Ruined: Loving An Alpha Male: BWWM Romance (40 page)

I saw the panic in both their eyes, and I sat up a little.

“Yeah, I’m fine. What happened?”

“You fainted when I told you where Mason was going.”

I started to feel sick again, and I reached for my phone that was on the table in front of me. I found the number I needed, and I dialed. When the phone was answered, I put it on speaker. My hands were shaking so much I couldn’t hold the phone to my ear.

“Ray?” I called.

“Hello, Maxine. How are you doing these days?” the voice boomed back at me.

I wasn’t in the mood for the pleasantries, so I got straight to the point

“Ray, I need to ask you two questions. I need you to be straight with me. Can you do that?”

“Well, Max, that would depend on what you’re asking.”

“No,” I screamed in the phone, causing my head to start to pound. “You need to do this for me. I deserve at least that from you.”

Marie and Marc looked on confused but curious as to who I was talking to. Finally, I heard my father sigh.

“Okay, Max, ask your questions.”

“Did you ever find out what happened to me during those ten days I was gone?”

I heard another long pause. Then he said simply, “Yes.”

I inhaled, hoping what he would say next would not make my heart and soul fill with dread. “Does Mason know?”

There was a longer pause on my phone, to the point where I thought I lost my connection.

My father finally said, “Yes.”

I cursed and hung up my phone. I lay back and closed my eyes, trying to stop my heart from beating clear out of my chest.

“Max, what’s going on? My brother said he was going to make sure you stayed safe. What does that mean?”

I opened my eyes and looked at the Marc and Marie.

“About six years ago, around the time my grandfather died, I came back to Dallas. I stayed with Kat and Cory, and I tried to get reacquainted with my father. I don’t really know why. Maybe that need of a daughter to get the love of her father drove me. Who knows. Well, my father is into some hairy things that caught up with me. Some people kidnapped me and held me for ten days in South America.”

“Holy shit!” Marc mumbled, and Marie just sat back in the chair she was in.

Marc asked, “So they took you to get money from your father?”

I shook my head.

“No, they took me to keep him in line. Apparently, they wanted him to do something that he didn’t want to. Instead of just taking things out on him, they took them out on me.”

I took a deep breath and told them what I had to live with for a very long time.

“During the time I was there, they beat me every single day. I first used to pray that my father would do what they wanted, so I could go home. But after a few days, I would pray that they would just kill me. The beatings were severe to the point I would pass out. Then I would come to with weight on my chest and grunting in my ear.”

I felt bile rising in my throat, so I stopped talking. Feeling the memory of what happened to me surface was terrifying. I hadn’t told anyone but Kat’s mom, and I’ve buried that memory with her until now.

“Oh Maxine,” Marie said, with tears in her eyes.

Marc had the same fire I would see in Mason’s eyes when he would get pissed off. Marc sat in his chair with his fists cl
e
nched on his knees, but his face was as calm as the sea before a storm.

I finally said, “I guess my father finally did what they wanted, because they let me go, and someone else took me back to the states. I was in the hospital for a very long time before I could be released.”

“Did the cops do anything?” he asked.

I shook my head.

“Wasn’t much I could tell them. They took me off U.S. soil, and I saw no faces. Most of my time was spent with my eyes swollen shut. I couldn’t begin to tell you who was there, how many, or where I was. My father knew, and the cops talked to him. But I never found out if he did anything or said anything to the Feds. Anyway, the only person I ever told what happened to me was Kat’s mom, and I know she took my secret to the grave. I didn’t tell Mason about any of this. I knew he would go to the ends of the earth looking for the people that took me, and he would leave a trail of bodies in his wake.”

“Yeah, well, sweetheart, if he knows what happened to you, and worse, he knows who did it, there will definitely be bodies in his wake.” Marc ran his hands through his hair. “Damn it.”

He stood and walked out of the room, leaving me with a stunned Marie. I looked at her.

“I never wanted Mason to do this.”

She smiled softly with remorse in her eyes.

“You wouldn’t need to. He’d do it anyway, regardless.”

