Again and Again (Forever and Always #10)

by E. L. Todd

  “You look spiffy.” She gave me a wink.

  “Thanks.”

  “So, is Monnique going to be there?”

  “Not that I know of.”

  “Phew,” she said.

  “Why?”

  “Well, I doubt she would care for me much.”

  I shook my head. “She’s not like that. You never have to worry about her being mean to you. And I told her nothing was going on between us anyway.”

  “But you still asked me to be your date…” The hope was in her voice.

  “Because I needed a friend.” I dissipated the tension and opened the door.

  We walked down to my car and I drove to the hotel. Sean’s parents went above and beyond for the event. The party was happening at the plaza hotel. I suspected this was all Andrew’s idea. He was adamant about making his workers happy. I could tell Diane didn’t give a damn. She just cared how much money was in their back account.

  Hazel and I walked inside then joined the throng. Everyone was dressed in their nicest outfits. The women wore ball gowns, and the men wore suits and tuxedos. Hazel hooked her arm through mine, making me flinch. I didn’t pull away because I knew the touch was appropriate. We walked inside and I grabbed her a glass. I didn’t see the rest of the gang. It was too crowded.

  We sipped out wine and stayed out of the way of other people.

  “This is nice,” Hazel said. “Wow.”

  “Yeah. The Prestons’ are loaded—obviously.”

  “I’ll say…go Scarlet.”

  I laughed. “Scarlet loves him despite his money, believe me.”

  “Do you like working here?”

  “I love it,” I said quickly. “There’s definitely nowhere else I’d rather work.”

  She nodded. “That’s good.”

  I sipped my wine and watched the other people in the room. Every one sipped their flutes and held their graceful posture. I recognized most of the people. When my eyes locked with the brown ones I stared at so many times, I felt my heart lurch.

  Monnique wore an olive green down. It reached down to her feet. It was the perfect color for her complexion, highlighting the dark color of her skin. Her brown hair was pulled back, revealing her beautiful face and slender neck. Just looking at her made me ache. She was painfully beautiful.

  A light amount of make up covered her face. Her lips were ruby red, her eyes were covered in gray eye shadow, and her eyes were heavy with darkness. She looked exceptional. Flashbacks of our lovemaking came to me. Our eyes would lock in our heated embrace. Her lips would part and she would confess her deepest feelings for me. And I missed that.

  When I focused on her eyes, I saw the pain deep within. Her soul was broken and so was her heart. I realized why. Hazel still had her arm hooked through mine. I automatically pulled it away, not wanting to give Monnique the wrong idea. I didn’t know why it mattered, but I wanted to make sure she knew I wasn’t lying to her. When she walked across the room, heading my way, I flinched in preparation. I hoped this wouldn’t escalate into a confrontation. And I didn’t want Monnique to fight with Hazel.

  When Monnique approached us, she held her shoulders with the grace of a dancer. She looked even more beautiful up close. Not a blemish or mark covered her face. There was no fire in her eyes, no hostility.

  She extended her hand. “I’m Monnique. It’s nice to meet you.”

  Hazel took a deep breath when she realized who it was. Hesitantly, she stuck out her hand and shook hers. “It’s nice to meet you too.”

  Monnique smiled then turned to me. “It’s a nice party, huh?”

  I was snapped out of my reverie. “Yeah. The Prestons’ know how to throw a party.”

  “No. Andrew knows how to throw a party.” She smiled. “And I sincerely hope I get to see his dance moves tonight.” She never looked better than when she smiled. Her eyes naturally lit up like Christmas morning.

  I remembered the way we danced together at Scarlet’s wedding. Andrew was shaking his ass like he was in a rap video, and Monnique grinded on me, exciting me when she shouldn’t. That night, we had some of the best sex we ever had. Her long legs wrapped around my waist and pulled me deeper into her. I shook the thoughts away when I felt the hard-on in my suit. I realized I should say something. “Yeah.” It was lame. I couldn’t think of anything better. But Monnique caught me off guard.

  “Well, I just wanted to say hello. Enjoy your evening.”

