Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
A FRIDAY IN OCTOBER
Istand in front of the bathroom mirror, smoothing down the front of my dress as I stare at my reflection.
The girl staring back at me looks hopeful, unyielding, yet ready to get her heart broken.
Her dark blue eyes are wide, yet slightly bloodshot from lack of sleep.
Posture strong and poised, yet there is a defeated slump in her shoulders, her nails done up but the skin around them raw.
Bracing my hands on the porcelain countertop, I take a few controlled breaths before reaching for the small white card that lay beside my makeup bag. I pick it up and hold it delicately between my hands, tears pooling in my eyes as my lip trembles.
Tallgrass Treatment Center.
A knock on the bathroom door startles me, the card falling from my hands.
I release a shaky breath as I quickly bend over to pick it up and shove it in my bag, taking one last look at myself in the mirror.
My blonde hair is pinned up, a few loose pieces framing my face.
The dress I am wearing is an all black, deep V-neck, tulle with a high leg slit and a cross back.
I have paired it with some simple silver jewelry, big hoop earrings and a long necklace.
“Ready, Mar?” Travis calls out from the other side of the door.
Instead of responding, I pull the door open, and a smile threatens to pull at my lips as Travis’s eyes go wide, scanning my body. He bites the corner of his lip, taking in my appearance as I look him over.
Travis is wearing a black suit with a black shirt underneath, a red tie around his neck and a matching red handkerchief in the breast pocket.
His hair has gel in it, slightly slicked back, but I am thankful that he had gone and gotten a haircut earlier this morning.
As I take another step closer to him, the smell of my favorite cologne reaches my nose.
“You look absolutely breathtaking,” Travis whispers, his hands grabbing my waist as I instinctively rest my hands on his shoulders.
“You don’t look too bad yourself.” I tilt my head up towards him.
Travis bends down and presses his lips gently against mine, being careful not to mess up the bright red lipstick I had applied.
He cups my face in his right palm, pulling back to gaze down at me and in this moment, I have forgotten that we are Marlowe and Travis: the practically single mom and the drug addict.
No, at this moment, we are just Marlowe and Travis: two kids in love.
“We should get going.” He drops his hand, breaking the trance that has fallen between us and snapping me out of my thoughts. I nod, taking the outstretched hand he offers me and follow behind him into the living room.
Claire is sitting on the couch with a book in her hands, Blue leaning against the entryway in the kitchen, watching her. Her head snaps up in our direction as she hears my heels clicking against the hardwood floor, and a genuine smile appears on my best friend’s face.
“Wow, Mar,” she breathes in disbelief, walking over and grabbing my hands as she looks down at my dress. “Who knew you could still clean up nice? You have to let me borrow that.”
I roll my eyes and shake my head, but a soft laugh escapes me. “I may be a working mom, but I’m not dead.”
“You look like a princess.” Claire’s little voice reaches me and I turn around to see her standing behind me, a twinkle in her eye as she stares upwards.
“Thank you, baby.” I carefully kneel and rest a hand on her arm. “Now, you be good for your auntie, okay? We probably won’t be back before you go to bed, so I expect an excellent report when I get back.”
Claire rolls her eyes before leaning forward to press a quick kiss to my cheek. “I’m always good. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Travis holds his hand out to help me to my feet, using his other hand to ruffle our daughter’s hair, which earns him a swatted hand in response. Claire runs back into the living room, jumping onto the couch and resting her head against a pillow as she picks back up her book to continue reading.
“Go,” Blue scolds as she shoos us out the door, shoving my long coat into my arms. “She’ll be fine, we’ll be fine. Now go, have fun.” Travis walks out first, and before I can follow him, Blue puts a hand on my arm to stop me. “Please be careful. If you need me to come and get you—”
“Don’t.” It comes out as a whisper as I shake my head subtly. “I’ll be fine. I’m taking him in after the event.”
Blue looks at me with a dubious expression, making it known that she doesn’t fully believe he is going to go through with his decision. “Just call me.”
I nod, knowing she won’t give it up, figuring that appeasing her is the best option. Blue squeezes my arm gently before letting go, heading into the apartment to spend time with my daughter.
