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Intermission (Love Triangle Duet Book 2) Page 2
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I was using sex to beg my boyfriend to stay with me, and it might’ve been my lowest point in my eighteen years.
I pulled him back toward me, my hands on his ass. He liked it when I was aggressive because I almost always let him take the lead. This was different. I pulled his hips toward mind to find him flaccid. He was never flaccid, not around me at least. He was always raring to go.
And that was the signal that this was different.
He was serious.
His eyes returned to mine. “I can’t, Dee.” His voice was soft as he let me down as gently as he could. “It wouldn’t be right when I know this is what I have to do.”
I let go of his ass and turned around so he wouldn’t see the true waterworks as they started to fall.
“You can let yourself out.” My voice was cold and hard, and I think it might’ve been my own teenaged way of trying to play the angry card so he’d change his mind. It was a game, one that had worked on him in the past...but not this time.
“I love you, Dee. I’ll always love you.”
I let out some choked harrumph sound of disbelief, and then I heard my bedroom door shut with a quiet click.
He was gone. We were over. And I was all alone.
CHAPTER THREE: DELANEY
almost ten years ago
I heard the telltale stones against the outside frame of my window. Gavin never actually hit my window. It was always near it, but he didn’t have the same accurate arm Chase had. He was athletic, sure, but he wasn’t an athlete. He was a musician, and I didn’t really want to see him right now.
But I appreciated the warning nevertheless. I blew my nose and wiped my eyes, drew in a few deep breaths before taking a couple gulps of water, and managed to stop crying long enough to open my door when Maya knocked a minute later.
“Ms. Lockwood, Mr. Brooks here to see you.”
“Thanks, Maya.” I sniffled as I offered a weak smile to the boy standing behind Maya.
His eyes were full of sympathy—too much sympathy—and I nearly lost it as heat pricked behind my eyes yet again.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, realizing I’d spoken those same words to Chase not an hour earlier.
“A little birdie told me you might need a friend right now.” He took my hand in his and led me over to the bed, where we both sat. He didn’t let go of my hand, and his comfort felt nice.
“Is that birdie the football player who just broke my heart?” I asked, staring down at our hands.
“Doesn’t matter.” His voice was a comforting, low murmur.
“Why’d he send you?”
“Because he knows how close we are, Laney.” He shook his head. “What happened?”
“He met with his coach today. Coach said no distractions, and apparently that includes girlfriends.”
“God.” He let go of my hand to toss an arm around my shoulder, and he hugged me close from the side. “I’m so sorry. I thought you two were going to make it.”
“So did I,” I said, the tears splashing over my lashes again as my heart physically ached at the loss.
“What can I do?” he asked.
I shook my head because I didn’t know. There wasn’t anything he could do to make this better, to make the pain go away or piece together the cracks in my heart.
“Laney, Laney, so pretty and brainy,” he crooned softly. “Making me smile on days that are rainy.”
I listened to his soft and sweet song as his raspy voice murmured it in my ear.
“Creating a clear picture when it might’ve been grainy. Getting out all the gross stain-ys.”
I couldn’t help a tiny giggle at that one, but it never fully developed into a laugh.
And, oddly enough, it wasn’t because of the situation I found myself in.
It was because I felt his lips whisper across my temple after the last line of his silly song.
Over the four-year course of our friendship, Gavin and I had hugged, snuggled, held hands, had deep conversations late into the night...even fell asleep in each other’s beds before, but it was always platonic for both of us. He’d dated his share of girls, mostly ones from other schools, and I’d been in love with Chase for a long time before he noticed me. With Gavin, lips were just never part of the equation.
Deep down, I knew it was just one friend comforting another.
I knew Gavin would never, ever take advantage of me, especially not in the vulnerable state where I suddenly found myself.
Yet his soft lips against my hairline held some sort of strange potential I’d never noticed before.
It had to be my imagination playing tricks on me. I was heartbroken, lonely, and fearful of a future I had to face without Chase now. It was scary enough to be heading off to college, but knowing I had Chase to call upon at any hour of the night was somewhat of a comfort. Now, though, I wouldn’t have that.
And that was the thought that broke me.
I cried into Gavin’s chest, a place that had never represented the same warmth and comfort Chase’s did...until Chase’s chest was no longer an option. He leaned us back against my pillows, and I cried myself to sleep.
When I woke, I was warm in Gavin’s arms. Too warm. I sat up and squinted at the clock, the numbers beaming shiny and red at me as the hazy dawn filtered through my blinds: 5:54. Gavin shifted a little, the poor guy. He’d fallen asleep propped up against some pillows on my headboard, and his neck hung at what looked to be a very uncomfortable angle that would ensure he’d be stiff for the next few days.
“Shit, Gav. We fell asleep.” My eyes felt swollen, and I touched a fingertip to my lids. They were puffy. I had a feeling the day was going to be a complete nightmare as I started to live in my new reality as a single woman ready to head off to college.
The tears almost started again at the thought, but I didn’t let them.
