Page 29 of Weathering the Storm of the Century

Me: Horizons sounds great, but a table this late sounds like hopes n dreams

Kent: If we can’t get n, u can pick next

Me: Careful…u’ll find urself at a taco truck if left up 2 me. I eat salads all week 4 a reason

Ken: LOL…duly noted

I found myself smiling at my phone, the banter a nice change of pace. I couldn’t remember the last time that a man had openly flirted with me, and I’d forgotten how fun and lighthearted flirting could be. As intense as Cotter was, I wasn’t even sure if he knew how to flirt or tease. Hell, the first night that we’d met, he hadn’t wasted any time getting to the point, and with me securely warming his bed for the past two years, there’d never been any need for him to flirt with me.

Me: Just let me know what the plans r when u find out

Kent: Absolutely

I set my phone down on my desk, still not entirely sure how I felt about my date with Kent. I also wasn’t surprised that Cotter hadn’t texted back yet. After all, the man was busier than I would ever be, no matter how many cases I took on. Honestly, at this rate, Cotter could retire at the age of forty and still be able to burn hundreds at the strip club every weekend.

My phone chiming with an incoming text snapped me out of my thoughts, and when I reached for it, I’d genuinely believed that it was Kent again, letting me know if he’d gotten us a reservation.

However, I was wrong.

CM: Better clear ur fucking calendar bcuz I’m on my way 2 ur office right now

Well hell.

I hadn’t been expecting that.

Chapter 7

Cotter~

When I’d gotten Aelix’s text, I’d had to re-read it a thousand times before my brain had been able to finally process the words. She had actually called things off over a text, and it’d been to go out with that sonofabitch from lunch. If there’d been any question about my feelings for her, there wasn’t any now. The fuck if she was going to break up with me, even if we weren’t dating in the traditional sense.

Driving over to the offices of Walter & Kramer, Cutter’s words were resonating around inside my head, and the fuckface really was hard to live with when he was proven right.

‘Just wait until you fall in love. Let’s see what you’re willing to do then.’

Well, apparently, I was willing to drive to an office full of lawyers to cause a scene that was sure to go viral. Honestly, I still hadn’t decided if I wanted to storm her office to demand an explanation, or if I wanted to hunt that sonofabitch down to let him know that Aelix was off-limits. I was also completely aware that I had no right, but I didn’t give a fuck about that right now.

Logically, I knew that Aelix hadn’t done anything wrong. In fact, I shouldn’t even be surprised, considering that I’d already been wondering how much longer before she’d eventually want something serious. I couldn’t even really fault her for calling things off in a text, because that’s how we’d been communicating for the past two years. Truth be told, all of this shit was my fault. I’d always known that Aelix was special, but I hadn’t done anything about it because I’d been comfortable. However, that wasn’t how real relationships worked.

If I ever had to describe Phin’s marriage to Sheridan, I’d say that it was full of love, loyalty, and compromise. When Phin had still been competing, Sheridan had made lots of sacrifices, but they had also come up with a lot of compromises, so that neither of them had ever felt neglected or overwhelmed. Once Phin had retired, it’d been him making the sacrifices, so that Sheridan could still work while having children. My parents-and I did consider them my parents-had done their best to be respectable examples of what a healthy relationship should look like.

Well, in the past two years, I hadn’t had to sacrifice a goddamn thing or compromise on anything, and I was paying for that arrogance now. In fact, only an asshole slept with a woman for two years without ever asking her if she was still satisfied with the arrangement.

Luckily for my sanity, I had managed to find a parking spot in the visitor section of the law firm’s offices and property, and I wasted no time getting out, locking up my car, then heading for the front doors. I knew that this was a bad idea, but I couldn’t find it in me to care at the moment. I had enough money to bail me out of any trouble that I might cause, and if I didn’t, then I could borrow some from Cutter.

As soon as I entered the building, I was met by a receptionist, and with the way that her eyes flared, it was obvious that she knew who I was. Though it wasn’t anything that I thought about much, my family’s empire was always in the news, and I couldn’t remember a time when it hadn’t been. Even Phin’s snowboarding career had always been linked to Moore Industries.

“I’m here to see Aelix Palmer,” I told her, not asking permission.

“Oh…uhm, okay…” she stammered a bit. “Let me see if she’s available-”

“No need,” I practically snapped as I pulled my phone out of my pocket, then for the first time ever, actually called Aelix on the phone.

She answered almost immediately. “Cotter?”

“I’m in the lobby,” I informed her. “You should probably call the receptionist and let her know that you’ve been expecting me.”

“Cotter-”

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