CHAPTER 13
Present Day
I couldn’t help but curse Spencer the entire day, and especially when I pricked myself on the thorns of the rose bushed, which I did like a thousand times. At the end of the day, I was certain I was thoroughly over Mr. Dark Knight and that if I ever saw him again, I’d not even feel the slightest attraction to the man. I was so mad that I knew I was officially cured and could focus on the game 100%. My body ached, I had more cuts on my hands and forearms than I could count, and my body was sore in places I didn’t even know existed.
Well, at least I’d been able to get back at him. My ingenious plan would look like an innocent blunder. But it would be bad enough to make him not want to have me working in his garden ever again. Or so I hoped.
Once I got home at 7:58 p.m., I allowed myself to soak in the bathtub for a good hour. Afterward, I tended to all my wounds and stooped into bed. But just as I closed my eyes, my phone rang.
Without even looking, I knew it was Spencer calling. He must have discovered my intentional mistake.
“Hello?” I mumbled as I answered, then yawned.
“What the hell did you do to the rose bushes?” he demanded in an angry voice. Sexy angry voice.
“What do you mean?” A devious grin sprouted on my lips.
“They’re in the complete opposite pattern of what I wanted,” he said.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, feigning ignorance. “I followed the pattern exactly. I made sure of that.” But I had also made sure it was upside down.
“If you can’t follow orders, I’m going to have to hire someone else,” he said.
“You’re right. I’m incompetent and just… just fire me.” I hoped he wouldn’t fire me because then I’d be screwed. Had I taken this too far? Was he onto me and knew I was intentionally messing with him? Crap.
There was silence on the other end of the line for some time. Then he said, “Perhaps you did it upside down on accident. You know what? Just forget it. Tomorrow, meet me at the address I gave you to the office. Maybe I can find some other use for you.”
Oh, my God! My plan worked!? I’d get to sit at a desk and do real office work!? I was so excited that I almost squealed out loud.
“What do you want me to wear?” I asked. If he told me to show up in a clown suit, I’d comply. Working in the office was going to feel like a dream compared to this.
“One of your business suits. 9:00 a.m. Don’t be late like you were on the first day.” He hung up.
Oh, he noticed I was late. He was paying attention. Whatever. I’d be there ten minutes early just to make sure he didn’t have any complaints and didn’t demote me back to gardening.
My head fell into the pillow, and a few seconds later, I was out.
* * *
I found the building and was surprised to see a sign with “King Towers” on it. He had a building here? Since when? Or perhaps it was his father’s?
I parked my car on the street and looked up, my gaze following the line of the building all the way up at least fifty stories. The building was seriously impressive, an emerald spire that towered above the other buildings around it. I glided through the gold-framed revolving door and stepped onto gold-veined marble floors. The walls were brushed aluminum and there was a security desk made of clear glass at the center of the foyer. I didn’t feel out of place. Everyone here was wearing a business suit, and I made sure that I got an expensive suit. I’d thought about saving Spencer money and buying one of the cheap suits, but I knew Spencer wanted me to look as professional as I could. Although I didn’t go for the most expensive one, the one I chose cost as much as two months’ rent.
I walked to the console, approaching a young blonde woman.
“I’m Ellie Goldstein. I’m here for Spencer King,” I said.
She smiled, then typed something into the computer. “Welcome to King Towers,” she said. “Mr. King is expecting you.” She handed me an ID card with my name on it. “Make sure you always have this on you.” She pointed toward the elevators. “Take the elevator to the thirtieth floor and you’re there.”
“Thank you.” I walked over to the security guard in a black suit and he scanned my card before checking my purse. Once he cleared me, I headed straight to the bank of elevators and stepped into one.
“What floor, ma’am?” asked the elevator man.
“Thirtieth, please.”
He pressed the button and the doors closed. I caught a glimpse of myself in the elevator door and almost didn’t recognize myself. My hair was pulled back into a French twist and I had applied red lipstick and black eyeliner. My ivory business suit looked really sharp on me and everything about my appearance screamed ‘professional.’ I wondered if Spencer would like how I looked. I shook my head at that thought. I didn’t really care.
Except… I did.
Goddammit. Even after all he had put me through the past couple of days, the past several years, my heart still skipped a beat when I thought about him. I clutched my hands by my side and the elevator whisked us up at velocity speed. The sores on my hands I’d suffered from planting rose bushes didn’t quite match the outfit, but there really wasn’t anything I could do about it.
