by M. Malone
It was something she’d been thinking about for a long time.
The bathroom door opened and Mara finally appeared. Her hair was now in a low ponytail and she'd wiped the rest of her lipstick off completely.
"I'm ready to go. There's only so much I can fix in a public bathroom." She smiled up at him warmly, almost like she didn't mind that he'd just mauled her in public.
Trent put his arm around her shoulders and ushered her forward. Just before they got to the main entrance, he heard someone call out his name. He turned to see Sophia rushing after them.
She looked between them. “Where have you been?”
Mara flushed red and looked down at her shoes. Trent pulled her against his side and answered before his sister could read too much into that. “We were just on our way out. Did you need something?”
“I just wanted to tell you that James was here. He was looking for you.”
Trent stood up straighter. Coupled with Avery's earlier revelation, his brother's sudden appearance was not a good thing. "When was this?"
Sophia spoke to several people who passed by, her smile never faltering. "About half an hour ago. He was arguing with Avery, and then he asked me if I'd seen you. Then he just marched off."
"Okay, thanks for letting me know."
She put her hand on his arm. "He looked really upset. What is going on between the two of you?"
Sophia had always hated to see them fight. It wasn't fair to put her in the middle of their dispute. There was nothing that she could do to help, nothing anyone could do.
"Nothing for you to worry about. Thanks for the warning though."
With a worried smile, she headed back into the party. Trent scanned the crowd, wondering if his brother was still roaming around. Hopefully he could get outside and gone without an altercation.
“What was that about?” Mara asked.
He sighed. “I have something to tell you. But not here. There are too many people around.”
She didn’t speak again, just allowed him to lead her outside, docile as a child. When he glanced over at her she was hunched over, her shoulders rounded like she was bracing for something to hit her.
And it killed Trent to realize that she was right to be scared.
* * * * *
THE RIDE BACK to the penthouse wasn’t filled with sexual tension like the ride to the gala had been. Trent had been moody and quiet ever since they’d left and nothing Mara said seemed to draw him out. All he would say is “not here” and then go back to brooding out the window. Eventually she gave up and just rested her head on the seat. It was perplexing that he was in such a bad mood when she felt so loose and satisfied.
Was he angry with her for teasing him in the middle of the party?
The thought worried her, that her bold proposition had somehow embarrassed him. Then she threw that idea out completely. Trent had been completely with her one hundred percent and he’d been the one to take her to the roped off area of the exhibit. If he’d been embarrassed by the idea of getting caught then he would have just taken her to the limo.
He definitely wouldn’t have hiked her dress up amongst a roomful of medieval weaponry.
They pulled up to the front of their building and when Shane opened the door, Mara followed Trent out. The cool night air brushed over her skin and she clutched her wrap around her shoulders. As they rode the elevator up, Mara was already planning what she would do to relax after she took off her dress and shoes. It was fun to wear such fancy clothes but the strapless bra she had to wear with the dress was starting to pinch and the soles of her feet hurt from the high arch of the heels.
“I can’t wait to take these shoes off. And take a hot bath.”
Trent smiled down at her indulgently. “I hope you don’t mind if I join you.”
When the doors opened, they walked hand-in-hand into the entryway. Mara draped her wrap over one of the kitchen barstools and set her purse down on the counter. She took out her cell phone to check if she had gotten any messages.
“Oh, my brother called. I wonder what he wanted.” She was about to call him back when she looked up and noticed the figure standing in the living room.
“Avery? What are you doing here?”
Trent looked up sharply at the words, his gaze moving around the room wildly. Avery didn’t move, just stood there, still wearing the formal gown that she’d worn to the gala.
Trent stepped forward. “Mara, I’ll take care of this. I think she had too much to drink tonight. You can go ahead and get ready for bed. I’ll just call her a cab.”
But Mara couldn’t move her feet. There was something… proprietary about the way Avery was looking at Trent. Then she raised her hand and Mara could see that she was holding a piece of paper. Trent stalked forward and snatched it.
“Avery, I don’t have time for this right now. I already said everything I wanted to say earlier. You have to leave.”
“Look at it, Trent. James just gave it to me tonight,” she rasped.
Mara moved forward, her feet moving of their own accord. Trent finally looked at the sheet of paper in his hand and then paled. He placed one hand over his heart. “Holy shit.”
Mara walked over and looked over his shoulder. When she realized what she was looking at, she backed up until she bumped into the couch. When her knees hit the furniture, she sank down.
“That’s a DNA test. Who is it for?” She asked even though she already knew the answer.
Avery was the one who answered. “Travis. My son. And Trent’s son. James had the test done and he’s not the father.” She looked over at Trent. “It has to be you.”
Mara squeezed her eyes closed. “I can’t believe I trusted you all those times you swore that she was just a friend.” She cursed her own stupidity. He’d lied to her so many times and yet she’d believed him when he said he thought of Avery like a sister. If Travis was their child, he’d clearly not been telling her the truth.
