Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
MAIA
I don’t have much energy left.
Not after I cry for what feels like forever—or thirty minutes, give or take.
Gatsby took everything with him, and I hate myself even more for letting him do it—again.
I’m raw, oozing with pain. Why did I think I was over what he did to me? He could’ve had everything, all my ideas if he wanted them, but why pretend to love me?
Why make me fall madly for him and just dispose of me?
I don’t know how much time passes until I’m ready to head upstairs and change my clothes. Before I wash the day away, I go for a run.
Jogging calms me. I don’t do it as often as I wish, but today seems like a good day to run around my neighborhood until my legs begin to shake. I don’t stop until everything that happened earlier in the day becomes manageable.
Once I can fit every event that happened today in different compartments, I head home.
Will I be able to fix everything that’s broken?
I’ll find out soon.
Maybe his presence made me realize that I was still abandoned under the debris, or…why did he have to confront me? When I get home, I drink a glass of water before heading to the shower. Once I’m ready to start working, I grab a meal from the freezer and throw it in the microwave.
I set up my laptop on the kitchen island and grab a bottle of wine from the fridge.
When I read the label, I almost throw up, Paradise Bay.
I pull out all the bottles and put them back in the box I ordered last week.
There’s only one missing, but I don’t care.
I’m going to return it. I print a shipping label and slip in a note before closing it.
I don’t need your poison,
MAO
Tomorrow morning, I’ll drop it off at the post office on my way to work.
The microwave keeps beeping, reminding me that the food is ready. I take it out and set it next to my laptop. Since it’s one of those days when I need to be grounded, I go to my home office and take out one of my bullet point journals and a set of color pens.
Tonight, I’m doing things differently. I’ll write everything down and look at it from a different perspective. There are too many things I need to fix before I can have some time to myself, including withdrawing the offer to the Spearman twins.
This morning I felt optimistic. I was on top of the world, and now, after seeing him…
I underestimated him. He knows we’re in the middle of a war, and he has more resources than I do. This is like David trying to defeat Goliath. Am I smart enough to beat him at his own game?I should’ve asked myself that before I began the fight.
Maybe I should show the world he’s not the nice person he appears to be.
I don’t believe for a second that he’ll buy 59PM to make it affordable for everyone.
He’s not that kind of guy. I take my time pushing the snow peas from my not-so-delicious teriyaki chicken and rice.
At the same time, I scribble the pros and cons of stepping back and letting him get everything.
Life never changes, does it? And why am I giving up so soon?
Because deep down, the girl who loved him still hurts. He might not have beat me to a pulp the way Bram did to Tiggy, but he did a lot of damage. No wonder I want to see him down on his knees, crying and begging for mercy.
He will.
My first call is to Suzie. She has to know we’re withdrawing the Haux Drinks offer. She’s going to hate it as much as I do.
“Hey, how are you?”
“Not so great,” I mumble and begin our conversation with my encounter. I give her all the details, including my long run around the neighborhood.
“You should’ve called me and the police.”
I laugh because that was my plan, but Gatsby Spearman isn’t stupid. “He was taking me home. Shall I remind you that he’s a brilliant asshole?”
“What happened to your pepper spray?”
I got rid of it since we no longer live in New York. I had to carry that little can everywhere I went. It was a present from my mother.
“It’s gone. Mom’s okay with that since she believes San Fran is safer than New York.”
“Your mom is adorable.” Suzie loves Mom. Who doesn’t? She’s thoughtful and cares for everyone. “Did I tell you she sent us cookies?”
“Why didn’t I get cookies?”
“Raphy was sick. He needed some special TLC.” Mom loves Suzie’s son. The grandchild her daughters deny her.
Neither one of us is ready for that big of a commitment. My youngest sister, Cee-Cee, is twenty-three and just graduating from college—she’s a late bloomer. Tiggy is twenty-seven, but she doesn’t want anything to do with men or families. I don’t blame her.
