He loved her enough to ask her to marry him once.
They started as friends and ended like this.
I don't want that to be our story too.
Chapter 30
Crew
I have no idea what was running through Adley's mind when I dropped her off at her apartment last night. I helped her carry her bags up to her door, and when Sydney opened it to pull Adley into a tight hug, any chance we had to say goodbye was lost.
She didn’t turn back to say anything to me after she thanked me for the weekend.
I went home, stood in my shower for over thirty minutes and then drank myself to sleep.
"You're back a da
y early." Nolan waltzes into my office with a spring in his step. It's been there since he asked Ellie to marry him. "I rearranged a half dozen of your meetings. That was a waste of my fucking time."
The grin on his face tells me he's joking. Even if he weren't, I wouldn't give a shit. I've helped him build this company into what it is today. He's rewarded me handsomely for that in the form of a corner office and a percentage of shares.
I may not own as much stock in Matiz Cosmetics as he does, but I work for our success harder than he ever has.
It started as a friend helping a friend after he inherited the business. It turned into much more when I rode the adrenaline high to our first million. Now, our yearly sales are more than either of us could have imagined.
It affords us both a comfortable life, so you'll hear no complainants about the investment in time and effort it took to get us here.
"Kade showed up in Westhampton Beach. He wasn't alone."
Nolan's mouth twitches as he takes a seat in one of the chairs in front of my desk. "Who was with him?"
"You're going to flip your shit. I couldn't believe my eyes when she walked through the door."
"Jesus, don't tell me it was Damaris."
I cock a brow.
"What a stupid little fuck." He rubs his hand over his chin. "Your brother is an asshole. Have you noticed that?"
I huff out a deep laugh. "His story is that he thought Adley and I were on our way back to the city. He brought Damaris up there for a recharge."
"Why the fuck has he stayed friends with her?" Both his hands run through his brown hair. "I get that they were friends before you two got together, but still."
I have no clue why they're friends. They went to college together but their connection didn't lead to our meeting. "Who the fuck knows? That's not the point. The point is that he brought her up to the house when I was supposed to be alone with Ad."
"How did she react to meeting your ex?"
I've only thrown Nolan bare scraps of information about Ad and me. She's his wife's best friend so he can't keep his mouth shut about Adley if he knows something Ellie doesn't. "It was awkward for everyone, pal."
"Other than the crazy ex showing up, how did the weekend go?"
"It was good," I say on a heavy breath. "We're closer than we were when we left. I think we're in a better place."
Or we were until Damaris showed up.
"Good to hear." He doesn't press for more, and I'm thankful for that.
"I'll take over the eleven o'clock and the two o'clock meetings with marketing." I tap the end of a pen on a folder on my desk. "You're off the hook."