The Arrangement Book 2

ANGELA

After my memories returned to me, we’d quickly returned to New York.

We’d just left the airport, and Marco was driving us through the usual hustle and bustle of the city.

This was the Xavier I remembered—cold, callous, staring out his window the entire ride home. He hadn’t said a word to me.

But then, what was there to say?

How were we supposed to process everything we’d just been through? Would Xavier continue to hate me now that we were back?

I had to admit, whether he still hated me or not, the quiet was certainly preferable to him screaming at me all the time.

“Marco,” Xavier said, shaking me from my stupor. “Drop me off at work, will you? I have a lot to catch up on.”

“Of course, sir,” Marco said, always obedient.

I considered Xavier, surprised. Was he really capable of going back to work already? He’d just survived a plane crash!

But sure enough, five minutes later, Marco was pulling up to the Knight Enterprises building and opening the car door for Xavier.

He was about to step out when he stopped and looked at me.

“Um,” he said, looking uncertain as to what to say. “Take it easy…I guess?”

Then he slammed the car door shut and headed inside his building. I stared in disbelief. Take it easy? That was all he had to say?

I found myself both confused and not surprised in the slightest. Who was I to make the great Xavier Knight change? He was who he was.

A plane crash, a near-death experience, strange bonding on a faraway island—none of it mattered now that he was back where he belonged.

Marco stepped back into the car. “All right, Ms. Knight. Back home?”

I thought about it. Home. Of course, Marco meant the penthouse apartment I shared with Xavier, but that had never felt like home, not really.

No. I knew where I wanted to go.

“You know what, Marco,” I said. “I’d like to stop somewhere first.”

***

“Angie!!!”

The front door opened, and burly arms wrapped around me, lifting me into the air. Even as my leg bumped against his and it throbbed with pain, I smiled.

Because, at last, I was surrounded by the people I loved. Back home in Heller, where I was raised.

“Danny, you can put me down,” I said, laughing slightly. “I’m fine.”

“You have no idea how scared we all were, sis,” Danny said, lowering me and waving me inside. “Lucas started knitting just to calm his nerves.”

“He did?”

Behind him stood Lucas, shaking his head but beaming. Of course not. Even at the scariest moments, Danny was always joking around. Making all of us feel better.

Beside Lucas, I was surprised to see Em. For a second, I couldn’t understand what she was doing here. She was one of my best friends, don’t get me wrong, but she wasn’t family.

“Thank God you’re all right,” she said, running forward and hugging me tight. There were tears in her eyes. And I suddenly remembered.

Em and Lucas were a thing. A couple.

How had I forgotten?

“I’m…I’m glad you’re here,” I managed.

In truth, the idea of my best friend dating my brother still made me feel a little queasy. I was happy for them, obviously, but it was just hard to wrap my head around it.

And not a fact I’d expected to be confronted with when returning home.

Finally, around the corner, came my dad. His cheeks looked rosy and healthy, and his smile was huge.

“There she is,” he said. “My sweet pea.”

Suddenly, there were tears in my eyes. When I’d been stranded on the island, when all hope seemed lost, I’d thought of my father and whether I’d ever get to see him again.

And here I was. Here he was. Here we were together.

“Dad, I’m…” I said, but I couldn’t continue. An involuntary sob left my throat, and I was running toward him, throwing my arms around his neck.

“It’s okay,” he said, holding me, gently patting my head. “It’s okay, Angie. I’m all right. We’re all here.”

We all stayed there for the longest time, frozen, trying to hold on to this moment, this gratitude that we had been reunited, despite everything.

Finally, I pulled away from my dad and wiped my tears away.

“Do you see this girl? Skin and bones!” he said to Lucas. “C’mon, we gotta get her fed, pronto!”

I laughed, feeling a warmth inside that no Caribbean sunlight could ever come close to competing with.

***

“You did WHAT?!”

“I caught a fish! Is that so hard to believe?”

Danny was staring at me in disbelief. Everyone at the table was looking at me as if I were a completely different person.

“Guys, it’s not that big of a deal,” I said, blushing. “Dad used to take us all hunting. You don’t think I picked up a few tricks along the way?”

“I didn’t think you were capable of killing anything,” Danny said. “I’ll admit it. I’m scared of you now.”

We all laughed. I noticed Lucas and Em holding hands under the table and looked away. That was one subject I intended to avoid for as long as I could.

Instead, I looked at my dad. “So, how are you feeling?” I asked.

“Better, sweet pea,” he said, taking a big bite of lasagna. “So much better. My appetite’s back, and some days I can even do a little jogging.”

“So the treatment might actually be working?”

My dad shrugged, but when I looked at Danny, he was smiling, as if to say, Yeah, Angie. It’s really working.

There were so many questions I wanted to ask, but they could wait. For now, I just wanted to eat a delicious home-cooked meal, laugh at Danny’s jokes, and be thankful that I was spending this moment at home. In my real home.

Not with Xavier.

XAVIER

Our first morning back, I woke up, and for a second, I could’ve sworn I was still on the beach. I could feel the grains of sand scratching against my back, ~hear~ the sounds of waves lapping on the shore, ~smell~ the fresh ocean breeze.

But when I opened my eyes, I saw the wood-paneled ceiling and realized I was back in my massive luxurious king-sized bed. Back in New York City where I belonged.

