Interrupted Vol 2 Read online

  By S. Moose

  Copyright © 2015 S. Moose

  Interrupted Volume 2

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication, may be reproduced,

  distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including

  photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are

  the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Cover Design by EmCat Designs

  https://www.facebook.com/EmCatDesigns

  Editing and interior design by Snow Editing

  www.SnowEditing.com

  Cover image used under license from

  http://www.dollarphotoclub.com

  To everyone who needs a reason. Sometimes obstacles get in the way, making you turn the other way, until an answer you aren’t expecting opens the door and gives you a reason to believe.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Cam

  Sharp

  Cam

  Sharp

  Cam

  Sharp

  Cam

  Sharp

  Cam

  Sharp

  Cam

  Sharp

  Cam

  Sharp

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Prologue

  Sharp

  MEET ME AT the park instead. I love you.

  I look at my phone over and over and then back around the park. It’s been nearly two hours. I’ve been sitting on the cold, wooden bench looking through our pictures on my phone. Damn, I love her. Lifting my head I look around the park, and it’s just me and nature. It’s quiet tonight, unlike other nights.

  Looking at the time, it’s 11:15 pm. We agreed to meet at 9pm. Sitting beside our tree, I sit and wait. I know she’ll be here soon. I laugh to myself remembering Camila's never been punctual for anything. This is normal. There's nothing I have to be worried about.

  An hour passes, and I pull up her beautiful face, wanting to text her, but we promised we wouldn’t. This is her way of telling me go and move on, but fuck I don’t want to. I can’t do this without her. The reality is coming at me with full force, and I have to face it.

  The uncertainty.

  The torment and shattered dreams and promises.

  What’ll be left of me? Of our memories?

  Standing frozen by the tree where I carved our names fucking hurts. Thinking about her and me, this is what I deserve. Who am I kidding? I can’t give her a life she deserves. She’s rich and comes from money. Shit, I’m lucky to make about a hundred bucks a week from my part time job at the local grocery store. She’s designer; I’m a no-name brand.

  There’s nothing left for me in Atlanta. This is a place full of brokenness and liars. I thought it would be better this time around. I’ve lived in five different cities. Five different states. I thought this would be the place I would settle down and actually have a life. And that was the plan until now. There’s nothing I can do to change her mind.

  “So, what if you don’t meet me and change your mind.”

  She takes my hand. “That’s not gonna happen, Ayden. I promise. I want this life with you. I want our forever. It’ll be hard, but I know we’ll be okay because we have each other.”

  I shake my head. “Just please do this one thing.”

  “Okay.”

  “If either of us changes our mind, we don’t chase after the other person. We let it go and move on, and if by chance we meet again, then we’ll figure it out from there.”

  She sighs, placing her head on my shoulders. “I hate that you want to agree to do this, but I guess I’ll agree. If you don’t show up, I won’t chase you, and if I don’t show up, you don’t chase me.”

  “Yeah.”

  “God, I hope that doesn’t happen. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “I promise I’ll always be waiting.”

  I need to move on with my life and forget everything here. Everything and everyone.

  The rain hits my face. I’m standing here waiting, but I know the truth. Everything I’ve experienced since meeting her has been a lie. One big, fat, ugly lie filled with the most fucked up bullshit I’ve ever heard. I believed her. She was there for me and told me she’d never leave. I knew it was too good to be true. A girl like her doesn’t fall for a guy like me. She’s perfection, and I’m the beast. I’ll never give her the life she’s used to. Looking down at my worn jeans and sneakers, I fucking shake my head, cursing myself that I fell for her games. Throughout the years we've been together, it's been in the back of my mind that she and I wouldn't last. I've been fighting those thoughts, but now it's all clear. I was a pawn used to piss off her parents. To her, being with me was a game. But fuck I would’ve done everything for her.

  Everything.

  I’m frozen in the same spot, looking in both directions and waiting for my answer to come. It doesn’t.

  Everyone’s going to ask questions. Beverly‘s going to want to know why, and Dylan’s going to try and get me to go out and forget about the shit that’s standing in front of me. No. Not anymore.

  I’ll continue my plans elsewhere. I have enough to get by even if I don’t have what I want next to me, like we promised one another. I guess promises mean shit, especially when it’s from someone who says she loves you.

  Everything we’ve talked about goes flying in the air and doesn’t come back down. It’s lost in the clouds, holding all our secrets and dreams. I should let go of everything. I should’ve expected this.

  I take a step and look down at the ground where I was standing – where I’ve been standing for over two hours – watching blades of grass slowly start to rise and cover up my footprints, and I walk away. I'm walking away from the one person I thought would change my life. I'm walking away from her, and everyone who meant a fucking damn to me.

  Never again will I fucking let someone touch me and hurt me.

  Never.

