RaineyUpstairs, I settled Tanner in on the table, and he continued working on his art. I went to the refrigerator to get him a juice box when I heard a sound from outside. I stood up straight and looked at Tanner. None of his crayons had fallen to the floor, and he was still furiously working on his project.What did I hear? It sounded as if it came from the landing. Not wanting to scare Tanner, I walked over to the door and peered outside. I imagined seeing the two men from Michael’s place on my doorstep. My stomach sank, and my breathing roared in my ears. I didn’t see anyone initially, so I opened the door and looked out. There weren’t any hulking men nearby.I went back inside and locked the door behind me.Get a grip, Rainey, I thought to myself.I watched Tanner for a moment while I took several calming breaths. Nothing was going to happen to him. There was no reason for me to be paranoid. Especially now since I distanced myself from all of Michael’s drama.“Can I have my juice
MichaelMy heart beat hard in my chest, and a whooshing sound took residence in my ears. I stared at the little boy in front of me, the echo of my words clung to the still air of the room.“You have a son?” I growled, flashing my teeth.Rainey stood there, her mouth falling open.Her resignation letter remained on the floor at her feet.“T-Tanner,” she said finally and ushered him out of the room.I took in the small apartment before me. No wonder Rainey never wanted me to come here. She lived in a place the size of my living room. But the biggest reason for hiding her life had been the pint-sized human that she failed to mention.I stepped into the room, needing to explore the life that Rainey so carefully hid from the start. This changed everything. For one, she lied to me. At the interview, she told me she didn’t have anything in her life that would hold her back from being on call, traveling, or being at my beck and call. Did she somehow have enough money to pay for a nanny? The c
Michael“What? Michael, no! How could you ever think that?”I shrugged. “I have a lot of money. Clearly, you don't,” I said waving my hand around her tiny apartment. “Was this some ploy to trick me into paying for your secret life?” As the words came out, I regretted them. But I wanted everything in the open. I’d been with gold diggers before, and while Rainey didn’t act like one at all, in fact, she acted quite the opposite most of the time, I had to get everything out in the open.“Wow,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t believe you think that.”“I don’t, Rainey,” I said. “But what else should I think about this? What about those phone calls you’ve been avoiding when we’re together? Do you have an ex-husband? Why isn’t he helping out with your kid?”“While I don’t think any of this is your business—”“It is my business, Rainey!”“Keep your voice down,” she hissed.My blood pressure rose. I wanted to shove my fist through a wall or smash something. Rage built up within me, and I h
RaineyI flinched as the door slammed against the frame. I blinked a few times in utter shock. I couldn’t believe Michael accused me of those horrible things. For him to come to my house and speak to me like that was unprofessional and downright rude.I whipped around and checked Tanner’s room. The door remained closed. I’d promised him ice cream for dessert for him to stay in there. Good thing he had a sweet tooth.I sprinted across the living room and stood next to the window. Michael’s car was in the street, the warm exhaust creating a plume of smoke to come out of the back end of the black sedan. Michael appeared from the side of my house, and I leaned away from the window, just keeping him in view. But he’d never be able to see me if he looked back.My resignation letter was in his fist, half of it under his crushing fingers.If I didn’t know he was pissed when he left, I did now. His shoulders were almost at his ears, and I could feel the anger rolling off of him in waves, even
Rainey“I love you and Tanner. You’re family; I wouldn’t steer you wrong.”I took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Okay. Thanks. I needed to talk it out with someone.”“No problem.”“Alright,” I said, standing up, feeling a new resolve within me. I wasn’t going to let Michael get me down. “I need to make some phone calls tomorrow morning. Maybe I’ll be able to find something temporary to tide us over until I get something better.”“My offer still stands at the salon. The other hairdressers would love to have a competent front desk woman. And we can hang out all day!”I grinned. “Let me see if there is anything in my field first. If not, you’re the first person I’ll call.”“You better!”“I will.”“Call me tomorrow,” Tessa said. “I want to hear all about your job search.”“Love you,” I said.“Love you, too.”I hung up the phone and tossed it onto my bed. I laid face down on the bed, burying my face into the duvet. What the hell was I going to do? Tessa was off my back for a little whi
MichaelLooking out over the city through my floor to ceiling windows of my office, a sense of dread struck me. Not because the sky was gray with the impending snow storm, but because of what sat on my desk.I looked over my shoulder at the white envelope staring back at me. It signified the end of everything between Rainey and me. Even though she signed up for direct deposit, her last pay stub needed to be collected, along with a signature on the termination papers. There was a second non-disclosure agreement for her to sign and she was slated to come into the office today.With almost a week to cool off, I still woke that morning with snakes of anger slithering through my body each time I thought of her. At the same time, strangely, I missed her like crazy. Each day that passed without seeing her outside of my office, typing away at her computer made me much more upset than I realized. My feelings pulled me in opposite directions consistently and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to punch a
MichaelSandra leaned over her desk to get a front row seat to what was happening with Rainey and me. When I caught her eye, she jumped and sat down in her chair.Rainey didn’t mention her last pay stub, so I imagined she thought we would mail it to her. I watched her for a moment, collecting the few items of hers in the desk. An extra sweater, a pair of sunglasses, a small glass paperweight that doubled as a clock. Those were the remaining reminders of her in my office. Could I let her go that easily?She seemed polite enough. I had a sneaking suspicion she had no idea about the extra money in her account. She hadn’t seen it yet. If she had, then I’d get an earful from her at that moment. At least we could start the conversation on a professional note, not an emotional one.“Your pay stub is in my office,” I said.“Oh,” she said, finally looking at me. Her gaze flitted between my chin and nose, our eyes never quite meeting. It was like a punch to the gut. Even though I’d never admit
RaineyThe feel of Michael’s skin against mine stole the breath out of my lungs. I fell into his gorgeous blue eyes one more time before tearing myself away from him. How could I ever come back to work for him? It was clear that we could never just be professional with each other. Not after everything we’ve been through and not with his life in constant danger with shady mobsters. I would be a fool to start something with him again, personal or professional.Though every cell in my body wanted to be with him every day, even if we could manage to be co-workers. I would miss the paycheck each week. I looked down at the envelope in my hands. It was the last one I would get for some time. Deep down I wished I could keep this going, but putting Tanner’s life in danger wasn’t an option for me.That was it. I made my decision.I glanced over my shoulder at Michael’s closed door and said a silent goodbye.I stopped at Sandra’s desk to say goodbye in person. I knew she had some idea that Micha