Me?
Maybe one day my heart will be ready to love again, and I might find a guy to spend the rest of my life with. If not, I can always adopt a child.
“Well, who gives me cookies when I need some TLC?” I complain.
“You should tell her what happened to you, but will you even mention that you need her? I’ll never understand why you only call her when you have something good to share.”
Because I don’t want to hear them say I told you so. I hate to burden them…there are so many reasons.
I sigh. “It’s complicated. Let’s not discuss my family and concentrate on MarkTech, please? I promise only to take a few minutes, if not a couple of hours, from your family. Afterward, I’ll compensate you with a paid vacation.”
She chuckles. “What’s the plan?”
It hurts me so much to say the words, but I rip the bandage right away, “We’re pulling the offer we made to Haux Drinks.”
“Noooo.” The way she says it, anyone would think that somebody is killing her or ruining the ending of a book or a show.
“Sorry, we have to do it.”
“What happened?”
“As I just told you, their big brother would like me to stay away from them. I think it’s best if we don’t deal with them .”
“You were about to put their drinks on the map. I told you they were excited about this contract. Didn’t I?”
I recall the pictures of the eleven-year-old brother and sister. They were cute, and Gatsby adored them. Which also makes me realize that they don’t need me at all.
“Their family has money. They’re wealthy, and if they want to grow their company, they can just extend their hand while asking their parents for money. They don’t need us. I’m not going to put everything I’ve worked for in jeopardy for them. I don’t even know them.”
“They’re good kids.” Her broken voice makes me regret my decision. I need to remind myself that what I’m doing will keep my employees and company safe.
They might be good kids, as she says, but are they? Honestly, I doubt it. They’re just like every other bratty, wealthy kid I’ve known. How different can they be from their brother? Not much.
“We don’t know them,” I remind her.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Maia, you’re talking to me, Suzie, your best friend.”
Suzie and I met when I moved to New York, right after I graduated from college. I was still trying to find my footing and feeling sorry for myself. She knows all about that chapter of my life.
“It’s a lapse, which I think we all expected. This is the shock of seeing him again after fourteen years, but I’ll be fine. Gatsby is right about one thing: I’m a different person.”
This time, I’m ready to fight, avenge, and annihilate. Little innocent Maia is gone. He destroyed her—I hope it was worth it.
“Let’s focus on what we’re going to do with Haux Drinks. I want to keep the company safe. He might figure out a way to take it over. I don’t trusthim.”
“IfI didn’t know what he did to you, I’d say you’re crazy, but I understand why you’re guarding the company and yourself. Do you want to start our search?”
“I don’t want to take the rest of your evening, Suz.”
“Knowing you, you’ll be showing up at the office with a PowerPoint presentation and a dozen companies who can replace Haux Drinks.”
“No, I’m working on other things. We can reconvene tomorrow.”
“I’m sorry this is happening to you.”
“Why? I’m not the one losing the contract because my brother is a psycho.”
“You’re deflecting, girl. It’s okay to hurt.”
I shouldn’t be in pain.
It’s over.
He left me so long ago. It shouldn’t matter.
So what if I need to move my plans up by a couple of years. He’ll pay for everything he’s done. Am I going to have a hard time concentrating while I think about his scent teasing my lungs? Probably.
Would I like to work on his gorgeous body instead of my company for the night?
I close my eyes and recall his penetrating gaze.
The fire in his eyes while he asked me what had happened to me.
As if he was ready to fight someone—or maybe it’s just my imagination.
After all, I wasn’t wearing my contacts or my glasses.
“I’m fine,” I finally speak.
“Do you want me to come over with a bottle of wine?”
“Stay with the husband and the toddler. They need you more than I do.”
“The toddler is already in bed.”
“Then, enjoy your husband. Go, make more babies. You two are great at that.”
“I think we’ll just practice.”
“See you tomorrow, Suzie.”