“I know how Marc feels, and so does Mason. He was feeling the same way when Alex, his friend from the Navy, went on a mission.”

Marie nodded.

“Yeah, I remember. The problem, I guess, is that this isn’t the first time Mason went on a mission.

My eyebrows rose.

“How many has he been on?”

“Um, maybe about ten since he’s been home. Marcus is insane when he goes. I mean he worries up until Mason has called him to tell him he’s back in the states. At first, it seemed that Mason had a death wish or something. He was always gone, and neither Marcus nor AB could reach him. Hell, their grandfather, who Mason worships, couldn’t reach him. Mason would just say he had to do this, that he had to go on these missions to heal himself somehow.”

“I remember one of the missions Marcus didn’t have a good feeling about. I mean he never had a good feeling, but for some reason this one time it was really bad. I mean, they argued for days before he left. Marc said some things to Mason that, when he left, he wished he could take back. Marc didn’t sleep and barely ate while he waited. It was one night when he jumped out of a dead sleep, telling me something was wrong. He rubbed his chest and was having a hell of a time breathing. I honestly thought he was having a heart attack. His phone rang that very moment. He snatched it up quick and learned that Mason was shot twice in the chest. He was having surgery. They weren’t sure if they stopped the bleeding in time, or if the bullet nicked anything.”

I brought my hand to my mouth and closed my eyes.

Marie added, “That was the last mission Mason went on with the insistence of Marcus.”

“And now he’s gone again… Breaking a promise, no doubt?” I asked, and she nodded.

I felt sick to my stomach as I left their house still thinking of Mason. Fate can be a bitch, I know. I just hope this one time she has mercy on us all.

I laid my head against the leather airplane chair, trying my best to get some sleep. It’s been a stressful and rather tiring trip, but we accomplished what we set out to do. It took longer than I expected, but the results are what I desired. That cartel is gone, and the people responsible for hurting Maxine have been dealt with to my satisfaction.

Now, I’m extremely apprehensive about going home. I haven’t spoken to Max since I left, and I was hoping I would be able to make her see that we were meant to be together. I know it’s going to be hard, but I know in the end she’ll see things my way.

I texted my brother as much as I could, just letting him know I was alive. I know he went through a lot the last time I went with Roland on a mission, and I almost died. And I did promise him that I wouldn’t go on another one again. But I hoped he understood why I did it. I couldn’t tell him what happened to Max the day I left. I figured I would just explain everything when I got back. But when he told me to stay away from him and his family, I fucking lost it.

The disappointment and hurt in his eyes made me almost call off the trip. I just couldn’t live with myself and the idea that someone could hurt Max again. I’m not sure if her father will take heed to what I told him, but I hope he makes it easy for himself. I’d hate to have to fucking kill him, but I would without thinking twice.

When I got off the plane, I went straight to the office. I needed to make it right with my brother before I do anything else. He’s my brother, so me not being in his life, or vice versa, is not an option for one thing. For two, he’s my fucking better half f.

I was still in fatigues, a black t-shirt, and boots as I walked through the office. When I walked into my brother’s office, he was on the phone. He gave me a hesitant stare.

“Well, Mr. Bradford, my brother and I have made you an enormous amount of money. If you think my father and his company can do better, then, by all means please go ahead with your plans. But please do not take what I’m going to say next in the wrong way. If you lose what you worked hard for to make, don’t think we’ll be around to help.”

He hung up.

“Seems I’m rubbing off on you,” I said to him.

He looked at me warily.

“Did you get it done?”

I kept his gaze and said simply, “I did.”

He nodded but didn’t say anything else. I sat down in front of him waiting for the wrath that I knew was going to come. But surprisingly it didn’t. He went back to the papers on his desk.

And he said without looking up, “There’s been a lot that’s happened since you’ve been gone getting your revenge. When can I expect you back in the office?”

“After I get reacquainted with my woman.”

I smiled. He looked up at me.

“Well, I can tell you then you won’t be back any time soon.”

My smile dropped.

“What do you mean by that?”

“She’s gone.”

I leaned into him.

“What do you mean she’s gone? Where the fuck did she go?”

