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Authors: Helen Cooper

Tags: #Fiction, #Erotica

New Beginnings (14 page)

BOOK: New Beginnings
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Chapter 18

Max

 

His meeting with Alexis had gone easily. It scared him how easy it had been. She handed over the signed papers with no trouble and because she had listed him as the father on the birth certificate he didn’t have to go through Frank Phillips. Max stared at Alexis as she babbled on about something. He leaned in towards her and he realized that her pupils were dilated and she was high.

“Alexis, let me take you home.” He grabbed her arm and spoke to her firmly.

“Sorry Max, you had your chance.” She laughed.

“Alexis, are you on drugs right now?”

“Why do you want some?”

“I thought you stopped taking them after rehab?”

“What do you care?” She spat at him. “You never cared before when we were getting high.”

Max sighed and looked at the woman in front of him. He couldn’t believe that he hadn’t noticed how coked out she looked. He had been so caught up in making sure that Jacob was going to be his and Sophie’s legally that he hadn’t even really paid attention to Alexis.

“I did you a disservice, Alexis. And I want to apologize.”

“You want to apologize to me?” She laughed hysterically.

“I’m sorry, Alexis.” He looked at her with pleading eyes. “Let me take you home.”

“Get your hands off me.” She pushed him. “I don’t give a shit about you Max. Don’t you realize that? I love someone else.”

“So why have you been coming after me?” He asked her quietly.

“Because I don’t want you to be happy. Why should you have the fairytale when I can’t? We were good for each other Max. We both used each other to numb our pain. I don’t care that you never bothered trying to find out what was wrong because I didn’t give a shit about you either or your precious little Sophie.”

“Alexis,” he sighed. “Please let me take you home.”

“I’m going to ‘The X Club’.” She grinned. “I’m finally going to get my man.”

“At the X Club?” He frowned. Who could she be in love with at the club? And then it struck him—what he should have realized all along. “Are you going to see Frank, Alexis?”

“I love him Max and he loves me and you can’t keep me from him anymore. You can’t stop us from being together.”

“I never stopped anything, Alexis.” He looked at her in pity. She wouldn’t be the first woman to get caught in the senator’s trail. Max had seen many women drop out of Harvard after Frank was done with them.

“He should have married me,” she cried out. “I loved him. I wanted him. Why didn’t he marry me?”

“You knew Frank before he married Gloria?” Max frowned, not really remembering them having met before the X Club days.

“He befriended Mitch one summer and we dated.” She looked at him with almost focused eyes. “I’ve loved him ever since.”

Max looked at her in shock. “Then why come after me, why drag me into this mess?”

She looked at him with pity then and cackled. “Frank hated you. I wanted to make him jealous. I wanted him to realize that he wanted me and had to have me. It didn’t work. He was the one who got me to convince you to try The X Club. Who knew you were just as fucked up? Well, I did of course. Who else loves a stupid teenager?”

Max stared at her with anger on his face. “You used me?”

“You used me first, Max,” she screamed. “You never cared about me.”

“You tried to ruin my relationship, Alexis,” he growled at her. “You knew that Sophie was the love of my life and you have done everything you can to ruin that.”

“You ruined it yourself, Max.” Her voice was soft. “You’re a whore. A selfish bratty whore. I don’t care what happens to you or your ‘girl’.” She giggled. “I’m off to go get my happily ever after now.”

Max frowned. He wanted to just leave her and let her do whatever she wanted. But she was right, he had been selfish before and he had failed her. He had failed her as a human being who should care about the emotions of others. He knew what Sophie would do in this situation and sighed. “I can’t let you just leave, Alexis.” He grabbed a hold of her arm.

“Frank is waiting on me,” she screamed.

“Frank is married.” He looked into her eyes, trying to make a real connection so he could get through to her. “Frank is a senator whose goal is to become President, Alexis. He is never going to leave his wife for you. He is never going to marry you. You are never going to play happy family.”

“He loves me and he’s waiting on me at the club.” Her eyes flashed angrily at him.

“Then I’ll take you to the club.”

“I don’t want you to take me.” She struggled against him.

“You’re not going unless it’s with me.” He was obstinate. He owed her this.

“Fine. Let’s go.” She shrugged her shoulders and sang to herself. Max walked besides her with a heavy heart. How had he not seen how troubled she was before?

