Chapter 50

Mary Ellen removed her ID badge and dropped it on the desk. When I heard the raised voices, I naturally got up and walked a little closer. It was that innate need to protect her. I sensed something was wrong, even if I couldn't hear the words.

When she turned around, I saw tears streaming down her face. I quickly walked to her, pulling her into my arms. "What happened?"

"I'm—I've been fired," she stammered out between sobs.

Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. My mind raced, trying to make sense of what she was saying.

"Fired? Why?" I pulled away slightly, looking into her tear-filled eyes for some kind of explanation. She shrugged helplessly, wiping at her tears with the back of her hands.

"He said I was making a fuss, trying to smear his name by hosting the fundraiser," she said softly. "He said I was costing him time and frustration. He accused me of sabotaging his plans to sell. He's getting paid a bunch of money and he's mad that I'm in the way. "

My jaw clenched in anger. Mary Ellen had done nothing but work tirelessly for the place.

"I'll talk to him," I said.

"No," she quickly said. "Don't bother. I want to get out of here."

"Okay." I nodded, understanding her need to get away. "Do you have anything here?"

"Yes," she sobbed. She went to the desk and grabbed a framed picture and a few other things. "This is enough. I just want to get out of here before he comes back."

"Okay," I said and led her out with my arm around her.

Her despair radiated off her in waves. She was devastated. I couldn't bear to see her like this.

I led her toward her car parked on the far side of the lot. She tossed her things inside the car and then looked at me with sadness in her eyes.

She leaned against me, her head resting against my chest as she sobbed. I held her close. I could feel her pain. It was literally my pain. It felt like it was going to eat me alive. I didn't know how to take it away from her. If there was a way, I would have done it in an instant.

I rubbed my hand up and down her back. "We'll figure this out," I whispered. "We'll go ahead with the fundraiser or we stop. Whatever you want to do. I'm in your corner."

"I can't believe he's doing this to get rich," she said, her voice muffled against my chest. "Who does that? It's a library. I tried to tell him all of the people he was going to hurt with this decision. He refused to see it."

"He sees dollar signs," I said. "Rich people mostly care about getting richer. You can't do that if you care about people."

"Exactly." She sighed, her breath warm through my shirt. "And I'm the foolish one who thought I could change his mind."

"You're not foolish, Mary Ellen. You're brave. You stood up for what you believe in."

She huffed a weak laugh against my chest. "Look where that got me."

I tightened my hold on her, hoping to offer her some measure of comfort. "You didn't fail, Mary Ellen. He did. He just lost the best employee he's ever had."

Her sobs tapered off, but she didn't pull away. As I held her close, I was struck again with a paralyzing thought. I'm in love with her.

The certainty of it hit me like a lightning bolt, electrifying every fiber of my being. She was everything I'd ever wanted, everything I never knew I needed. I had suspected I loved her, but now it was clear as day. It was absolute. There was no questioning what I was feeling.

I wanted to save her from the pain, to shield her from the cruel injustices of the world.

"What do you need?" I asked, desperate to do anything to ease her suffering. "I'll go back in there and kick his ass if you want me to. You're going to have to lie to the cops for me, though, or else you won't see me for a while."

She let out a choked laugh. "No. That doesn't help anything."

"Being him is punishment enough," I said, half-joking. "Tell me what you need. Anything. I'll make it happen."

She looked up at me and wiped away her tears. "You're already doing it. This is what I need. You're here with me."

Her words filled me with a sense of purpose and belonging. I wasn't able to fix everything, but I could be here for her, supporting her. I pulled her into a tight embrace once again, holding her close as if I never wanted to let her go.

She buried her face in my chest, seeking solace in my arms. In that moment, I knew that I would do whatever it took to protect her, to be her rock in the storm. Her sobs were subsiding. She was working through it.

I kissed the top of her head. "I'm right here. We'll stay here all night if you want."

"Did he break your heart too, sweetheart?" The words, dripping with venom, came from a woman I thought I would never see again.

The voice sent shivers down my spine and filled me with dread. Samantha. My ex-girlfriend from college. I looked up, praying my ears were deceiving me. They weren't. The mere sight of her made my blood run cold, conjuring memories I'd tried so hard to bury.

Mary Ellen turned around, her eyes widening in surprise. "Excuse me?"

"I asked if he broke your heart and now he's playing the hero, soothing your tattered soul," Samantha said.

"No," Mary Ellen snapped. "Why would you even say that?"

Samantha offered a saccharine sweet smile, but there was a darkness lurking behind her eyes. "If I had known you two were a thing, I'd have warned you to run for the hills. He's trouble. And a criminal. You know that, right?"

