Font Size
Line Height

Page 47 of Invisible String (The Underground #1)

MAX

S hutting the door to the meeting room. Leo is standing at the foot of the door with a look of horror in his eyes. “What did you say to her? She was so nice, like an old lady dropping off cookies, and then she transformed into Darth Vader. She hates your guts, man.”

I blink. “Who are you talking about?”

My assistant follows behind me.

He shrugs. “Hell, if I should know.”

We walk toward the front office. Then I see the box of cookies. Shit. Rainey was here. I toss a manila envelope on Leo’s desk and peer at him. “What was she doing here?”

“She came to drop off a check. Remember when I told you that the technician accidentally hit the mixer, causing it to fall? It turned out that when she tried turning it on, the mixer didn’t work, and she thought we broke it.

It’s because it wasn’t plugged in.” He laughs.

“She dropped the cookies as an apology and asked if she could give my boss the check to apologize.”

I run my fingers through my hair, grip it in frustration. “And then what happened?”

“She went into your office. And when she came out, she was fuming. She said, you’re dead. Like this.” He gestures with his hands, a knife slicing my neck. “Also, she said you could shove the check up your ass.”

The blood drains from my face. Damnit, did she get into my stuff? “Fuck!”

“Why do you look frightened? You fight the most dangerous, scary men, and you’re afraid of women.” He laughs so loud, his voice booms.

“Not women. Woman. My woman. ” My voice snaps into a dark admission.

Leo and Benji’s laughter shorten with surprise.

“I told her not to go into your office when I was coming out.” Roxy puffs her chest, smiling as if she did me a favor.

“Like I said, Roxy. My woman. That woman you told couldn’t go into my office is my woman , and if she ever sets foot in my building, she has the authority to do so.”

“You never told me you had a woman or that the baker was your woman.” Leo’s forehead knits, and he frowns. He is clearly hurt that I never told him about Rainey.

“Her name is Rainey.” I peer at Roxy and Benji. “Back to work, you two.” Once they’re gone, I avert my gaze to Leo. “Rainey and I have a history that goes way back. We are not officially together, but she’s my girl. I have her photo on my computer.” I shrug.

He nods. “I saw the photo but never asked, and she looks different. It didn’t click until now.”

Something about Leo. For the first time, I shared something private with someone. Maybe it’s because we have a lot in common. Or maybe it’s because we bicker like brothers.

“Good luck. She’s pissed. She didn’t know you owned this company, huh?”

I shove my hands in my pockets. “No, she didn’t. I’ve been the target of her anger for years. I walked out on her four years ago. Now I’m back to square one.”

“She’s your reason, huh? We all need something to keep us afloat. I’m trying to find my reason.” Leo sits at the corner of his desk, and I know what he’s feeling—the loneliness of not having a family or someone to anchor you.

“You’ll find it, buddy, but to answer your question, yes, she’s my reason, but she’s more than that. She’s my way of breathing, the light I need in my darkness, the solace I need in my world of chaos—the queen I want to worship. The one .”

“Does she know all this?”

“No, she barely talks to me. She fell out of love with me.” My chest caves, knowing I lost the love she once had for me. You’d have to be crazy to love someone like me. Yet, she did at some point. I pat him on the shoulder. “I’ll be in my office. Get those orders out to the technicians.”

Parallel lines form over the bridge of Leo’s nose.

“What is it?”

“Maybe she loves you, and she’s only saying that because she’s mad at you.”

“I thought about it at first, that maybe she was just saying it, but I’m starting to think she doesn’t. I fucked up, and I’ll keep trying to earn my spot back in her heart.”

He nods. “You’re a good man, boss.” He grins, and now I know I said too much to him. But with Leo, I try to be what Carlos is to me. A mentor. Family. A father. “Just a grumpy ass at times.”

Shit. The cameras. I rush back into my office.

I’m sure she saw my photo of her, but did she mess with my computer?

I move the mouse to wake up the screen. She is driving recklessly into the parking lot.

Noted, she still drives like shit. She doesn’t park in a space.

