Pulled (13 page)

I couldn’t let go and neither could he, it seemed.

“Hel o, Melanie.” The words were soft but laden with need, each tumbling from his lips like a song. My cheeks burned red, the heat rising up my body and settling on my face.

I could only nod and swal ow.

A slight “ahem” from beside him caused him to reluctantly drop my hand. My arm felt heavy with the loss. I glanced to the left at the ridiculously beautiful woman sitting in the chair beside him, bile rising in my throat at the sight of her. She wasn’t even the same girl who’d taken my place.

Confusion clouded my head. My knees started to shake, and I grabbed the back of the chair to steady myself, trying to remain coherent. I’d never passed out before, but I was sure I was only seconds away.

I tried to focus as Daniel introduced Vanessa to everyone around the table. She leaned forward, taking each person’s hand before settling back into her seat.

My hands shook and my legs wobbled as

Nicholas pul ed my chair out for me. For once, I was thankful for the false chivalry as I stumbled into my chair.

Nicholas took the chair to my right directly beside Daniel, and Katie sat to my left.

Katie kept glancing my way, but I tried to avoid her eyes. I gave in when she clenched my thigh with her hand, demanding my attention.

I snapped my head in her direction as she mouthed, “What’s going on?” I shook my head. I’d tel her later.

I kept my head down while the waiter came and took our drink orders, but the pul wouldn’t al ow it for long.

My eyes traveled up until they rested on Daniel’s face.

God, I missed him.

So many emotions raged inside me. I didn’t know how I was going to make it through dinner. Either I needed to run to Daniel or run from him, but I could do neither, so I sat and stared at the one person my heart cried out for every day.

I tried to pay attention to what was going on around me as Nicholas and Shane began to present their proposal to Daniel.

“So Daniel, I’m sure you’l find...” Nicholas’s voice was a distant sound in my head, everything other than Daniel was a haze around me. I stil had never seen a more beautiful man, but he was so different from the carefree boy I once knew. His hair was in utter disarray; the color had darkened with age, but stil had natural light streaks. I longed to run my fingers through it the way I used to. His body was stil firm, muscles toned and smooth, now maybe even thinner than he had been before.

But it was his eyes that broke my heart al over again. No longer did they glimmer with the joy that used to radiate from them. Instead, the intensity was gone, the life sucked from them. There had been a faint flicker of it as they first met mine, passing in the same instant.

The sadness surrounding his presence was

sickening, like a disease had taken over his body, and he had given up his wil to live. His cheeks were sunken, and there were dark bags under his eyes.

I had never wanted to comfort anyone more. I wanted to cal his name, to touch his face, to taste his lips. I wanted to assure him that my love for him was unending. I wanted to promise we could heal together. I wanted to forgive him, to forget about the past, to move on. There was one simple fact that held me back.

He didn’t want me anymore.

But seeing him now—my spirit couldn’t believe that. I could feel he loved me. But sometimes love just wasn’t enough. He needed more than I could give.

I looked at his wife or girlfriend, I wasn’t sure which, and jealously surged through my whole being.

Had he pledged his life to her, to love her forever?

Did he go to bed with her every night and pul her body against his, holding her the way he used to hold me? Did they have children waiting at home?

Sweat broke out across my forehead, and I swal owed back the bile that had risen in my throat.

If he had al these things, why was he so broken?

He had the same look on his face that I had every day when I looked in the mirror. He was nothing more than a shel of a person.

Daniel seemed to be struggling to listen to what Nicholas was saying. His gaze would travel to me and then snap back to Nicholas as if he was in a constant war with himself. I could almost feel his body drifting in my direction even though it stayed in place.

Nicholas kept looking at me and then back at Daniel, suspicion thick on his brow. While he had no idea who Daniel was, it was clear there was something going on.

“So, Daniel,” Nicholas handed him another sheet of paper. “If you take a look at this, you’l see that we have the building permit outlined here. We should be able to get it through the city in four to six weeks.” Nicholas pointed something out on the paper, but Daniel did little more than glance at it before his eyes came back to me.

Nicholas tensed, his possessive nature getting the best of him, and he reached his hand out to stroke my face. I cringed away. He ran his hand down my face to rest on the side of my neck, his fingers digging into my skin. He leaned into my face as if he was going to kiss my cheek.

