Chapter 24 #2
“Okay, fine. It’s not a game. It’s a very dangerous situation. A situation that has almost gotten you killed once already and has you doing some very…odd things.”
“We’re doing the things we have to do, Chris. The things that will solve this.”
Chris shot his gaze skyward, his frustration building as evidenced by his fists tightening by his sides.
“What will solve this is for you to come home with me. I went to Miranda because things were spiraling out of control. You’re doing dangerous things, risking your life and for what?
Huh? For this guy who you’ve bailed out over and over again? ”
“Bailed out?” Ava asked.
Chris shrugged. “Didn’t you marry him so he could get his inheritance? You bailed him out then, and he expects it now.”
“Oh, that’s ridiculous, Chris. He expects a friend. That’s what I am. And yeah, it’s been…risky, but we’ve done what we had to do.”
Chris stared at her, crossing his arms. “Oh, really? Does that including putting your lips on his?”
“What?” Her heart skipped a beat as she recalled the kiss–one that had lingered far too long for an engaged woman.
“The kiss, Ava,” he said, leaning closer, his voice cutting. “Was that something you had to do?”
She turned away from him, her lips tugging into a frown as the moment stuck in her mind again, constricting her chest. “Look, Chris, I’m sorry. I…I was really upset and confused after you left. You said you needed time, and I just…”
“Whoa, wait a second.” He screwed up his face. “After I left?”
She flicked her gaze to him, confusion pinching her features. “Isn’t that what you’re talking about?”
“No. I’m talking about how I told Miranda you and Alex were a fake marriage, and she informed me that you’d put on a pretty good show making out in Alex’s office.”
“Okay, we weren’t making out. Yes, we kissed in his office to convince her that we were a real relationship.” She threw her hands into the air. “That was before you spilled the beans about it to her.”
“Gosh, I’m so sorry I told the truth. But I’m sort of glad I did since it seems that truth and you are strangers these days.” He rubbed a hand across his forehead. “So, you kissed Alex how many times?”
“That doesn’t–”
“How many times, Ava?” he shouted.
She licked her lips, shifting her weight. ‘Three. Twice in the office for Miranda’s benefit. And once the night you left.”
He rubbed his chin before he huffed out a harsh laugh. “I can’t believe this. I can’t believe this is happening.”
“I’m sorry, Chris. I just…the kiss was…an accident. I was upset, and I stopped as soon as I realized what I was doing.”
He scoffed, shaking his head. “I guess that’s something.”
Ava flicked her gaze to the roiling ocean, her insides matching its energy. “Look, we both feel betrayed here by something the other person did. So, where do we go from here?”
“There’s only one option I can see, Ava. This has to stop. So, I’m giving you a choice. Either you walk away from Alex Stone right now and come home with me or we’re finished.”
The words smacked her in the face. His words hung between them like a storm cloud ready to burst. His ultimatum was clear. But her feelings were not.
Chris wanted a neat life, but Ava enjoyed the messiness of things with Alex. Could she live the rest of her life in the box Chris created for her?
She set her jaw, her resolve firming, as she looked him squarely in the eyes, her voice steady and unwavering. “No.”
His flicked his eyebrows up. “What? Are…do you understand what you’re choosing by staying here? Our relationship is over, Ava.”
“I’m not a piece to be moved at your convenience. And I’m not going to be forced into making a choice by your ultimatum.”
“My ultimatum? What do you think you issued when you decreed that you’d stay here?”
“I didn’t force you to stay. I gave you a choice. I didn’t say if you left, we were over. You can go home if you want.”
He let out a harsh laugh. “Oh, you’d love that, wouldn’t you? No one hovering over you to police your make-out sessions with your husband.”
“That’s not what–”
“I don’t care. I don’t care anymore, Ava. I don’t care how weird the situation is, how blurred the lines are, how close you are, or what shadowy organization is looming. I don’t care anymore. I want our life back. I want us back. Without these complications.”
She shook her head. “I don’t come without complications, Chris. That’s the problem. You want this…clean version of me that has perfect hair and never has a bad day and–”
“That’s not at all it, Ava. I just…I want adult Ava back. I don’t want messy bun, game-playing, pretending she’s back in college, Ava.”
“So you want me on your terms only.”
“I want things back to normal. I’m sick of this messed up situation. So, last chance, Ava. Come home with me or we’re over.”
Ava glanced down at her hands, stretching her fingers out. On her left, Alex’s rings and on her right, Chris’s engagement ring.
Her lower lip trembled, and tears filled her eyes. Her features pinched, and she tried to swallow the lump forming in her throat. With trembling fingers, she reached for one of the rings.
A tear fell to her cheek as she slid Chris’s off and held it out to him.
He glanced up at her, his features twisted with hurt and confusion. She tugged his hand forward and placed the ring in it before she curled his fingers around it.
Without a word, she turned away, her decision made and strode down the beach away from Chris Maxwell.