Marcus: The M Series, Book Three (7 page)

My heart constricted. I stared at her and she stared right back. All I thought about was ways to kill Wexler.

I looked at the wall, attempting to calm myself. “We'll see about that,” I said with as much venom as I can muster. I turned and left, not caring that I slammed the fucking door.

Once outside, I called Wexler, still tasting her kiss.

“Dr. Wexler,” he answered.

“It’s Marcus. Stay the fuck away from Mariah,” I snarled.

“Excuse me,” he chuckled. “Since when do you dictate my dating habits, Cannon?”

“Since I decided she's mine and I don't want you anywhere near her, Wexler. And I hear congratulations are in order, since you fucked my fiancée and knocked her up. I can't wait to share the good news with Mariah.”

“Look, Cannon. Mariah can make her own choices and Adina and I are not a couple; she was just... fun for a while. A pleasant diversion. I'll take care of my kid, and that's that as far as I'm concerned. As far as Mariah goes, I plan to date her as often as possible but don’t worry, I’m aware she's not the type of girl made for fucking then tossing aside. Step aside and let a real man handle Mariah and make her happier than you ever could, Cannon.”

Anger pierced me to my core. If he was in front of me right now, I'd wring his fucking neck.

“I'm terminating your contract, effective immediately. HRC doesn't want your services, mainly because you lack camaraderie with your fellow physicians. Don't even come in tomorrow. And before you try to sue me, I’ll pay the severance in your contract and you will stay away from Mariah. Someone will contact you when you can pick up a check. Understood?”

He didn't answer right away. Through the phone, I heard a door close then, seconds later, I spotted Wexler getting into his car.

“Understood. And since you're not my boss anymore, I feel elated to be able to say this to you: go fuck yourself, you arrogant bastard. Mariah will be mine, Cannon.”

He disconnected. I watched as he drove off. Yeah, we'll see, fucker. I called Matthew, next.

“What's up, Cramp?”

“I want William Wexler blacklisted in this state. I don't want him working anywhere in California, including free clinics, got it?”

“Oh... okay. How soon do you want this done?”

“Don't you have another phone you can use while we’re talking?”

“Uh-huh. And, uh... Why exactly am I doing this?”

I took a deep breath. “The fucker knocked up Adina and now he thinks he wants Mariah.”

Matthew was silent a moment. “It'll be done in twenty minutes, max.”

July 1, 2011

Evelyn sighed in my ear, sounding a lot like Mother when she’s irritated, then said, “Marcus, you have to leave my float nurses alone. Ease up on them. They are refusing to work with you.”

I smirked. “Send me the right one and I will.”

“And who would that be,” my sister sarcastically asked.

“You know exactly who, Evelyn. I'm sure Mother or one the boys told you.”

“Daddy told me, actually. Look, Marcus... If I send her to you, tread lightly. I don't want to be sued.”

“I'll behave. Maybe. Just send her to me.”

Evelyn paused then sighed again. “I'll see what I can do,” she muttered then hung up and went to the reception desk.

“Ms. Jones, you and Ms. Thompson can go as soon as the nurse Ms. Turner sends up gets here.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” She stood and packed her bag.

“No problem. Just send her to the back and go.”

“Yes, Doctor.”

Twenty minutes later Mariah was standing in the hall looking around, puzzled. I glimpsed through the windows of the double doors and saw the elevator doors close on the Peds nurses.

I look back to Mariah as she starts walking toward the doors. Shit.

“Mariah,” I called softly, hurriedly. She froze. God, she's so hot... even in the damn scrubs. “Mariah,” I called again. Geez... I sounded like a horny teenager.

Her head turned and she froze when she saw me. She turned away again.

“Mariah, please.”

She pressed her palm on her forehead and whispered, “Don't.”

“Why?” I could hear the ache in my voice and feared she’d reject me. I slowly moved toward her.

“I - I have to go,” she murmured.

I moved faster, determined. “Please, don't leave.”

“I cannot be alone with you,” she whispered again.

“Why,” I asked when I was a step away.

She stepped forward. “Marcus, please. Don't.” It was a plea. Shit.

I moved closer. “Tell me why,” I pleaded back.

Suddenly, she bolted for the door. I couldn't let her get away again and I took off after her. Damn, she was fast... but not fast enough. I grabbed her arm and waist and pulled her back to me, inhaling her intoxicating scent.

She attacked my arm and whined, “No.”

I couldn't stop, her scent was driving me crazy and I had to kiss her. I moved her chin to the side and kiseds every inch of her throat and ear, keeping a tight grip on her waist. I heard a very light moan escape from her.

“You smell so sweet. It's enchanting,” I whispered lazily to her. “You have haunted my dreams... so beautiful, like my own rare flower. Let me make love to you, Mariah.”

“No, Marcus. Please let me go before I do something I'll regret forever.” Her tone was anything but refusal.