He shrugged, and I saw the tension in his shoulders ease as I started to get wound up.

“I don’t know, Mason, she said her goodbyes to Marie when I was at work, and she left you this.”

He went inside his desk drawer and pulled out an envelope, and I suddenly had déjà vu. Marc pushed the envelope in my direction, but I didn’t touch it.

I leaned back in my chair and put my hands over my face.

“She left?”

“Come on, Mason. What did you expect? You’ve been gone for three months. Did you think she was going to wait around for you without knowing if you would come back?”

I closed my eyes. When I opened them, I looked at my brother. I was trying not to show the pain I was feeling, but I know I was failing miserably.

“Did she tell her where she was going?”

“Nope. But if she did, Marie probably wouldn’t tell me or you.”

I grabbed the envelope and stared at it. I saw her handwriting on the front of the envelope, and I sighed. There was no way I was acknowledging this fucking letter. I ripped it up and tossed the pieces on my brother’s desk.

I suddenly stood quickly and said, “I’ve got to find her.”

I actually felt sick to my fucking stomach, thinking about not seeing her again. I turned from my brother, thinking about how I would find her. I didn’t think she would go back to Philly, but I had to try.

“Mason, where are you going?”

I turned to face him.

“She’s my world, Marc, and I have to find her.”

“Okay, hold on a second. What happens when you do find her?”

“Oh, that’s simple. I’m going to beg and plead she take me back.”

“Yeah, and then what? She takes you back and then the next time you go on another mission she’ll be going crazy, hoping and praying you come back in one piece.”

“That won’t be a problem. I told Roland I was done. This was the last one I would do.”

“Yeah, where have I heard that before?”

He rolled his eyes.

I gave him a hard stare.

“Marcus, I needed to do this. You see, I want Maxine in my life permanently. I don’t want the woman I adore and would bleed for feeling scared to be here. I needed to make sure she was safe from the sins of her father.”

“And how do you know her father won’t fuck up again by putting her life in danger? Hell, what about what you’ve just done. You don’t think there will be any fallout?”

“As far as her father is concerned, we have an understanding, or I’ll put him in the ground with no hesitation. He knows Maxine and her safety comes first. And secondly, it seems as though you couldn’t care less.” I walked closer to my brother’s desk. “I needed to do this one thing, Marcus, and now I am done. It was important to me.”

I watched his eyes and saw finally understanding.

He stood.

“She told Marie and me what happened to her, and what they did to her.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yup, she also told us why she didn’t tell you.”

I grunted my reply, and he smiled for the first time in a long time. He looked me up and down, as if assessing me.

“Did you make them pay for what they did to her?”

I stared at him with the avoidance of emotion and said, “Without a doubt.”

My brother nodded, and pulled me in for a hug.

“I’m glad you’re safe, little bro. I don’t know what we would have done without you.”

“So am I banned from the family?”

My brother smiled.

“Oh yeah, you’re still banned. Unless you bring back our girl. That’s a quote from Marie.”

I left my brother’s office, and I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed a number from heart. When the phone was answered, I told them what I needed. Then I hung up. I had a plane to catch, so I needed to get home, shower, and change. I wasn’t sure where I was going, but it didn’t matter. Wherever she was, I would find her.

This new chapter in my life wouldn’t be able to start without Maxine. I was a fucking idiot to let her go, and I refuse to do it a second time.

I walked into my empty house, taking my clothes off as I walked. It seems Diane has managed to rob me blind of all the furniture in my house, except the bed. I really didn’t give a shit. I was just glad she was gone. The day I left Max with her two friends, I settled everything with Diane.

She met me in my office, probably unsure as to why I asked her to meet me.

She came in my office, looking pristine and perfect. Each hair on her head was perfectly placed. Her dress was pressed and lying perfectly against her skin. Her makeup and jewelry were placed strategically on her body to show everyone she was a force to be reckoned with. I stood as she got close. I only sat after she did.

“So Mason, what is it that you want?”

I pulled out a contract and presented it to her.

“This is a contract that you need to sign to extinguish our relationship, effective immediately.”

Diane kind of stared at me for a long while, before she smiled.

