Perfect Partners (16 page)

Her body heated with the memory and his genuine concern tugged at her heart. She could no longer avoid him, but she couldn’t bear a pitying look in his eyes, either. She whirled around, finally facing him, only to discover deep emotion lingered in the hazel depths. Pity was nowhere to be found.

“Tell me something, Griff. Does having sex give you the right to grill me?”

She regretted the words the minute they left her mouth. The entire situation had her rattled, which was no excuse to take her rampaging emotions out on the man she loved.

To his credit, he merely shrugged out of his suit jacket and tossed it over a chair. She recognized the delay as a means to bide time and calm his anger. She gave him his due. How a man could be just as devastating fully dressed as he had been unclothed baffled her. But it was the man inside the clothes that had drawn her out and made her fall in love.

When he met her stare, his expression darkened, along with his eyes. He took two steps forward, but she stopped him mid-stride with as much honesty as she could muster.

“I’m sorry, please forget I said that.” She lifted her hand and worked the sore muscles in the back of her neck. “Yes, the subject matter is upsetting,” she said, lowering herself into the nearest chair. She owed Griff as much of the truth as she felt he could handle hearing—as much as she could handle revealing—for now.

His hand touched her cheek. “I don’t like seeing you hurt. Do you react like this after every client interview?”

She shook her head, unwittingly freeing some strands of hair. Without much thought, she tucked them behind her ear. “Some hit me harder than others.”

“No wonder this one’s difficult. She looks so much like you. The dark hair, the eyes…”

“I hadn’t noticed.” And she hadn’t. Now that he’d pointed out their similarities, Chelsie realized Griff was right—another factor that must have unconsciously upset her. “I really must have eaten something that didn’t agree with me, or else I’m catching a new version of the virus you and Alix had.” Which wasn’t a lie, since her throat had been raw all morning. “I’ll be all right.”

“Want me to accompany you to the shelter?” he asked.

Her lips curved upward in a faint smile. “No, thanks. No men allowed, anyway.”

Griff knelt down beside her. He enclosed her hand in his. “We do have unfinished business.”

“I know.” She shut her eyes and leaned her head back in the chair. “But would you understand if I said I’m not up to discussing things yet?”

He answered with a tender but brief kiss. His lips, warm against hers, almost seduced her into a blessed state of forgetfulness. Before she was ready, he pulled back, leaving her bereft.

“In case you weren’t sure, that’s a yes,” he said.

“I’m shocked, but thank you.”

“Don’t be. As long as you don’t run out on me again, I can give you all the space you need. To be honest, I could use some myself.” He rose from his kneeling position, putting both physical and emotional distance between them.

He’d admitted to nothing more than she asked for herself, yet his admission and withdrawal hurt.

“I’ve got to get back to Amanda,” she said.

“I have a favor to ask first.”

“What is it?”

“Ryan asked me to help his sister move back in with her husband next weekend. As you know, I owe him. Mrs. Baxter promised Saturday to her son and daughter-in-law. Think you could…”

“Baby-sit?” she asked with a grin. “Sure. Would you mind if I took Alix into Boston with me?”

“Either you’re brave or just plain nuts, but no, I don’t mind. Thanks.”

“Friends help each other out, Griff.” She needed to cement their status in her own mind, as much as his.

“Is that all we are?”

“I thought this discussion could wait,” she chided. The real world would not. The life she thought she’d put behind her waited outside the safety of these walls.

“Not for long.”

Ignoring his words, Chelsie slipped out the office door.

*     *     *

“How did you find me?” Chelsie asked the woman in the passenger seat of her car. Chelsie wanted enough details to understand what she would be dealing with.

“I searched through Jeffrey’s drawers and files for spare money or something that could help me. I came across your divorce decree.”

“He hadn’t told you he’d been married?”

“No.”

Chelsie spared a quick glance at Amanda, then refocused on the road. The woman’s dark hair fell to her shoulders. Griff was right. From a distance, they could have passed for sisters.

“But now that I’ve met you, I can see why he married me,” Amanda said.

“Whoa. There was no love lost by the time we divorced. I can assure you, Jeff would not marry someone who reminded him of me.”