  “Yeah…”

  She turned and moved into the crowd. I watched her go, noting her slender shoulders and her lean back. I loved the curve of it. She was thin, almost frail, and she had a huge dip in her lower back. I loved looking at it when I was behind her. The thoughts kept surfacing in my mind. And I needed to stop them.

  “Are you okay?” Hazel asked.

  “Huh?” I turned back to her.

  “Are you okay?” she asked again.

  “Oh. Yeah, I’m fine.”

  “She’s very beautiful.”

  “I know. Believe me, I know.”

  “Is she a model?” she asked.

  “No. She’s a nurse.”

  “I can understand why you fell for her so hard,” she said sympathetically.

  “She had my heart the moment I saw her.”

  She stared at me for a long time, emotion evident in her eyes. “I can never get back together with my ex because his actions were too unforgiveable. And he doesn’t want me anyway. I admit Monnique was wrong for hurting you, but if you love her as much as you do, you should be with her. Her actions weren’t unforgiveable. You can work through it.”

  Hazel always had my best interest at heart. And that’s why I liked her. She was always a good friend. “I’m scared to get hurt again.”

  “If she moved here for you and intends to say, I would bet she isn’t planning on leaving again. And I can only imagine how hard that was for her to come over here and be nice to me. I know the jealousy must be killing her.”

  “Yeah.”

  “It’s just something to think about…”

  “Thanks.”

  Scarlet made her appearance, emerging from the crowd. She wore a black dress that was tight around her body. The top of the dress was made in a threaded sequence. It was see-through, and revealed her flawless skin underneath. Her legs were long and sculpted. Her baby bump was noticeable, but not in comparison to how gorgeous she looked. Her hair was bigger than I’d ever seen it, curly and pulled to one shoulder.

  She stopped when she reached us. “Having a good time?”

  My mouth dropped. “Damn. You look…wow.”

  She blushed. “Oh. Thanks. I’m trying to get back at Sean.”

  “Okay….well, I’m sure you’re winning whatever game you’re playing.”

  Hazel nodded. “You look hot.”

  Scarlet put her hand on her stomach. “I don’t look like a cow?”

  “No,” I said quickly. “I didn’t even notice.” I looked over her shoulder and saw Sean mingling with people from the crowd. He was talking to them, but his eyes were glued to Scarlet, looking dark and heated. “Sean is looking at you.”

  “He is?” she asked happily. “How?”

  “Like he wants to fuck your brains out.”

  “Good,” she said smugly.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “He pissed me off.”

  “What’s new?” I teased.

  She told me the entire story of the money and her mom. Her story ended with a deep sigh. “He doesn’t get it. And he never told me, his own wife. He doesn’t understand how important that victory was to me. It’s like it never happened.”

  I nodded. “I understand.”

  “Good,” she said. “Finally.”

  “But I think Sean made the only plausible decision he could to make a horrible situation into a tolerable one.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Damn.”

  “Scarlet, the guy loves you. Give him a break.”

  “I’m not caving.” She put
one hand on her baby bump.

  “How long has this been going on?”

  “A week.”

  “Wow,” Hazel said. “That’s a long time to fight with your husband.”

  “We aren’t fighting,” she said. “We just aren’t speaking.”

  ‘That’s worse,” I said. “Are you at least having sex?”

  “Not lately,” she said sadly.

  I looked at Sean again, seeing the desire in his eyes. “Well, you’re going to make him blow his load just by dressing like that.”

  “Good,” she said victoriously. “I bought this dress just for that reason.”

  I shook my head. “Sexual politics…”

  “He’s gonna cave. I’ll make sure of it,” Scarlet said.

  “Hey,” Ryan said as he joined our group. “God, this party is dull.”

  “Hey!” Scarlet said. “What’s wrong with it?”

  “Why would you talk about work outside of work?” he asked incredulously. “Lame.”

  Scarlet rolled her eyes. “There’s free food and booze. So shut up.”

  He eyed his sister. “Wow. You don’t look like a cow today.”