“You have got to be joking.”

I shook my head, making a steeple out of my fingers and resting my chin on my thumbs.

“I’m afraid not. I’m willing to give you some time to find you a place to live. You can take what you want from the house in terms of furniture and stuff like that. But I want you out of my house and out of my life as quickly as humanly possible.”

I’ll give Diane credit. Sometimes, she has the best poker face. She can be hurt or angry or evil, and it never shows on her face. However, I must have struck a nerve, because she had a deep darkened frown coated on her face. That was something that I’d seen on her father, but never before on her.

“How dare you! You fucking asshole. You think you can just cast me aside like I’m nothing. I will bury you, Mason. You and your whole fucking family. You are nothing without me. My father will take every single client you have and bring your measly little company to its knees. You think you’re so fucking smart.”

I let her go on and on about how I’m not shit, how I need to burn in hell. Blah, blah, blah. Shit, I have already heard before and actually delivered a lot better than she is dishing it out now. I waited patiently for her to finish.

“So what do you think? You and that trashy colored girl…”

“Watch your fucking mouth, Diane.”

“…is going to run off in the sunset together? You think I’m going to just let that happen?”

Yeah, I had enough. I stood and walked around my desk, removing my jacket and placing on the chair next to hers. I sat on my desk and looked down at her.

“First, let me address a few things…You know…clear the air. I don’t give two fucks about you or your family. If you so much as try and take my company, I will bury you and your father. I’ll take every single cent he has. I will foreclose on all his houses and businesses, leaving him only with the shirt on his back. Hell, just for good measure, I can take that too. I’m not someone you want to play this game with, Diane. You must take me for an idiot. You think I don’t know what the fuck was going on between you, your father, and mine? You think I’m stupid?”

I kept her gaze for a long time without moving or showing any expression. I wanted her to really think about what I was saying. I stood and walked to my bar area and made me a much needed drink.

I said with my back turned, “I know everything. I know about the plot to try and take my clients from me, I know about the plot to have me investigated by the SEC for unlawful investments that were made by parties that will remain nameless.” I looked over my shoulder at her. “You know who they are though.”

I turned and walked back to my seat with my drink in hand. I leaned back and took a sip. I haven’t really taken a drink since I came back from the beach, but this situation really required it.

I leaned back in my chair.

“I have proof that my father, yours, and a few others goof-offs were plotting my demise…and, quite honestly, I’m really not surprised. I mean, you don’t know shit about loyalty…”

Diane scoffed.

“Don’t talk to me about loyalty. You were never loyal to me. I’ve been living underneath a shadow of another woman for years. This whole arraignment was a big joke; a game for you that, hell, I didn’t want to play anymore. I needed to look out for myself.”

I nodded.

“And you did just that. So, you won’t have a problem with signing that contract and moving out then.”

Diane, for all intents and purposes, is a good woman. She would make someone a good wife…you know…someone with no heart and no conscience or emotions. I wished her the best…really I did.

That was until she smiled at me and said, “I’m not signing anything. You think I don’t have shit on you to protect myself? Do you think I’m stupid? I will leak so many things about you, it wouldn’t matter if it was true or not. Your career would be finished. You think your little
girlfriend
will stay with you after I tell her about the baby I’m pregnant with?”

And there it is. I was wondering when the fangs would come out.

I watched her revel in her own delusional victory. I, on the other hand, let the darkness show its ugly head just for her. The smile that was displayed on her face faded slowly, as I continued to stare at her.

Finally, after I had her squirming in her seat, I leaned forward and said, “You aren’t the only one who is prepared to go down fighting. If you are pregnant, I know for a fact it isn’t by me. As a matter of fact, I have video of each and every encounter between you and my brother in law. So, go right ahead and say and do whatever you want. Please believe I will let what I have out in the open for all to see. I will play the victim in all this. With the proof that I have, who do you think will look like the money sucking whore?”

I watched Diane’s face pale, and she slowly shook her head.

“You’re bluffing.”

I tilted my head to the side.

“Call my bluff, then.”

I sat back in my chair took and another sip of my Scotch.