The Unblocked Collection (60 page)

“If something affects you, then it affects me. Randy is in your life, Derek. That means he’s in mine, too.”

“No, he’ll
never
be in your life. I’m going to make sure of that.”

“I just meant—”

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to relax. “I know what you meant.” I took a second breath, moving forward so I could touch her. “That man destroys everything he comes into contact with. I won’t let him get close enough to destroy you.”

“Don’t get yourself in trouble.” The pain in her eyes deepened. “I can’t lose you too, Derek.”

Seeing her this upset because of me, because of Randy, fucking killed me. I pulled her into my arms, tucking her head against my chest and pressing my lips to the top of her head. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“If he’s capable of destroying people, then what’s stopping him from destroying you?”

I squeezed her tighter. “I’m smarter than him.”

“But what if he’s more powerful? What if he has people working for him who can—”

I pulled away so I could look into her eyes. She needed to see my face, not just hear my words. “Nothing is going to happen to me, Frankie.”

Even though she didn’t look persuaded, she didn’t push the issue. When it came to Randy, I wouldn’t cave. He could be the most powerful man in New England, and he could have an entire team backing him; there was still no way he could take me down.

“Randy isn’t the only person who sent flowers…”

“I know. I saw the other bouquets.”

“Reed sent one, too.” She paused to search my face, I assumed she was waiting for my reaction. This was not the time to bring up Reed…and she knew it. “Anna was a big part of his life when we were together.”

“I get it.” But I didn’t fucking like it. I wanted him to stay the hell away from her; that included flowers, cards, or whatever else he wanted to send. I didn’t want to see or hear his name again. “You haven’t spoken to him yet, have you?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t had the chance. But I’m going to. Soon. Really, really soon.” She wrapped her arms around my waist and looked up at me. “Kiss me.”

My eyes traced those spicy lips. “So demanding…”

She cupped my cock over my jeans, her thumb moving up and down my shaft. “Kiss me, Derek. I’m in no mood to be disappointed.”

I growled, my nose gliding across her cheek, my lips following. If I really started tasting her, I wouldn’t stop until her pussy was pressed against my lips. But I didn’t have time to eat her the way I wanted to. “I’ll kiss you tonight. Right now, I really have to go.” Her body tightened. “You have nothing to worry about, Frankie. I’ll be extremely careful, you give me a reason to be.” I ran my thumb over her chin. “I’ll see you tonight.” I unwrapped her arms from my waist and pulled the door open. “Should I bring dinner? I know how much you love when I’m your delivery boy…” I was trying to lighten the moment, knowing she probably wouldn’t eat dinner any more than she’d eaten lunch—a few bites, and the rest in the fridge.

She thought a minute. “Let’s go to The Hole.”

I smiled. “I’d like that.”

I said good-bye and shut the door behind me. Once I was inside my Suburban, I pulled out my phone and searched for Randy’s name. It only rang once before he picked up.

“I’ve been expecting your call, son.”

“What did I tell you about calling me that?” The last time we had spoken on the phone, I hadn’t raised my voice. My tone told him exactly how I felt. This time, I couldn’t control the sharpness or the volume. I was fucking pissed. “Apparently, I didn’t get my point across because you’re still calling me your
son
and you’re still digging into my life. Frankie was the last fucking straw, old man.”

“That’s an empty threat,” he scoffed, “and we both know it. So why don’t you just tell me what it is you want, and all this will go away.”

Randy had no intention of going away at all. He wanted what I had…he wouldn’t stop until he got it.

“I don’t want anything,” I told him.

“Bullshit. I have something that interests you. What is it?”

I almost laughed. “You don’t have shit. We
both
know that.”

“Tell me, how many vases of flowers is it going to take before you confess?” His voice took on a sharper edge. “Or maybe I won’t send flowers next time…maybe I’ll have one of my friends pay Frankie a visit. It does seem she likes men in the industry: a mortgage broker, a developer. I’m sure one of my foremen would like to show her a thing or two.”

“If you or anyone else touches her, you’re dead.” I ground my hand over the steering wheel. “Do you understand?”

“Better than you think…
son
.”

“Listen to me carefully, Randy: if you get anywhere near her, I will hunt you down, and I will drag a blade straight across your throat. This is between us. Let’s keep it that way.”

“Now you listen to
me.
It would be real unfortunate if Frankie were to become a victim because her boyfriend was too stubborn to admit the truth. There’s only one way this will end, and it’s in your hands.” The phone then went dead.

I stared at the blank screen while I tried to get my breathing under control. It was a good thing I wasn’t driving, not with the anger that was boiling inside me. He wanted an admission, for me to tell him I’d been snooping around to find the evidence I needed to take him down. Confessing that wouldn’t help. But telling him nothing had gotten people I cared about involved.

This had to end.

I pulled up Hayden’s name and started a new text:

Me:
We need to talk.

Hayden:
What’s going on?

Me:
He sent Frankie flowers. Now he’s threatening her.

Hayden:
Oh shit. Tonight, my place, 6:00.

Me:
I’ll see you then.

FRANKIE

I ADJUSTED MY PURSE
as I scanned the bar, looking for his face. I’d intentionally arrived a few minutes late so he would be here before me. I didn’t want to wait for him…and I didn’t want to stay long.

Our eyes connected. He was sitting at a high top in the corner of the room. He looked relieved to see me, which told me he was worried I wouldn’t show up. And I almost hadn’t. Halfway there, I considered calling him and doing this over the phone. But I knew it wouldn’t end if I did. I had to see him. I had to be sure he knew how serious I was.

