Love/Hate: The Complete Enemies to Lovers Series

by Lilian Monroe

  “Cheryl, it pains me to think that you would try to hurt me deliberately.”

  Her eyes widen. She shakes her head. “I only wanted you to see how fickle that bitch is! I wanted you to see that she would drop you so fast, that she doesn’t really care about you. I didn’t want to hurt you!”

  “First of all, don’t call her that. And you see how dragging my name through the mud again would hurt me, don’t you?”

  Tears cling to her eyelashes. She looks at me and then looks away. “I’m sorry.”

  I take a deep breath. Barry slides out of the room. I see him walk down the hallway. I know he’s still within earshot, but he’s given us the illusion of privacy.

  I take Cheryl’s hands in mine. “Cheryl, if I have ever led you on, I am truly sorry. You mean the world to me, but not like that.” Her face crumples, and I pause. I’m not used to these types of conversations. Usually, I’d kick her out and be done with it.

  But after the weekend I’ve spent with Stella, I see the pain in Cheryl and I don’t want to worsen it. I’m sick of being a bad person, and the new me wants to face these challenges head-on. It’s not enough to just breeze through life anymore. I’ve seen first-hand how messy things can get.

  I take a deep breath, pulling my hands away from hers. “You are amazing, and beautiful, and intelligent.” Her eyes widen as she looks at me. I sigh. “And you will make someone else very happy one day. I’m sorry if you’ve been holding yourself back because of me.”

  Her lower lip trembles and I hate every minute of this. I hate that the woman I depended on for almost my entire career is now someone I won’t be able to rely on at all. I hate that my selfishness over the years prevented me from seeing this. I hate that she’s felt this way about me and I didn’t even notice.

  Cheryl takes a deep breath. “Do you love her?” She lifts her eyes to mine, tears dropping down her cheeks.

  I gulp, sighing. I nod. “Yes.” My heart thumps as I say the words out loud.

  Her mouth presses into a thin line as she tries to stop from crying. She takes a deep breath and then nods. “Okay.”

  She stands up and I do the same. She gives me a long hug, and then puts her hands on my shoulders. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking straight. I won’t go to the press.”

  My instinct is to trust her. She smiles sadly, shaking her head. “I feel like an idiot.”

  “Me too.”

  She chuckles sadly and nods. “Goodbye, Adrian.”

  I walk her to the door and close it behind her. Barry clears his throat. “What do you want me to do?”

  “Nothing,” I sigh. “She’s been through enough.”

  “But Adrian—”

  “I said nothing.” My eyes are hard. “I still trust her.”

  Barry shakes his head and says nothing. I can tell he doesn’t approve.

  “I’m sick of being an asshole, Barry. I’m sick of threatening people, of doing underhanded deals, of doing anything I possibly can to climb some imaginary ladder. Look where that got me!” I scoff and lift my eyes up to the ceiling. “I want to change.”

  Barry sighs. “You’re making a mistake.”

  “Maybe. I need to call Stella. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  He grunts, and then steps past me and out the door. I walk back to the kitchen and pour myself a glass of water, and then I slump onto a chair. I take a deep breath and call Stella.

  “Hey,” I say, suddenly exhausted. “How was your day?”

  “It was okay.” She’s strangely quiet for a few moments. “How was yours?” The tension in her tone makes my chest hurt. I don’t want walls between us. I don’t want anything between us except love, openness, and honesty.

  “My day was terrible. I want to see you.”

  She lets out a relieved sigh. “Your place or mine?”

  “I’ll come to you,” I say. I’ll always go to her. I’ll go to her wherever she is, whenever she needs me or in this case, when I need her. Within minutes, I’ve gathered my things, locked my house up, and made it to her place.

  When I pull up outside, I realize that her house is starting to feel a lot more like home than mine is. Every time I come here, it feels like I belong. My shoulders are already starting to relax and I smile as her porch light flicks on. The front door opens when I get out of my car and I smile.

