Heart storms, p.20
Heart Storms, page 20
The man, uncomfortable, dropped his unshaken hand and walked up to the bar. “Well, thank you,” he said to Roy. “You’re a good man. I’ll have a double Grey Goose martini, straight up. No olives, no ice, no bullshit. Just straight up booze. Good booze is what I need, and I’ve got a platinum credit card to keep them coming.”
Roy and Gabe looked at each other, both thinking similar versions of, ‘Could this guy be more obnoxious?’ Roy said, “I don’t care what color your card is. We’re closed. I felt sorry for you standing in the rain, right after Christmas. I let you in for one drink then you’re on your way. Got it?”
The man saluted him. “Got it, boss.”
“I ain’t the boss,” Roy said. “Save your sucking up for the woman at the front desk if you want a room for tonight because I think we’re booked up.”
The man downed two big gulps of his martini. “I’ll remember. And thanks for letting me in. I didn’t mean to be rude.”
“Then don’t be,” Roy said, getting louder and slamming the cleaning rag on the bar.
Gabe stepped in to deescalate the situation. He stood behind the bar next to Roy and said to the man, “It’s been a long week for us. Drink up, and adios.”
“No problem there. Can I have one more double please and I’ll leave you gentlemen to your evening?”
Gabe stared intently at him; he looked so familiar. As his face and hair dried in the warm room, he saw his coloring, stature, the green eyes and then he knew from the pictures Jade had shown him—it was Devlin. Jade’s Devlin and Gabe filled with such rage he wanted to deck him right there. But he didn’t want to lose his job and he did not want Devlin walking in unannounced and taking Jade by surprise at the front desk.
Gabe looked him up and down, and said in a loud voice, “I know you. I know who you are.”
“Really? I don’t see how you could since I’ve never been to this soggy state, and I’ve never seen you before. So who do you think I am?”
Gabe yelled in a booming voice, like a drill sergeant to his recruits fifty yards away. He was loud enough to be heard into the adjoining room, through the foyer into the front desk area. “Hey Jade, are you there?”
Roy stepped away from Gabe sensing a blowup, and the man’s mouth dropped open.
Jade yelled back, “I’m here, and why are you yelling?”
“Well, the devil’s at the door. You want me to let him in or kick the shit out of him? Which would you prefer?”
The man got off the barstool. “Hey, what’s going on here? You know Jade?”
“You bet your ass I do. Let’s see what she wants to do with your sorry ass.”
The man’s hands shook as he took out his credit card. “I’m sure you’ve heard a lot of bad things about me. But what’s with this ‘devil’ thing?”
Gabe laughed. “The devil is the short and appropriate version of your name. It’s what she’s called you since you left her high and dry, destroyed her heart and her life, stole all her money. You piece of shit.”
Jade came running into the room and stopped short at the end of the bar. One look at Devlin and she said to Gabe, “I really want you to kick the shit out of him.”
Devlin pleaded with his hands up, surrendering as if they were police. “Please, Jade, no, tell him not to.”
Staring a hole of hatred through Devlin’s head, Jade said, “The only reason I won’t let him beat you up is because I don’t want him to go to jail.” She glanced back at Gabe. “Give him to me. I’ll take care of him.”
Devlin moved toward Jade, throwing Gabe a smug smile and shoulder shrug as he walked past him.
Gabe struggled to keep from lunging at him. “Are you sure?” he asked Jade.
With a stone-cold look, she said, “I’ve never been surer of anything. Devlin, come with me.”
***
Devlin followed Jade to the front desk looking nervous as a thief who got caught. “Jade. I can’t believe you’re here standing in front of me. It’s good to see you. You look great.”
She moved behind the desk and looked at him with blades in her unblinking eyes. “Cut the bullshit. What are you doing here and what do you want? I know this isn’t a little vacation for you.” Looking around the room, she added, “And where’s your lovely wife?”
Devlin rubbed his hands together, shaking. “You sent me those pictures of Candace.”
“What makes you think so?”
He leaned against the desk to get close to her. “I confronted Candace with the photos and demanded an explanation. She almost passed out when she saw them; she’s not used to being caught with her pants down.”
