Complicated Read online

  Copyright © 2014 M. M. Koenig

  Published by M. M. Koenig Publishing LLC

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any other form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Edited by tgh writing services

  Cover Design by Mayhem Cover Creations

  Formatting by Mayhem Cover Creations

  DEDICATION

  For Grandma Joyce

  You encouraged me to use my imagination and tell stories from the very beginning. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t miss you.

  And for Em

  Your continued support drove this story to its finish. I wouldn’t have gotten there without you. There aren’t enough thanks in the world for everything that comes with your awesomeness.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  About The Author - M.M. Koenig

  CHAPTER ONE

  Didn't See That Coming

  I looked around the penthouse rooftop, wondering what had motivated Ethan to send us here. The Dowling was about as ritzy as they came in luxury hotels in Miami. I took in a deep breath as the water caught my eye. The varying shades of blue dancing along the ocean as the waves crashed ashore were incredible. It didn’t stop the anger in my heart from surging forward. Ethan had to send me to a place that was ridiculously beautiful; it made staying irate with him rather difficult. I replayed his letter in my head to try and work out what it all meant for us. I wanted to believe we’d get through it, but it was a challenge, since he had shipped me off to the other side of the country. If this was how he handled tough situations, then our future didn’t seem that promising. My life was going to stay complicated until this charade with Harrison was over. Deep down, he had to know that too.

  I grabbed my glass of champagne and headed over to the railing. My mind went blank as my eyes drifted along the glorious white beach. I longed to be running on it. I wanted to disappear from all the problems in my life. As I stared along the sand, every inch was covered in gorgeous bodies – it made me wonder if Ethan was testing me. Something led me to believe that there would be more than just Bri’s watchful eye on me. It was becoming a very familiar feeling, especially since Harrison went out of his way to remind me of the same thing. I shook off the shivers crawling up my back; that situation was at a dead end. I refused to let anyone be hurt because of my poor choices. Delving into matters with him was off the menu. It didn’t stop my gut instinct screaming that there were far too many clues that deserved my attention, starting with why Harrison had wanted me in the first place?

  You created this mess Mia. If you even try to dig deeper, you’re only guaranteeing more trouble. Don’t even think about it.

  The pressure in my chest deepened, driving my need for more alcohol. I finished my glass and looked around for the bottle. Realizing it wasn’t outside, I shuffled into the suite.

  “Maybe you should slow down Mia. It’s not even two yet,” Bri pointed out.

  She entered the living room, appearing a little on the annoyed side. Her eyes had a determination behind them that left me feeling even more defeated by today’s events.

  “I’m not going to get sloppy drunk,” I answered bitterly.

  Between whatever Bri was hiding and Ethan bailing on me, it took considerable effort to control my temper. I ignored her comment and poured myself another glass.

  Bri inhaled sharply as she took a seat on the couch across from me. “You had quite a few drinks on the flight. Now that bottle is half-gone. I haven’t had a drop, which means you’re drowning your sorrows again. I don’t need to remind you what happened the last time you let alcohol ease your pain.”

  I glared at Bri with a fury behind my eyes that forced her to look away. She had no business bringing up that night. I’d never let that happen again. I took down the glass in one gulp, dramatically set it down on the coffee table and snapped, “If you don’t like how I’m coping with things, then maybe you shouldn’t have agreed to be my chaperone. I’m still not thrilled you went behind my back and sided with Ethan about this weekend.”

  Bri crossed her arms with a roll of the eyes and retaliated, “I don’t care if you’re mad at me. I wasn’t happy siding with him. I only agreed because you needed to be away to keep your wits. If we were home, you’d be holed up in your room having a meltdown.”

  “I told Ethan the truth and he left town. Excuse me if I’m feeling a little on the uneasy side about what that means for us,” I bit back.

  Bri opened her mouth for a rebuttal, but I gave her another pointed stare, telling her to back off. We sat at an impasse. I played with the frayed edges of my jean-shorts before focusing on Bri again. Her green eyes caught mine – they carried a weight of concern.

  “What’s going on with you lately? I know you’ve been hiding stuff from me,” I said, in a much nicer tone.

  My eyes begged for her to be honest with me. It probably made me a hypocrite, considering the array of people I had lied to over the past few months, but she was not one of them. I had more than pressed her in the last few weeks, only to get tidbits of her life. A different kind of pain zapped me. She was my best friend, yet I didn’t have a clue what she was hiding from everyone.

  “You already know Mia. Trey and I have been having issues. That’s all,” she responded, avoiding eye contact with me as she gazed out of the floor-to-ceiling windows.

  My frustration soared even higher. “You’re lying, Bri. If you don’t want to tell me the truth, then that’s fine. But don’t sit here and lie to me. I never once lied to you. You mumbled in your sleep the other night, saying that you don’t want something to be true. What don’t you want to be true?”

