We were polar opposites in the looks department. I was dark, and she was light, but in contrast to reality, I wasn’t sure which of us light represented. We had both been tainted by Devin and our love for him, and our willingness to keep him.
“Honestly, Eileen, I’ve wanted to apologize, woman to woman, but I really just don’t have it in me anymore. You win. I’ve ended it. He’s your burden. Please just leave me the hell alone.”
“I honestly wish you’d made that decision a little sooner,” she said, taking a seat as I continued to stand.
“You need to leave. We don’t have a damn thing to discuss. I have a company to run.” Her sneer was unmistakable in that she had no intention of leaving until she said her piece.
“So self-important. Tell me, whore, how many times have you sucked my husband’s cock in this office?”
I looked up in confusion, pretending to count, and then nailed her with the answer, “Two…No, wait…” I turned my head to the side, recalculating. “Three. Yes, definitely three.”
“You will pay for that,” she said, completely serious.
“I’ve already paid, and aren’t there several others that you should be making rounds to? According to you, I was one in a long line of many,” I snapped.
She hesitated, and I saw it. “You lied.”
“So what if I did.” Her callous indifference had my claws embedded in my palms with a welcomed sting.
I felt the pang in my chest and ignored it. It was all over, anyway. The milk that had spilled and soured was resonating throughout my life. I wanted it over.
“Please, leave,” I said, deflating back into my chair, suddenly exhausted at the thought of the circles I’d been running in for months.
She leaned over, placing her hands on my desk, palms flat. “You listen to me. Less than a week ago, you fucked my husband at a party I planned.”
“I paid to attend that party, and honestly, it was pretty drab. I needed a highlight.” The small tug at the corner of my lips didn’t go unnoticed.
“You think because you have money now, street rat, that you’re entitled?” I studied her perfectly styled chignon, her blue silk pantsuit, and manicured lips, and felt a small amount of pity. She was truly beautiful, and desperately clinging to a man that didn’t love her, had probably never loved her. I wasn’t sure Devin was capable, at least the Devin I’d known over the last few months.
Pressing my lips together, I thought hard before I spoke. “Entitled is a word I would only use to describe women like you. Tell me, have you ever worked a day in your life?” She lowered her eyes in a bored glare. “Earned. I earned this. That’s the word I would use. I’m not a street rat, Eileen. I’m a threat and one you take very seriously. But I can assure you now, Devin and I are no more. You are free to abuse him any way you choose.” I walked toward my door and almost had my hand on the handle before she spoke.
“You don’t truly know him. You never will,” she said, now standing. “I came here to warn you, if you so much as contact him again, he won’t be able to stop me from dealing with you.”
I shut the door and turned on her. She seemed taken aback that I wasn’t intimidated by her threat. I glared at her as she took a step back at my step forward. “The truth is, I was truly sorry for what I did until I realized what you are. I had no intention of sleeping with Devin again. I had no clue he was married. He didn’t act the part, and for that I am forever a fool. But what I didn’t count on was your wrath. I’d been deceived and, well, your antics prolonged our inevitable end. I fucked him to spite you.” Liar. Okay, I fucked him because I couldn’t get enough, either. “And my ending it has nothing to do with you. I’m not afraid of you, Eileen, never have been.” I leaned in close. “Take your entitled ass out of my fucking office before you’re thrown out by this street rat.”
She pushed past me before turning back and facing me head-on. “People like you can never possess the things we have. You wouldn’t know what to do with them. You could never preserve history or covet tradition. Look at you…You can’t even hold marriage in high regard. You will never have a piece of my life.”
I peeked my head out the door as she walked off, shooting myself with a finger gun in the head so Taylor laughed and relaxed. She was well aware of who Mrs. McIntyre was. Watching Eileen retreat to the elevator, I let out a deep breath and sat down to sign the contract for the sale of 3445 Peach Tree Way, Savannah and stopped my pen and snickered.
Looks like I would possess some very important land her family had originally owned. And if I felt like it, I would burn it to the ground. I tore up the contract, knowing I was starting another fight.
And for once, I would be ready for it. I picked up the phone to buzz Taylor to send for our courier.
“Man is not, by nature, deserving of all that he wants. When we think that we are automatically entitled to something, that is when we star
t walking all over others to get it.”
? Criss Jami
§§
Devin
Certain I would go blind if I stared at the torn scraps Nina had sent me that once resembled the contract on the land, I pushed the paperwork into my trashcan.
I had a consult in twenty minutes, and my head was pounding. What in the hell was she thinking? She’d made it clear she wanted to be free of me and the only thing tying us together was this last shred of business.
Fear crept through me as I thought of the possible repercussion of her action. For a brief minute, it was accompanied by a glimmer of hope.