Jade had backed away from him, not wanting him to be close. “Almost literally,” Jade snickered.
“You don’t have to be so damn happy about this.”
“Yes, I do. You deserve every ounce of pain I can dish out to you. So, what did your wife do after being shocked at getting caught?”
Devlin looked toward the bar. “God, I need another drink. Aren’t you the manager? Can you get me another drink from the bar, or better yet, I’ll pay for a bottle, twice the going rate? Please?”
Jade tapped keys on the computer, not wanting to look at him, disgusted with him. “Not on your life. So, you’re drinking again, huh? What happened to the expensive rehab she sent you to, and her wanting you clean and sober?”
Devlin’s eyes reddened as if he might cry and said, “I don’t care what she wants anymore. We’re getting divorced.”
Rolling her eyes, she said, “Oh, please. Tears? “Really? I didn’t see you shed a tear with our divorce. Why is another divorce imminent?”
“The pictures—she admitted everything and didn’t think it was such a big deal. She accused me of having affairs and said she could, too. Except I hadn’t cheated on her, so I was furious.”
Jade slammed the lid town on her laptop. “Now you get to feel how I did when you told me about your cheating. Doesn’t feel so good, does it?”
Red in the face, Devlin almost yelled. “Is that why you sent the photos—for revenge, to break up my marriage?”
Jade leaned in closer to his face to give him the message loud and clear. “Oh, please. I’m not that powerful. If your marriage didn’t have serious problems to begin with, she wouldn’t have cheated and it wouldn’t be ending in divorce. Fate dropped in my lap when I saw her here, all over some guy and him all over her. I knew they’d stayed together in the same room for several days.” She waited two beats for his reaction, when he looked down as if embarrassed. “I thought maybe you already knew, maybe you two had an agreement to have your dalliances as long as she kept the cash flowing. But in case you didn’t know she was a cheat and a liar, I thought you should. Everyone should know the truth of their spouse, don’t you think?” Jade’s smile was almost evil.
Devlin’s eyes did tear up. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
Calming down, quieting her voice, Jade said, “I don’t enjoy seeing people hurt, but I have to admit with what you did to me, which was a million times worse than this, I thought I’d help the scales of justice out a little.”
He ran his hand through his hair and looked uncharacteristically ashamed. Glancing down at his wringing hands, said, “I’m sorry for everything I did to you, and for how much I hurt you.”
“Look me in the eyes when you say you’re sorry, so I’ll know if it’s bullshit, or if you mean it.”
Devlin gazed directly at her. “I mean it. I’m so sorry for hurting you.” He looked around the room. “But it seems you’ve landed on your feet. You got a good gig going here. This is a nice place and you’re the manager.”
“How do you know?”
“Candace told me where the photos were taken. All I had to do was an internet search on the inn and there were all these stories, information, and pictures.”
“And what, you jumped on a plane and came out here to chastise me for outing her?”
He raised his voice. “No! No. I was sober then and was so raging mad at her, especially for saying it was nothing and we should both fool around with other people. There I was, looking after our baby son and she’s off having a great time all over the country screwing around on me.”
“First time it happened to you, right? Your first experience of being cheated on, being the one to be hurt?”
“Jade, can I sit down? I’m not feeling so good.”
“Of course, you’re not,” she smirked. “There’s a sofa over by the windows behind you.”
He walked across the room and flopped down on the seat, looking defeated. She noticed he’d put on some weight, looked older and haggard. But she did not, in any way, feel sorry for him.
Devlin motioned to the cushion next to him. “Would you come sit with me so we can talk?”
Jade opened her laptop again and said void of any emotion, “I can talk from here.”
With a sigh of dejection, he said, “Okay, I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything more from you.”
His words hit her like a bomb going off in her brain. With guests on the second floor, she didn’t want to make a scene, but she had no control over raising her voice to match her anger to just below screaming. “After what you did to me, you have no right to expect one goddamn thing from me! You’re lucky I’m even giving you my time to speak to you. You deserve nothing from me. Not. One. Thing. Nada. Nothing. Get it?” Jade knew if she didn’t release her rage, she might have called for Gabe to bring the kitchen knives. She picked up a cheap glass bowl filled with pinecones and hurled it across the room onto the floor next to the sofa.