Gavin shifted a little and scooted down my bed to a more comfortable position, his lips forming a wince as he felt the pain in his neck. He didn’t open his eyes, though. “Wake me at noon.”
I chuckled as I looked down at him. His jaw had some scruff on it, making him look somehow more rugged than I was used to. It was a good look for him. “You better go home.”
“Five more minutes, ‘kay?”
I giggled. “The last time you snuck out of my room, my dad caught you and almost grounded me until I explained how we’re just friends.”
At those words, he sat up and winced again. “Right. Just friends.” He blew out a breath, and then he swung his legs over the side of the bed and gave it a few beats before he stood. “You okay?” he asked softly.
I shrugged and walked toward my door. My plan was to head out first and make sure the coast was clear. “Not really.”
“It’ll sting a few days, Laney.” He stepped toward me and pulled me into a hug. “But you’re going to be okay. You know why?”
“Why?” I whispered into his chest.
“Because I’m going to help you through this. Okay? You’ve got me. No matter what.”
He’d said similar things to me before, and he’d never once let me down. I was grateful for a friend like him. “Thanks, Gav,” I said softly, and I leaned up to kiss his cheek.
I didn’t take the time to note that lips had entered the equation twice in less than twelve hours. Instead, I turned, opened the door with cheeks burning pink, and checked to make sure my parents weren’t in our path.
They weren’t. I ushered Gavin out the door, and then I headed for the kitchen to grab something for breakfast. My parents weren’t in there, either. It was early...too early, even for my dad, who was an early riser. He was usually in the kitchen for breakfast by six. He loved being at the office bright and early. Get up before the sun, he’d told me a hundred times. It was his routine—get up early, work out, and then head to the office. He always said it paid off, but judging from how I felt at that rather early hour, I wasn’t so sure.
I pulled out a box of cereal, such a mundane and ordinary task for this early summer morning. Everything was basically normal except for the hole in my chest left by Chase. I should’ve spent more time wondering why things felt strange in my empty kitchen that morning, but I was too heartbroken to really consider it.
And I had no idea the absolute destruction that would befall my family just over forty-eight short hours later.
CHAPTER FOUR: DELANEY
almost ten years ago
Only two sleeps had passed since Chase broke my heart. The first one I spent in my best friend’s arms, and the second one I spent sleepless and crying.
My eyes were a puffy mess when I walked into my private en suite bathroom, but since it was summer break and my heart was broken, my plan was to hole myself up in my bedroom for the rest of the day. It didn’t matter if I had puffy eyes since I wouldn’t be leaving the house anyway.
When I emerged from the shower, I had a bunch of missed calls. One from Rose, three from Gavin, and one from my mom. There were texts, too, but I didn’t want to hear what new sympathy Rose and Gavin had for me. I wanted to sulk by myself.
I ignored their calls, too, because they’d been calling me for twenty-four hours straight over and over and I just wasn’t ready to talk. But it was odd to have a missed call from my mother, even weirder that it was before ten o’clock in the morning.
I called her back, and she didn’t answer. My brows furrowed in confusion as I stared at my phone, and then I stood up, opened my door, and yelled, “Maya?” Maybe she knew where my mom was.
“Maya?” I yelled again, and there was still no answer.
I headed down to the kitchen since I needed something to eat anyway, and Porter’s sleepy head poked out his doorway on my way by. “What are you yelling about?” He didn’t bother to hide his exasperation.
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“I had a missed call from Mom. Have you seen her this morning?”
His brows drew down and he shook his head.
“What about Maya?” I asked.
“I just woke up.”
“Thanks. That’s super helpful.” I rolled my eyes and continued my trek for the kitchen.
The house was quiet—almost eerily so. I’d just pulled out the breakfast casserole Maya had made the morning before with the intention of heating a plateful for myself when I heard the door to the garage open then slam shut.
“Porter? Delaney?” My mother’s voice carried through the house, and I could sense an edge of desperation in it from where I stood halfway across the house.
“In the kitchen!” I yelled back, and when she appeared in the room, she was a disaster.
Black mascara tracks streaked the rouge on her cheeks, and her normally perfectly coiffed hair was wild and untamed. Even her clothes were a mess—her button-down blouse was only tucked into her black trousers on one side, and her scarf was hanging at an odd angle.
“What’s wrong, Mom?” I asked as I rushed to her side. I put my arm around her and walked her over to the couch.
My parents often came off as snobby, but they’d always put their children first. This time, even though I was going through something of my own, I vowed to put them first.
“Oh, Delaney, it’s just awful.” She swiped at a tear, further smudging her make-up. “The FBI was waiting for Daddy this morning when he got to the office and they took him to the police station. I got a call from him letting me know where he was and asking me to go to his office. They took everything. His computer, his files, his USBs, his financial records.”
As she spoke, a pit started to form in my stomach. “What are the charges?” I asked, surprised at the relative calmness of my voice...but someone had to be the rock when my mother was a freaking disaster.
“Embezzlement.”
I’d heard the word before in a business class I took in high school, but I was a little fuzzy on its actual meaning. “Stealing money?” I asked to clarify.