“But he would marry someone he had no trouble manipulating, who did as he said without question.”

Chelsie slowed the car in the back parking lot of the women’s shelter. After shutting off the engine, she turned toward the woman beside her. “You may have done those things, but you got out. You saved yourself and your son. Be proud instead of kicking yourself for things you can’t change.” She smiled. “Counselors here will help you see that you aren’t the one with the problem. He is.”

“You’ll help me, too?”

“I’ll do everything I can within the law, but I think it’s better if Griff handles the specifics. Ethically, you don’t want anything Jeff can hold over you. Having his ex-wife represent you might pose a problem. Anyway, you did set the appointment up with Griff.”

“Only because I thought you might figure out who I was and refuse to see me. I wanted to tell you in person.”

“Did you tell Griff?”

“No. I wanted to talk to you first.”

“Would you mind if I handled that in my own way?” Chelsie asked.

Amanda shook her head.

Somehow, Chelsie would have to explain. Because she’d withdrawn her complaint against her husband for purely selfish reasons, she had freed him to abuse someone else. It wasn’t something she could admit lightly, but she did need to see the past rectified. Now she had her chance.

In the process, maybe she’d even ease some of the guilt that had been building inside her for years. Until faced with Amanda’s courage to walk out before any harm came to her child, Chelsie hadn’t realized what a huge burden she’d been carrying.

Time to face her past, she thought, as well as herself. To do that, she had to begin with being honest.

Chelsie turned towards Amanda. “If you need anything, someone to talk to or whatever, don’t hesitate to call.” After rummaging through her purse, Chelsie withdrew an old business card. Though Amanda probably already had the number, Chelsie jotted down Griff’s office phone just in case. “You can reach me here, or leave a message on my cell. I check in periodically. Or you can just text me.” Chelsie paused. “Contact me at anytime.”

Fingering the card in her hand, Amanda gave Chelsie a grateful smile. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. One more question before we go in.”

“What?”

“Why me? Why look me up? Why ask me to represent you?”

The other woman stared out the window. “The night before I left, I confronted Jeff with the fact that he’d been married. We argued about his lie, and I asked him why you divorced.” She paused, obviously uncomfortable with the rest.

Chelsie could handle whatever came next. As far as she was concerned, the worst had already befallen her.

“He said his—I mean, he said your work came first.”

A grim smile touched Chelsie’s lips. “Please don’t sugarcoat this for my sake.” She’d heard Jeffrey at his most vulgar, maybe not in the beginning of their marriage, but certainly at the bitter end. “Be honest, please.”

Amanda sucked in a breath of air. “He said his frigid wife saved her passion for her work. She couldn’t manage to satisfy him in bed.” Slowly, Amanda turned away from the window. “If Jeffrey bothered to belittle your career, I figured you must be good.” Regret for her admission etched her delicate features. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

Chelsie shrugged. There might have been a time she believed those words. Jeff had told her the same thing many times in the course of their short marriage. But one night with Griff taught her how very wrong her ex-husband had been.

Chelsie now knew she hadn’t saved her passion for her work. She had saved it for someone deserving. Someone named Griff.

*     *     *

Early Saturday morning, Griff buzzed her apartment from downstairs. Chelsie had barely enough time to shower and change after her night at the woman’s shelter downtown before he’d arrived. She let him and Alix, who swung monkey-style from his left arm, into her apartment.

“You know, you’re becoming a master at avoidance techniques.”

“Good morning to you, too,” she said, but she nodded. “I can see how you’d think that, but take a look at my schedule for the last week and tell me where we could have fit in time for a long, personal,
important
conversation.”

“We couldn’t, which brings me back to my original point. Did you arrange the week on purpose?”

“To avoid you? No. To make sure Amanda got settled at the shelter? Yes.” She had spent three of the last four nights there, helping the other woman out and even getting to know her little boy. In between, she’d fit in quick dinners with Alix, not to mention her already scheduled appointments. She’d seen Griff constantly, but not once had they been alone.

“I respect your work. I just think we have unfinished business.”

