The Cliff

by Gucker, Christie A. C.

Jack nodded and got into the limo with all the other parents. The former three musketeers watched as they left. Things were so different now. There were no longer any pacts in place. I turned toward “my guys” and looked at them both. How differently I felt about them now. One I loved deeply. The other I hated. When their car was out of site, Dane turned toward us.

  “I know it’s a lot to ask of you, seeing as I put you both through hell lately, but I need your help.”

  “What could you possibly need?” I asked, feeling very skeptical.

  “It’s the business. I screwed up. Bad.”

  “What the hell did you do, Dane?” Grant was on the edge of losing whatever patience he had been trying to maintain.

  “I lost the SamSyd account.”

  “What? What the hell are you talking about? That’s one of our largest accounts.” Grant’s patience was gone. Well, that didn’t take long.

  “Dane, why are we just hearing about this now? When did this happen?” I was scared. This was the bread and butter of our company, easy to maintain. I couldn’t imagine how he screwed it up.

  “I didn’t want to say anything with our parents here.” Dane looked scared, too. I couldn’t help but wonder if this was just another game or if this was for real. I didn’t pay much attention to the books, but last I checked, that account was doing just fine.

  “That’s ridiculous. They secured that account in the first place. Maybe they could’ve stepped in and made a call on our behalf.”

  “Dane, you need to tell us what happened. Maybe we can salvage it,” I said.

  Dane shook his head and looked down at his feet.

  “Dane, I’m done playing games with you. You need to tell us right now. This is our business, too. And don’t think I’m not aware that our parents still own this company, and that you didn’t tell them because you were afraid they’d take you out of the equation.” Yes. Grant had had enough. He wasn’t going to take any of Dane’s crap anymore. It was quite clear he wasn’t standing down on this.

  “Well, I kind of made a comment to who I thought was a secretary. I called her sweetheart and told her to get someone of consequence on the phone,” he began.

  “And?”

  “Well, seems she was the boss’s daughter, and she’s taking over the company. She found my remarks rather condescending.”

  “Dane, you fucking idiot, what the fuck has gotten into you lately? First, you start with dirty tricks and deceit with us, your family. You pretty much raped Lanie. You continually—”

  “No. We already talked about this. Why do you keep saying I raped her? You already know it wasn’t like that!” Dane and Grant were now yelling at the top of their lungs at each other.

  “Seriously? You still think what you did to her was consensual? Really? Because I am seriously starting to doubt it.” Grant was laughing, but it was an angry laugh, an incredulous one.

  “But it was. I didn’t rape her. I told you. I would never do that. Not to anyone, especially not Lanie. It was a misunderstanding. She was drunk. I was drunk. She thought I was you. I thought she wanted me. We were really drunk.”

  “Dane, you understand I want to kill you right now, right? I’ve wanted to fucking kill you since the night that happened. But I gave you a chance, I listened to your lies and I believed them because of our past. But this entire time, even now, it still doesn’t make sense to me. If it was mutual, why did you hit her?”

  “I was drunk, it was a reaction.”

  “Stop. I want you both to stop. I don’t want to hear this. I don’t want rehash all this.” I felt all the color drain from my face. This conversation was making me sick. I didn’t want to go back there. I didn’t want Grant to think about Dane and I being intimate. I wanted my life to be happy now, with Grant. I wanted to forget.

  “Lanie knows it was all a misunderstanding.”

  I turned toward Dane, now my face filled with color. I wanted to kill him.

  “No, Dane. I don’t understand anything. You knew Grant and I were together. You brought that whore into our home and you pitted her against us. That alone should make us hate you. But then you … you drugged me and you raped me. Do you hear me, Dane? You raped me. I didn’t want that. I didn’t want you to touch me like that. I only ever wanted Grant to touch me like that. You fucked up royally and I’ll never forgive you. Never! You took something that wasn’t yours to take.”

  I had admitted to myself that he forced himself on me; but saying it now, out loud to him, made it real. I was finally letting Dane know what I thought about that night. It was finally out there. Now he was forced to come to terms with the truth. He couldn’t keep denying it. Grant reached over and pulled me close. His hold was protective and I felt safe. Dane had a stunned look on his face, which then transformed into a look of hurt and pain.

  “Lanie, no. I would never force you. Drugs? No! I would never do that. Lanie, Grant, you have to believe me. I wouldn’t, not to our Lanie. No!”

  He was almost believable, but there was a part of me that just couldn’t process his reaction. It would take everything for me to accept this. I couldn’t just let him wipe it away with just his words anymore.

  “Dane, didn’t it occur to you that she didn’t want you when she scratched you? When she told you that you were being too rough and struggled, tried to push you off her?”