The doors opened with a ping and I stepped into a large lobby, all brushed aluminum and white and gold marble. I was confronted by another console and the young, beautiful, blonde women dressed in a baby blue business suit rose to greet me.
“Miss Goldstein, I’m Brenda Shelton. Please have a seat.” She gestured to the seating area. Behind the ivory leather couches was a luxurious glass-walled meeting room with a light wood table and at least a dozen modern matching chairs. Beyond that there were floor to ceiling windows with a view of the ocean.
There were other offices, three on the right and three on the left, and each had a beautiful blonde working behind a desk. Every woman could be mistaken for a model and I felt like a boring gray in a sea of neon beauty.
I sat down on the couch and placed my bag on my lap. For a moment, I wasn’t sure if it was better to be here or to be working in his garden, but one thing that was now blatantly evident was that Spencer did not hire me because he needed me like he said he did. He had hired me for some other reason. And that reason certainly had something to do with his cruel treatment of my family.
Brenda approached me. “Mr. King is ready for you now.”
I stood and followed her down a long hallway decorated with paintings and artwork that I had no doubt cost a small fortune. At the end was an oak double door and soon we were standing in Mr. Dark Knight’s office.
“Miss Goldstein is here,” Brenda said. Spencer was sitting behind a huge modern dark wood desk, behind him, floor to ceiling windows revealing a stunning view of Seattle. Everything else was white or navy blue and there were several pieces of artwork—sculptures, paintings, vases—throughout. He wore a dark gray business suit and a crisp white shirt that was open at the top. I refused to listen to any of my thoughts about how stunningly handsome he was, but without my permission, my knees became weak and I felt my cheeks warm.
The door closed behind me and I was alone with my boss. He finally looked at me, and something in the air shifted. As he stared at me, the energy between us altered… as if a barrier slid away, revealing the scorching force that was always there. The intense magnetism between us increased for every second we held eye contact, filling the room with a near-tangible power that sucked the air from my lungs and the strength from my limbs.
The magnetism grew so strong that I could no longer hold his gaze and looked down at the floor. My heart was thumping against my ribs and my lips parted to accommodate faster breaths.
“Ready for day three?” he asked, not bothering to stand.
My lips had become dry, so I licked them before I replied.
“I don’t know.” I tried to keep my tone of voice light, but to get the words out, I had to put in extra effort, or they’d get stuck in my throat. My words sounded harsh, angry even. I looked back at him to see his reaction. Immediately, I regretted it.
I felt like I was five years old and had just said something completely offensive and that I was about to receive a reprimand.
“If you’d rather plant—” he started.
“No. It was… a joke,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “A bad joke. I’m ready.” I grew irritated with myself for being so enthralled by him when he seemed to view me as a nuisance.
He nodded and stood, still maintaining eye contact. I hated how I felt suspended in time, as if he were holding me captive when all I wanted to do was run.
“Jokes about employment aren’t appreciated here,” he said as he slowly and gracefully walked around the desk, his fingertips brushing the surface. “You’d be wise to take note.”
“Yes,” I said. Oh, my God he was being such an asshole. Such a sexy asshole. I reminded myself that I was here to win this stupid game.
“I was going to have you shred papers.” He sat on the desk and folded his arms in front of his glorious chest. For the briefest moment, I imagined myself straddling him, my hands resting on that oh, so amazingly firm chest.
“But to learn your lesson, and to learn to follow orders, you’ll be cleaning floors today,” he said.
I wanted to bring to his attention that I was wearing a very expensive business suit that he had paid for. But I suspected he didn’t really care about that. I wanted to say my hands and forearms were scratched up from planting rose bushes yesterday, but he probably didn’t care about that either. Instead of saying a single word, I squeezed my lips together.
“Is that beneath you?” he asked as his gaze languidly took me in. “I thought you were a house-keeper. It’s really no different.”
If I wasn’t staring right at his lips, I would have missed the ever so subtle tug of the right side. Right. He took pleasure in trying to break me, in humiliating me, in controlling me. He had straight out told me that and now he was trying to break me.
I wasn’t going to let him see how upset I was. I wasn’t going to let him break me or humiliate me. I was going to pretend I didn’t care in the least. Now more than ever, I was determined to beat him at his own game.