“It’s nice to see you,” he said as I approached the table. He stood, his arms reaching out to hug me. His smell was wrong; his clothes were too formal. He must have thought it was his place to comfort me.

It most definitely wasn’t.

I turned my body away from him and shook his hand. It was the only contact he would be getting. “Let’s get right into it.” Then I continued moving into the seat across from his, holding my purse in my lap.

“Can I start by saying how sorry I am about Anna?”

“No, Reed,” I said firmly. “You cannot. You’re going to let me start so I can say what I need to say. Then you can speak.”

He nodded and that’s when I noticed the glass of wine on the table. There was a tumbler of scotch in front of him. I wasn’t here to drink, and I didn’t need a crutch. I just needed to speak the truth. “As much as I hate to admit it, even though we’ve been apart for quite some time, I haven’t been ready to say good-bye to you. I was holding on to the idea of what we had, and what we lost. What we were when our baby was growing inside me…or what I thought we were at the time.” He remained silent, surprisingly. “But things were volatile, unhealthy, we weren’t right for each other and I was too close, too deep to see that.” I pushed the wine to the middle of the table. I didn’t even have the smallest desire to drink it. I hadn’t realized opening up would feel this good. “A child could never have fixed what was broken between us. Maybe it could have saved me—from work, from myself. But it wouldn’t have saved you. And it wouldn’t have saved us.”

“Frankie—”

“Let me finish, please.” His mouth closed again as I continued. “I’ve carried around so much anger toward you. I couldn’t understand why you would cheat on me, why you would risk ruining our relationship. And then I realized you didn’t ruin anything. You just confirmed that it was gone. What we had was irreparable. It wasn’t a relationship, it wasn’t even a friendship; it was a partnership, at best.”

“No.” He leaned over the table, his hands reaching for me. I hugged my purse, keeping mine away from him. “I don’t agree. That’s not true at all.”

“Reed, please.”

“I can’t let you think our relationship wasn’t real, Frankie. I’ve never loved anyone like I loved you.” He gripped the edge of the table near me. “I still love you.”

He loved me? I didn’t want to hear that, nor did I believe it. My stomach turned queasy, the sickness spreading to the rest of my body. This was the first time I was actually feeling something honest and non-sexual since Anna’s death.

“I was committed to you, Frankie,” he continued. “I was ready to marry you.”

“If that were true, you wouldn’t have slept with Hayden.”

He let go of the table and grabbed his scotch. “I know you’re not going to understand this, but she meant nothing to me. There were no feelings involved, no need beyond what was happening in that moment. I was drunk. It happened. It was you I loved. The whole time.”

The sickness in my stomach began to settle as I started to laugh. “You’re right. I don’t understand, because I don’t give my body to men I don’t care about.”

“Frankie…” He ran his hand through his hair. “Please—”

“I’m not angry with you, Reed. And I don’t hate you.” I released my bag, not needing to hug it anymore. “I’ve let you go. It’s time for you to let me go, too.”

“No. That’s not what I want. I want to be with you.”

“It’s what you think you want, what you think you should have because it’s something you can’t control.”

“You’re wrong.”

I knew what I was about to say was going to hurt him. Maybe that was the point. “In the end, I’m actually grateful for you. Had I not been with you, not learned how to recognize an unhealthy relationship or that I should be made a priority, I wouldn’t be able to appreciate the relationship I have now.”

He slammed down his glass.

“Derek is in my life now, Reed. He’s who I want to be with.” My voice remained calm.

“Fuck him.”

I do,
I thought.
And fucking him is so much more enjoyable and sensual than fucking you.

“Do you love him?”

He knew how hard it was for me to say those words, how long it had taken me to say it to him. Maybe he didn’t deserve an answer, but I was going to give him one. There was no reason to hide it anymore.

“Yes, I love him.”

He crossed his arms over his chest, sitting taller in the chair. “You have no idea who you’ve gotten in bed with. You didn’t even know his real name until I told you. That motherfucker could be—”

I raised my hand to cut him off. “I don’t want to hear it. Who I get into bed with, who I give my heart to, is no longer your concern.”

“I’m not letting you go, Frankie.”

“You don’t have a choice, Reed.” I slid my bag over my arm, holding the strap to my shoulder. “I’m already gone.”

“No.” He stood and started moving toward me.

I stood as well, making sure the chair stayed between us. “I think it’s best if we don’t partner on any more deals. I’m going to introduce you to an agent who I think you’d work well with. If you’d rather partner with a different agency, I understand. Either way, you and I will no longer be working together.”

He gripped the back of the chair. “You don’t have to do this.”

“I should have done it a long time ago.”

“He’s going to break your heart, you know. Once he doesn’t need you for business anymore, he’s not going to want you for pleasure, either.”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.” I stood directly before him. “Once I walk out of this bar, we’re finished. And so are you and Derek. No more texts, no more phone calls—to either of us. Please respect my wishes, Reed.”

He was trying to hide the emotion in his face. Because I knew him so well, I could see it. I could almost feel it. At one time, it would have crippled me. It didn’t have that effect anymore.

“I’m going to miss you,” he said.

I couldn’t say the same.

He’d hurt me enough. It was time to move on. I felt that even more when we locked eyes. There was nothing left. “Good-bye, Reed.”