  I knew that was the closest thing to a compliment she was going to get.

  ‘Thanks, I think,” she said.

  Janice wrapped her arm around Ryan’s waist, clinging to him like a love struck woman. Ryan grinned at her, clearly loving all the attention he was getting. He must have rocked her world good before they came to the gala.

  “I’m glad you aren’t fighting anymore,” I said.

  “I put Ryan in his place pretty quickly,” Janice said.

  Ryan glared at her.

  “You want me to do it again right now?” she threatened.

  He backed down and looked away.

  “That’s what I thought,” Janice said triumphantly.

  “Crack that whip,” Scarlet said. “I like seeing my brother shut the hell up for once in his life.”

  “How did you end the argument?” I asked. “Did you finally get him to admit he was being a little too vocal?”

  “No,” she said simply. “I proved just how pussy-whipped he was.”

  “Oh…” That sounded like a story I didn’t want to hear.

  Janice smiled. “Let’s just say it ended with his pants around his ankles and his mouth shut.”

  Scarlet crossed her arms over her chest. “I wish it would end that way with Sean.” She turned to me. “Monnique is here. I hope that’s okay.”

  “No, I don’t mind,” I said. “I don’t want her to be squeezed out.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. Did you talk to her?”

  “Yeah,” I said. “She looks…amazing.”

  “Who do you think went shopping with her?” Scarlet winked at me.

  I smirked at her.

  Sean approached our group but stood next to Janice, away from Scarlet. We all glanced between them, wondering if they would speak to each other.

  “Thanks for coming,” Sean said to me.

  “Of course, boss,” I said.

  Sean drank his glass while he eye-fucked the shit out of his wife. We all felt it. The heat sizzled in the air.

  “This is awkward…” Ryan rubbed his chin.

  Sean withdraw his look. Scarlet didn’t meet his gaze, her arms crossed over her chest.

  “Anyway…” Ryan turned to me. “Did you see Monnique?”

  “I did,” I said.

  “Did you talk to her?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Oh.” Ryan looked disappointed. “I didn’t even look at her.”

  Janice glared at him. “Stop being an asshole.”

  Ryan kept his mouth shut.

  “Wow, who died?” Mike joined our group, his arm around Cassandra. He turned to me. “Dude, did you see Monnique? She looked damn hot.”

  My eyes narrowed in anger. “Don’t talk about her like that,” I snapped.

  “Whoa…” Mike raised his hands. “I meant that in a complimentary way.” He put his arm around Cassandra again. “I’m in love. Remember?”

  I knew I blew up when I shouldn’t, but I didn’t apologize for it.

  Monnique came to our group. “Whoa…I can tell something bad just happened.”

  Ryan ignored her. I wasn’t sure why he was being such an ass. I appreciated his loyalty to me, but he didn’t need to be rude to Monnique.

  “Scarlet and Sean still aren’t talking,” Janice said.

  “I’ve never met a couple more in love, but who fought as much as you do,” she said as she looked at Scarlet.

  “Well, he could just apologize,” Scarlet said.

  Sean kept his silence.

  Mike looked her up and down. “You look nice.”

  ‘Thanks,” she said. “So does your girlfriend.”

  “Well, duh,” Mike said. “She makes everyone look like shit.”

  “Thanks,” Scarlet said.

  Mike shrugged. “It’s true.”

  Cassandra’s cheeks tinted but she didn’t comment.

  Diane and Andrew approached our huddle. She embraced Sean. “Everything looks so wonderful. You’re having a good time, aren’t you?”

  Sean finally stopped looking at Scarlet. “It’s lovely. You did a great job.”

  She clapped her hands. “You’re all having a blast?”

  “Yes,” everyone lied.

  “Great.”

  She totally ignored Scarlet. It was like she didn’t exist. I could see the pain in Scarlet’s eyes.

  Andrew came to her then hugged her. “You look like a million bucks.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “Only you could make a baby bump look good.”

  She blushed. “Thanks.”

  “Let’s dance,” he said. He pulled her to the floor.