They drove in silence to the club. Max knew that this was the best way to make Frank believe that he and Sophie were truly over. He already had the second letter ready to be delivered the next day. He’d told Nick what courier was delivering it and he’d passed the information on to Frank. As far as Frank knew, Max’s life was in pieces all around him. He knew this was all a game to Frank, he didn’t care about Jacob, and he didn’t care about Alexis. He just wanted to make sure that Max’s life was a misery. He didn’t really understand why Frank was so determined to bring him down, but he supposed some people were just mentally twisted. Now that he had the signed paperwork from Alexis, he had all that he needed to stop Frank. Alexis had signed paperwork that had signed all of Jacob’s rights over to Max and Sophie and acknowledged that Senator Frank Phillips was the birth father but was not interested in fathering the child. This paperwork along with the video and photos Max had in his safe contained enough damaging information to make sure that Frank stayed out of his life forever.

He just needed to make sure that Sophie was safe for now. He knew that once Frank thought he and Sophie were done, he would be secure in his position of ultimate power and hierarchy over Max. And once he read that letter and confirmed with Nicholas that he and Sophie were now together, he would believe it. Max hoped that all went according to plan because he was laying it all on the line so that he and Sophie could have a normal happy life together. He could only hope that her love was strong enough to forgive him leaving without telling her the plan. But he knew he couldn’t tell her the truth, he needed her pain and emotions to be real and vulnerable. He needed Frank to look at photos of her, Max knew he was having her followed, and to see the gut-wrenching sadness in her eyes and face. This had been the only way. “Well, we’re here.” He pulled up to the club and turned to a frantic Alexis. “You don’t have to go through with this. Frank’s not worth it, Alexis.”

“I’m going in.” She opened the door and stumbled out of his car and Max sighed. This was a part of the plan that he didn’t want to deal with.

Chapter 19

Sophie

 

She had been lucky to find a babysitter at the last moment. She hadn’t wanted to leave Jacob but there was no way she wanted to take him to the club with her. And there was no way that she wasn’t going to go. She had been a bad friend in the last couple of years, ignoring the signs that Ella needed help. At first it had seemed innocent and exploratory when Ella had spent the night with different men, but as the numbers had increased Sophie had been worried that there was more going on than met the eye. She had been worried that Ella was a sex addict or had emotional issues but she had never been sure how to bring it up. And she had been too obsessed with her love for Max to bring it up to him. She knew in her heart that she had failed Ella as a friend but starting tonight, she was going to change that.

As soon as Ella had told her she was going to ‘The X Club’ and that Joseph was accompanying her, Sophie knew she was in trouble. Ella was in a downward spiral and Sophie didn’t want anything bad to happen to her friend. She arrived at the club and took a deep breath before going in. This was a much different set-up than ‘The Games’ and she felt overwhelmed and slightly scared. She missed Max. She didn’t know where he was or what he was doing but she just wanted to talk to him, to tell him what was going on, to let him know that she loved him and missed him. She wanted him to hold her close and tell her everything was going to be okay. Because she was scared. Really scared. Not just because she wasn’t sure if she would ever see him again. But because she was scared she was going to make a bad mother. She had already missed an important doctor’s appointment. She couldn’t afford to do that again. She couldn’t afford to miss any more meals. She couldn’t afford the stress. Not when there was another life at stake. She owed it to her baby to be strong. She needed to think of the baby first now. And she was scared she didn’t know how to.

Her eyes adjusted to the light and she looked around for Ella and Joseph. She sighed as she looked at all the people in various stages of copulation. It didn’t seem sexy or adventurous now. She felt sick and embarrassed. And she was mad, she was mad that she had to be here. What did Ella think she was going to do when she got here? Just march up to Frank and tell him to leave her family alone? She decided that she needed a plan; she was going to walk around the room from left to right and look in each door that she came to, hopefully she would see Ella somewhere.

It was the fourth door that she came to when she felt her heart beating strongly. She knew before she even walked in the dark room that Ella was in there. She walked slowly and stopped by a bed. On it she saw a naked Ella and Joseph and she wanted to scream and cry. She didn’t understand why Ella just couldn’t seem to say no.

“Ella get up.” She kept her voice friendly and calm but now she had found her friend all she wanted to do was to get out of there.

“Sophie?” Ella frowned and blushed as she covered herself up. “It’s not what it looks like.”

“I’m not here to judge, Ella.” Sophie smiled weakly at her friend. “But get your clothes on so we can leave.”

“Sophie, why are you here?” Ella’s voice is panicked. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“Ella, we can talk afterwards.”