“You ready?” Travis asks as I close the door behind me, standing in the hallway.
“Is it weird if I say I’m actually a little nervous?” I loop my arm through his once I have the three buttons on my coat secured.
We begin our descent down the hall, arm in arm, my small red purse over my opposite shoulder. “Not at all. You spent a lot of time on this, and it’s your biggest event yet. That’s something to be proud of, Mar. I’m proud of you.”
We approach his Lamborghini in the apartment's parking garage. “I just hope it goes smoothly. We’ve never had this many pairings at one event. Hopefully, Kirstin is happy. That’s all that matters.”
“You need to be happy too, Marlowe.” He pulls open the passenger door for me, unaware of the way the gravity of his words has just hit me. “This is mostly your doing, after all.”
I shake my head, stepping between the door and the car with my hand resting near where his arms are laid. “If my boss is unhappy, I could lose my job.”
“And if you’re unhappy with the work, she could lose an employee,” Travis fires back, leaning a little closer.
I glance away and roll my eyes, my skin heating slightly in irritation.
“I can do this all day, Mar. I will constantly remind you that you don’t always have to put your own happiness behind everyone else’s.
” Really? Does he not see the irony in his statement?
“But unfortunately, we have an event to get to.”
Forty minutes and a surprising amount of forced laughter later, we are pulling up in front of the event center we have booked in the city.
There is a line of cars with the valet in their suits waiting on the marble steps.
Travis pulls up, climbing out of the car as one man runs towards him to take the keys.
Another walks up to open my door and holds a hand out to help me up and out of my seat.
Once I am on my own two feet, I reach down to pull up the bottom of my dress so I won’t step on it, my other hand looping through Travis’s extended arm.
He carefully leads us up the steps and toward the front doors where Tony, one of Kirstin’s favorite security managers, stands with a clipboard in hand.
“Good evening, Marlowe,” he greets, giving me a small nod before his gaze drifts over to Travis. “And good evening to you, sir. Haven’t seen you around in a while. Happy you could make it. We’ve sincerely missed having you.”
I look up at Travis to see a small furrow in his brow despite the smile that graces his lips. “Thank you, Tony. I got caught up with work, but I’ll be attending all the events from now on. Can’t let my girl show up unaccompanied now, can we?”
Tony nods, appearing to agree with Travis, but I don’t miss the unenthused expression that briefly flashes across his features. I gently tug on Travis’s arm, motioning for us to head inside and escape the awkwardness that has settled between them like a blanket.
As we walk into the event center, my eyes grow to the size of saucers as I take in the space.
White lights are strung up in the rafters, white cloth tapestries between the beams. There is a stage off to the right, set up in front of the round tables.
Six chairs sit at each, white and black cloths alternating tabletops.
Flower bouquets sit in the center with a table number in the middle of each arrangement, and little place cards are perched in front of each chair containing a name.
“Wow,” Travis breathes as we stand a couple of feet inside of the main doors. “You really outdid yourself, Mar.”
“Marlowe.” Kirstin’s voice draws my attention, and I turn to see her walking towards us. A red cocktail dress covers her body, tall black heels and large silver hoops accompanying the look. “I’m so happy you’re here. I need to steal you away for a moment, if that’s all right.”
I look up at Travis, and he nods. I slip my arm out of his and take off my coat, handing it off to him. “Yeah, of course.”
“Travis, great to see you again.” There’s an unrecognizable undertone to her voice. “We are all at table one. Take a seat or wander around. I won’t keep her long.”
Travis bends down and presses a kiss to my cheek before turning on his heel and walking towards our table.
I focus my attention back on my boss as she loops her arm through mine and leads me toward another set of doors.
Once we walk through, I chuckle as I discover there’s a bar hidden away back here.
“Two shots of vodka, please.” The bartender nods.
Kirstin leans against the wooden bar top, her body turned towards me.
“You have really outdone yourself this time, Marlowe. Now we just need to hope that everything runs smoothly. I think it’d be bad luck if we don’t have our honorary pre-event shot, don’t you agree? ”
The bartender sets the two shot glasses in front of her, and she grabs them both, extending one in my direction. We clink the clear glasses together and I smile. “Yes, I do.”