Hungry Heart: Part Two (8 page)

“I am.”

“Me too.” Destiny comes up beside him and he wraps his arm around her waist, then tosses me a grin. “Guess what?”

“What?”

Destiny holds up her hand, but it takes me a moment to register it’s her left hand, and she’s showing me a ring.

A ring.

And it takes Benedict saying, “Wow, congratulations you two,” before I register Ethan is engaged to Destiny, and he’s standing there grinning at me, waiting for a response.

I open my mouth and then shut it, realizing that saying I love you is nothing compared to Ethan proposing to Destiny, whom he met after I met Benedict. I’m so shocked by this I’m not even sure what to say to Ethan. I mean, he didn’t even tell me he was going to propose or anything, and I wonder why the hell not. We usually tell each other everything, especially something like this, and even if it doesn’t make sense really, I’m hurt at not knowing he was planning to do such a thing.

But now is not the time or place, so I force a smile to my face and step forward to hug him before he guesses something is wrong. “Congratulations you two! This is such a surprise!”

“Well,” Ethan says into my ear, hugging me back. “When you know, you know, right?”

“Definitely. I can’t believe it though!”

“Me either!” Destiny leans in to give me a hug when I let go of Ethan and I pat her back awkwardly. “He completely shocked me but oh god, I can’t wait!”

Lucky for me, my phone buzzes on the counter behind me, which I pick up once she lets me go.

“Oh, it’s Nathan! I’ve gotta take this.”

“You can use my office Caroline.” Benedict steps out of my way and gives me a quick peck on the lips. “I’ll wait for you here.”

I acknowledge him with a smile even as I put a finger in one ear to block out the noise while I answer the phone with my other hand, lifting it up to my ear as I walk toward his office.

“Happy New Year, baby,” he says the moment he realizes I’ve picked up. “You at the club?”

“Yeah, I am. Wish you were here.”

“Actually,” he says with a laugh. “I am. I’m standing near the front entrance, inside the door. I’m super tired and want to go home to sleep, but come and give me a hug real quick?”

With a squeal of happiness, I hang up the phone and turn around, looking for the quickest path to the front of the club. Finding it, I take off at a run, squeezing past anyone and everyone I can until I do exactly that. One of the bouncers nods at me as I walk out of the second entryway and that’s when I see Nathan standing right inside the main door. The blatant look of relief he gets confuses me, but then he opens his arms and I walk right into them.

Enveloping me in his arms, our lips find one another with ease, and he smiles down at me when he pulls back a second later. “Hey. So fucking happy to see you, baby.”

His exhaustion practically pours from him, noticeable even in his voice, and his eyes have dark circles around them, but he still looks thrilled to see me. And I’m equally as excited to see him.

“Let me go get my coat. We can go home together.”

With a shake of his head, he gives me another quick kiss before dropping his arms from around me. “I’m just gonna go home and pass out, baby. That’s why I came here so we could see each other. I was just gonna go home but I didn’t want you to find me there in the morning and get upset I didn’t tell you I was back. So, stay here and have fun with everyone, for me, okay?”

I wish I could say I understand, but I don’t. I’d lie next to him even if I’m wide awake if it meant I would be close to him. But — and I don’t know what it is — something tells me he wants me to do as he asks and not take it personally. He’s tired, he looks it, and he just wants to go to sleep. I try to turn my frown back into a smile, but it’s hard because I just want to go home with him.

As always, he knows what’s going on in my head, lifting a hand to stroke my cheek as he gives me another soft smile. “I love you. We’ll spend the whole day together tomorrow, and it’ll be way better than right now when I’m so exhausted I can barely see straight, all right?”

“Yeah.” I nod, trying to convince myself more than him that I’m okay with this. “Yeah. I love you too.”

“Caroline, what the—” Benedict’s voice from behind me has both me and Nathan jumping. Whirling to face him, his eyes widen when he recognizes exactly who I’m talking to. “Oh, hey man. I wondered why she took off running like a crazy person. Sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“Nah, it’s okay. I’m going home to pass out anyway. See you in the morning baby.” Nathan brushes his lips against mine, then looks over at Benedict as he says, “Take care of her man.”