Mary Ellen pulled back, her walls springing up like a fortress around her. I wanted to reach out to her, to reassure her that Samantha's words were nothing but lies, but I was frozen in place, overwhelmed by the shock of her sudden appearance.

"And how do you know that?" Mary Ellen asked, her eyes darting between me and Samantha.

I saw the moment Samantha made the decision to go in for the kill. She knew exactly what she was doing. She was a fucking animal. She could sniff weakness and that was what she saw when she looked at Mary Ellen.

"We dated for four years," Samantha answered. "He was my everything in college. We were going to get married. I was madly in love with him."

The air between us grew thick with tension. Mary Ellen shifted away from me. I didn't even know if she realized she was doing it. Doubt crept into Mary Ellen's eyes, the uncertainty clouding her expression. My heart clenched with pain, knowing that Samantha's poison had tainted her perception of me.

"Married?" Mary Ellen repeated.

"Oh yeah." Samantha nodded. "I bet he told you everything you wanted to hear. You're beautiful and sexy, right? And now he's out here pretending to be this great guy that really cares about you."

Mary Ellen's face went pale. She looked at me and the hurt in her eyes was nearly my undoing.

"Mary Ellen, hold on," I started.

"Uh oh," Samantha sang out. "He didn't tell you about the love of his life?"

"No," Mary Ellen replied.

"I wonder why," Samantha went on. "We were so close. I had a wedding dress picked out and everything. You have to be careful with this one. You just never know when he's going to break the law and land in prison, leaving you to wait for him."

"Move," Mary Ellen told me. "I need to go. I can't be here anymore."

"Mary Ellen, please wait," I said, talking only to her and doing my best to ignore the pit viper behind me. "Let me explain."

"I don't want to hear anything," she said. "I just need to get out of here. I want to be alone."

I stepped back. I wasn't going to push myself on her. She got in the car, started the engine, and gave me one last look. I had disappointed her. I was so damn sick of disappointing people. Samantha had fucked my life up all over again.

Mary Ellen sped out of the parking lot, leaving me with Samantha. I spun around and glared at her. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

She smiled and shrugged. "I saw a girl crying. It seems like girls are always crying around you."

"You never shed a fucking tear over me," I replied. "You don't care about anyone except for yourself."

"That's not true. I cared about you."

"The hell you did," I spat. "I was a trophy. You're a manipulative bitch. You move people around like pawns to get what you want."

Samantha's smile didn't falter, her eyes still holding a cruel glint. "Maybe you're right," she said, stepping closer. "But that doesn't change the fact that you're a liar and a criminal. You don't deserve an innocent little thing like that. Although I can't imagine what you see in her."

"Like you deserve anyone?" I scoffed, trying in vain to keep my cool. "You're as rotten as they come, Samantha. You get off on hurting people."

Her eyes flashed for a moment, the only sign of the impact of my words. Then she was back to smiling, her expression infuriatingly calm. "I don't need to deserve anyone," she said softly. "I don't need anyone. And that's where you and I differ, dear ex-lover. You thrive on the affection you get from others. You get off on their love and attention, and when you get bored, you move on."

I could feel my fists clenching. The urge to yell at her was strong, but I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction. "You're a sad woman," I said. "All these years later and you're still up to your old tricks. Ever think about not being a bitch and maybe a guy will want you?"

"I have plenty of men that want me." She laughed. "I don't date loser cons."

"Lucky me," I snapped.

The triumphant smile on her lips was infuriating. She had always been like this, always meddling in other people's lives, tearing them apart for her own amusement.

"Get out of my way," she said, her voice dripping with contempt. "I have a deal to close. More money to make. Unlike your frumpy little librarian, I don't need a man to take care of me. I handle my own business."

"You mean your daddy handles the business," I shot back, knowing it was her weak spot.

"You don't know me, sweetie." She smiled again. "I don't need my daddy to do anything for me. Nice seeing you again. You look good, Archer. That orange jumpsuit just didn't flatter you."

I watched her disappear through the library doors, a bitter taste lingering in my mouth. Samantha may have succeeded in planting seeds of doubt in Mary Ellen's mind, but I wasn't going to let her destroy what we had. Samantha was a bitter shrew that wasn't half the woman Mary Ellen was. That was what pissed Samantha off.

She was pissed that I wanted nothing to do with her. She was vindictive and wanted to destroy me. She had tried pretty damn hard back in college, but I survived. If she managed to turn Mary Ellen against me, I wasn't sure that was going to be something I survived.