“Where can I find cleaning supplies?” I asked with as carefree smile as I could manage.
An hour later, the already clean floor was cleaned. I had a great big smile on my face as I put the bucket and cloth back into the closet. When I turned around, Spencer was standing in the hallway.
“God, you startled me,” I said my heart immediately in my mouth.
“I’m taking the rest of the day off to spend it with my girlfriend. I need you to deliver a package to this address here.” He handed me a post-it note with an address on it.
“That’s my old street,” I said, recognizing it.
“Yes. You probably remember Dr. Fox,” he said.
“He was my dad’s partner for years up until the practice went under,” I said.
“What a coincidence,” he said deadpan. “After you’ve delivered the package, you may go home. I’ll see you here tomorrow morning 9:00 a.m. sharp.” He turned on his heel and vanished.
Once I’d straightened up in the restroom, I headed into the foyer.
“Here’s the package Mr. King would like you to deliver,” Brenda said, approaching me. It was a small brown package with Dr. Fox’s name handwritten on the outside. Huh. What could Spencer’s connection be with Dr. Fox? Well, I supposed that that connection wasn’t that odd. My dad and Dr. Fox were partners and my dad also used to spend time with Spencer’s father, although I never really understood their relationship, whether it was of a personal or professional nature.
With how crazy traffic was due to a car accident on the freeway, it took me the better part of an hour to get to Woodinville. Even though it hadn’t been that long since I’d lived here, driving through my old neighborhood brought back so many memories.
As I drove by Woodinville High School and by Woodinville Middle, it was as if I’d been thrust back in time a dozen years—to happier days, calmer days, safer days.
When I passed our old Victorian house, I stopped in front of the gates. Although the house wasn’t then largest or nicest in the neighborhood, the plot of land had been coveted by many. In fact, my dad once told me he had seven offers in three years to buy our house for two and three times its estimated value. It had a view unlike any other, of the mountains and valleys. We’d sat many a times on the back porch with my parents on rare sunny Washington days, watching the sun set.
As I sat outside the gates, it was as if I could sense my dad here. In my mind’s eye, I could see him working in the yard, carefully tending to every plant and every flower. He prided himself in being someone who nurtured what he loved and called our home a sanctuary.
After wave of emotion and sadness washed over me. I’d kept so busy recently that I hadn’t had time to process how different and sucky my life was now compared to how it used to be when my family was fully intact. Sitting here, I realized how alone I was and how much I missed the good old days. It broke my heart to know things would never go back to that.
I sobbed for a long while, unable to stop the flood of emotions that had been bottled up for so long.
It took a while, but after some time, the intense pain I felt subsided and gave way to a more melancholic feeling.
I finally managed to pull myself together and drive to Dr. Fox’s house, which according to many, was the most beautiful in the neighborhood. It stood on a large plot of land but didn’t have the stunning view ours had. The French chateau-looking mansion was light gray and blue and had two towers and two chimneys. I’d spent many a day here during summer frolicking in their pool and playing with Brady Fox, the boy who I got my first kiss from. Ugh. I remembered that first horrible kiss as if it was yesterday. The boy was nice enough, but there was zero chemistry. When Spencer kissed me, the chemistry was so intense I could barely manage to control myself. But Spencer was an asshole! Why couldn’t Spencer be nice like Brady? And ugh! Here I was thinking of him again!
I reminded myself why I was here, drove up the long brick driveway, and parked at the front, backing up against a hedge. Package in hand, I knocked on the front door. But no one answered. I rang the doorbell, but again, no answer. It was then I heard laughter coming from the back yard, laughter that reminded me of my mom’s. Weird.
I figured it wouldn’t be too inappropriate of me to check out the back yard. I’d visited this house more times than I could count, and Dr. Fox said my home was our family’s home as well.
Without really thinking it through, acting from habit, I opened the gate at the side of the house and walked around to the back. There was a couple in the pool. The woman was facing away from me and had her arms wrapped around Dr. Fox’s shoulders. She laughed and kissed Dr. Fox and he growled in approval as he tugged at her hair. I should have darted out of there then, but for some inexplicable reason, I froze.
“I love you,” the woman said to Dr. Fox in a deep, seductive voice. “More than I’ve loved any man. Do you know that?”
It was then that Dr. Fox caught a glimpse of me, and his eyes widened as he gently pushed the woman off him.