  Cam

  “YOU NEVER SHOWED UP.” His voice is cold and controlled. His eyes show no emotions, not even an ounce of curiosity, while I'm standing in front of him ready to throw my arms around his neck and pull him close to me. It's been years and we’re finally standing in front of each other, but the distance between us is too strong. I feel a rope tying around my wrist, pulling me away from him. Is this a sign? Should I leave?

  “Wh-What are you talking about?” My voice is shaking. I scream, “I waited for you! I wanted a future with you, and we had plans—”

  “No. I had plans, Camila.”

  My hands fly to my hair. “I don’t get what you’re trying to say!”

  “You never showed up,” his calm voice doesn’t reveal anything. How can he be so calm when I’m over here freaking out? “You texted me and said to meet at the park.”

  “I didn’t,” I shake my head. “I never texted you. We had plans to meet on the bridge at 9 o’clock, and you never showed up.”

  “You texted me, Camila. You said to meet at the park. It’s too late anyways.”

  Ayden’s never lied to me before, so I know he’s thoroughly confused. I have no idea what he’s talking about or why he thinks this. “I waited. I’ve been waiting for you for years. I hired a private investigator, and then he finds out that you died. Please explain this to me, Ayden. How are you here?”

  He moves away from me and walks from the door and down the hall. I shut the door and follow him inside. Walking through the hallway of his house, I notice all the paintings he has, mostly trees, the
sunset and the ocean. These paintings look familiar. Stepping back to the first painting I gasp, covering my face, my eyes wide with shock. After all this time he kept a piece of me with him. The paintings I painted for him are staring at me.

  My passion and love for art grew when I met Ayden. He used to watch me paint and would sit there for hours without complaining. I guess you could say he was my muse. He inspired me to paint and put my heart into something I've always wanted to do. I was a great artist, but the night Ayden left, I stopped painting. It hurt to paint. I lost a lot of my interest because things seemed unimportant.

  Standing before him in his kitchen, he doesn't look at me. Picking up a glass of wine, he offers me one, but I decline. The silence between us is killing me. There are so many unspoken questions, and I’m sure we both need answers. “But why? After all this time, Ayden. You never came back to look for me.”

  “I had things to do first.”

  I walk over to his side, touching his arm, but when he flinches. “Why’d you do it?” The pained look in his eyes rends me. My heart breaks for the boy in front of me. As much as he’s a man, Ayden will always be the twelve-year-old boy who stole my heart.

  “Something must have happened, Ayden. I waited for you for so long. I looked for you, but then I moved on.”

  “I know.”

  “But you’re back, and we can be together.”

  He pushes me away again, and I shiver. He’s taken the warmth with him and left me cold. “No, it can never be the same.” His tone changes to something icy, and he’s distant. His shoulders pull against the sleeves of his shirt, his jaw tightening until his lips are a thin, hard line, and he’s not looking at me. I need to reach out to him and make him see that we’re meant to be. "This isn't something you can pause and restart, Camila. It's not a game."

  Missing his touch, wrapping my arms around my middle, I shake my head. “Ayden," my soft voice is barely a whisper, "I never left you. You need to understand that." It's difficult to talk while standing before him. My heart races in my body and my chest tightens. My shaky hands are clammy. My dry throat is making it hard to talk. I'm afraid to say something that'll upset him. "You're back now and I'm here."

  “You left, Camila. No one interrupted our plans but you. I just wanted you to know who I was and what I did. I worked my ass off for years to show to you I can be someone and look at me now. I’m the fucking CEO of Sharp Security. I’m a millionaire. And you work for fucking me.”

  “Ayden!” I scream, frustrated with how he’s handling this. “Listen to me, okay?” I take in a few deep breaths. “I never left you. I waited for you like we agreed. It was cold that day and I stood on the bridge for hours. I never left the spot. I wanted to call you, but we both said that if neither of us didn't show up we'd accept it and move on. Well, it wasn't that easy. It got darker and colder. I fell asleep on the bridge and when I woke up, I was in the hospital," I slow down and take in another breath. My head hangs low as I fight the tears. "It started raining, and I never left because I waited. I was in the hospital for a few days. When they released me, my heart was empty and it stayed empty until now. I was dead when you left. But now you're here, and I can breathe again."

  His chest rises and falls, turning away from me again. “It doesn’t matter,” he mutters.

  I walk to him, placing my arms around his waist, his muscles softening beneath my hands as his body relaxes into mine. “It matters, Ayden. It’ll always matter.”

  He doesn’t respond, but there’s a faraway look in his eyes; it’s a look I’ve seen before in moments of intense emotion or concentration. Even after all these years, he’s still the same Ayden. My Ayden.

  “Talk to me, please. Don’t shut me out.”

  “I can’t trust you, Camila. I can’t.” He turns around, the furrow in his brow a telltale sign of frustration that settles in his jaw. He’s trying hard to keep his walls built around him, just like before. I realize, at this moment, I have to show him I’m not going anywhere and that we’re supposed to be together.

  “You can trust me, Ayden. I love you; I’ll always love you.”

