"This is Detective Daniels," she responded. "We'd like to question you and your staff about drugs being sold from the club. "
"I can assure you that the club isn't involved in any such thing."
"Nonetheless, we need to talk with you."
"I'm out of town right now, but I can be out there tomorrow. I'm going to tell all my staff not to talk to you unless, of course, you have a warrant or you’re arresting someone. If you're going to insist on talking to them now, you're going to have to wait until I can get a lawyer out there. Or you can come back tomorrow, and I will be there."
I could hear muffled talking, and I presumed she was talking with her partner. "We’ll be here tomorrow. If you're not here—"
"I'll be there."
I hung up, hurrying back into the bedroom. I tossed my clothes in the bag except for the ones I was going to wear. Then I went into the shower, taking a quick one and then getting dressed. I didn't bother with shaving.
As I exited the bathroom, I saw Amelia still sleeping in bed. I so badly wanted to climb back in and curl up around her. I carried my bag into the living area and found my laptop case. I pulled out a piece of paper and a pen and started to scribble a note, but my handwriting was much like a doctor's, so I quickly pulled out the portable printer, turning it on and slipping in a piece of paper. Then from my phone, I typed a message and printed it onto the paper.
I hated leaving like this, but it wasn't because we hadn't filled out the annulment paperwork like we planned to do. I hated leaving her side. For a moment, I wondered if she'd be annoyed that we hadn't filled out the paperwork. Well, if she was, I’d just make arrangements to come back again. Or maybe she could fill it out, and hopefully, being drunk would pass as a reason for not being of sound mind when we got married.
I folded the paper in half and set it on the bedside table so that it was upright like a tent, so I could be sure she'd find it. I desperately wanted to lean over and kiss her goodbye, but I didn't want to wake her. So, with one final look at Amelia, I walked out of the bedroom, grabbing my laptop case and my bag, and left the suite.
On the ride to the airport, I was able to book a charter flight, and an hour and a half later, the plane's wheels left the ground. I was returning to New York still a married man.
CHAPTERFOURTEEN
Amelia
I woke the next morning feeling warm and relaxed. Immediately, memories of the night before with Max flooded my brain. Images of soft touches and hard thrusts sent tingles through my body. I reached my hand out to the other side of the bed, but it found emptiness. I turned my head and saw that Max was already up. Checking my watch, I discovered it was seven. It was early, but then I remembered it was three hours ahead in New York, so Max was likely working.
I wanted to get up and go to him, enticing him back to bed for a repeat of last night. I suspected he'd be game for it, but I didn’t move. As much as I wanted him, if I went to him, we’d need to finish the business we hadn’t gotten to the night before. I wasn’t ready to deal with it.
I turned over onto my other side. A piece of paper was tented on the side table. I picked it up, lying on my back as I held it open to read the typed text.
Amelia,
I'm sorry I'm not there with you as you wake up this morning. I received a call of an emergency in New York, so I had to leave. I didn't want to wake you because you were sleeping so peacefully, and I know I kept you up most the night.
My body flashed with heat at the memory of all the things he did to me last night.
I know we have unfinished business. I hope you're not annoyed that it's not completed. I'll be in touch about it soon.
In the meantime, you're welcome to stay in the suite for as long as you’d like. Order room service breakfast. It's all covered.
Talk to you soon,
Max.
I dropped my hands on the bed beside me and stared up at the ceiling, trying to decipher every word in the letter. Did he really just want me to sleep? Or did he not want to deal with me this morning? If he didn't want to deal with me, did that mean he didn't want to fill out the annulment papers? It seemed like if he was ready to be done with this affair, he would've stayed and finished the paperwork. So the emergency must've been real.
He expressed concern that I'd be annoyed that we hadn’t completed the enrollment papers. Was that projection because he was annoyed we didn’t get them done? I covered my face with my hands and groaned.Amelia, you're making yourself crazy.
Deciding to push it all away, I rose from bed and took a shower. I didn't order breakfast, but I did get a cup of coffee and sat at the table to enjoy the view before I headed home.
Once home, I busied myself with work. Christmas was a little more than a few weeks away. The holidays were a busy time for businesses, so I and my staff were busy as well. Just like Thanksgiving, we needed to work ahead if we wanted time off at Christmas. Not only did we need to cover the few days around Christmas, but we also needed to prepare for the new year. It was a good thing to be busy because it was a distraction from thinking about Max.
As the next few days ticked by and he didn't call or text, my mind once again worked to decipher what his note and subsequent silence meant. Was he too busy with his emergency to contact me? I didn't know what the emergency was, but if it involved family, of course, he would be too busy to call the woman he was having an affair with, even if she was technically his wife.
Maybe he was trying to quit me cold turkey. His life was in New York, and we were going to get an annulment, so there was no reason to draw this affair out. Or I could be reading everything all wrong. I shouldn't have been trying to read anything at all. I needed to wait until Max called me.
On Friday, I received a call from the vineyard I was hoping to sign as a client, inviting me up for the weekend, and to a meeting on Monday morning to hash out details. When I completed the call, I rose from my chair, doing my happy dance. For a moment, I wondered if leaving town was a good idea because Max could call and indicate that he was flying back to Nevada to take care of the annulment. But government offices weren’t open on the weekend, so it wasn't like we would be able to file until next week, anyway.