Instead, he whispered, “Bitch,” low enough that only I could hear.

Daniel’s hands resting on the table tightened into fists, his face burned, and his eyes, dead only moments ago, now fil ed with pure hate.

Rarely had I seen that expression on his face, but I knew it—Daniel was absolutely dripping with rage. He looked as if he was going to rip Nicholas’s arm off. I could see he was restraining himself in his seat, holding himself back, his fury threatening to explode.

I just didn’t understand it. He didn’t want me! How could he sit there and be angry that I was with somebody else when he had let me go? I wanted to scream at him, to beg him for an answer. Why? Why did he do this to me?

Love and hate warred within me, tearing my soul apart.

Daniel’s date sat silent, fidgeting with her napkin, leaning in further and further toward him. He ignored her.

She sighed every few seconds, seeking his attention, but it seemed as if he didn’t even know she was there.

Nicholas had grown frustrated with the situation, his voice commanding attention as he tried to force his presentation on Daniel. There was an edge to his voice that no smart businessman would ever direct toward a potential client, but I knew Nicholas. He was jealous that I was receiving what he thought he deserved. I was supposed to be there to win him more attention, not to take it from him.

Poor Shane seemed to have no clue what was going on, only that things were spiraling out of control. He jumped in trying to salvage the evening. I felt awful that my presence had ruined this for him. I looked at him, offering a weak smile of encouragement as he cut in and started speaking for Nicholas.

Katie stared at Daniel as he stared at me. She was trying to sort everything out. I could see it in the squint of her eyes and the furrow of her brow.

Shane seemed to have drawn Daniel in, asking him questions about how he felt about certain details. I could stil feel the tension radiating off him, but he was at least having a serious conversation with Shane. He stil had never even glanced at Vanessa, who sipped her water, appearing bored or maybe annoyed. Shane made quick progress, and it seemed al of Daniel’s concerns were put to rest, Shane having a solution for everything. Nicholas seethed at Shane, jealous, once again, that his younger partner had the charisma he lacked.

Relief washed over the table when dinner arrived.

They put talk of business on hold for the moment as our server placed our food in front of us.

Katie gave me a curious glance as she started to speak. “So, Daniel, you just recently moved here to Chicago? Where did you come from?” Her head tilted to the side, waiting for his answer, her eyes sliding to mine for the briefest moment before they went back to Daniel’s.

He cleared his throat, frowning. “Uh, I’m from Colorado.” He turned his attention back to his plate, obviously trying to avoid Katie’s questions. I tried to warn her by clenching her thigh to stop but knew she’d continue until she got her answers. I was sure she’d already figured out who Daniel was.

“Mm.” She took a smal bite of her baked potato as she nodded before turning her attention to Vanessa.

“Vanessa, how do you know Daniel?” She played it off as smal talk, but it was anything but.

Vanessa’s face brightened, and she reached for Daniel’s hand and squeezed it. “Daniel and I are having a baby!”

I choked on my steak, tears fil ing my eyes as another part of my heart ripped from me. I knew that was the reason he didn’t want me, but it hurt to have it paraded in front of me. I covered the sob in my throat with a cough.

Nicholas glared at me, warning me to get myself under control.

Daniel’s eyes flew to me, pain etched deep in the lines of his face, jerking his hand from Vanessa. I didn’t understand what was happening between the two of them.

He should be thril ed. Al he’d ever wanted was to be a father, and now he was going to get it. I wanted to be angry that he had that without me, but I knew how much he deserved it. He had the best heart of any person I’d ever met. Deep inside al I wanted was for him to be happy even if it kil ed me to watch it happen.

Katie was relentless. “Oh, I guess congratulations are in order then?” It was almost a question as she looked at Daniel. He turned his head to the opposite wal , raking his hands through his hair the way he always did when he was worried or upset.

“So, is this your first child?” It was clear she wanted Daniel to answer, but Vanessa spoke first. “Yes, it’s a boy. We’re so excited.”

I felt as if a knife had been jabbed directly into my stomach, the air leaving me as I clutched my torso and squeezed my eyes shut.

I couldn’t listen.