by Cher Carson
“But maybe he wanted to get rid of her because he was finished with her. Maybe they’d already had sex.” Taylor hated that she had so little faith in her husband, but the events of the last twenty-four hours had sent her on a roller coaster ride of anguish and uncertainty.
“I can’t believe you’d think that, Taylor.” Steve turned his back on her, crossing the room to pour two cups of coffee. He knew from past experience she took her coffee the same as he did, strong, with a splash of milk. “He loves you; it’s always been you. He’s not interested in anyone else.”
Taylor sat down at the small table in the seating area of the spacious suite. “You didn’t see what I saw last night. Trust me, if I hadn’t been there, he would’ve slept with her.”
Steve handed her the mug, which she accepted gratefully. “Thanks.”
He sank down in the chair across from her. “He was hurt, upset. Hell, I would’ve felt the same way.” He hesitated, clearly reluctant to cross any lines. “He told me what happened after the wedding, Taylor.”
She lowered her head, feeling ashamed of her behaviour that night. Chase didn’t deserve to be blindsided that way. She should have told him about the pending divorce before they made love, before she’d allowed him to believe the mere act meant reconciliation was inevitable. “I know I didn’t handle that the way I should have.”
Steve laughed. “Ya think? Seriously, Chase was just acting out of anger when he invited her up to his room. When it came down to it, I don’t think he would have followed through with it, whether you were there or not.”
She wanted to believe her husband was someone she could trust, but it seemed Chase’s best friend had more faith in him than she did, which did not bode well for their marriage. She dropped her head in her hands. “I don’t know what to believe anymore.”
“Believe in him. He needs you now.”
She looked up at Steve. “I don’t know if I can do that.”
He sighed. “Look, I can’t tell you how to think or what to feel, but if you bail on him now, there’s no going back. You’re sending him a pretty clear message about your future.”
She wasn’t ready to write Chase out of her life, but she couldn’t support him without evidence to substantiate his claim that he was telling the truth. “Will you go to the police station and bail him out?”
“Does that mean you’re leaving?” Steve asked.
“I have to. I can’t deal with this right now. I need time to think.”
Steve shook his head, looking disgusted. “You know if the situations were reversed, Chase wouldn’t leave your side.”
“Don’t make me out to be the bad guy here, Steve. He got himself into this mess. If he hadn’t invited that kid up to his room last night, none of this would be happening.”
He shook his head, looking resigned. “I know you’re right. I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to judge you. If you feel you need to go home, go. I’ll do what I can to help him.”
She reached across the table to grab his hand. “Thanks, I have a feeling he’s going to need your support now more than ever.”
Chapter Eleven
Chase consulted his call display and answered on the first ring when he saw his lawyer’s number. The call he’d been waiting for, or at least one of them. “I hope you have some good news for me, Jack.”
Jack Masters laughed. “Isn’t that why you pay me the big bucks?”
Chase sat on a stool at his breakfast bar. “Does that mean I’m off the hook?”
“Yeah, her father dropped the charges.”
Chase released the breath he’d been holding. “Thank God. What made him change his mind?”
“You know we got a rush on the DNA test. It turns out she did have sex that night, but the tests results were conclusive. There was no way it could’ve been you.”
“I told you we didn’t have sex.”
Jack chuckled. “I know what you said, but it wouldn’t be the first time a high profile client has lied to me in an attempt to cover his sorry ass.”
Chase rolled his eyes. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, buddy.”
“Listen, there’s one more thing I wanted to talk to you about. Michael got a call from your wife today. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”
Jack’s firm had lawyers handling everything from criminal law to family law and contract negotiations. Michael was one of the lawyers who handled the family law cases, which could only mean one thing: Taylor was filing for divorce.
“Son of a bitch,” Chase muttered, fisting his hand on the counter. “I can’t believe she’s doing this.”
“I know you two have been apart for a while,” Jack said quietly. “Does this mean she’s ready to end it, officially?”
“I don’t know what the hell she’s thinking, man,” Chase said, dropping his forehead to his palm.
“Michael was out of the office today, so that may have bought you a little time. If this isn’t what you want, I’d suggest you talk to the lady.”
“Believe me, I intend to.”
“Good luck, Chase. Taylor’s a great girl; I really hope you two can work it out.”
“Thanks, I hope so too.”
“Hey, you guys better kick ass tonight. I’ll be there cheering you on.”
Chase smiled. Everyone he’d spoken to today planned to attend tonight’s game. It seemed the entire city was caught up in play-off fever. Thanks to his lawyer, the criminal charges gave him one less problem to worry about, but the looming threat of his marriage coming to an end was still weighing heavily on his mind.
“Glad to hear it. Stop by the dressing room after the game and I’ll take you out for a drink to thank you for making this problem go away.”
“I was just doing my job, but I will take you up on that offer.”
Chase laughed as the phone beeped to indicate he had a visitor waiting downstairs. “Sounds good. Listen, I gotta go, someone’s downstairs. Thanks again, man.”
“My pleasure. See you tonight.”