“I can make you forget him.”

“What,” she gasped. “Who?”

“Wexler,” I snapped.

“No, no...”

I tuned her out. Fuck Wexler. “I hate that fucker for having you.”

I eased my hand down her top and caressed an erect nipple. I heard another moan as I rubbed my hard cock across her ass. She stopped resisting. I eased her to the wall, lifted her arms out of my way and flatten her hands to the wall. She moved forward and I followed, keeping my body tight against hers.

I pulled that ridiculous pin that was containing her beautiful hair and I groaned as it fell past her shoulders, down her back. I fisted it and pulled her head back.

“I love your hair. Don't ever cut it,” I demanded, meaning it with everything I was and am.

I kissed her up and down her throat and loosened the ties on her pants. I rubbed her hot sex, then eased my fingers into her and groaned because she was wet already!

“I love how wet you are, baby,” I whispered as I took my hand out and suck my fingers. “You taste as sweet as you smell.” I eased my fingers back into her. “I'd like some more... much more. I feel so greedy with you, baby.” I smiled as she groaned and there was another shudder.

I slowly stroked her, thumb her hard clit and she moved her hips with me. She lowered her head
and moaned, very animal like, and that turned me on more.
I pulled her head back up by her hair and she gasped. I bit at her jaw then licked her lips.

“Marcus, stop. Please stop,” she begged.

I felt her shudder and her clit hardened.

“Baby... feed me. Cum for me.”

Suddenly she pulled away and damn near ran from me. She was crying and made me feel lower than dirt. I took a step toward her and she stops me with one hand.

“Don't,” she commanded, tearfully.

I wrestled inside and decided to try again. She was tying her pants back up. I took two steps toward her and she sprinted backwards. Now, she was only a few steps from the double doors.

“Marcus, I mean it. Don't.”

My heart constricted. “Mariah--”

“No. This is wrong. I have to get away from you. Please. Let me get out of here.”

I felt like total shit and I wanted to make it up to her. I wanted her so much and she was resisting me. I couldn't figure out why. Couldn't she figure out that I loved her, wanted her... needed her? Shit... maybe she loved, wanted and needed Wexler. He was on his way to New York soon and she could follow him. That way, I never had to see her or be reminded of this fucking moment. Like I could ever forget it.

At least I wouldn't have to see her live out her life with him and not me.

“Fine. Go.”

She gave me a pained expression and in my own aggrieved state, I felt confused. Did she want me? Is she afraid of something?

She turned to the doors. I called out to her and she stilled.

“Look at me,” I pleaded, wanting to see her face again; praying I read that expression right.

“No.” 

I needed to see her face. “Mariah... turn around,” I demanded.

She turned and looked me up and down.  She appeared guarded but when she looked at my face I thought I saw... what? Sadness? Fear? What the hell was she so afraid of?

“What is it, Marcus?”

That sentence gave me a little hope. I crossed my arms. “This is not over.”

“That's what you think,” she said quietly then left me.

Shit! What was happening? Why does she keep running from me? She responded to me with fever; I know she's attracted to me as well.

I paced the floor. What the hell does she want from me? I've begged and pleaded, commanded and demanded and she responded to all of it. Why was she still resisting me? Slowly, realization crept up.

“She thinks I'm still engaged!” I picked up a vase and threw it at the far wall. “FUCK,” I yelled then gripped the counter, shaking at my foolishness. “I am so fucking stupid!”

Chapter SIX

Kiss my babies and tell them I love them

July 8, 2018

My phone vibrated, instantly pissing me off. I asked them not to bother me. I pull out my cell and frown when I see the ID. Blocked call.

“Blocked call,” I shout as my heart thuds in my chest.

“
Quiet
,” Matthew roars. “No talking! Don't even breathe!”

I stare at my cell. Matthew and Parker sit in front of me on the table.

“Play along. Put it on speaker, stay calm,” Parker says.

I hit answer. “Dr. Alexander.”

Someone whispers, then I hear a sniff. “Marcus,” Mariah whispers.

I close my eyes and shudder at my wife’s distressed tone, then there’s more whispering.

“Mariah... baby, where are you?”

“Marcus, I – I,” she screeches then lets out a pained gasp.

“Mariah! What's happening?”

“Okay,” Mariah gasps. “Marcus, I don't... I can't be married to you anymore.”

I look at Matthew, scowling. ‘Ask her why,’ he mouths.

“Mariah, why? What happened?”

“No,” she whines, then there’s a loud smack. My heart stops. I grip the phone and hold my breath; he’s hitting her to say what he wants.

“You didn't take me to New York, Marcus. You thought you were taking something from me but I didn't want it. The betrayal was in my face, right there in the kitchen, of all places.”

I give Matthew a
'what the fuck?'
look. ‘Keep her talking,’ he mouths.