  “Grant, I swear on my mother’s life. I never meant for Lanie to think I forced myself on her. Never. I honestly believed she wanted me. I just thought in her drunken state, she didn’t care. I didn’t realize how serious you two were. You’ve brought this all up before. I never drugged her. The only thing I can think is it was Lori. This whole thing was her idea. She even had the glasses out. She was at the house. She was hiding in the other room, she was watching. I didn’t—”

  “You didn’t care, Dane. You didn’t think, except about yourself. All you cared about was getting what you wanted—Lanie. You’re selfish. You took advantage of her and then you continued to fuck with her, with us. Now you have the nerve to come ask us for help when you fuck up again?”

  “Wait. What the hell do you mean Lori was watching? That’s sick—so sick. How can you say you thought what we were doing was okay when you invited someone to watch? Does that sound normal to you?” I could feel the tears again. Jesus, I was an emotional wreck. Everything made me cry. What the hell?

  “And now you’re making her cry again and that makes me want to kill you even more, Dane. You hurt my Lanie. Do you get that? She’s mine. She will always be mine, and it sickens me to think about how you touched her. I want to retch every time I think about you being intimate with her.”

  Grant’s words stung me. I knew deep down the image of Dane and I together had never left him. I turned my head up to look at him with watery eyes and he immediately saw my pain.

  “Lanie, I’m sorry. I don’t mean for this to hurt you. I don’t want this to ever hurt you again. We have to move past this, and pretending it didn’t happen or never discussing it between the three of us isn’t helping.”

  “Grant, how can you be with me? Every time you touch me, you must picture it; think of me with Dane.” I had said these words to him before, but I just couldn’t shake the feeling he could never forget.

  “When I’m with you, it’s only about us, no one else. Your touch, your kiss; it erases all the pain I feel about anything, Lanie.”

  He pulled me tighter and kissed the top of my head gently.

  “I’m so sorry. I never meant things to happen like this. I just wanted Lanie. When I realized you were going to break the pact, I wanted her for my own. You broke the pact. That meant fair game.”

  “I’m not a prize, Dane. This isn’t a game! This was never a competition. For years, Grant and I kept our feelings locked inside because of that stupid childhood pact. We did it because we didn’t want to hurt you! All those years lost. And when we finally take the chance to be together, you try and ruin everything because of what, Dane? Your fucking ego?” I was yelli
ng at him and sobbing in between. It was like the dam had finally burst. “This is supposed to be the happiest time in my life, and you’ve done nothing but try and fuck it up.” I lashed out at him with both my words and my hand, which I slapped across his face as hard as I could leaving a very red mark in its wake.

  Dane and Grant both stared at me.

  “He deserved it.”

  “You’re right, Lanie, he did. And he deserves much worse from me.” Grant’s words were extremely threatening. He was staring Dane right in the eyes when he said it.

  “I’m sorry. I wish I could take it all back. That night, the morning on the cliff with you, Grant—I don’t know what else to say. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Lanie, I never meant to force myself on you. It was never that in my head. Never. Grant, you’re right. I hurt you both and I deserve whatever you give me.”

  In a split second, Grant’s fist was connecting with Dane’s face, and he was flat on his back.

  “I know I deserved that, but damn, I think you broke my nose.”

  “Yes, you fucking did deserve it! And you’re lucky I don’t finish by breaking every bone in your body. Lanie?”

  I looked at my two guys. Dane’s nose was bleeding and Grant was waiting for me to make a decision as to how this all played out. I wanted to tell Grant to finish the job and let him push Dane off the cliff, but I couldn’t. This needed to be done with, and Dane lived too close and was too involved in our lives to just let him go. Our history was so much deeper than these past few weeks. It encompassed our whole lives; the three of us, intertwined.

  “Dane, I can’t ever forgive you for what you’ve done to me.”

  His eyes were sad and I thought he was going to cry now. I hadn’t seen him look that upset since Callie left him, again his own doing. He was always fucking everything up.

  “But, you’ve been like my brother for many years. I love you that way, and I can’t just pretend you don’t exist anymore, so you could say this is your last chance. I need to move on from this. I’m going to marry Grant and we’re going raise our children together on this cliff. You are part of this place and despite how absolutely infuriated I am with you, I can’t not have you in my life.”

  “Thank you, Lanie. I’m so sorry, I’m so so sorry. Grant?” Dane looked to Grant for the same. But I could tell by the look in his eyes that Dane wasn’t getting it.

  “I will always hold you at arm’s length, Dane. I’ll never trust you again. And I’m only doing this for Lanie’s sake, because this is how she wants things. Do you understand me? If you ever, ever hurt her again, I will kill you.”

  Dane hung his head and nodded.

  “Now tell us what the hell happened with the account and how we can make it better,” Grant said with a serious, no bullshit tone.

  “The account is not salvageable. There is no way to save it.”

  “Oh my God, this is terrible. What the hell are we going to do?” I just couldn’t catch a break. I just couldn’t have my plateful of happiness without a heaping side of shit.

  “I have something better. It’s going to double what that account was. There’s only one small glitch.”

  “What account is it? And what’s the glitch?” I questioned.