Chase grabbed the remote control for the television and turned it to the security channel, which televised guests who were waiting in the lobby. Even with her back turned to the camera, he knew who it was. He quickly pushed the button and forced himself to take a deep breath before answering her call. “Hello.”
“Chase, it’s Taylor. Can I come up? We need to talk.”
Her voice sounded shaky and uncertain. He couldn’t decide whether she was more concerned about the threat of rejection or the fear of him unleashing his temper when she told him she intended to file for divorce. Either way, they had to talk. He was tired of living in limbo and he didn’t want to remain married to a woman who wasn’t willing to stand by him when he needed her the most. He had thought a lot about his wife over the past several days and, as much he loved her, he was tired of being alone in this fight to save their marriage. If she still wanted to divorce him, he was prepared to let her go.
“Yeah, come on up.” He hung up before she could respond. Turning to watch her on the security camera as she made her way through the glass entrance doors toward the elevators in the main hallway, he was struck by her beauty. The thought of losing her prompted a deep ache in his chest that made it difficult to draw a breath. He stood with the door open, waiting for her to step off the elevator. He couldn’t believe that after ten years together, it had come to this. But maybe the time had finally come to accept the inevitable.
She stepped off the elevator and smiled at him.
In a split second, his turmoil disappeared and he knew what he wanted.
“Hi there,” she said.
He smiled back, torn between taking her in his arms and waiting for her to make the first move. “Hi yourself. You look great.”
She rolled her eyes. “I probably look like hell. I haven’t slept in days.”
“Why’s that?” He could only hope it meant she was regretting her decision to leave him in the lurch to face criminal charges and a media avalanche withou
t her.
His next-door neighbour, an attractive pediatrician in her mid-thirties, stepped out into the hallway. She turned to lock her door before she noticed him. “Hey, Chase, I was hoping I’d see you today.” She walked up to him and placed a kiss on his cheek. “That was for luck. Hope you guys win tonight.”
He shifted uneasily when he saw the flash of anger in Taylor’s eyes. “Uh, Emily, this is Taylor, my…”
Taylor stepped forward and smiled sweetly as she extended her hand to the other woman. “Hi, Emily, I’m Chase’s wife. It’s so nice to meet you.”
Emily, the poised, self-assured doctor, looked momentarily speechless in the face of Taylor’s announcement. “Oh, uh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize, I mean, I thought Chase was separated.”
Taylor winked and smiled at Chase. “No, I’m still his wife in every way. Aren’t I, sweetheart?”
He prayed that was true and she wasn’t just staking her claim in front of a woman she viewed as her competition. In reality, Taylor didn’t have any competition where he was concerned. She’d claimed his heart the moment they met and hadn’t let go in the decade since then.
“That’s right. It was nice to see you, Emily.” He was anxious to end this encounter so he could find out, once and for all, where he stood with his wife.
“Thanks for the tickets,” she said, turning her back to Taylor. “My sister and I will definitely be there to cheer you on.”
He watched Taylor, who was glaring at the back of Emily’s head. Maybe his marriage wasn’t a lost cause after all. A casual observer would guess she was still invested in him and their marriage. Unfortunately, he had been pummelled by her rejection too many times in the past year to read too much into her actions.
“Maybe we could get a drink after the game?” Emily asked.
Chase never ceased to be amazed at the audacity of a woman who was trying to land the man she’d set her sights on. He had been on the receiving end of one too many pariahs in his lifetime to discount it as harmless flirtation. That’s what first attracted him to Taylor all those years ago. She didn’t know anything about hockey and didn’t even recognize his name. She liked him for who he was, not because of what he did for a living or how much money he made. He assumed that was one of the reasons he fell in love with her virtually overnight.
“Thanks for the offer, Emily, but I have other plans.”
She frowned, obviously taken aback by his rejection. “Okay, maybe some other time then?”
“Don’t count on it,” Taylor muttered.
Chase tried to supress a smile at Taylor’s response. “Uh, I don’t think so. It was nice to see you, but I need some time with my wife before practice.”
She turned on her heel and walked toward the elevator without looking back.
Taylor raised her hand, wiggling her fingers. “It was nice to meet you, Emily.”
Chase chuckled and grabbed the belt on Taylor’s black trench coat as he pulled her into the apartment.
She looked up at him, seeming uncertain. “I’m sorry, were you interested in her? Maybe I shouldn’t have done that.”
Chase was stunned that she still didn’t seem to believe she was the only woman in the world who could hold his attention. “It’s not Dr. Emily Bauer I’m interested in.”
She bit her bottom lip and looked at the floor between them. “She’s a doctor? Wow, that’s impressive.”
Chase shrugged. “I guess. But I don’t want to talk about her; I want to talk about you.” He took a deep breath. “Why don’t you tell me why you’re here?”
She took a step forward and placed her hands on his chest. “I came here to apologize. I’m so sorry I didn’t believe you about that girl.”
He grabbed her wrists, his mind racing. His lawyer had just released the information to him; the press couldn’t have found out before he did. Or could they? Was she here because she believed in his innocence, without proof, or because she’d heard he’d been exonerated? “What happened to change your mind?” He prayed she had come here on her own, because she was ready to support him.