“Mariah, I’ll take you wherever you want to go, baby. Just come back home.”

“No, I... that smell is making me sick! It always does when I'm pregnant!”

More whispering and another fucking smack. Mariah screams in pain.

“Mariah!”

“Marcus, listen to me,” she gasps. “This is all about New York and how you broke a promise.” Then she sounds like she's reading: “I don't love you anymore and I never should’ve started up with you, knowing you were already spoken for. Please kiss my babies and tell them I loved them with everything in my soul, despite... No, I can't say that.” Another smack and Mariah screams again. After a moment she reads again.

“Kiss my babies and tell them I love them with everything in my soul... despite who their father is... a freak like me, mm-hmm. Ask Nathan. He'll tell you,” Mariah cries again and then goes silent.

“
MARIAH
,”
I yell, panicking.

She gasps and reads again. “I don't want your money; I just want to be free from you. I will never contact you again. Please don't try to find me. Tell everybody I love them.” She takes a deep breath then speaks fast. “I've always loved them, and I shouldn't have
promised
to do something then didn't, even though I
knew
it wasn't right. I was only doing it because everybody gave up on me years ago.” Mariah lets out a wail and through her sobs, says quietly, “Goodbye forever, Marcus.”

The phone dies and Rachel screams. Standing, I feel a burn searing deep in me, everywhere and rage overflows. I feel myself shake and people grabbing me and forcing me down.

“Marcus!
Answer me
,” a woman shouts at my ear. I see nothing, feel nothing except rage flowing through my veins.

“Do it! He can't break now!”

“Marcus! Can you hear me?”

“Do it, Lil! Please!”

I don't see or hear anything else.

Later…

I awaken to a deafening silence
.
What the fuck happened? I click my dry tongue several times. Shit, they drugged me. I sit up and look around.  There is no one in here. And Mariah is still gone. This should’ve been a happy, fun day. Instead, it’s the worst of my life. I put my head in my hands and groan loudly as that call creeps back into my head.

“Marcus, drink this,” Joshua says softly. “It’s just water. Lil says you may have cotton mouth and this should help.”

“No. I want my wife back.”

“We all want her back, Marcus. We can't have you break again. Drink the water.”

“Did you hear how he was smacking her around? Can you imagine what's going on in her head? It has to be at least a hundred times worse than what’s going through mine,” I yell as I snatch the glass from him.  “Damn it! She hasn't had a migraine in four fucking years, Joshua!”

Richards appears in the door way. “Marcus, we have to talk about that call. It needs dissecting.”

“Fuck off,” I mumble then drink the water. I slam the glass down on the coffee table and it smashes. Richards leaves and a minute later Matthew strolls in the room with a hand broom and waste can. 

“Did you have an argument about New York?”

I glare at him as he sweeps up the glass.

“Marcus, I'm trying to get my sister-in-law back, and this behavior isn't helping. Your kids need their mother and you need your wife. Cut this shit out and talk to us about New York.”

I glower at him, still hating when he's right. Everyone trickles back into the room.

“We've never discussed a fucking trip to New York,” I snarl, my glare going to Lil.

“Okay. So some of it definitely wasn't scripted. What promise did she make and didn't keep?”

I look at my hands. “None. You know how Mariah is about honesty. If she said it, she meant it.”

“What did she find in the kitchen? She said, '
The betrayal was in my face, right there in the kitchen, of all places'
.”

I think hard and shake my head. “Nothing,” I croak.

“
'Despite who their father is, a freak like me, ask Nathan
.' What did she mean by that?” Parker asks, looking behind me.

“I don't know,” Nathan answers. “She's never called herself a freak, no matter how self-conscious she felt about that burn. As far as I know, that's the only thing physically
wrong
with her.”

“Then why would she refer to Marcus as a freak,” Mother asks. “He's not burned or anything.”

“She was trying to tell him who she's with and where,” Parker says. “What smell makes her sick every time she’s pregnant?”

“Coffee,” we all say together.

“And fish,” Rachel says. “She won't even look at it.”

I nod. “That's right, even with the twins. She just can't stand the smell. It's usually a first sign. We eat a lot of seafood when she's not expecting.”

“Daniels! Fish markets and coffee houses in a one-hundred-mile radius.” He looks at his watch. “Wait... better make 500. Some place where a crime could be hidden, especially a woman screaming,” Richards orders. “Back to who has her. Mrs. Cannon said '
this is about New York and a promise you broke.'
What promise did you break? Please think a moment before you answer. Any promise you made, Marcus, since you've known her.”

“I can't think of a single thing. Ever since that break up we had about my name, I've made sure to be one hundred percent honest with her, never promising anything I even thought I might have to back out from.”

“
‘Despite who their father is’
, is what I'd like to focus on.”

I shake my head. “No, Parker… that was scripted. Next question.”