The crashing glass sliced through the heavy air, thick with Devlin’s bullshit and his still-evil, conniving ways. He was still drinking, still trying to manipulate her. Jade wouldn’t have it. He still saw her as a pushover to con with his smooth talk and she hated him for it.
With the shrill sound of smashing glass and pinecones flying, Devlin jumped off the sofa as shards flew across the room. “What the hell, Jade, are you nuts?”
All at once from different rooms, Gabe, Rick, and Roy flew into the foyer like the Three Musketeers. Rick looked at the broken glass, at the man, then back at Jade. “What’s going on?” He turned to the man and said, “And keep your voice down. We have guests here.” He glanced at Jade again. “Who is this guy and why did you throw a vase at him?”
Shaking, red-faced with rage, Jade said, “That sorry excuse for a man is my ex.”
Rick looked back to Devlin. “Oh, so this is the devil?” Then he glanced at Gabe. “What do you think? Should we take him out back and beat the crap out of him?”
Devlin ran toward them, arms flailing and shrieking. “Enough! Who do you think you are, threatening me?”
Rick pushed Devlin away from him. “I’m her boss. I own this inn. And I’m her friend.”
Devlin looked to Gabe. “And you! You threatened me when I walked in the door. Who the hell are you?”
Without thinking and in anger, Gabe blurted out, “I’m her fiancé, so you better shut your mouth, or I won’t be kidding about beating you within an inch of your life.”
With a look to kill, Rick shouted at Gabe, “Her fiancé?! What the hell are you talking about?”
Gabriel hadn’t meant to let those words slip out. He turned away from Devlin’s eyes, and winked at Rick. He hoped Jade wouldn’t be upset later with his blunder, seeing he was being protective of her against her ex.
Rick nodded at Gabe, indicating he understood it was a ruse and let out a sigh of relief. Turning back to Devlin, Rick said, “Everyone here knows what you did to Jade, and we all hate you for treating this loving, trusting, good woman the way you did.”
Devlin backed off. “Yeah, this good woman who just tried to kill me.”
Jade walked out from behind the desk and spoke to Devlin with the seriousness of a judge sentencing him to life in prison. “Always the drama king. If I tried to kill you, you’d be dead by now. I’m not stupid. I won’t ruin my life over taking out the trash.” She looked at her Three Musketeers. “Did you hear what he said about getting him a whole bottle of booze and when I said no, he said he shouldn’t have expected more from me?” They all nodded.
Then she really tore into Devlin. “How dare you even think such a thing let alone speak it? As if I’m the bad guy, the loser, the cheater, and liar here? You’ll go straight to hell for all the destruction you’ve done to so many lives. I can’t imagine how many women you’ve lied to and strung along while married to me.” She looked away, then had a second thought. “And what about your poor baby? What a crap life he or she will have with you for a father.”
Devlin cut in, head down, cheeks flushed, soft-spoken. “The baby is a ‘he.’ I have a son.”
“You don’t deserve a son, or any child. I feel sorry for him. A mother who’s a drunk, liar, and cheater like his father. If you cared anything about him, you’d put him up for adoption!” She was crying now, losing control.
Gabe folded her into a strong embrace. “Okay, enough, Jade. Calm down. You’re going to hurt yourself. You said your piece.”
“Oh, I’m not nearly done saying my piece.”
Rick walked over to her. He took her hands and pulled her out of Gabe’s arms, and Gabe didn’t stop him. Rick said, “Jade, this guy doesn’t deserve to even stand in the same space as you. You don’t need to whip him with your words. He’s whipped down like the dog he is. Be the bigger person, the person you are.”
Jade wiped her tears and calmed. Her voice was hoarse from yelling and holding back sobs, so she spoke in a hushed tone, “Thank you, guys, for caring enough about me to want to kill this guy.”
She said one parting thing to Devlin. “Your innocent baby is the only person who needs sympathy and deserves a better life. Go home and clean up your life and his.”