  “You left me,” he barely lets out. “For once in my life, I felt like everything was coming together. We were going to run away together, and I was going to take care of you. But you never showed up, and I waited for you. The day Ayden Park died is the day I became Ayden Sharp. I’ve changed.” His body tenses, but his eyes are still on me. “Now you can see what you gave up.”

  Sharp

  ANGER FLOODS HER EYES. "I never gave you up."

  "I know what happened that night, but if you want to stand there and continue this lie then please be my guest." Perhaps allowing Camila to find out who I am is a mistake. When she saw me I thought she would confess and we could start over, or at least be civil.

  Taking a breath¸ I cross through the kitchen and walk to the living room. I need to clear my head without her standing in front of me. When she's around, she fills every darkened corner of me until my walls crumble. I need to remember why I'm doing this. I need to remember my plan with Camila. She cannot get in my head and make me lose control.

  Arms wrap around my waist. "Talk to me, please," she pleads, resting her forehead against my back.

  "What do you want me to say?"

  "Why did you hide your identity?"

  "Because," I breathe, forcing myself not to touch her, "I needed control. I needed you to get to know me as Sharp, not Ayden. That boy is long gone. He doesn't exist. I'm a man with power, money and everything I want."

  "You're still my Ayden," her voice trembles, but I ignore it. Her hushed, shaky whispers are killing me.

  "You need to leave." I unwrap her arms from my waist, not turning around to watch her.

  "What?"

  "You need to leave," my voice is steady, deep and in control. "Now, Camila. I don't want you here."

  "But I still have more—"

  "Leave."

  Without another word, she turns away, her footsteps heavy as she bolts to the door, its slam ringing in finality. I need time to figure this out. I need her to have faith in me. Even though I dismissed her, I'm still holding onto the hope she'll be here when I'm ready.

  Me: I need you to give me time.

  Camila: I'll give that to you. I won't lose hope.

  We haven’t talked much since she left my house. Each time I see her message pleading with me to talk to her, a piece of me grows colder. The stages of pain has cycled through and now I’m in a permanent state of anger.

  “You gave the Apple Wine account to Amie?” She comes into my office red faced. I lean back in my chair enjoying every moment.

  "You lost the contest. She landed the account and she will work it. If you want to work on it with her then we can discuss this like adults, Camila. We aren't children anymore."

  “You know I’m the best one for them.”

  “I don't know that," standing up, rounding my desk and walking to the mini bar. Placing three ice cubes in a tumbler, I pick up the bottle of Cognac and pour some in. "The contest was meant to show who would be the strongest. You did well," I pick up the glass and sip on my drink. "But she won. You were distracted. You cannot come to work with your head filled with your personal drama. This is a business."

  "I'm distracted because of you!"

  Pointing at her I smirk. "And this is why you lost. You cannot separate business and pleasure.”

  She throws the file in my face, standing before me with her hands on her hips. “You’re being a fucking asshole, Ayden.”

  I keep my eyes on hers. “Before I think about firing you, I’m going to let you apologize for saying that and doing this in my office. You’re acting like an immature brat, Camila. So come here, clean up your mess and walk out of my office after apologizing.”

  “Don’t even start.” Walking closer to me, she places her hands on my desk, sinking down so we’re at eye level. “You can keep playing this game, and that’s fine. Just know I’ve always beaten you
.”

  “I’d be careful with what you say-“

  “Screw you.”

  “I know you want to.” Her eyes stay on mine as her body flinches at my response.

  “Go to hell!” Storming out of my office, I watch her leave with that sway to her walk. I’ll break her and soon she’ll know the damn fucking feeling of being abandoned.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Natalie strides in and plops down in the chair in front of my desk.

  “Whatever do you mean, my dear assistant?”

  “Shut up. I know the whole story. I was the one holding her hair from her face and watching her break. This isn’t right. I believe her. She didn’t leave you there stranded like you think.”

  “I need you to move around my meetings. I won’t make my three o’clock.” Natalie stares at me waiting for a response to her ridiculous theory.

  I have the facts and evidence I need to believe she left me, and I can’t let it go. The lies and deception can’t be part of my life. When you love someone as deeply as I love Camila, you need to be able to trust her and know she won’t leave your side. Words are child’s play. Actions mean more. It doesn’t matter if she’s the only one I think about. Nothing can happen between us, but I’ll always have a piece of her with me, and that’s good enough.

  The next morning there’s a smoothie with a note on my desk.

  Sorry Sharp,

  Had to run out and run something for Taylor. Here’s your breakfast.

  -Natalie

  Picking up the smoothie and taking a big gulp, I get settled in on the computer and check my emails. Today’s a full day of meetings. Responding to a few messages, I take another sip of my smoothie and review the reports from Natalie.

  “How’s breakfast?” I turn and see Cam wearing a very tight, white dress with a black belt around her waist. Focus. Stop staring at her curves and beautiful body. Fuck.