“Ellie! What are you doing here?” he asked, surprised.
The woman turned around, but instead of meeting a stranger’s gaze, I met my mom’s.
“Mom?” It took me a moment to comprehend what I was seeing. My mom and Dr. Fox were in the pool together. My mom loved him. More than she had ever loved any man.
Even my dad.
Dozens of questions popped into my head at once. How long had they been dating? Did she truly love Dr. Fox more than she had loved my dad? Why was she here in Washington and didn’t tell me? Where was Rose? What did this mean? How long had this been going on? My dad and Dr. Fox had been friends since college and now my mom was, what…? Sleeping with him?
I set the package onto the glass table.
“From Spencer King.” I spun around and stormed toward my car.
“Ellie! Ellie!” I heard my mom’s voice behind me. I unlocked my car and got into the driver’s seat. I turned the engine on. Just as I was about to get the hell out of there, my mom stepped in front of the car in her bikini. She stretched her hands out in front of her and locked eyes with me. Now that she was near naked, I could see how much weight she’d lost, but not only that. She looked amazing. As if she had been obsessively working out. I chalked her weight loss up to her being in mourning. But the woman standing in front of me looked like she had made it her life’s mission to get her sexy back, not mourn. And wow. Even though I didn’t want to admit it, she looked amazing.t
I honked the horn to try to get her to move but she didn’t. Instead, she placed her palms onto the hood of my car.
“Ellie!” she said. “Let’s talk.”
I honked the horn again.
“Ellie, goddammit!” she yelled.
I wanted to get out of there stat, but even with how upset I was at my mom, I wasn’t going to run over her. I glanced behind me to see if there was any way I could back up. No luck. I was about a foot away from a thick hedge. The only way out of here was to drive forward.
“Let me explain,” she said.
I stared at her for a moment while trying to decide what to do. If I left now, I’d still want answers and we’d have to talk sooner or later. It did seem better to have the answers now rather than later, although I wasn’t sure I would be able to keep from saying and doing things that would damage our relationship further.
She skirted to the side of the car and made a gesture as if she wanted me to roll down my window. I squeezed my eyes shut, just willing this crazy new life of mine to go away. After a moment, I rolled down the window as I kept my eyes trained straight forward.
“Ellie,” she said. “Can you come with me and we can discuss this in a more private place?”
“No,” I said.
She buried her face in a hand for a moment, huffing. “I wasn’t ready to talk about this to you yet.”
“Does Rose know?”
“No.”
“Where is she?” I asked.
“Home in California with my sister.”
“So, you just thought you’d dump her when she needs you and come here so you could get it on with Dr. Fox?” I asked.
“That’s not fair,” she said.
“I thought it would be better for her to be with you,” I said. “But it seems you don’t even care about her anymore.”
“I can understand you’re upset,” she said.
“Good.”
She huffed. “You can either hear my out or just stay mad at me,” she said. “Which one will it be?”
I clutched the steering wheel for a long while, fighting the urge to scream at her, fighting the urge to hate her and come to my own conclusions. Even though that’s what I wanted to do, as if by some miracle, I was able to reason myself out of a knee-jerk reaction.
“Fine,” I said. “You have ten minutes.”
I closed the window and opened the car door. After I had followed my mom inside and after she had put a bathrobe on, we sat outside by the pool. Dr. Fox had vanished, which I was grateful for. I didn’t want to see that backstabbing man in the least.
“Where to start,” my mom began.
“Tell me everything.”
Cautiously, she looked at me.
“I’m serious. If you lie to me, I’ll never forgive you,” I said.
She exhaled a long, slow breath and her expression turned serious.
“Remember how I said your dad and I had a good relationship but that it wasn’t perfect?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Your dad and I had a stable, caring relationship. But… it lacked passion. In fact, the last four years of our marriage, we weren’t intimate once.”
I was beginning to regret that I’d told her to tell me everything.
“It wasn’t that we didn’t care about each other,” she continued. “It was just that we felt more like brother and sister.”
“Then why did you get married?” I asked.
“I got pregnant with you,” she said. “Your dad did the honorable thing and married me. And I don’t regret that decision for one second. He was a good man, a good provider. I was so glad to have you and I never regretted that. But when it came to your dad and my relationship, the romance just was never there.”