“Always.”

With a final lingering glance at me, Nathan turns and walks out the door into the night, leaving me there staring at his back as tear fill my eyes.

“I don’t understand,” I whisper as Benedict steps close and pulls me close to his side. “He didn’t want to me to go home with him. Said he just wants to sleep and I should stay here and have fun.”

“He looked pretty tired, sweetheart. He probably didn’t want to put an end to your night just so you could go home and watch him sleep.”

I wish it were that simple, but something about this whole thing bugs me, as it has since he took his trip in the first place. And even though he left me here, now all I’ll think about is how he’s at home and I’m not with him.

Something I’m pretty sure Benedict realizes because he sighs and says, “If you’re that worried, let me make sure the staff can take care of things here and I’ll take you home.”

“Thank you.”

It’s not even thirty minutes later when we leave the club to take me home, Benedict holding my hand the whole way.

12

When we get to the house, Benedict insists on walking me up to the door, and even though it’s not a far walk from the driveway, it is pitch black out. I’m not really sure why Nathan hadn’t turned on the porch light like he always does, but I suppose that’s the least of my concerns right now.

It’s real quiet as I enter after unlocking the door with Benedict right behind me, and when his body tenses against mine, his fingers tightening on my shoulders, I’m instantly on alert.

“What?”

“Shh. Do you hear that?”

After listening for a few seconds, I whisper, “No. I don’t hear anything. Are you trying to scare me?”

“Of course not. Maybe it’s just the tv.”

“Probably. He likes to watch it to go to sleep.” Shrugging out of my cold with a roll of my eyes, I hang up my coat in the closet while Benedict shuts the door softly behind him. When I finish doing that, I turn to face him with my hands on my hips and raise a brow. “Planning to spend the night?”

“Course not. You want to be alone with Nathan and I completely understand. I will miss you though.” He steps real close and backs me up against the wall, planting his hands palm down while lowering his head toward mine. “Give me a kiss goodbye.”

Slipping my hands inside his jacket, I slide my hands up his chest slowly, locking his hot gaze with my own naughty one accompanied by an equally wicked grin. Then, lifting one hand to each side of his face so each cups a jaw, I move in enough to press our lips together, and he’s instantly taking advantage of our position.

Not wanting to deny myself or him the pleasure we feel when we’re touching each other, my mouth opens under the pressure from his, and his tongue invades my mouth like I’m sure he wants to invade my pussy with his cock. His body presses into mine and a small jerk of his hips has mine hitting the door, but that isn’t what makes me still and push on Benedict’s shoulder.

It’s the shout of a woman’s voice I don’t recognize coming from upstairs.

Benedict pushes off without a word and ducking under his arm, I take off down the hall until I reach the stairs and pause as Nathan replies, his words muffled.

“Stop,” Benedict whisper as he comes up beside me. “Let’s try to hear what they’re saying before you run up there.”

I’m angry at the idea Nathan lied to me, but more confused at why he’d find it necessary. “If he wanted to be alone with someone, why didn’t he just say so? Why tell me he was going to bed?”

“I dunno,” he hisses, snatching my hand with his while using his other to grip my jaw and make me look at him. “Calm down. I didn’t see a car other than his and yours outside. Maybe somebody showed up?”

I rip my hand from his to throw my arms up in the air in a frustrated gesture. “At nearly one a.m.? Who just shows up unannounced that late unless—”

A loud crash from Nathan’s bedroom makes us both jump, and we both stare at each other wide-eyed. I’m the first to react, taking the steps two at a time while Benedict trails behind me, and once we’re both at the top of the steps, we walk as quietly as possible toward the bedroom. I’m glad for the soft carpet beneath my feet making it so no footsteps can be heard but it doesn’t help the roiling of my stomach as we inch closer.