  Diane clung to Sean like he was a child. “Dance with me, baby. You never dance with me.”

  “Mom,” he growled. “I’m still pissed at you. You’re lucky I’m putting on a show.”

  She glared at him. “Dance with me or I’ll slap you.”

  He held his tongue and took her hand, walking to the dance floor.

  Since Monnique was still in our group, Ryan walked off without another word.

  “Wow,” Monnique said. “He hates me.”

  Janice rolled her eyes. “Don’t mind him. He’s a fucking jackass. I’ll talk to him.” She went after him.

  Now it was just the three of us. And to say it was awkward was an understatement.

  Hazel stepped away. “Umm…I have to pee.”

  I didn’t walk away and neither did Monnique. I tried not to stare at her but it was hard. She looked so gorgeous. I was certain she did it on purpose, just to torture me. I kept thinking about kissing her and holding her. I wanted to take her back to my place and make love to her right now. I wanted to forgive her and move on. But I couldn’t. And that just made it unbearable.

  She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “How was your week?”

  “It was good,” I said quietly. “Just work, mainly.”

  “I heard Hazel is quite a dancer.”

  “She is,” I said. “She does Ballet.”

  “Beautiful.”

  Talking to her was so easy. I missed it. I was glad she wasn’t jealous about Hazel. When I said nothing was happening between us, she believed me. And that was a nice change. I just wish she felt the same way about Scarlet three months ago. At least she changed.

  “You watch her a lot?”

  “Usually on the weekends,” I said.

  She nodded. “Cool.”

  I tried to think of something to say. We hadn’t talked about our relationship. “How’s your new job?”

  “I like it,” she said. “But I’m busy. I used to have four patients per shift but now I have five.”

  “I know you can handle it.”

  “Thank you.” She looked down at the ground, her earlier confidence gone.

  With her eyes averted, I stared at
her face. “I heard you’re looking for an apartment.”

  She nodded. “I found a few places close to work. I prefer to walk instead of taking the subway, so proximity is important to me.”

  Ugh. I wanted to scream. I hated thinking about her walking alone at night. It was already bad in Seattle but now it was unbearable. Unable to say anything nice or appropriate, I didn’t say anything at all.

  “How’s your family?”

  “I haven’t talked to them.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “In three months?”

  “My mom would ask about you and I didn’t know what to say.” My mom would interrogate me until I told her every detail of the break up. That’s the last thing I wanted.

  “They don’t know we broke up?”

  I shook my head.

  “Oh.”

  “How’s your family?” I asked.

  “They’re…fine.”

  Her brother and I were close. I was bummed I wouldn’t see him anymore.

  “I’m off tomorrow,” she said. “Let’s get a cup of coffee.”

  She didn’t ask me. She just told me. Even though she sounded confident, she didn’t meet my gaze. I should say no. It wasn’t a good idea. I would just torture myself. “Okay.” Fuck, why did I say that?

  She looked at me, her eyes lit up like orbs. “Okay.” I could tell she wasn’t expecting that response.

  Ryan joined our conversation. “Where’s Hazel?”

  We both flinched when he appeared unexpectedly.

  “She went to the bathroom,” I said.

  Ryan looked pissed. “You should pay attention to your date, not this maneater.”

  Monnique’s eyes widened but she didn’t retaliate. Normally, she would get in his face and even slap him. But she held back.

  I got mad. “Ryan, don’t be like that.”

  “Why should I?” He glared at Monnique. “You fucking stomped on him like he was sidewalk beneath your feet. And how dare you ask him to give up his entire life for you. He already did.”

  I put my hand on his shoulder because he was getting louder. “Ryan, calm down.”

  “No!”

  “Are you drunk?” I snapped.

  “It’s okay,” Monnique said. “I understand why he’s mad.”

  Ryan got in her face. “If you think you can ditch him for three months, then come back like nothing happened you have a long road ahead of you. You think you can win Cortland over with your looks and your apologies.?But you have to win all of us over. And let me tell you right now, I’m not easily persuaded.” He glared at her one more time before he walked off.