Again, she nodded. She couldn’t avoid him much longer. In truth, she didn’t want to. She respected him too much to continue as they’d been. “We just need to find some quiet time—”

As if on cue, Alix squealed loudly, released Griff, and scrambled into Chelsie’s arms. The little girl wouldn’t be ignored. Chelsie laughed. “See?”

With an exasperated groan, Griff gave in and grinned before glancing at his watch. “I’ve got to go. Are you sure you can handle this? I can call Ryan. He’d understand.”

“I think I’ve had enough practice.”

“What if she needs a nap? She’s still in a crib.”

“I’ll put her in my bed, surround her with pillows, and I won’t leave her alone.” She held up her hands. “Promise.”

Restless and bored with the adult conversation, Alix bolted for the living room. Chelsie let her go.

“What about all that crystal?” His gaze swept the expanse of her apartment. His reluctance to leave Alix in this crystal palace was a tangible thing. The little girl rushed from place to place, lifting each animal and replacing it with a heavy thud.

“Alix!” he shouted.

Chelsie jabbed her elbow into his side. “Leave her alone. She isn’t doing anything wrong. Maybe I should have taken the things down, for safety’s sake, but as long as I’m here, she’s fine. Just go.”

“Are you sure you’re feeling better?”

Though she tried, Chelsie couldn’t suppress a smirk. “I had a slight cold and worked straight through. You, on the other hand, took to the bed. Obviously, I have more stamina.”

He groaned at the words she’d been teasing him with all week.

She sent him a reassuring smile. “Good-bye,” she said in a lilting voice. Placing her hands on his back, she shoved him towards the door. A denim jacket separated her fingers from his skin, but heat radiated through her anyway. Just being near Griff was akin to lighting a quick-burning fire.

“I’ll be back around four.”

“We’ll be here.”

“In one piece?”

Chelsie rolled her eyes. “Feel free to call or text me for an update.” He took the hint and left, closing the door behind him.

Chelsie glanced at Alix. “How about your first all-girl shopping trip?” she asked her niece. “I know this great place in Faneuil Hall. All teddy bears, soft and cuddly like you.” Chelsie tickled the child’s tummy until she shrieked in delight.

The ringing of her cell phone cut off any further play as Chelsie swiped the screen to answer it. “Hello?”

Silence greeted her. She wondered if Griff had called to check on them from his SUV. “Hello?” she said again. “Griff?” No answer. “Bad connection,” she muttered. She had a hard time dialing out from her cell around here, too.

“Serves Uncle Griff right for not trusting us,” Chelsie said. She looked at Alix. “But we love him anyway, right?”

*     *     *

When Griff reached Chelsie’s apartment, he found the door ajar. “That woman needs a body guard,” he muttered to himself. A role he wouldn’t mind applying for himself. All afternoon, his mind had been on the two females he’d left behind. Though he trusted Chelsie with Alix, he didn’t trust his niece in Chelsie’s apartment. More than once, his own mother had nearly throttled Griff or Jared if they’d even looked at one of her
souvenirs.

The one time Jared had done real damage to a precious trinket, Griff had taken the blame for his kid brother. A mere three days later, his mother had walked out for good. Since then, Griff’s taste and eye had been honed by years of making money and dealing with women who respected little else. The items in Chelsie’s place appeared more valuable than those coveted by his mother.

As he stepped into the tiled entryway, hushed voices and soft giggles drifted towards him. Not wishing to interrupt, Griff entered the apartment quietly and came upon a sight that not only astounded him, but altered his perception of reality.

The glass cocktail tables that previously occupied the center of the living room had been haphazardly pushed aside. Every glass and crystal animal, numbering twenty or more, sat on the carpet surrounding his niece. Alix held two in her hands and proceeded to bang them together like cymbals. He winced each time they struck. The lead inside the crystal must have prevented them from shattering.

“Don’t, sweetie. You’ll get hurt.” Chelsie gently pried the animals from the little girl’s grasp. Where he was worried about Chelsie’s things, she was worried about the little girl’s safety. The discrepancy should have surprised him, but didn’t.

“Okay. Teddy bear,” Chelsie said.

Alix lifted an animal off the floor.

“Fish. Try again.”

As he took a step towards them, something crunched under his feet. The noise drew their attention from the menagerie on the floor.