Benedict pulls out his phone and swipes across the screen under the dialer pops up. We’re halfway down the hall when I stop because the woman’s voice starts up again, and it’s clear I don’t know this woman, but I listen as they fight back and forth because I have no idea what’s going on in the slightest.

“Why are you mad at me? You’re the lying sack of fucking shit here!”

“I didn’t lie! How many times do I have to tell you that?”

“No? What the hell are you doing living in this house? With that woman?”

“I told you, Rox—”

“I don’t fucking care for your excuses! Start explaining yourself now, or I’ll shoot you. I fucking swear I will!”

“Baby, please, you know it’s complicated—”

His term of endearment for me, directed at her, rips into my heart. Even in all the time he dated Rissa, I’ve never heard him call anyone baby except me.

Yet it’s clear the woman doesn’t care what he calls her. She’s getting more hysterical by the moment as her voice continues to rise, and I wonder who she is, whether she really has a gun aimed at Nathan, and how they are connected. “No it’s not, not fucking complicated at all. I followed you here from the airport because I knew you were full of bullshit. You’re just pissed I found you; I told you I would, didn’t I? And so did my daddy. How dare you fucking leave me behind without even saying goodbye!”

Benedict touches my arm and when I look up at him, he puts a finger to his mouth to indicate I should stay quiet and lifts his phone in the air. Taking a step back and then another, he disappears until I can barely see him around the corner and I realize he’s calling the police.

For a brief moment I consider if I should just leave. It’s obvious Nathan hadn’t wanted me here, and maybe this is why. Maybe he knew this crazy person was going to show up and he hadn’t wanted me around it. But now I’m worried about him. How does he know her? Why did she say he left her behind? If she followed him from the airport, had she seen him with me? It’s clear she knows about me and Rissa so he must’ve told her? And most of all, if he’s in trouble and has been, why wouldn’t he tell me?

Hearing the faintest sound of Benedict talking into the phone, I step closer to the door to listen once more to their arguing, more confused than I’ve ever been. But it’s not long before she answers at least one of my questions.

“You said you were working, trying to keep us safe, but you were here, fucking two other women! How can you think I’ll ever trust you again?” He mutters something I can’t hear and she laughs with clear disbelief. “You’ve been gone four fucking years and when you finally come home it’s to tell me you want a divorce! After all we’ve been through? After all I’ve done for you…”

I don’t know what she says after that because I back away from the door, horror at realizing Nathan’s lied to me all this time spreading through my whole body. Questions fly through my mind so fast I’m not even sure what I’m thinking and they mix with the feelings of betrayal and confusion and anger. I don’t understand what I just heard, it doesn’t mesh with the life I’ve had with Nathan, with our relationship.

Two minutes. Five. In reality, I don’t know how much time passes, but when the sound of sirens finally registers in my ears, the question of whether or not she actually has a gun is answered.

One shot is fired, followed quickly by another.

My mouth drops open, but I don’t know whether I scream or not, my whole world in a blur as I fall to my knees. Did she shoot him? Was she going to come shoot me if she heard me scream? I don’t even care. At this point, I wish she would because the pain couldn’t possibly be any worse.

And when a third shot is fired a few seconds after the first two, I feel Benedict lift me off the floor and start to carry me away as tears stream down my face. But I don’t want to go. I want to see if Nathan is okay and I start kicking my legs, screaming, “Let me go! I have to see if he’s okay!”

“Goddamnit, calm down Caroline! The cops are here. Let them come up and make sure it’s safe.” He keeps walking, keeping me secure even as I stop fighting him, and heads down the steps.

“She shot him. Oh god, she had to have shot him. She said she was his wife.”

He finally sets me down after carrying me outside and pulls me against him.“I’m so sorry, sweetheart. You shouldn’t’ve heard that. You don’t know if anything she said is true.”

“I don’t…I don’t understand—”

The next little while is hazy as the police arrive, shock taking hold of me and refusing to let go, but when the police come back down and shake their head at both of us, the look on Benedict’s face is all I see.

A look that tells me the love of my life is dead, as is the woman who murdered him.

And with that, my entire life changes.

To Be Continued…

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