Chapter 20
Marissa padded out to the living room and opened the door.
“Hi,” she said to Chet.
“Hey.”
Chester Shaw, Theo’s father, entered the living room with a slow, confident stride. Marissa first noticed his walk when she spotted him where she used to work almost ten years ago. Second was his stunning good looks.
His skin was a golden wheat color, and his bone structure had landed him in print ads as a teen, but his modeling career fizzled when he grew older. Nonetheless, he was handsome by anyone’s standards, with his black hair cut in a buzz cut and his six-foot frame tightly packed with lean muscle.
To save enough money for tuition and fees, Marissa had started college late. When they met, she was a twenty-two-year-old sophomore and a part time barista at a coffee shop.
Late one evening, Chet had been working there on his laptop when the Wi-Fi connection dropped. Frustrated, he approached Marissa at the counter. She tried to fix the problem, to no avail, and soon he was trouble-shooting the issue for her himself.
Eventually, he brought the Wi-Fi back online, to the appreciation of the few remaining patrons, who applauded his success. Marissa offered him free food and coffee for the week, but he turned her down and asked for a date instead.
They spent the rest of the night exchanging banter until she closed the shop. She learned he provided online tech support, a low-level job he hoped could one day lead to owning his own company. They went on their first date three days later. He had been charming and treated her with such deference that he melted her inhibitions and was later shocked but pleased to learn she was a virgin.
Less than a year later, she was pregnant with Theo. Six months into a difficult pregnancy, Chet convinced her to leave school, and they moved in together. Two weeks later, she discovered elicit photos and texts from one of his co-workers and was devastated to learn he had been cheating on her for months.
“Is he ready?” Chet asked.
“Almost. He’s finishing up his bath.”
“Have you had any more trouble out of him, jumping on furniture and all that?”
“Not since he had to go to the emergency room. Maybe he’s learned his lesson.”
Chet shook his head. “That kid is going to be the death of me.”
“You and me both,” Marissa said with a laugh.
“I don’t know where he gets the energy from. I was a quiet kid.”
“Me too. Hang on one second.” Marissa went to the doorway leading to the two small bedrooms in the back. “Theo, you almost finished? Daddy’s here.”
“I’m almost done,” her son called back.
“Well, you heard him. His bags are ready at least.” She nodded at the backpack and small suitcase near the sofa.
“He’s good. I’m a little early because I wanted to talk to you about something. My sister and her husband are taking their kids to Disney World. I thought I’d take some vacation time, and Theo and I could join them.”
“When?” Marissa moved around the living room, straightening the remote and piling magazines on top of each other on the coffee table.
“The second weekend in June. I’d pick him up for the weekend as usual, and we’d spend the following week in Florida, going to Disney and spending a few days with my parents. It’ll give you a week off.”
“Works for me. He hasn’t seen his cousins in a while, and he’s wanted to go back and spend time with your mom and dad ever since he visited them two summers ago. He loved going to the beach and still has the drawings taped up in his room.”
Theo often drew pictures of events where he had a great time, and he posted them on his wall. There were multiple pictures of him and his grandparents at the beach and at least five drawings of the birthday party he had at school last year.
“Great. I’ll make the arrangements then.” Stuffing his hands in his jean pockets, Chet watched her straighten up in silence. “How’s work?”
“Nothing exciting going on. Staying busy as always.”
“Same here. Yesterday we had a situation where one of our servers went down, but after a few hours, we were up and running again. Being the manager is a lot of work, but I’m enjoying the challenge…”
Chet had recently been promoted to IT manager at the law firm where he worked. The new role meant more responsibility and an increase in pay.
Marissa half listened to him talk, her mind wandering to Bruno. He was on a date tonight.
What were they doing right now?
Over the past few weeks, he’d adhered to the agreement they struck in his office. He seemed to have lost interest in her, but there remained an odd type of tension radiating between them. Their conversations were friendly enough but short. At least he was concentrating on the women she introduced to him.
Her biggest success had been when he went on three dates with Yanique, an up-and-coming plus-size model. After their coffee date, he called to give Marissa an update, indicating he’d enjoyed himself and wanted to see Yanique again. During the model’s debriefing, she’d expressed a desire to continue seeing him too.
Marissa gave them each other’s number to work out the details of a second date. A week and two more dates later, Bruno called to say he wanted to keep looking. Marissa was confused. With the previous women, there had been specific issues to point to. With Yanique, there was none. He admitted she was nice enough, but there was ‘something missing,’ and he couldn’t put his finger on what it was. Very vague. Yanique had been heartbroken because she thought they’d had a good connection.
Tonight, he was attending a gallery opening with Ashleigh, the daughter of a wealthy financier and closer to his income bracket than any of the other women. In the meantime, she had put out feelers for women outside the Atlanta area with the hopes of finding a good match for him. At the very least, she’d like to find someone who’d last more than three dates.