Trent still stood in the same position. “I wasn’t lying. I honestly didn’t know. When my brother told me he thought Travis was mine–“
“When?” Mara demanded. “When did James tell you this?”
Trent looked pained. “A few weeks ago.”
“Weeks! You knew about this for weeks and didn’t say anything?”
“I only knew that my brother thought it was true and I didn’t say anything because I thought it was bullshit. I didn’t think anything happened that night other than the both of us nearly having alcohol poisoning. I figured James misinterpreted something he saw.”
“You don’t think anything happened. Think? You don’t know?”
His mouth opened and his jaw worked, but no sound came out. White-hot rage rushed through her. “You don’t, do you? You knew all along that this could be true and you didn’t say anything.”
“I should have. I know that now. But I was just trying to prevent this from being blown out of proportion.”
“We're right back to where we were before. With you keeping things from me and hoping that I don't find out. With you managing me! I'm not one of your companies. We're supposed to be partners.”
Avery spoke up. “I’m so sorry, Mara. I didn't know.”
Mara spun toward her, her rage shifting focus instantly. “I’m sure you are. Sorry that your last little stunt didn’t work out the way you hoped. You may have Trent fooled but that victim persona you've got going on doesn't fool me.”
She was far too disgusted to deal with Avery right then. Because despite her words, she seemed a little too pleased with the way things were going. Every time there was a problem in her relationship with Trent, somehow Avery seemed to be right in the middle of it.
"Why are you yelling at me? It's not my fault." Avery looked over at Trent helplessly.
Trent stepped between them. “Look Avery, maybe you should go. We're all saying things we don't mean right now.”
“Why are you protecting her?” Mara wanted to throw something.
Avery s
tood to the side with that innocent and wounded look on her face and of course, Trent jumped to defend her. As if Mara was a danger to her delicate sensibilities.
“I know you feel bad for her but it's not your fault that she and James have a fucked up love life. We have our own problems to deal with. She’s a liar and she’s just doing what she always does, make up stuff to get between us.”
Avery held up the piece of paper in her hand. “I’m not making this up. James had the DNA test done, not me.”
Mara ignored her and walked back toward the kitchen. Trent seemed to suddenly wake from his trancelike state because he rushed after her, catching her arm. “Please don’t leave. Let me explain.”
“Oh, I’m not leaving.”
“You aren’t?” Trent and Avery spoke in unison.
“No. I live here. You are the one who is going to leave,” she said, looking at Avery meaningfully. “Trent and I have a lot to talk about so we need privacy for that.”
The stunned look on Avery’s face told Mara that she’d made the right decision. Avery was counting on Mara running at the first sign of trouble so she could have Trent by default. Well, Mara wasn’t going to make it that easy. Avery clearly didn’t know what real love was like. She was in this thing with Trent until the finish line, even when things got hard.
Avery’s breath came faster and her hands clenched into fists. “But you have to leave! You aren’t right for him. You’re just like her. God, you died and I still can’t get rid of you.”
A chill went down her spine at the words. “What are you talking about?”
Suddenly Avery grabbed her by the arm and pulled her down the hall to the master bedroom, slamming the door behind them. When she turned the lock, Mara’s heart skipped a beat.
“What are you doing?”
On the other side, she could hear Trent yelling. Avery didn’t stop, just started looking around the room. Then when her eyes landed on Trent’s closet, she pushed Mara in that direction. Mara stumbled in and fell. Avery pulled the door closed after them and then pushed the dresser in front of the closet door to block it just as there was a thunderous crash on the other side.
“Now, where would he hide them? This is the only room I haven’t checked.” Avery peered in each of the dresser drawers, leaving them hanging open when she moved on. She ran her hands over the suits and coats hanging on the rack. Mara was about to yell at her to stop touching Trent’s stuff when there was a bang on the door. The knob turned back and forth and then jiggled wildly.
“Avery, open the damned door!”
Mara shivered. She’d never heard him act like this. He sounded different. Violent. Then there was another loud bang and she realized he was trying to force the door open. Avery was now down on her hands and knees looking for … something.
The closet door vibrated again as Trent rammed it. Mara whimpered as the sound reverberated through the room. If he hadn’t been acting so crazy she would have just opened the door and let him in but at the moment she was actually scared to do that.
“Trent, please calm down. You’re scaring me!”
The banging on the door stopped instantly but she could still hear his frantic breaths on the other side of the wood. “Mara, please come out. Come out now so we can talk about this.”
She glanced over at Avery. “What are you looking for?”
“Pictures. Didn’t you notice there are no pictures in this place? I left one for you to find but he must have taken it. You need to see so you can understand. Aha!” She’d found a brown, cardboard box pushed into the corner. After rooting around inside, Avery turned around, a picture frame held triumphantly over her head.
Mara took the frame, her arm shaking slightly before she even turned it over. Maybe a part of her knew what she would see. Or maybe it was just a reaction to Avery’s sadistic smile or the sound of Trent ramming his shoulder against the door again. But when she turned the picture over, only a small gasp escaped.