Her eyes landed on the wedding band he still wore on his left hand. “I’ve spent the last few days going over that night in my mind, and I realized what a fool I’d been to question your innocence, Chase. I should have believed you.”
He didn’t know what to say. He’d been waiting so long for her to take him back that he’d almost given up hope that it would ever happen. He thought that night in his hotel room marked a new beginning, but he realized nothing had changed between them. Even after everything they’d shared that night, she still questioned him and his commitment to her and their marriage.
He took a step back, putting some distance between them. “I don’t know what to say, Taylor. I was prepared to let you go this time. I thought you were gonna ask for a divorce, and I was ready to let you have it, without a fight.”
She crossed her arms, grasping either side of her waist with her hands. “Does that mean you don’t want to be married to me anymore? Are you telling me it’s too late for us?”
He walked toward the window and looked out at the bustling, snow covered city. Thousands of people crowded the streets and highways. A couple pushing a baby carriage caught his eye as the man bent down to smile at his baby. He wanted to be that guy, and he couldn’t imagine sharing that experience with anyone other than Taylor.
He turned to face her, leaning his back against the cool window pane as he perched on the window ledge. “I don’t want it to be too late, but I’m tired of being the only one who’s invested in this marriage. It hurts too damn much to put myself out there over and over again only to be rejected. I can’t do it anymore. If you want this to work, you’ve got to be willing to meet me halfway.”
She took a few steps toward him as she toyed with the belt tied at her waist. “I know I haven’t been fair to you. You’ve never given me reason to doubt you or us.”
His eyes travelled up from her black stilettos to her shapely, silk clad legs. She must have met with a client before she came to see him. “I don’t want to do this anymore. I love you, but…” He paused, trying to force the words past the lump in his throat. “Maybe it’s time for us to stop hurting each other.”
Her eyes shone with tears. “You’re saying you want a divorce?”
Her words hit him with the force of a tsunami. Maybe it was time for him to let her go, on his terms.
Tears slid down her cheeks. “It’s okay, I understand. This is my fault, not yours. If I hadn’t been so damn insecure, maybe things would’ve been different.” She held her hand up. “Forget it, it doesn’t matter now. Just know that I’m sorry.” She turned away, crossing the distance to the door.
His heart damn near stopped when she turned to walk away. He couldn’t let her go. “Taylor, wait.” He jumped up and sprinted to the door.
She already had the door open when he reached it. “It’s okay,” she whispered. “You don’t have to say anything.”
He grabbed the door and slammed it shut. He crowded her against it, his erection pressed to her back. “Yes, I do, I need to tell you I love you,” he whispered, his hot breath fanning the hair around her ear.
She closed her eyes and flattened her cheek against the wood panel. “I love you too, so much it hurts.”
Her vulnerability tore at him. He didn’t want to hurt her; it was his job to protect her. “Let’s stop doing this to each other, baby.” He reached for the knot at the front of her coat and worked to un-tie it as he kissed her neck. “I want to put the past behind us. Are you ready to do that?” He spread her coat, expecting to find one of the expensive business suits she favoured when meeting clients. Instead he felt a wide expanse of bare, smooth skin between scraps of lace. “What the hell?” He turned her toward him.
She looked down, biting her lip. “Since you’ve been the one to put yourself out there for the past year, I thought it was time for me to do the same.”
He could imagine how much it cost her to t
ake the risk, and he was overwhelmed that she had found the courage to take one more chance on him. He opened her coat fully so he could appreciate her exquisite body. He slid the coat over her shoulders and let it fall to the floor at their feet. He turned her toward the full length mirror beside them. “I want you to see yourself the way I see you, sweetheart.”
She closed her eyes and dipped her head as he turned her toward the mirror.
He slid his hands over her ribcage. “Open your eyes,” he whispered. “Look at your reflection.”
He kissed her shoulder as he watched her follow his command.
Her eyes travelled up her body from her shoes, up her legs, to her flat abdomen, to the swell of her full breasts peeking out over the lace cups. Her eyes finally settled on his in the mirror.
“You’re perfect.” He unfastened her bra and slipped it off, letting it fall to the floor. He cupped her breasts and brushed his thumbs over her dark, peaked nipples.
She rolled her head back. Leaning against him, she closed her eyes.
“No, I want you to open your eyes,” he said, kissing her neck. “You are so gorgeous, I want you to see yourself the way I see you when we make love.”
“Chase,” she said quietly, “you don’t have to do this.”
“I want to,” he said, brushing her hair aside as he continued to place wet kisses up and down the arch of her neck. “I want to put the past behind us, and we can only do that if you’re willing to face it, sweetheart.” He pressed a firm hand against her stomach, forcing her lush ass against his hard cock. “You need to let go of the girl you used to be and accept yourself for the gorgeous, sexy woman you are today.”
Her smile was a little wobbly as she looked at her reflection. “I never thought I’d hear a man say those things about me.”
“Every man who sees you thinks of you that way. Do you know how many of my teammates are dying to get you into bed?”