  “Were you waiting for me?”

  Her face is tense, but she squeezes out a smile. “Never. I just needed some fresh air.”

  “Good timing.”

  I wrap her in my arms and bury my face in her hair. I inhale, squeezing her against me and I realize that it’s not her house that feels like home—it’s her.

  She feels tense, so I pull away and cup her face in my hands. Worry lines her face as she searches my eyes. She bites her lip.

  “What happened today?”

  I stare into her face, sliding my fingers along her jaw. I smile, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Today, I realized I’m in love with you.”

  29

  Stella

  I blink. That’s not what I was expecting. Adrian chuckles and kisses me. We go inside and I tilt my head at him.

  “What happened with your assistant?”

  “I tell you I love you and that’s the first thing you say?” His eyes are sparkling and he grins, shaking his head. “Unbelievable.”

  “First of all, don’t pressure me into saying it back.” I fight off a smile. “Second of all…” I bite my lip. I spent all afternoon wondering, holding back the evil thoughts that snaked at the base of my skull. We stand a foot or two apart.

  “Second of all…?” He arches his eyebrow.

  I take a deep breath. “I saw you outside with her. I…” A blush creeps over my cheeks. “You were hugging her and I wasn’t sure…” Adrian takes a step toward me and wraps his arms around my waist.

  “I found out this morning she was going to go to the Denver Post and talk about the deal with Hansen Constructions. She said she was going to give them evidence.”

  “What? Why?”

  Adrian sighs. He closes his eyes and rests his forehead against mine. “Never mind.”

  “Tell me.”

  He opens his eyes again and cups my cheek. “She’s in love with me, apparently. And jealous of you.”

  I frown. “What?”

  Adrian shrugs, pulling away. “I don’t know. I found out this morning, and I called her. She was… upset, to say the least. She told me she was going to talk to the Post, but it wasn’t supposed to be until tonight. She must have gone straight there after talking to me, and I didn’t realize until you called me.”

  I stare at him. “And did she? Give them evidence, I mean?”

  “She didn’t have anything to give.” He takes a deep breath, shaking his head. Then, he takes my hand in his and looks me in the eye. “She just wanted to stir things up between you and me. You know, two months ago, I would have threatened her, fired her, and probably made her feel like a piece of dirt. But you taught me not to do that. I told her that I didn’t feel the same way, and that I was in love with you.”

  My eyes widen. “You told her that?”

  He nods.

  “How did she take it?”

  “Better than I expected.”

  “So you two aren’t…”

  “Involved?” Adrian grins. He shakes his head. “No. Not at all. Not even a little bit. I’ve never thought of her as anything other than an employee.”

  I chew my lip and look away from him until he puts a finger on my chin and turns my face toward his.

  “Do you believe me, Stella?”

  I take a deep breath, looking in his eyes. I nod. “Yes.”

  “I meant what I said. I’m in love with you, and nothing is going to change that. Not my assistant, or the news, or your sister hating me. You don’t have to say it back, I’m not pressuring you. I’m just telling you how I feel. It’s… it’s new to me.”

  My eyes start to mist and I nod. My voice is gone.
I can hardly swallow because my throat feels like it’s closing up. I take a deep breath.

  “Okay.”

  We sit down together on the couch, and I nuzzle into his chest. Adrian sighs and kisses the top of my head.

  “I’ve spent the last decade of my life thinking that I wanted power and rank in politics. I haven’t had a real connection with anyone until I met you.”

  “I hated you when I met you.”

  He chuckles. “I know. But you get me.” He sighs. “I was lonely. I thought that because I had votes, and employees, and my family’s money that I had it all. I was wrong. You’ve shown me what I’ve been missing, Stella.”

  My heart thumps and I run my fingers over and back across his chest. I take a deep breath. “You’re alright, too.”

  Adrian laughs and squeezes his arms around me. My heart sings. I spent all day trying not to spiral into jealous thoughts, and now, it feels like my efforts have been rewarded. I trust Adrian. I know that he’s telling me the truth.