“Now you see,” Avery spat. “You’re not the love of Trent’s life. She is.”
Mara clutched at the wooden frame until her fingers turned white. In the picture a much younger Trent grinned back at the camera, a look of carefree joy on his face. The girl in the picture had her arms wrapped around him and a beautiful open smile on her face.
Even her smile looked identical to Mara’s own.
“She looks like me,” Mara whispered. “This isn’t possible. We met at college. It was totally random.”
It seemed so long ago now, that first day on campus when they’d met. Matt didn’t even know that she’d met Trent on campus before she’d seen him in Matt’s room. They’d bumped into each other in the registrar’s office. She’d been there clearing up an error on her class schedule. He’d seemed so interested in her and she’d been flattered.
All the emotions she’d expected to feel when she first saw the picture suddenly slammed into her like a tsunami. A soft sob escaped before she could hold it back.
What she’d assumed was interest must have been shock. The way he’d stared at her … Then he’d shown up in Matt’s room as his new roommate. Their friendship had been a foregone conclusion at that point.
But had he really been interested in her or was she just a stand-in for the girl he’d lost?
Chapter Seventeen
TRENT SLID TO the ground on the floor outside the closet. As soon as he’d heard Mara’s broken cry, all the fight had drained from his body. His shoulder ached from where he’d been ramming it into the door but he didn’t even care. The pain was just one of many at this point and the majority weren’t even physical.
How had things gotten to this point? He stared blankly into the room. When he’d seen Mara in her evening gown it had signaled a turning point in his mind. She’d embraced his world with warmth and a willing enthusiasm to adapt. Galas and socializing weren’t important to him and he could have gladly continued to ignore all those things but they were important to his parents. His sister. His world.
Mara had seen all that before he did. She’d made the effort to be a part of things and had functioned as a bridge, pulling him from his solitude and back into the light. Watching her work the room at his sister’s side earlier that night had seemed so right. Like the kind of thing he could imagine doing for the next ten, twenty or even fifty years. For the first time, he’d been able to see a future completely unencumbered by the past and that future had been bright.
But now, the joy he’d experienced earlier was only a distant memory.
When the door finally opened, Avery stepped out. The yellow-hued light from the closet spilled out into the room and her shadow loomed on the floor. She didn’t say anything just stood next him, waiting. He could feel all the questions she wasn’t asking and the comments she wasn’t making swirling through the air between. When she knelt beside him, he turned his head away. A few minutes later, he heard the soft pads of her footsteps as she walked away.
He didn’t look at her as she left. The next time he looked up, Mara stood in the doorway.
She stepped over his legs, the small train of her gown swishing around her legs. Bracing one hand against the wall, she carefully sat next to him. Her cell phone was still clutched in her hand and a picture frame rested in her lap.
When she spoke, her voice sounded rusty. “Sophia told me that day when we went shopping that you’d had a girlfriend who died. She mentioned that she looked like me. But the way she said it, I thought she was just being bitchy. Everyone has a type. I’ve always had a thing for blond guys. I figured you have a thing for naturally tanned brunettes, no big deal.”
Trent wanted to reach out for her so badly, to just pull her into his lap and kiss the tortured look off her face. But even though she was sitting next to him, talking to him, her body language screamed stand back. He had to respect her space. Especially when he hadn’t been giving her the respect she deserved in any other aspect.
“Sophia was upset that day when she met you. We argued over lunch
. I made her promise that she wouldn’t say a word about Tia. That was something I needed to tell you myself. Then when you came home and asked about her, it was an opportunity. I’ve never told anyone exactly what happened before.” He chanced a glance over at her. She was watching him with the kind of care you give a person who could go off the deep end at any minute.
“No one? What about your parents? The police?”
He shook his head. “My family’s lawyer told me to answer the questions posed to me and offer nothing additional. I told them the facts. Tia and I had gone on a date and then I’d taken her home. I had to tell them that we were intimate, which was humiliating enough, but no one knew what we argued about. It wasn’t just myself that I was protecting.”
“James. You were protecting your brother.” She let out a soft sigh.
“If they’d known that she was heartbroken over James, it would have just thrown fire on the rumor mill and for what? It wasn’t going to bring her back. It didn’t matter.”
“But it does matter. All of this matters. Because it’s still affecting you now. It’s affecting you, your brother and Avery. I think that’s why Sophia told me. She wasn’t just trying to be mean; she was trying to protect both of us. Because this,” she held up the picture frame. “You have to see how incredibly disturbing this is.”
“I was going to tell you tonight. That’s why I wanted to come straight home. I knew that it was just a matter of time before someone said something to you. Or until another picture surfaced. I just needed to make you understand first.”
Mara closed her eyes. “This whole time, I’ve been trying to understand. Even after you told me about Tia, there was this distance between us that I could never cross. And I knew that she was at the heart of it. Her death was a defining moment in your life.”