  Bri’s face paled as her eyes darted around before she left the room without another word. I closed my eyes and sunk even deeper into the plush couch. I didn’t notice her come back. She patted my leg and pointed to her carry-on bag on the coffee table. There was a fear behind her eyes that sent shockwaves through me. I grabbed her bag while she walked out onto the rooftop. I sifted through all the makeup and inhaled hastily after I spotted the pregnancy test. After reading the results, another shocked gasp slipped through me and I leapt up from the couch.

  “Why didn’t you come to me? How long have you known?” I asked, striding up alongside her.

  She was doing her best to contain the tears that were slowly streaming down her face. She brought her hands up to wipe them away before taking a deep breath. I grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

  “I’ve known since Monday. I can only imagine wha
t you’re thinking, considering I drank the other night. I didn’t come to you because you’ve had more than enough to deal with lately. I didn’t want to pile on,” she admitted uneasily.

  A feeling of self-loathing crept through my pores. I must be one selfish human being if my own best friend felt the need to distance herself from me because of my problems. Bri dropped her head into her hands. Her long brown hair kept her expression concealed as she rubbed her face repeatedly.

  “We'll get through this. I promise,” I whispered, giving her a tight hug.

  Tears poured from her like a broken faucet, with nothing to slow the rush. I didn't say a word to ease her sobbing. Bri probably needed this more than anything. After the hysterical tears passed, she wiped her eyes and turned to me.

  “Mia, my dad is going to disown me. I know him. This will interfere with his political plans. He shoved a kid under the rug for Christ's sake!”

  The prospect of losing her parents undoubtedly terrified her. In my eyes, they embodied the political model in every way. They had a perfectly-groomed lifestyle, with multiple properties and cars. They attended countless functions and charities. Bri had lived up to her dad’s overbearing expectations of perfection without any difficulty. She worried about his reaction, when that should be the least of her concerns.

  “Bri, it's not like you planned on this. They’ll understand. They have to, because they love you,” I murmured.

  She glimpsed at me, clearly skeptical. “He’ll take the road that benefits him the most – even if that means letting go of another child,” Bri contested.

  “You need to take one step at a time. There’s no way of telling how someone will react – not with stuff as big as this, anyway,” I answered stiffly.

  She stared at me warily. I didn’t blame her, given the circumstances surrounding this weekend. She sharpened her focus on me. “What the fuck am I going to do? I'm twenty-one years old. I'm not parent material yet. How am I supposed to raise a kid?” she asked, in a state I’d describe as close to delirious. Her eyes had that craziness to them that resembled what people on the brink of insanity probably look like.

  “Bri – it's your life, and your body. But no matter what, you need to tell Trey. He has a right to know,” I replied worriedly.

  Her shoulders dropped as sorrow swept through her. I almost kicked myself for having said the wrong thing. She looked at me with glossy eyes. “That came out all wrong. I didn't mean I was planning on ending it. I just … I have no idea …” she trailed off.

  It was strange for us to be this out-of-sync, but life-altering changes did pack a punch in that area. I longed for the simpler times in our lives – they seemed ages ago; far from the problems we were dealing with now. Bri bit her bottom lip to prevent any more tears. Her eyes became vacant, so I assumed she was about done with the conversation. I had very few words of encouragement left. I was way out of my league on this front.

  “You should tell Trey. Keeping this from him will only cause problems later on. Believe me, I know.”

  Bri whipped her head towards me, clearly agitated by my suggestion. Her eyes drifted to the ocean while she muttered obscenities under her breath until she ran out of them. She exhaled heavily before looking at me. “I still don't understand how this is even possible. I thought the sole purpose of the Pill was to prevent something like this from happening. Trey is going to flip out.”

  “I'm sure he’ll be shocked, and scared, but you need to tell him,” I reiterated.

  “I’ll tell him when I’m ready. Mia, you can’t say a word about this to anyone,” Bri snapped.

  There was a fire in her eyes that shot right through me. I’d never betray her trust. Given my shady actions lately, I reinforced it by speaking up. “I won’t,” I promised.

  Her expression softened as she said, “I’m sorry for not coming to you sooner. I promise to keep you in the loop going forward.”

  “Do you know how far along you are?”

  “No, I need to make an appointment to figure out all that crap. I plan to do it when we get back. I’m hoping we can take the rest of this weekend to let our problems go. I need it, and so do you.”

  I gave her arm a gentle squeeze before focusing on the ocean. We had already pampered ourselves at the spa. Our next stop definitely needed to be the beach. The seclusion of the suite was nice, but having more distractions around us would probably be beneficial. My phone started ringing from inside. I went to grab it and quickly returned to Bri’s side. I unlocked it and scrolled over to the text messages. A rush of adrenaline jolted through me because I desperately hoped it was Ethan. The feeling quickly passed as rage spread throughout every vein.