I sighed with relief. These microfiber sheets, this Zen Chi buckwheat hull pillow, the centrifugal humidifier that kept the temperature and air quality of my bedroom exactly right…

These were the markings of a billionaire’s home. The wealth I had accumulated, the riches I had earned through sheer grit, all of these things were rightfully mine.

Mine.

Xavier Knight’s.

But…

Having been stripped of all these items on that island, reduced to nothing more than a man trying to survive, living every hour as if it might be my last, I couldn’t help but feel…changed.

The material possessions that had once brought me such pleasure felt silly and empty now. I was comfortable, but at what cost?

Jesus.

What the hell is the matter with me?

I forced the thoughts out of my head and hurried to dress and get to the office, where I sleepwalked through several meetings.

Someone was speaking to me about flowcharts, about a new Knight hotel, about an upcoming presentation, but I didn’t hear one word.

All I could think about was Angela.

“Mr. Knight? Do we have your approval?”

“Oh, uh, sure,” I said, eyes glazed over.

“Wonderful,” one of my top executives said. “We’ll get the ball rolling and keep you updated!”

I nodded and then lazily turned aside in my chair as she left my office. I looked out the window at Manhattan. Sure, it was an island, but could it have been more different than the last one I was on?

I know I should’ve said something to Angela in the hospital, in the plane, in the car, but I didn’t know where the hell to begin.

Oh, so now that you saved my life and all, you think we can move past the fact that you married me for my money and made my life a goddamn living hell?

I put my head in my hands. I wished that I could still hate her, that I could reconnect with my rage and call her exactly what she was—a no-good money-grubbing whore.

But just thinking that, never mind saying it out loud, made me feel sick.

Is this what they call guilt?

What the hell was happening to me? One second, I wanted to spit in the girl’s face, and the next, I wanted to cuddle her. My brain was chaos. It felt like I couldn’t think straight if my life depended upon it.

I wanted to blame the plane crash. A physical malady was easier to diagnose, but I knew better. This was about my feelings for Angela somehow.

I just couldn’t make heads or tails of what the hell my goddamn feelings were telling me.

“Xavier?”

I turned to see my father enter my office. He looked better, if still exhausted. The bags beneath his eyes betrayed his otherwise put-together demeanor.

“You really should be at home,” he said, taking a seat across from me.

“That’s what everyone keeps telling me.”

He tapped on the table between us, sighing. “It’s too early to bring up, but if you’re insisting on working, I guess I might as well.”

“What is it?” I asked, frowning.

My dad had that look, the look that said he was about to spring something on me. Something I wouldn’t like. At all.

“Right now, your PR image is…how do I say this?” My dad paused. “It’s bad, Xavier. The photos of Angela—”

“Those were her fault.”

“The rumors that you’ve been sleeping around.”

I was struck silent at that. My father was giving me one of those glares that meant, I’m not going to even ask if that’s true because I don’t want to know.

“And then the plane crash.”

I scoffed. “Shouldn’t that make us look…I don’t know, like victims?”

“Yes. Pathetic. Powerless. Incapable of running a business because you’ve been so traumatized.”

“Please,” I said, tsk-ing. “You know I’m—”

“No, Xavier. Right now, I don’t know anything. And neither does the board. You need to do something to show them you’re in control.”

“Fine,” I said. “Name it.”

“The Silver Jubilee is two months away. As you know, part of the evening includes an annual dance competition.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“You and Angela are to take part. You need to dance in front of everyone. Show how confident you are. How in love you are. Understand?”

“This is ridiculous. I thought it would be something business-related. Not some goddamn—”

“Xavier,” my father said sternly. “I don’t ask you for much, but this I am asking for. I nearly lost you and Angela both and… Please. If not for the company, do this for me.”

I sighed and looked away, knowing that convincing Angela to dance with me, especially when she had a leg injury, was going to be next to impossible.

The idea that I had to ask Angela for a favor was eating me up inside.

After all the horrible things I’d said to her, after the filthy ways I’d treated her, how had she repaid me? By saving my life.

To presume she would do more for me now was insanity.

If I were her, I would hate my fucking guts. I would never want to see me again, let alone be my dance partner at the Silver Jubilee.

I never thought in a million years that this would be my problem. Be nice, I thought. ~Be charming~. But with this girl, with Angela, I’d never thought I would have to try.

I knew, if I failed to convince her, my father might very well replace me as CEO of Knight Enterprises. Business always came first. To think my entire future depended on some stupid fucking dance!

It made me want to tear my hair out. Nothing made sense right now. Not work. Not play. Not the relationship with my oh-so-sweet gold-digging wife.

The question played out again and again, over and over, in my own head, sounding more ridiculous every time. But I had to admit that I had no idea how to answer it.

How the hell was I going to convince my own wife to dance with me?

***

I thought of Angela and remembered that I was going to have to speak with her about this Silver Jubilee dance competition.

Ugh.

The idea alone made me shiver with disgust. The last thing in the world I wanted was to ask a woman for a favor, but after talking to my father, I knew I had no choice.

Maybe doing this will help clear up how you feel about her! My brain was trying to come up with justifications now. Great.

I hoped she wasn’t back yet from her father’s place in Heller. I needed a drink first.

Louis XIII Cognac, one of the world’s finest. Yet another reminder of my ridiculous wealth.

I took a step into the hallway, and I heard two distant voices. Laughter.

“…you know that’s not true!”

“Angela, stop acting so humble for once in your life.”

A man was speaking to my wife, making her giggle and squeal.

Who the fuck is that?