Page 3 of Strictly Business

“You’re right, but I want it, so I’m gonna get it,” Nina argued. I was sure Elizabeth and I were about to witness their first argument as a married couple. “Besides, you’re gonna say no to that view?” The view was pretty spectacular, the 18th-floor condo had fourteen windows with unobstructed views of Central Park.

“Nina…”

“You get to live in The Plaza, Nick. It’s like being the real-life Eloise!”

Nick shared a look with me, pleading for my help, but I shrugged. What did he want me to do? The girl had already made up her mind.

“Don’t look at me; I’m team Nina,” Elizabeth said when he turned to her.

“Our kids are not growing up in New York, Davina,” Nick finally conceded.

“Don’t be such a downer.” Nina rolled her eyes, but Nick was unamused. “Besides, what if you get the job at that firm in Chelsea?”

Unsurprisingly, Nick had gotten the job in Chelsea, but what was surprising, he turned it down. He didn’t want to move to New York, not really. He was happy accepting the job in Charlotte, where he wasn’t far from his new wife and their home. Nina wasn’t happy about it, she felt like he was missing out on a great opportunity, but Nick still refused. It didn’t matter though, a year ago he took over the Architecture and Development department at Villa Inc.

So no, my condo isn’t The Plaza, but it’s more than some of the two-hundred and some square feet ones I had seen. Besides, it has doubled in value in the last two years — I could easily afford to upgrade, and David wanted to, but I’ve grown attached to the little shoebox overlooking the East River I call home. The kitchen is stuck in the 1970s, but I recently bought new stainless-steel appliances, and I plan on repainting the cabinets and replacing the hardware to make it look more up-to-date. What sold me was the walk-in California closet and large bedroom. I can deal with an outdated kitchen as long as I have some breathing room. I don’t see the point in selling, David spent the majority of the last year in Washington D.C. since he got the job with Barnes and we—

Wait, did I leave the bedroom light on?

I don’t think so.

No, I’m ninety-seven percent sure I did not.

What is this suitcase doing here?

And, this box filled with…

That. Fucker.

“You’re kidding me.” Pushing the bedroom door open, “You can’t come in here when you feel like it. You don't live here anymore." Standing like a thief caught in the act…David. “What are you doing here?"

“It’s my condo too, Mic,” he says, tossing a box of hair trimmers into the moving box. He’s never used them. They’ve sat in the box since I bought them months ago. “I’m allowed to stop by and check on the place.” He rummages through the nightstand drawer. “Look, I’m not trying to fight, I just came to get the rest of my stuff.”

“The rest of what stuff? This is my condo and my shit. You haven’t lived here for three months.”

“So, these are yours?” He holds up the trimmers.

“If you want to be technical, yeah. I bought it.”

“Oh, come on, Mic. Don’t be childish.”

“I’m gonna ask you once, nicely, get the fuck out of my house.”

How did we get to this point? Fighting over pointless shit like hair trimmers. Things had been okay. We were happy, at least that’s what I thought… There had been some rough patches, but we were making it work. We even got married last August.

“Michaela, I’m sorry,” David says, his face pulled into a frown as if it hurts him to see me. I flinch when his thumb grazes my cheek. “I never meant to hurt you.”

I try to fight the longing when he cradles my cheek, involuntarily leaning into his touch. A smirk on his lips fades into a small smile. I know better than to trust the doe-eyed man in front of me. I know the game he’s playing, but it has been so long, and I’m feeling exceptionally lonely today. Without warning, he crashes his lips to mine, a moan mingles between us.

I should’ve gone to Nina’s.

David squeezes my ass before pushing me on the unmade bed. I whimper as his lips leave a blazing trail along my neck. A warm hand finds my breasts under my shirt, no bra to protect the sensitive skin of my nipple from the assault. His teeth graze the skin of my neck. He better not leave a mark. The last thing I want to do is explain to Nina why I have—

“Attention right here,” David tsks, and his fingers fist in my hair bringing me back to our current position.

“Fuck you, David.”

“You already are, sweetheart,” he whispers in my ear, the words spreading goosebumps across my body.

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