I look at Nathan, who is muttering something behind me.

“Wait... No, go back,” Mother says, closing her eyes. She does that when she needs silence and she's thinking deeply.

Suddenly, Mother rushes over and sits on the coffee table in front of me, leans in and looks me right in my eyes, like she used to do when I was little and she wanted me to figure something out on my own.

“
‘Tell everybody I love them,”
Mother recites slowly. “‘
I've always loved them, and I shouldn't have promised
to do something and didn't... even though I knew it wasn't right. I was only doing it because
everybody gave up on me years ago
.
’
”

I frown at her then turn my head to break the gaze. She grips my chin and turns my head back. She speaks again in a slow tone, very deliberate, staring into my eyes.

“
‘Tell everybody I love them. I've always loved them, and I shouldn't have promised to do something and didn't... even though I knew it wasn't right. I was only doing it because everybody gave up on me years ago
.
’
”

“Mother...” Joshua starts. Mother holds a hand to him.

“What are you getting at, Mother,” Matthew says, irritatingly.

“
‘A freak like me’
,” Nathan mutters. “What did she mean
, ‘a freak like me, mm-hmm?’
Sounds like that damn song she used to sing when she wanted to irritate me.”

“What song, Puppy,” Lisa asks him.

“That song... The one she was singing the night she got that stethoscope and we wouldn't stop teasing her. She knows that song drives me nuts; an irritating, infatuated girl used to sing it at me at UIC.”

“You mean that
'freak in the morning, freak in the evening'
song,” Mandy asks.

“Yeah, that's it,” Nathan mutters. “Wait... Who sings that?”

“I’ll check,” Ethan says, and pulls out his cell. “Uh... that’s Adina Howard.”

I scowl again, and am about to snap off when Mother raises her eyebrows slightly, then says, “
‘I was only doing it because everybody gave up on me years ago.’
”

My eyes widen as it hits me. “No...
no
! I will fucking kill–”

July 1, 2011

“She thinks you're engaged, Marcus. That's why she rejected you,” Nathan said, shaking his head. “She’s not that girl; never has been.”

“I figured that out after she ran. I was coming here tonight to explain but when I saw her with you, I became angry. I stupidly assumed she was with you.”

“Is that why you called her a slut, Marcus,” Lisa snarled. Damn, when that one’s mad…

“You didn't,” Rachel gasped at me.

“She said he implied it, right before she collapsed,” Lisa snapped.

I took a deep breath. “I'm very sorry, Mrs. Harvey, and I have nothing but contempt for myself for implying it. I did try to apologize but she wouldn't hear it.”

“So why are you here now, Marcus,” Thomas asked, scowling.

“I love her,” I stated, looking straight at Rachel.

They sat in silence, gawking, disbelief all over their faces. I pulled out my cell and hit my mother's icon.

“Marcus,” my mother answered, sounding confused. “It's almost one a.m. Is something wrong, darling?”

“Yes, but I'm trying to fix it, Mother. I'm going to give Mariah's mother the phone; I'd like you to talk to her about when I met Mariah, all right?”

“Do you want me to tell her about that collision, too?”

“Yes. Everything.”

“All right, darling. I'm ready.”

I give Mrs. Harvey the phone. “Good evening, Mrs. Cannon... All right, Katherine. Please call me Rachel.”

“I'm going to check on Mariah,” I said to the others.

“I'll come with you,” Nathan volunteered, but when we got to the stairs, he stopped me.

“I believe you love her. I told her so when she told me about you and what happened this afternoon. She's torn up over it because of the 'engagement.' Otherwise, she wouldn't have hesitated. Also, Mariah is a wounded bird, Marcus. She once had a boyfriend that hit her, and he said he loved her. Don't tell her you love her yet.”

“Shit... hit her?”

He nodded.

“I have to tell her. I can't let her think I’m only after her body.”

“If you tell her, she will reject you. I think she loves you, too, so let her say it first, when she feels ready. Trust me.”

“She doesn't have a problem telling you she loves you.”

“Of course she accepts my love; she knows it's genuine and unconditional. Mariah and I have known one another for years and she's been like a little sister to me. There has never been any interest in each other in any other way; unlike you. She's only been out of therapy a couple of months. Dr. Wilson wanted her to find love; be open to it, but she's reluctant. You tell her of your feelings, and she’ll bolt. Just wait; I’m sure she’ll be ready soon, now that she’s found you.”

When I make it back to Mariah's living room, our mothers have finished talking and Mrs. Harvey hugs me.

“Katherine is sending your brother with a change of clothes for you, Marcus. She’s sure Matthew will be here soon,” she informed with a smile. “Let's go check on my baby.”

I nodded, realizing Nathan and I never made it up the stairs. I checked my watch and see it's been four hours already. I go into the room and clicked the night light back on.