“But Joseph is sleeping.” Ella pulled on her top and skirt.

“I don’t care.” Sophie grabbed her friend’s arm. “You need to forget about him, Ella. Please.” She stared into her friend’s eyes. “You need to get help.”

“Help for what?” Ella turned away from her and Sophie sighed. This wasn’t the time or the place for this conversation.

“Let’s just go.” She pulled her friend with her to the door.

“Okay, okay. Just hold on.” Ella sighed.

They walked quickly back through the club and that was when Sophie felt another odd feeling. “Hold on.” Sophie stopped and walked back across the club to another room and opened the door slightly and peeked inside. She saw Frank and Alexis arguing and she cringed as she watched them. She was about to close the door when she saw a slight movement from the corner of the room. It was Max. Her Max. She was about to rush into greet him, when he walked up to Alexis and put his arms around her. She cried out in shock as she watched him kiss her hair and she trembled uncontrollably.

“Sophie and I are done, Frank.” Max sneered at him. “I’m back with my true love Alexis now.”

Frank stared at Max with fury. “Why would you want that two-bit whore, Max?” He laughed. “She came here begging for me and now you want her.”

“I’ll have whatever part of her that she’ll give me.” Max pulled Alexis closer to him. “She’s a special lady Frank and I feel sorry for you if you can’t see that.”

Frank rolled his eyes. “You never did get it, did you, Max? It’s not about the women or the money. It’s about the power. It’s about the control.”

“No Frank, I think you don’t get it,” Max snarled at him. “I’m going to be raising your son, Frank, don’t you care about that?”

“If he’s my son.” Frank looked at Alexis in disgust. “If you want to take care of a whore and her child, that’s up to you.”

“Let me be clear about one thing, Frank.” Max pushed his face into the other man’s. “I have videos of you, me, Alexis and Gina and photos. I also have a signed legal statement from Alexis that you are Jacob’s father. If I ever hear that you are coming after me or my family again, I will release everything to the media and you will be ruined. Your wife will leave you, you will lose your position and you will never be President.”

“You would never do that, Max.” Frank looked at him in anger.

“Yes I would.” Max’s voice boomed across the room. “I have nothing else to lose Frank and a whole lot to gain. Stay away.” And then he right hooked Frank in the face. Frank went flying back and cried out. “And if you ever contact Alexis again, I will have you killed. Do you hear me?”

“Is that whore worth it, Max?” Frank laughed and rubbed his cheek, though he stayed back from Max.

“Alexis is my life, Frank. She is more than worth it.”

Sophie felt like she was going to faint at the words she was hearing. Nothing in her life was ever going to be the same again.

“How quickly the mighty have fallen? I’m sorry to hear that Sophie left you.”

“She is with Nicholas now. He’s a good man. And I trust him.” Max’s voice was clear and passionate. “Alexis and I are going away tomorrow, for good. My father will be running the company while I get set up overseas.”

“Good riddance. You both deserve each other.” Frank looked at him with narrowed eyes and Sophie fell back. She’d had enough, she couldn’t hear anymore.

“Let’s go.” She grabbed a delirious Ella and ran out of the club. She drove them back to her apartment and as soon as she paid the babysitter she locked herself in the bathroom and cried. When she woke up the next morning, Ella had gone. She decided not to call her just yet; she knew Ella needed time to herself to think for a bit. She sat on the couch and stared at the wall in front of her in detached silence. The knocking at the front door didn’t even move her and it was about thirty minutes later when she finally got up to open the door to see if anything had been left for her.

Sophie saw the envelope and her heart stilled. Another letter had arrived to bring her out of her detached numbness. The handwriting looked straight and neat. It was as if he had hoped that his apparent calmness would soothe her broken heart and wounded soul. She picked up the letter lifelessly. She didn’t want to read the words that would crush her all over again. She didn’t know if she was strong enough to withstand the gamut of emotions that were sure to pass through her as she read his letter. She preferred the silence of her numbness to the burning screeches of her pain. But she couldn’t resist the magnetic pull of the letter. She ran to her bedroom and ripped open the envelope, falling to her bed in sobs as she finished reading the poetic words of the man she loved.

 

My Dearest Sophie,

 

I hope this letter does not meet you with too much grief. By now you should have received one other letter from me. I remember how you loved to receive letters as a child. I hope that you are beginning to understand my actions. That’s all I dare ask of you now, Sophie. Remember me as the man you loved and not the man I became.