  I lift my head up and kiss him softly, smiling.

  “I think I love you, too,” I whisper.

  His arms tighten around my waist and a smile stretches his lips. He leans his forehead against mine and sighs happily.

  I’m floating on a cloud. His smell envelops me, his smile beams on me, and his kiss warms me to my soul. I press my lips to his and feel my whole body melt against him.

  I love him.

  I love the man I thought I hated.

  I love Adrian Maguire. He says that I changed him, but I think it’s the other way around. He’s made me reconsider all the judgements I’ve made, how I’ve thought ill of people before meeting them. He’s made me think of how much I’ve been putting my sister first—not a bad thing, but now I’m realizing that maybe I should put myself first once in a while, too.

  It’s time that I dated someone who seems to care about me—the real me. It’s time that I let myself feel the way I want to feel, that I don’t stop myself from diving head-first into a relationship just because I think I should be focusing on my career.

  Maybe I can have it both ways. I can be a career woman with a husband and a family. My mind starts whirling with all the possibilities—a cousin for Ashley’s baby. A happy family, happy house, maybe a dog.

  A future.

  My face hurts from smiling so much. Adrian kisses me again and I sigh in his arms.

  “You hungry?” I whisper.

  “Hungry for you.”

  I laugh, yelping as he picks me up and lays me down on the couch. When we make love, it’s intimate and happy and completely perfect.

  Basked in bliss, he nuzzles his head into my neck and whispers in my ear. “I love you,” he says. “I’ll never get tired of saying it.

  “I love you too.” We smile at each other like two loved-up fools until my stomach grumbles, informing me that it’s time to eat.

  “Let’s order in,” Adrian says. “I don’t want to move.”

  I smile and lay my head on his chest. “Okay.”

  While I grab my phone to order some food, Adrian reaches for the remote. We stay intertwined on the couch, moving as little as possible as I tap on the phone.

  The TV flicks on, and a news reporter’s voice drones through the screen.

  “…Breaking news about former Mayor Adrian Maguire. DenverTV has received exclusive evidence of blatant corruption in the former mayor’s past. Texts, emails, and contract documents have been procured from an anonymous source detailing the extent of his crimes. Last month, Maguire resigned from his position as Mayor of Denver amidst a slurry of corruption charges. The charges have been dropped, but new evidence could mean the investigation will be reopened.”

  Adrian freezes underneath me. His heart starts to thump and we both stay glued to the screen until it changes to the weather. I push myself off him, eyes wide. I look back at him.

  “I thought you said she didn’t have any evidence?”

  “She didn’t.” He’s still staring at the screen, his mouth hanging open. He shakes his head and finally looks at me. “There’s only one person that had those files.”

  “Who?” I’m breathless. My heart is beating at a million miles a minute and my thoughts are flying in a thousand different directions.

  Ashley will never forgive me.

  I’m trying not to cry. My hands are gripping the edge of the couch so hard I’m creasing the upholstery. I look at Adrian, shaking my head.

  “Who, Adrian?! Who had the files?”

  He glances at me, his eyebrows arching in concern. When he speaks his voice is quiet.

  “Liam,” he replies. “Liam had them.”

  30

  Adrian

  Liam didn’t do this. He wouldn’t. He hasn’t spoken to me much, but he’s not a vindictive person. As long as he’s left alone, he doesn’t hurt anyone. He found those files on a USB key in my parents’ house last year—the one place I thought they were safe. He used them as leverage to make sure I would leave him and Ashley alone.

  That’s all he wanted, and until this investigation broke, I did leave them alone. He doesn’t want to hurt me, or ruin me, or destroy my career and reputation. He just wants to make sure that he and Ashley are safe. As far as I know, he doesn’t care about me. I doubt he would care about Stella, either.

  No, this wasn’t him.

  Which means there’s only one other person who could have accessed those files: Ashley King.

