a shy smile.

His blue eyes lit up when he saw me. “You okay?”

Hmmmm…Maybe we can just detour to the bedroom for like… a year or so…

I shrugged.

Was I okay
?

Laying the bag down on the counter, he walked over to me and stroked his fingers lovingly down my face. “I noticed the other night that you have a space heater on your back porch. I was thinking that we could turn it on and have a picnic. Is your dad around?”

He wants to have a picnic
?

“No. He’s gone to look for a condo to buy.”

His eyes widened in surprise. “Here in Charlotte?”

“Yes,” I smiled.

“That’s great news, my gorgeous girl,” he smiled back. I loved when he called me his gorgeous girl. “And Piper?”

“Gone to buy party decorations and to lunch.”

His grin widened. “Even better. I realized when we were talking last night that I have assumed too much and said far too little, so today we will eat and talk.” He gave me a quick peck on the lips and headed to the kitchen. “You set up the blankets and heater while I get the food ready.”

Well okay then
.

We had just finished eating when he broke the news. “I have to head back to Kentucky to check on things there.” My stomach instantly knotted up. “I want you to come with me,” he continued.

“To Kentucky?”

“I was thinking that we could either leave after the party tomorrow night or early Friday morning? Kurt said he and Joss could fill in for you and you could work for him next Wednesday and Thursday.”

“You asked Kurt if I could go with you to Kentucky and stay until next Wednesday?”

“We will drive back Tuesday afternoon, so really we’ll only be gone until Tuesday evening.”

My breath caught in my throat. “So…you are coming back to Charlotte with me?”

He stared at me for a second. “Yes, what did you think I was going to do?”

“I wasn’t sure,” I shrugged.

In a not too happy voice, he said, “Ellison why exactly do you think I am here in Charlotte?”

I answered him without hesitation. “Because you are building MMG Charlotte.”

His eyebrow shot up into his hairline. “Seriously?”

I wasn’t quite sure what he was looking for, so I hedged. “Uh… yes?”

Reaching over, he yanked me onto his lap. “MMG Charlotte is a part of it, babe, but the reason I came back here is for you and only you. I told you last night that you are my end game, you always have been.”

I remember him saying it but there was alcohol and anger involved, so it didn’t really sink in.

“I realize that the past five years have been all kinds of messed up for us both, but I meant it last night when I said that you are my home. Wherever you are is where I need to be. I told you that summer at the quarry that I would always come back for you and I meant it. When I had to leave you, not a day went by that I didn’t think about that promise. You have always been my end game, Ellison.” Gently placing his fingers on my chin, he tilted my head just enough to see my face. Then, looking deep into my eyes, he asked, “Are you getting me? Am I making myself clear enough? I want you to come to Kentucky with me. I want to show you where I have lived and what I have been doing for the past five years. I need to clean things up at the garage and then I need to pack some things up to bring back with us.”

He’s really coming back with me
.

“Where are you going to stay?” I asked.

Please say here with me
.

“Here with you if that’s all right. If you find you need space, I have my own space above the garage. In fact, I checked this morning and the rooms are ready to go. All they need is paint and furniture. I don’t want to pressure you though.”

“I would rather you stay here with me,” I said, biting my lip.

You too are my end game. I’m just afraid that the second I tell you, you will leave me again. How screwed up is that
?

His eyes dropped to my mouth and he made a sexy sound, “Me too.”

I pulled off of his lap, flipped around to face him and scooted back on. Then, wrapping my arms around his neck, I slid my fingers through his hair, looked him straight in the eyes and asked, “Do you really want to stay here with me? I don’t want to pressure you either, Max.”

He smiled seductively and the entire lower half of my body tightened. “I’ve never wanted anything more,” he said, and I could tell by the look in his eyes, not to mention the bulge in his pants, that he meant every word. When he kissed me, any doubts I had flew out the door.

We talked and kissed for a while longer. When things started heating up and we were ready to take it to the bedroom, Piper and the girls showed up.

Talk about a cock-block
.