Devlin crossed his arms in front him as his eyes turned dark, his mouth turned down. “I can’t go home. She kicked me out with nothing.”
Jade swatted her hand through the air as if she wanted to slap him. “Idiot. California’s a community property state. You’ll get half of everything. Although when you cut me out of your life there was no property left to split because you lost it all, remember?”
Devlin groaned. “I told you, I’m sorry. It was awful what I did. But now I have nothing to go home to, literally, nothing. I signed a pre-nup. She owns everything; it’s all in her name. Her family wanted her stake in their vineyard secured. So, I, like the idiot you called me, signed it all away. I don’t have a thing—not my job, no money, no credit cards, no house or car in my name. Nothing. I’m practically destitute.”
Roy chimed in, “How about the platinum card you wanted to use to pay the bar bill?”
Rick interjected, “Your drinks are on the house. Now leave.”
With red-rimmed eyes, Devlin looked at Jade and opened his arms wide. “But I was hoping I might come back, maybe we could get to know each other again and start over. You were, and still are, the most decent, loving, forgiving woman I know. I don’t want to lose you, Jade. Is there any chance we could at least be friends?”
The other three men reacted immediately.
“Are you for real?” yelled Rick.
“Seriously, dude?” Roy said, laughing.
Gabe was the last to speak. “You got one brass set, dickwad. Get out of this state before we really do kill you.”
Roy elaborated, “All we gotta do is knock you out and feed you to the gators in the swamp down yonder.”
Rick finished with, “No one will ever find your body.”
For good measure, Gabe added, “And Candace won’t even care.”
Peace washed over Jade. She felt vindicated. Her skin crawled with hearing Devlin trying to crawl back into her life. She said, “What the hell planet do you live on? One where I give a damn what happens to you now?”
Devlin walked to the desk where she stood. “I knew it was a long shot. But I wasn’t exaggerating or conning you about what a good person you are. Can you find it in your heart to at least let me have a room for a couple nights ‘til I figure out what I’m doing?”
Rick yelled over, “You can’t afford even one night here.”
Jade put her hand up, signaling Rick to stop talking, then turned to Devlin. “This is a holiday week. We’re filled.”
“Oh, c’mon, you hotel people always keep a couple rooms vacant for a VIP guest.”
“All our guests are VIPs. You’re not. Christmas was four days ago, next week is New Year’s and I’m sorry, but there’s simply no room at the inn.”
Chapter 24
After he made sure Jade had gotten rid of Devlin, Rick commended Gabe on his fake ‘fiancé’ remark. “You really got him. Did you see his face? I thought he’d blow an artery. Quick thinking, Gabe.” As he walked toward his office, he glanced back at Gabe and Jade and said, “Fiancé! What a great con.”
Roy glared at Gabe. “Uh, huh. A great con, all right.” While walking back to the bar with his back to all of them, he muttered under his breath, “We’ll see how much of a con the boss-man thinks it is when he learns the truth.”
Gabe said to Jade, “You sure you’re good?” They both looked around to see if anyone could hear or see them, but the lobby had been emptied for a long time. “Let me take you home.”
“I’m fine, Gabe, really.” She practically whispered. “You head on to my house. I’ve got some work to finish, then I’ll head home for a good night’s sleep. I’m more okay than I’ve been in a couple years.”
She smiled a genuine, happy smile and Gabe knew she’d be all right tonight and every night from here on out. He left and drove to her cottage as they’d planned. He texted her when he arrived and asked if she wanted company or to be alone. She texted back, ‘Stay. But I might be late. More to wrap up. Lost time dealing with the devil. XOXO’
While Jade waited for the night manager to come on duty, something nagged at the back of her mind and wouldn’t let go. It had something to do with Devlin. She reviewed the events of the night. He must’ve been pretty desperate and heartbroken to come all the way out here a few days after Christmas. She had kicked him out into the stormy night, mostly because the inn was full, but also because she didn’t want him there. Calmer and saner now, having gotten rid of so much rage, Jade’s heart lurched a little realizing she wouldn’t even treat a stray cat or dog so badly on a cold, wet night. She’d take it in, feed it, warm it, let it stay overnight then take it to a shelter the next day.