“Dad loved you,” I said. “I saw how he looked at you. He would have done everything for you.”
“He did love me. And I loved him. But it was more of a platonic, best-friends kind of love. I felt safe and secure with him. It was just… I always yearned for more. It was what drove me to do things I shouldn’t have done.” She looked at me as if she was bracing for some reaction from me. It took me a moment, but then I realized what she was telling me.
“You had an affair?” I was starting to feel nauseous now, realizing the family I thought I had was nothing but a sham. Suddenly, it felt like I was losing my family all over again.
She nodded.
“With Dr. Fox?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.
She nodded again.
I could no longer sit still. I stood and started to pace as my world was tumbling down all around me.
“Why didn’t you just do the honorable thing and leave?” I asked.
“I wasn’t strong enough to leave my family. You were more important to me. And I suppose… I needed security.”
“Security? You mean money?”
“It’s not that simple, Ellie.”
It was that simple. It was all about money for her. I saw it so clearly now.
“Did Dad know about the affair?” I asked.
“No, he didn’t. At least not that I know of,” she said.
The feeling of betrayal was so overpowering that I could barely manage to keep my sanity.
“And Rose. Does she know why you’re here?” she asked.
“I told her I was coming here to tie up a few loose ends in Dad’s practice, which I am also doing.”
“What loose ends are those?” I asked, my voice bitter. “Screwing dad’s old partner?”
My mom shot to her feet and slapped me across the face. She had never struck me before and I was as surprised as I was angry. Her hand stung on my cheek, and I placed my palm on it. I knew I had overstepped my bounds, but I didn’t regret what I had said. It was the truth.
“There’s a lot you don’t know, Ellie,” she said. “Things that are tearing me apart and have been tearing me apart for a very long time. Things that could have dire consequences for all of our futures, yours included. But I have tried to protect you. A parent shouldn’t divulge everything to a child.”
“I’m not a child anymore!” I yelled.
“Still, there are things I will never tell you,” she said.
What cruel things Spencer King had supposedly done to our family came to mind. She was holding onto that secret and would take it to the grave with her. But why?
“In times like these, we need to band together, not turn on one another,” she said.
“How can I band together with you when you’ve been lying to me all these years?” I asked. She took a step closer to me. “When you’re still keeping things from me?”
“I’m trying to do the right thing by you and Rose, and at the same time, to not worry you. Please, Ellie, let that explanation be enough.”
I turned away from her and exhaled a sharp breath.
“I’m sorry I slapped you,” she said. “I should never have done that.”
I turned back to face her, and she looked genuinely ashamed.
“Will you please let that explanation be enough for now?” she asked.
Hesitantly, I nodded and she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Can I… Can I meet you for lunch tomorrow?” she asked.
“I’m working,” I said.
“Ah, yes. Your new job. Is Mr. King paying you well?”
Again. She was always concerned about money.
“Well enough,” I said. I didn’t want to talk to her about anything right now. I didn’t need to mention how Spencer was an asshole and how I was so completely mesmerized by him but equally repulsed by him, so much so that my head was spinning. I didn’t want to admit that part of the reason I’d taken this job was for my present and future security. That I was turning into my mother. I never wanted to be that person, one who made decisions based on money. Yet here I was.
“That’s good to hear. Do you have a lunch break? I could meet you then,” she said.
“It’s not a good day tomorrow,” I said.
“I’m here until Tuesday morning. Maybe we could meet for lunch on Monday?”
“Maybe,” I said. “I’ll call you.”
I turned to walk away but paused when my mom spoke.
“I’m sorry about all this, Ellie. I wanted to tell you about Dr. Fox… Marvin in my own due time.”
I nodded, then headed to my car. Once I reached the outskirts of Woodinville, I pulled over to the side of the road and broke down completely. I couldn’t ever remember feeling this distraught, this alone. I had no idea how I was going to be able to come to terms with everything my mom had told me.
Suddenly, my phone rang. When I pulled it out of my purse, I saw that it was Spencer calling. He always seemed to know the worst time to call, didn’t he. I seriously considered letting it go to voicemail, but I didn’t want to deal with the consequences of not being at his back and call so I decided to pick up.
“Hello,” I said, hoping he wouldn’t notice how thick my voice sounded.
“Ellie?” he asked.
I cleared my throat. “Yes, it’s me.”
“You ok?” he asked.