Max received a disturbing phone call from Nolen the morning of Kurt and Joss’ engagement party. Someone had tried to break into the garage in Kentucky. When they couldn’t get in, they tried to burn it down. The police told Max that the security alarm going off scared them away. Very little damage was done, but the police were tagging it as an attempted burglary and arson and, therefore needed to speak with the owner in person. Being that I was the one hosting the engagement party, I couldn’t go with him. We were both terribly disappointed but there was nothing that we could do. Before leaving for Kentucky, Max promised that he would do everything in his power to cut the trip short. Hopefully this meant that he would be back in three days instead of five.

Joss and Kurt’s engagement party was a blast. We closed Dragonfly down to the public. Ben, who was back in Charlotte, played all of their favorite songs and Lena’s Aunt Rachel catered the food. Had I known that Dillon was such an amazing musician, I would have asked him to play. Instead, he and Lena worked the bar. Because Max wasn’t there to monitor me, I got rip roaring drunk with Piper. We danced and sang along to all the songs.

The only surprise of the evening was Polly getting mad at Harry, who was dancing with anything that moved. In a very drunken moment, she disclosed to Piper, Joss and I that she and Harry had been hooking up since the hot tub night at my house. After hearing, in vivid detail, about Harry’s sexual prowess, I seriously doubted that I would be able to look at him the same way ever again.

Blech!

Garrett and I made up somewhere between shot number five and beer number three. In fact, he was nice enough to give Piper and I a ride home and put up with us serenading him the entire way there. I was aware that Max probably put him up to it, but I really didn’t care.

Piper and I both stumbled into the kitchen around the same time the next morning and, according to my dad, we both looked like death warmed over. I certainly felt like it. It took me until well after lunch to shrug off the effects of the night before.

At this point, I had spoken to Max three times and he seemed distracted and in a foul mood each time. I guess someone trying to ruin your business would do that to you, but still….. I missed him. I wanted him here with me. We were both tense and moody, not to mention sexually frustrated.

Ugh!

Night four of Max being gone, Piper ordered us pizza for dinner. Afterwards, my dad shut himself in his office, where he seemed to spend most of his time these days. This gave us the perfect opportunity to chat.

We settled in the living room with a glass of wine and, before she could turn on the television and drown me out, I asked, “What happened the other night at Dragonfly, Piper? You were fine and then you weren’t. Did the alcohol and pain killers catch up to you or was it something else?”

Turning her head away, she stared blankly out the French doors. Just when I thought I had lost her, she started talking. “Look,” she whispered, as if someone else was in the room with us and possibly listening in. When she scooted closer to me on the sofa, my pulse quickened and the hair on the back of my neck prickled. “I can’t tell you everything because you are my best friend and I would never do anything to hurt you.”

The whispering was really freaking me out. “Why would I be hurt, Piper?”

“You wouldn’t, you won’t,” she said, grabbing my hand. “Let’s just say that I fell hard for a guy in Texas and things turned out really badly.”

Squeezing her hand, I stared into her pretty blue eyes that still showed traces of bruising and felt sick to my stomach. “Like the bruises on your face kind of bad?”

She nodded her head and I gasped. I watched her eyes pool with unshed tears and pulled her into a hug. “He had some scary friends, Ellie. I was stupid and naïve and got caught up in it but got myself out,” she sniffled.

“Oh Piper,” I sighed.

“Don’t feel bad for me. I deserve every bit of what I got.”

I pulled back so that I could look her in the face when I properly scolded her stupid ass. “Why would you think that? Nobody deserves to get hurt Piper…ever.”

“I left Charlotte for boarding school and never looked back. I left you here, alone.”

“Your parents made you go and we talked on the phone all the time,” I pointed out.

“I knew that you were going through hell when Max disappeared and I bailed. I felt that you were just being melodramatic about it all and I blew you off,” her voice cracked. “I didn’t take you or your feelings seriously. I told you to get over him and
move on and I will never forgive myself for treating you that way. I didn’t understand.” Her grip on my hand tightened. “I had no idea what it meant to love someone, really love someone like, I-would-die-for-you, kind of love someone. But, I now know what that feels like.” I watched her fight the tears and that sick feeling in the pit of my stomach returned.

“What did he make you do Piper?” I was having a hard time staying calm.