  “The client will only work directly with …”

  Chapter 35

  You’ll Skype Me Every Night, Right?

  “… Grant.”

  “Why? Who is this client?” I didn’t understand why any Client would only want to meet with Grant. He was a behind-the-scenes guy.

  “She’s—” Dane began, still rubbing his nose.

  “She? The client will only work with Grant and she’s a she?” I felt a pit in my stomach. I didn’t want Grant traipsing off to meet with some she-client who would only work with him.

  “Lanie, there’s absolutely no reason to worry. Maybe she just needs someone who’s more technical to discuss the business with.” Grant’s voice was calming.

  “Dane, you know the technical side. You can go over everything with her. Who is it, anyway?”

  “I don’t know enough to answer what she’s asking. And it’s Tanner Industries. I’m sure you’ve heard of them. Brianna Stone is the owner. “

  “We’ve been trying to get our foot in the door there for years. How did you finally get in?” I was amazed. This account was untouchable. They’d been avoiding our calls forever.

  “I don’t really know. Something must have happened, because she called me, out of the blue. I was pretty impressed myself.”

  “So how did I come into this?” Grant hissed. He hated meeting with clients. Kissing client ass was not his forte.

  “She read that exposé they did on us. She said she needed new blood to make her numbers rise. She insisted on meeting with Grant.”

  “Fine. Whatever I have to do to save our company. Should I call her?”

  “She wants an in-person meeting. She wouldn’t have it any other way.” Dane was looking down when he said it.

  “I can see already she’s going to be a PITA.” Grant rolled his eyes. Not only did he now have to deal with a client directly, but she had to be a needy one, too.

  “Fine, when do we all fly out to meet with her?” I was fine leaving again. This time I wouldn’t be leaving Grant behind. I’d have to have Chelsie watch Woof.

  “No, we’re not flying out. Only Grant is flying out. She only wants to meet with him. She was quite explicit.”

  “No. No way. There is no way Grant is going out to meet her alone.” I was jealous and there was no hiding it. It was plainly written all over my face.

  “Lanie, you have nothing to worry about.” He picked up my hand and pointed to my ring.

  “Right. There’s no engagement ring on your finger. How’s she supposed to know you’re taken? You men planned that!”

  “Lanie, you’re getting all upset about nothing. That ring is my promise to you. You don’t have to worry about her; you just have to trust me. Don’t you trust me?”

  “Of course I do. I’m just, I don’t know. We just got engaged and now you have to leave.” I knew he was right. I had nothing to worry about. Grant had proven his love for me. Even if she did try something, he’d never let anything happen. This was all in my head anyway. I was being a jealous child.

  “Look, Lanie, you have nothing to be insecure about. This is just business. Brianna Stone is all about the money. And my nose and I can tell you, Grant is all about you.”

  “I think you need some ice, Dane. Really. Your nose looks bad.” I smiled and also winced for him. His nose was blowing up larger and larger the longer we talked.

  “Whatever. I’m not a baby. So, the meeting is in two days, so you’ll have to fly out to meet with her. I’ll set up all the flights and reservations for you with my miles.” Maybe he was sorry. He was being awfully helpful. But he needed us right now.

  “Fine. Lanie, you’re coming with me, right? She doesn’t have to sit in on the meetings.” Grant looked at me and then at Dane.

  “I need Lanie here with me to help with a PR campaign to cover for the loss. The news is hitting the industry fast.”

  “But I want to go with Grant. I can work remotely.”

  “Lanie, we have a press conference. I need you here. Please. It’s all going to be fine now that you guys are helping me.” Dane really did seem grateful. He reached his hand out to Grant.

  Grant just stood there for a moment, looking at it like it had some kind of radioactive goo all over it. He slowly reached out and grabbed Dane’s hand. Dane’s face lit up as Grant’s face relaxed.

  “You’ll webcam with me every night, right? How long will he be gone?”

  “I guess until she signs the contract. Maybe a week tops.”

  “A week? Grant,” I whined.

  “Lanie, this is the last time I will ever leave your side. We’ll be together every day for the rest of our lives. It’s only a few days, anyway. I promise to leave you with a huge smile on your face. Okay?” He pulled me close and kis
sed me.

  I wanted to run out and get him a puppy and name it Meow or something, so he couldn’t leave. I knew I was being ridiculous but this bad feeling just wouldn’t quit. I’m not really sure what it was, but I was panicking, and when that happened, it was usually right.

  “Can we just spend the next two days in bed? I’m going to make sure you’re completely marked before you leave.”

  “Lanie,” Grant laughed, “I had every intention of spending the next week in bed with you. But I’ll take what I can get. Two days in bed it is!” He pulled me to him and planted a gentle kiss on my lips. Dane looked away.

  “Well, you two look like you have something to get to, so … I’ll let you get to it. But I want to say thank you and sorry again. I really am happy for you both. You make a perfect couple and, well, if I can’t have Lanie for myself, then I can’t think of a better man to be with her to make her happy.”