Please kiss Winter and Jacob every night and give them an extra long hug from me. Tell them that their father loves them dearly and I hope that one day they will see that I was trying to protect them. Thank you for being the kind of mother that welcomes everyone into your heart. My love for you has tripled in these last few weeks as I have witnessed the magnanimity of your devotion.

Sophie, you know that it pains me to say this but Nicholas is a good man. Know that you have my blessing.

 

Always yours, in sickness and in health, in life and in death,

 

Maxwell

 

So it was true she thought to herself. He had left her. She couldn’t believe that he would do this to her. She wanted to scream at him, to tell him that Nicholas was nothing to her, that she had only wanted a new friend. She cried out in anguish and ran and banged the walls in pain and fury. The loudness of her actions made Jacob cry and she broke down on the floor in tears. Jacobs’s wails got increasingly louder and she felt something click in her brain. She couldn’t be this person right now. She had to be stronger for herself and for Jacob. She needed some fresh air. She picked up Jacob and changed his diaper before putting him in his pram. She decided to take him on a walk through the park. The fresh air would make both of them feel better.

She walked out of the building quickly before she could change her mind. She didn’t change her clothes or wash her face or brush her hair and she knew she looked a mess, but she just didn’t care. She got to the park and watched all the people around her having fun. She wished she could feel even a fifth of the happiness that some of the couples were feeling. As she stared at an elderly couple walking and holding hands, she couldn’t stop the tears from coming. She was heartbroken and dejected.

 

Max and Nick sat on a park bench and watched as Sophie cried. Both of them feeling her pain in different ways.

“Take a photo now and send it,” Max ordered Nick.

Nick took out his phone and snapped a photo of Sophie as she stood there crying uncontrollably. He attached it to a text and said:
Your work has been done. Sophie and Max are over. I’m moving in now
. He got a reply back within a few minutes:
Good. Delete my number and don’t contact me again. Frank
. Nick looked at the text in surprise and wonder and felt a sudden release.

“I think I’m done.” He looked at Max with a smile on his face and showed him the text message.

Max nodded and stared at him with a hard look in his eyes. “I think you should see this as another shot at life, Nicholas. I want you out of New York within a week, do you hear me?”

Nick looked at him with pained eyes. “I’m sorry, Max.”

“I don’t care about your sorries, Nick. I just need to make sure that Sophie is okay.”

“Tell her I’m sorry, please.” Nick pleaded. “I—”

“Stop.” Max held his hand up to silence him. “You don’t get to feel sorry or say anything, Nick. We are done here. Leave.”

“For what it’s worth, Max, I’m proud of your progress. The love of a good woman has really made you a better man.”

“She has blessed my life in more ways than I ever would have thought possible.” Max sighed. “I only wish that more of us were lucky enough to find our true loves.”

“What happened with Alexis?” Nick questioned as he stood up.

“She’s back in Winterside. Mitch is going to get her into a rehab program in Paris.”

“Paris? Nice.” Nick looked at him with respect. “You really did good by Alexis, Max.”

“I failed her. I should have tried to help her battle her demons a long time ago. But it was the least that I could do. I think I helped her save a little self-respect.”

“Frank really crushed her, huh?”

“Yes.” Max sighed. “He crushed her until there was nothing left. He never loved her. In fact, he probably loved seeing the effect he had on her, so needy and washed out.”

“He’s an evil man.” Nick sighed.

“Yes, yes he is.” He paused. “But I suppose he has his reasons as well.”

“I wonder if he knows what it is to love?” Nick questioned but Max saw him staring at Sophie. Max felt something in his body want to comfort Nick. He knew that the man genuinely loved Sophie. And it was that love that had made him help Max. But the both of them couldn’t have her and he would never let Nick have her. He would never be good enough for his Sophie, no matter what lies he had put in his letter. He was never going to just leave and let Nicholas attempt to take over her heart. They both sat there and watched Sophie as she attempted to wipe away her tears with her shirtsleeve. She looked disheveled, depressed, and achingly solitary and it made Max love her even more. She had still found it in her to take Jacob for a walk, even though she was at her lowest. He would have to spend the rest of his life trying to make up for the pain he was putting her through right now.

Max jumped up quickly as he saw Sophie walking again. “We need to leave now.” He pushed Nick and they ran to the street, terrified that she would notice them. Max reached out and shook Nick’s hand. “Good luck, Dr. Spencer.”

BOOK: New Beginnings
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