it your birthday next month?” Marissa asks as she pops her head in through my office door. I look up from my work as my forehead crinkles at her words. “Oh, please, come on… just tell me.”
“Yes,” I answer not particularly liking where this is going.
“Okay, good. Drinking and food? Or food then drinking?” she asks excitedly.
“I’m not sure I want to do anything.”
“Oh, you do. You need a night out. You’ve been at the office non-stop, even on the weekends when no one is here. And don’t tell me you haven’t, because I drove past last weekend and your car was here.”
“Guilty.”
“So, which option?”
“Look, Marissa, it’s sweet of you to want to do something for me, but I don’t want to do anything,” I reiterate.
She walks in and shuts the door behind her. “You have gone through a messy breakup, with one of the hottest men who’s ever been put on this planet. You need a night out and hopefully some hot sex as well.”
“I’m good. Really,” I tell her.
“Nope, you are coming. I’m calling Tina and letting her know.” She turns and walks out, obviously not taking no for an answer.
My email pings and it’s from Sydney. I haven’t seen nor heard from her in a while. Every time I’ve seen Tina she’s been by herself.
Found Dead!
The notorious kingpin of the underworld was found swinging from his cell last night in what appears to be a suicide.
My eyes go wide at the name that follows…
Cole Hyde.
Atlas’s father.
I call Sydney straight away.
“You got my email.”
“I did…” I pause. “Is he okay?”
“He’s fine. I wanted you to know you’re safe. No one is after you, and you can start running again.”
“He told you to tell me, right?” I say, knowing full well he did. That last comment could only have come directly from Atlas.
“He’s keeping his distance, as you asked. I have to go. Goodbye, Thea.” She hangs up, and I quickly scroll through my contacts. I have his number in my new cell, but I know it and can rattle it off by heart. I shouldn’t. There is absolutely no need for me to remember it, but for some crazy reason I can recall it easily.
Putting my cell away, I search the internet for his name.
Pictures pop up, him with other women, but he’s definitely not touching any of them. Then there’s one of the two of us. His hand is held firmly on my lower back while his eyes are trained on me as we walk. I didn’t even know it was taken let alone available on the web. I look so damn innocent, so completely unaware of the type of man he really is.
I’ve been trying to move on from Atlas Hyde, ever since the moment he trampled all over my heart while carrying his cousin from my living room. And now, I’m afraid that it may not be possible. How do you move on from someone who you thought you disliked, but then realize it’s not that at all—it’s quite probably love?
The problem I am facing is it’s next to impossible.
I dream about him.
He’s in my every waking moment of thought.
His father’s picture comes up next. It’s one of him dressed in a suit, a young Atlas is standing next to him at his trial. I’m guessing it is the one that put that asshole away for good. Atlas doesn’t look at him, but he is there in every picture, standing by his father’s side, even though he shouldn’t be.
I look at my cell again, then shake my head as I pack my things and leave.
Once I arrive home, I change into my active gear. I haven’t run in what feels like weeks. Stretching, I look up at the night sky and breathe in the crisp, clean air. Smelling rain, I know I should go back inside, but I don’t want to. I need to move, and the only way to do that is to run. My body is craving the endorphins, and it will help me to relax, and after this, I know I will have the best night’s sleep I’ve had in a long time. My therapist has been encouraging me to exercise, and she asks me every single time I attend a session if I have been out for a run. Truth be told, I haven’t felt safe to do so with the threat of Atlas’s father’s hit hanging over my head, but now that has all changed, and I feel safe to