“You look great.”
Chet’s words jolted Marissa from her thoughts. She didn’t think she looked particularly “great,” as he’d proclaimed. She never dressed to impress Chet and was wearing a washed-out burgundy T-shirt and joggers. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun with loose tendrils hanging around her face. She looked anything but great.
“Thank you.”
He gave her a tight smile. “You look pretty good too, Chet. Oh, I do? Thanks. I just threw this on to pick up Theo.”
“Are you fishing for compliments?” Marissa asked, heading into the kitchen.
He followed and stopped on the opposite side of the bar. “Would it kill you to pay me a compliment?” he asked in a mild tone, though she sensed his underlying displeasure.
“Do you want something to drink?” she asked, not in the mood to argue.
“Why do we keep doing this?”
Standing in front of the open cabinet, Marissa blew out a frustrated breath and let her head fall forward. “We are not doing this. You are.” She turned to face him.
Chet lowered his voice. “Our lives could be different, and you know that. We could buy a house together, with a big yard, and live in a nice neighborhood with good schools. All the things you said you wanted. You and Theo and I could live there together as a family. Everything you want is within reach, Marissa.”
“All I have to do is forget what you did, right?”
“It’s been eight fucking years! What do you want from me?” Chet asked in a fierce whisper.
Marissa rested her hands on the bar separating them. “I want you to move on because it’s been eight fucking years. You and I are never going to happen. We’re never going to raise our son together.”
His jaw hardened and his eyes flashed with anger. “You’ve met someone haven’t you?”
She flung up her hands in exasperation. “Oh my goodness, I can’t with you.”
“Tell me because you’re acting extra saucy.”
“I haven’t met anyone, okay? I want you to understand that what we had is over. You killed our relationship, not me. You stepped out on me before we started living together.”
“It was a mistake! How many times do I have to say that?”
“A mistake over the course of months? That’s a mistake I can’t forgive. Once a year you do this. Can you not anymore? Please. Let it go, Chet. Your wife is out there waiting for you.”
“No,” he said through gritted teeth. “She’s standing in front of me right now, raising my kid on the other side of town when we could be raising him together.”
“I don’t know why you can’t accept that we’ll never get back together.”
“Maybe because three years ago you let me crawl between your legs again. I can’t forget that.”
“A mistake I deeply regret.”
She’d never forgive herself for that moment of weakness. She didn’t even come. But as soon as she felt his orgasmic trembling above her, she regretted sleeping with him and wished she could turn back time and never let him into her bed again.
“You can make a mistake, but I can’t,” Chet said in a churlish voice.
Marissa stared at him in disbelief. “Really? Are you serious? Those are two completely different mistakes.”
His voice lowered. “We were good together once. Happy. What we had is once in a lifetime. We’re soulmates.”
“Don’t.”
He leaned across the bar. “I never believed in soulmates until you. You are my soulmate. That’s why I can’t let go, and you’re wrong to give up on us. You’re thirty-one years old. Why do you think you haven’t met anyone? Because I’m the man you’re supposed to be with.” He tapped his chest.
“Soulmates don’t cheat.”
“There you go again with that bullshit. Jeez, give me a break.” He ran his fingers over his buzzed hair.
“The only reason you and I have any type of contact is because of Theo. He’s the best thing to come out of our relationship, and all I want is for us to get along and be good parents to our son. Stop everything else.”
Tension vibrated in the room like a live wire.
“I’m ready!” Theo came rushing in wearing one of his Spiderman costumes. He posed with his hands on his hips.
“Spiderman again, Theo?” Marissa asked.
“Yes!” He grinned.
She laughed. “All right, I guess you’re ready to go.”
Chet picked up Theo’s bags, flinging their son’s backpack over his shoulder. “I’ll see you Sunday night. Think about what I said.”
He was exhausting.
“There’s nothing to think about.”
“Things could be different, Marissa.” Chet dropped his voice to a whisper. “They could be better. Do you want to spend the rest of your life alone?”
His words sliced through her, but she didn’t dignify his question with an answer. Instead, she gave Theo a hug and kiss. “Bye, baby. See you Sunday night.”
“Bye, Mommy!”
Theo scampered out the door ahead of his father. Chet shot one last glance over his shoulder before Marissa shut the door in his face.
She walked over to the window to peer out the blinds and watch them leave. The stillness in the apartment crowded in on her, and she sank onto the sofa, burying her face in her hands. Was she destined to spend the rest of her life alone?
Maybe there wasn’t someone out there for her.
“Don’t let him get into your head,” she said in a soft, fierce voice, blinking back tears of self-pity.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t forget Chet’s words, because they went to the heart of her fears.
Was she destined to spend the rest of her life alone?