“I’m warning you, Elaine. One of these days, you’ll have no choice but to give that young man a chance. Look at how much he’s texted you… it’ll be sad to leave him in the lurch,” Jess said, glancing over the rim of her wine glass at Ryan, who nodded in approval. “You’re twenty-seven and you have the entire world on the heel of your palm. Make the best use of it.”
We were seated on the outdoor patio upstairs, adjacent to the children’s living room. Jess stood up from time to time to go check up on the baby who was fast asleep in his crib. Ryan was having a bit of a sour time with Jake bailing out from the whole party thing but didn’t want to call it off. I could’ve gone if Jess was strong, but she hadn’t completely recovered yet and it wasn’t wise to take a new baby to a party so we all decided to hang out here. Besides, the last person I wanted to keep bumping into was Max, who was undoubtedly in attendance.
Rolling my eyes, I waved her advice off. “I told you guys, remember? I’m off the relationship market. I’m sorry but I’m just not feeling any of these online meet-ups.”
I knew I shouldn’t have told them about Nate, the rich chemical engineer whose profile I’d stumbled on online. His house was just a few blocks down Max’s street, and, I had to admit, he seemed a bit more enthusiastic than I was, and wanted us to skip the whole talking stage, which wasn’t happening. Na-da. I didn’t even know him well enough to risk a date.
“For how long are you going to keep mourning the death of your stellar relationship with Max?” Jess scoffed in disgust. “He’s a despicable prick. I won’t think about giving him a second chance even if he crawls through the mud.”
“Jess, calm down,” Ryan shook his head in laughter, leaning over to pay her back softly. “You haven’t fully recovered yet. Chill.”
“Yeah. I’ll take it… easy,” she whipped her eyes at me. “Well?”
“I don’t know,” I exhaled, running my fingers through my hair rapidly, messing up my bun. “He’s ruined me for life. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to trust or love any other man wholeheartedly again. The pain is just… too much. I can’t breathe through it. I can’t go through hell a second time.”
“I understand how you feel, Elaine. Max hasn’t been the thoughtful, caring man we’re all used to lately, and I know he’s said some things that make you so adamant to forgive him. But I want you to know that forgiveness is the first step needed to move on completely.”
“I’ve forgiven him. We just can’t go back to how it was before, and he’s not taking it well,”
“Just like Samson,” Jess snorted. “I swear, the Sturm men love dominance above everything.”
“Why do you say so?” I asked, my interest piqued. She sighed, setting down her now emptied wine glass, and fixed me a hard stare.
“It wasn’t all roses and heaven for Samson and me. We had fights, we had arguments. The beginning of our relationship was anything but conventional because I was a waitress, and he, well, is a hot-shot billionaire. He thought he knew everything about me. He sought my obedience, tried to force it by blackmailing me sometimes.”
“They’re all the same then. The Sturm men,” I shook my head in pity.
Jess laughed. “You can say that. I gave Samson such a hard time, that he gave up so many times but couldn’t stay away from me no matter what. Max hated my guts and tried to help him move on but it was easier to move mountains than get him to forget about me. I was Max’s greatest enemy then, all because I kept turning his beloved uncle down.”
I sat still, eyes wide in disbelief.
She continued. “If there’s anything I admire them for, it’s their utmost loyalty to each other. Nothing beats it. Nothing can ever. If one of them has a problem with you, it automatically becomes everyone’s problem. And I don’t know why they thought taking Finn away from you was the best thing to do.”
“So you’re saying they crave that much control? Wow.”
“You can’t stand in their way and come out victorious. If Max wanted, he could’ve manipulated the judge and have Finn as his alone. He felt that you weren’t taking good care of Finn, and didn’t want anything bad to happen to his only son. If you were in his shoes, you might act on an impulse as he did.”
“I’m most certain that I won’t,” I hissed, shaking my head vehemently. “Sure, I’ll be mad but I won’t take things too far. He simply didn’t care about me or what we shared, that’s it.”
“You say it as if it’s easy, girl.”
“Um, of course, it’s easy. You’re only defending him because he’s your brother-in-law.”
“No, no. Not at all. Max was wrong in every sense of the word, and you too… you’re not an innocent little lamb either. You lied and kept his son away from him. Did you expect him to trust you afterward? And you failed to see reasons with him why you should stop working altogether. The best thing for both of you is to apologize to each other. Talk things out with him.”
I sipped my wine silently for a few minutes. “I don’t think that’s necessary anymore. I’m saying yes to Nate’s proposal and going out with him.”
“Elaine – ” Jess shut her eyes in exasperation.
I held up a hand. “I know what I want. I know how much he hurt me, which can not be equaled to the lies I told him. Jess, he tried to take my son,” I wiped away the tears that had gathered now furiously. “You’re a mother as well. Think about it.”
“Aw, don’t cry, babe,” Ryan rushed to my side, pulling me into his arms. I sobbed on his shoulder for some time, then drew back, taking the handkerchief Jess held out and tidying my face up with it.
Just then the elevator dinged behind us, and we all turned to see Samson and Max striding briskly toward us with their hands in their pockets. Ryan slinked away to his seat, and Jess sat up, trying and failing to force a smile on her face. “Hey, guys.”
I looked up reluctantly, locking eyes with Max.
The emotions swirling in his eyes weren’t so hard to interpret. My heart began to race.
Shit was about to go down because, for the first time since our disagreement started, he oozed determination. He wanted me back, and he wouldn’t let me out of this room without getting a positive response from me.
I felt goosebumps as they spread all over my body, my heart and head pounding in mortification. Help me, dear God. Help my resolve.