Page 18 of Make Me Whole

Aside from my parents, I had only ever loved Margery, Aiden, and Al. I had lost one of them already, and I wouldn’t lose another because I couldn’t control my dick. I would protect Skylar with my life, and I might even fantasize about her late at night, but I wouldn’t touch her. That was a line I would never cross.

8

SKY

Afew days after the deputy scare, Ella and I moved into the home Max was renovating. The two-story house was as big as it was ugly, but I didn’t care about the atrocious colors, weird layout, nasty carpet, dated bathrooms, or ancient kitchen. To me, the place was a safe haven where Eli couldn’t find us and I could work on building a life for me and Ella. It was a blessing and my new favorite spot in the entire world.

The only fully finished room in the house was the master suite, which currently served as my room. It put a lot of five-star hotels to shame, and though I still had difficulty sleeping well, the beautiful setting helped ease some of the insomnia that still plagued me after so many years of abuse at Eli’s hands.

The kitchen was Max’s current project, and from the little peeks I got, it was turning out as fabulous as the master. Max had chosen a lux rustic style that was Pinterest worthy and matched the beautiful back yard. By the time he finished the house, Dad would have a bidding war on his hands.

I didn’t like to think about that, though. As much as I wanted our company to make a profit, the idea of leaving this place made my heart ache.

It was almost nine when I returned home after dropping Ella and Aiden off at school and running a few errands for Max. Despite being within Windy River’s borders, this house was closer to Pine Creek, which allowed Ella to attend Aiden’s school. A dream come true for thefriencoublings.

I parked my car in the driveway next to Max’s truck and carried the coffee and pastries I bought for our working breakfast inside.

The habit started off as a necessity. Most of what Max needed me to do as his assistant was managing the crews and projects. However, his managing system consisted mostly of making mental notes, which made my work super hard and impossible to do without his physical presence.

It took two weeks of hard work to get acquainted with everything, but I created a system of files and charts that worked outside Max’s head. It gave me a wonderful sense of accomplishment, and all parties involved seemed happy about my new position.

Even though we no longer needed the daily meeting for work, Max and I continued to enjoy breakfast together. There were a lot of similarities that drew us closer, and little by little, they became fuel not only for our friendship, but also for my attraction.

I liked how he understood the trials of being a single parent who struggled to protect their kid from the pain of the past. I adored his sense of humor and taste in music. And above all, I admired his kindness, his loyalty, his parenting of Aiden, and his compassion. Those traits were even hotter than his good looks and masculine energy.

But I also feared him. I knew our playing house wouldn’t last and that saying goodbye to him when the time came would be so much harder than leaving this house. I had to keep these feelings in check. The only problem was that aside from reminding myself how many layers of forbidden he was, I had no idea how to do that.

Focusing on my work, I walked to the makeshift office space I'd created in the front room. Usually, Max would be there waiting for me while he answered emails, but the room was empty. I dropped the coffee and bag of pastries onto my desk and went in search of him.

My first stop was the kitchen, but he wasn’t there. He also wasn’t in the back yard or the den, where he kept his tools. Figuring he was busy or in the bathroom, I returned to my desk, determined to get a head start on work as I waited for him.

I sat in my chair and yawned from lack of caffeine but decided to ignore my coffee until Max arrived. I booted my computer, updated my to-do list, and started working on the first item—budgeting electrical supplies.

I texted some vendors. Flirted with my coffee cup. Stared at the hallway for signs of Max.

Nothing.

I returned to work.

The cycle repeated a few times, my yawns growing closer and closer together with each uncaffeinated minute. The words began to scramble on the computer screen. I leaned back against my chair and rubbed my eyes, but when I peeled my hands from them, they didn’t open.

* * *

“What the fuck is this?”Eli asked, his voice eerily calm.

I stopped at the bathroom threshold, afraid to enter our bedroom, afraid to step closer to him. A chill ran down my spine as my eyes lowered to the suitcase in his hand. Thunder rolled outside like a prologue of what was to come.

Despite the pounding in my chest, I smiled at him as if his presence and question hadn’t fazed me at all. “It’s a suitcase.”

He tilted his head to the side like a tiger studying his prey. “Are you going someplace, darling?”

I hated when he called me that. The word always dripped with sarcasm and contempt.

I widened my smile. No point in giving in to anger around him. In a strongarm game, he always won.

“Just to Goodwill,” I lied. “Ella has grown out of half her clothes, and I also had some things I wanted to get rid of. If you have stuff you want to donate, make a pile and I’ll add it to the suitcase tomorrow.”

“Why don’t we do it now?” he sneered.

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