  You may have left town, but I still have eyes on you Mia. It’s curious that you and Ethan have drifted to separate sides of the country. If you neglect to show up on Monday, I’ll make you pay for it. You’d better keep up appearances. You seem to be forgetting who has the upper hand in this arrangement.

  “Fucking ruthless asshole,” I muttered under my breath, arching my arm back.

  It was the only thing that came to mind to bring some sort of comfort to me with that hopeless situation. If Ethan betrayed me in any way, it was game over. Bri grabbed my arm to prevent me from releasing it.

  “It’s not the phone’s fault,” she commented softly.

  “I know, but it’ll make me feel better,” I whined.

  A small smile slipped across her face as she let go of my arm. The corners of my mouth curled as well. Our focus returned to the vast ocean in front of us. I had figured that Harrison would know that I left Chicago, but it was unsettling to find out I was right. Anxiety and rage raced each other as they rushed through me. My nerves got the better of me, and Bri was quick to notice. She gestured for my phone, with an eyebrow raised. I passed it over to her. After reading the message, Bri scowled and tossed my cell on the lounger behind us.

  “He seems to be stepping up his game. Do you think he sent Ian down here?”

  I looked away. “I don’t know. I’m pretty sure he has more than one person watching me. It could be anyone.”

  Bri sighed. “God, I hate that asshole. Are all his messages like that?”

  I nodded before crossing my arms. It helped soothe the shards of pain attacking me.

  “Ethan’s in San Diego. When I refused to agree to this weekend, he told me where he was going. He’ll be in touch Mia. Have faith. I know it’s hard, but he promised me that he wasn’t going to leave you. I’m not happy with him for doing this to you. He should know better. It’s going to be a long time before I forgive him, but I can’t deny that he’s totally in love with you,” Bri said, her voice strained.

  My jaw dropped while the rest of me started to shake from my fear of the unknown. “Ethan left me less than twelve hours after I told him I was in love with him. He said he loved me too, but I’m not sure what to believe since his reaction to the truth took him across the country.”

  “Ethan mentioned his best friend lives there. He approached me with this harebrained idea by saying it was a best friend’s kind of weekend. Why would Harrison care about where he went, though? I thought he was only concerned with you,” she remarked as her forehead creased.

  I swallowed hard, “Ethan has his own agenda with Harrison. I have no idea what his intentions are, but Harrison is part of his plan to tear down F. F. & Sweeney.”

  Bri blinked several times before her eyes shot in every direction. “This entire situation just went from bad to worse. You should’ve told me Ethan has plans to destroy that place. Are you sure you don’t want me to call my dad? He has people that can take out Harrison in a heartbeat,” she said lightly.

  I smirked. “No, I’ll admit this is one big clusterfuck. Taking him out doesn’t seem like the best option. As far as Ethan’s plans, I just found out. He hasn’t said much.”

  Bri chuckled. “Let’s hit the beach. From the sounds of it, we’ll have more than one set of eyes on us all weekend, so we might as well make them
drool by slipping into our bikinis and exposing as much skin as possible.” I raised an eyebrow. Bri giggled even harder. “I can tell Ethan loves you, because this suite comes with a security detail. If we’re lucky, maybe we can figure out who Harrison sent and have security send a special message to them.”

  I shook my head with a wide grin. “You seem hell-bent on stirring the pot today.”

  Bri linked her arm with mine as we walked back into the suite. “I’m trying to keep us upbeat, with all the shitty things surrounding our lives,” she said, her tone more serious.

  I laughed softly. “I’ll meet you in the living room in five.”

  We spent the rest of the afternoon absorbing the rays and man-candy. We kept an eye out for anyone that stared at us for too long, but it ended up being a pointless task; after all, Bri was movie-star gorgeous. It was hard to know if people were staring at us because of her, or because of the situation with Harrison. It was also rather unnerving that Ethan had piled on the security detail – I wasn’t entirely a fan of the control he had exerted over our weekend.

  My emotions were flying in every direction. I couldn’t stay focused on one thing long enough to figure out whether or not I wanted to forgive Ethan. It took all of my willpower not to call or text him. Eventually, I resorted to giving my phone to Bri. I didn’t trust myself to say anything nice to him. I could understand him being upset with me because of all the lies, but it was out of character for him to disappear – even if he claimed it was just for space. He had to have known that leaving me the way he did would royally piss me off. Ethan probably assumed I’d become a blubbering basket-case, but since my breakdown at his place, I hadn’t shed a tear over him. I was far too busy trying to keep my head from exploding from the anger that was quadrupling by the hour.

  My body language betrayed me on more than one occasion, but Bri did her best to keep me distracted. It made me feel even guiltier for being such a shitty friend to her. She deserved a lot better than what I’d given her lately. Going forward, I vowed to be better for her in every way. Whether Bri liked it or not, she was going to need it, especially if she planned to keep Trey out of the loop.