  I glance at Stella, who’s still wide-eyed with shock. She gets on her phone and Googles the news story frantically. My heart thumps and I stare at the TV again, seeing nothing.

  How can I tell her that I think her sister did this? It’ll kill her.

  Turns out, I don’t have to tell her. She drops her head in her hands and takes a deep, trembling breath.

  “This was Ashley,” she says. Her voice is listless. She looks completely flat. I run my hand over her back and she doesn’t react. “Liam didn’t do this. Ashley did.”

  I take a deep breath. “We don’t know who did this.”

  Stella laughs bitterly, glancing at me. “We do, Adrian. Stop trying to defend her. She’s been nothing but cruel to you. She was horrified that you were here with me, and now this? She’s furious with me, and it’s payback.”

  I sigh, leaning back on the couch. “Lots of people seem to be furious we’re together today.”

  Stella shakes her head. “I can’t believe my own sister would do this.” She snorts. “That’s probably exactly what she’s thinking, too. How could we be so awful to one another? She’s my entire life.”

  I take a deep breath. I thought I’d dodged a bullet with Cheryl, but I’m exactly where I thought I’d be this morning. Clearing my throat, I glance at Stella.

  “Barry told me there’s a chance the feds will come after me.”

  Stella’s eyes widen. “What? Who’s Barry?”

  “He’s… an associate. He does things for me.”

  “Legally?”

  “Sort of.”

  “Fuck, Adrian,” she recoils away from me. “When does it end? I asked you if the construction contract was the only thing dirty about you and you promised me it was. What kind of shit are you into?”

  “Nothing! I mean, nothing anymore.” She looks at me like I enjoy strangling puppies for fun. I groan. “I swear, Stella. I know that I shouldn’t have made that deal with Hansen Constructions. I know that I shouldn’t have accepted the campaign donations. But fuck, how am I supposed to compete! Everyone does it.”

  “If everyone jumped off a bridge…” she arches her eyebrows.

  I start laughing without a hint of humor. “I know. I know.”

  She takes a deep breath. “I guess I’d better talk to my sister.”

  “So you’re not… you won’t kick me out?”

  Stella glances at me and puts her hand on my thigh. She squeezes gently and shakes her head. “No, I’m not going to kick you out. Somehow you’ve convinced me to trust you against all
my better judgment.”

  “I take offense to that.”

  “Take offense all you want,” she grins. She takes a deep breath and groans. “I wish this wasn’t happening. Why isn’t anything ever easy?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She bites her lip and glances at me sadly, then takes a deep breath and waves her phone. “I’ll try to call her.”

  I nod, and she walks out to the next room. I groan and lean back on the sofa and take out my own phone.

  “Barry,” I say when he picks up.

  He grunts.

  “You see the news?”

  He grunts again. “Cheryl?”

  “Don’t think so. My brother and his wife.”

  “Your girlfriend’s sister?”

  I sigh. “Yeah.”

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “Nothing, right now.”

  “Adrian, we need to get out in front of this. If we don’t do anyth—”

  “I know. But I don’t want to cause a shitstorm in my personal life as well as my professional life, okay? This past month has been good… It’s been really good! I don’t want to fuck that up.”

  “Going to prison would fuck that up. And a pretty guy like you wouldn’t last long in there.”

  “Fuck off, Barry.”

  He chuckles, then sighs. “I’ll ask around and see what I can find out.”

  “Thanks.”

  The phone clicks just as Stella reappears. Her face is drawn and tears are clinging to her eyelashes. She dips her chin down.

  “It was her.”

  I take a deep breath. “Okay.”

  “I’m so sorry, Adrian. If I’d have known, I wouldn’t have…”

  “Wouldn’t have what?”

  “Pursued you!”

  I stand up and walk to her. I stroke her hair and pull her in to my chest. She sighs, her tears soaking my shirt. I hush her.

  “I’m pretty sure I’m the one who kept showing up at your house and your work. I’m the one who pursued you, Stella. And I wouldn’t change it for anything.”