She nodded. “From his clients,” she added in a whisper. She swiped another tear, and I couldn’t think of the last time I’d seen my mother cry. She was the strong matriarch of our family. Seeing her broken down like this was difficult. “He didn’t do it.”
“Of course he didn’t.” I didn’t think right away about how this might affect the future; instead, I focused on the present. “What can I do?” I asked.
“I need a cup of coffee.” She drew in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, as if that might help her pull herself together. “And then I need to lie down for a bit. There’s nothing we can do until he sees the judge.”
“When’s that?”
She shook her head like she wasn’t sure. “Sometime today, I think.”
“Mom?” Porter yelled from upstairs. “Is that you?”
“Yes!” she called back.
Porter appeared in the upstairs loft that overlooked the family room where I sat with Mom. “I’m trying to buy something online and it says my card is declined.”
The deep breath my mom just took to calm her down was futile as a fresh wave of tears fell from her eyes.
“What’s going on?” Porter asked. He rushed through the loft, down the stairs, and was on my mother’s other side all in the span of twelve seconds.
“Dad was arrested for embezzlement this morning.” I said it around my mom so she wouldn’t have to repeat it again, and it was strange how calm my voice was. I wasn’t young or dumb enough to misunderstand the severity of the situation, but someone had to be the calm in this wretched storm.
Porter looked confused. “He...wait, what?”
I widened my eyes and tilted my head toward my mom as a way to secretly say shut up, we’ll figure out the details later. But he wasn’t exactly grasping my hidden meaning.
“Mom, is she serious?” he asked, and Mom just nodded and closed her eyes as if willing it not to be true.
“We’re waiting for him to get in front of the judge. He’ll set bail and then Daddy will be home and we can figure out who set him up and why.” She said it adamantly, like she really believed he wasn’t at fault.
But she couldn’t post his bail because every single one of our assets had been frozen.
Stolen money, they’d said.
It was all stolen money, and it didn’t take long for me to overhear the hushed voices in my dad’s home office later that night as he admitted to his lawyer and my mother that it was all true. He’d stolen money. He used that stolen money to feed his gambling addiction. When he won, things had been great. But when he lost, he lost everything.
He’d done the crime, and now he was going to have to face some time.
But it wasn’t just him who would face the time.
Over the course of the next few days, everything was stripped from us.
Mom lied and told us he didn’t do it.
She didn’t know I overheard everything.
Dad was no longer the heroic man I’d always looked up to. In a flash, he’d become a criminal. I supposed he always was a criminal, but I’d never suspected it, and I never believed my mother would blindly go along with him and lie to her children about it. But she had, and he had, and my family unit was forever changed because of it.
My entire life was forever changed because of it.
And Mom just stood by her husband, claiming he didn’t do it even though she was in the room when he admitted he had. “The FBI froze all of our accounts, Delaney. That includes your college fund. We need to come up with an alternate plan for you.”
Funny how she said we when she really meant me. Because for the first time in my eighteen years of life, I was truly alone. I didn’t have my family to rely on. I didn’t have Chase’s shoulder to cry on. Sure, Rose and Gavin were blowing up my phone. Our family news had hit the media hard, but I had to figure out what the hell I was doing for college. I had to get some sort of plan together, and crying over the phone to my besties wasn’t going to solve a damn thing.
So I cut them out, buried my feelings, started looking up part-time jobs to help with tuition, called Stanford and explained my circumstances, and registered for a full schedule at the community college with an undeclared major.
It was my only option.
CHAPTER FIVE: DELANEY
present day
When I open my eyes, it’s still dark in the room. I’m chilly since I wore nothing but panties when I finally fell asleep waiting for Chase to come back.
I move my legs to try to bump into him, but I make it halfway across the bed before I realize he’s not in here. I squint at his clock. It’s a little after four in the morning, and he hasn’t come to bed yet.
I guess my big plan of seducing him when he came back from his phone call was futile. I get out of bed and put my t-shirt and shorts back on then snuggle under the blankets. I should go look for him, should see where he is and what he’s doing so late into the night, but sleep pulls me under.
When I wake the next time, it’s a little before seven. The room’s a little brighter now, though his darkening shades certainly take care of most of the sunlight that would otherwise be streaming in. This time, I get out of bed. I head down to his office, and I find him fast asleep on the couch in there.
I gaze at him as he sleeps. I wonder why he didn’t come to bed, why he just fell asleep on the couch, and then I see the reason. He has some papers clutched to his chest, like he was reading them and fell asleep before he had a chance to finish. I want to know what they say, but it’s not really my business.
Though if he’s the one I decide I want to be with, it will be.
I step into the room, and a floorboard creaks under my weight. Chase’s eyes open immediately and he sits up in surprise.
“Good morning,” I say tentatively, and the surprise in his eyes smooths over.
“Morning.” His voice is scratchy from sleep, and his hair is a royal mess. I walk over and sit by his feet.
“Why’d you sleep in here?” I ask.
He lifts the papers in his hands. “I was reviewing a contract my agent sent me for a new endorsement and must’ve fallen asleep. I’m sorry. What time is it?”