It’s slanted. She walks into the café with a face that can slice your balls.

I click the camera in her office. Rainey’s staring into the camera.

She knows. The office heats like an inferno.

Or is that my body? I unbutton the top three buttons.

Then I man-spread my legs on the rolling chair.

It’s been so long since I’ve seen her bare.

Rainey’s perfect breasts fill her bra. She’s giving me a show.

Fucking sexy. My body is buzzing with anticipation.

She unbuttons her jeans and shimmies them off.

My erection swells. How many times did I fantasize about her glorious ass?

A habit I’ve always had with Rainey: I would bite my lip, just like now.

She gropes her breasts and then moans as her hands slide down between her legs.

Damn .

“Fuck, baby. So beautiful.” I groan as I stroke. Up and down. “Keep going, sunshine. Spread for me.”

She does.

Sweet Jesus, she’s about to take her underwear off.

I bite my lip, waiting….

She flips me off.

“Fuck!” I toss a stapler across the room. “Damn you, Rainey.”

She’s clearly pissed. Let’s add more to the list I need to atone for. But without a doubt, my tesoro will pay for my painful, hard-as-stone dick when the time comes. She will beg for me to be inside her.

“Thank you so much, Max,” Mrs. Debbie says sincerely, smearing peanut butter on a slice of bread.

Mrs. Debbie had taken over Needs for Teens, the nonprofit for homeless teens, when her parents, the founders, handed it over to her.

The seventy-year-old woman has a heart of gold.

“I just knew you’d come down to help with my water leak. ”

“I told you I would.”

“I know, but a young man like you has too much going on. You should be out doing hanky panky, or what do you all call it these days, hook-up, fling, or something like that? Maybe even married.”

Married.

The idea of marriage has crossed my mind throughout the years, but I knew who held the title of wife would solely be Rainey. She’s the only person I could imagine spending my entire life with.

“In order to be close to marriage, that would mean I would need to have the woman back in my life.” I’m giving Rainey the weekend so she can cool off some before she chews my head off for watching her on the cameras.

Mrs. Debbie spreads strawberry jelly on the bread and glances at me. “Do you know how my husband won me over?”

“How?” I ask, putting the wrench on the kitchen counter and leaning my back against it.

She smiles, remembering. “He didn’t just tell me he loved me, but he showed me. Still, to this day, he does just that.” She places the sandwich in a Ziplock bag and piles it with the rest. “Show her with kind, beautiful, memorable gestures.”

“I’m trying. I show up at her café and try to make conversation, but she doesn’t give me the time of day. I understand why.” Fuck, I sound pitiful. “I sent her snacks so she could have them when she read. I just need to up my game, I guess.”

Mrs. Debbie leaves her task to walk toward me. She’s wrapped her long gray-braided hair in a bun—the same style she wore years ago when I was a kid, just without the gray.

“You need to listen to this.” She points at my heart. “It will guide you. How long have you loved her?”

“Much too long. I just didn’t know its depth. It was buried among the layers of darkness.”

She cups my cheeks in a motherly way. “Then you peel every layer for her. Show her the real Max, the genuine Max, not just the facade you've been presenting. Let her see all of you. Even the aspects you consider flawed or unattractive. She will come to love Max for who you truly are. I’m sure she loves you deep in her heart. She just wants all of you.”

“Those are my plans.” I’ve been eating food at the café I shouldn’t eat when you’re preparing for a fight. I have worked extra hard to lose those extra pounds. I do it for her, to see Rainey at the café, and to get a chance where just maybe she will let me in her heart a little at a time.

She pats my shoulder. “Good. You’ve come a long way, Max. I’m proud of you. You’ve set an example to children worldwide that, with hope and faith, we can achieve anything.”

After tightening the last screw and wiping my hands on a rag, I place an envelope stuffed with cash on her office desk.

The room is cozy, with walls adorned with colorful posters and shelves filled with books and board games.

The building itself is a modest four-bedroom house converted into a welcoming space for teenagers to gather, share meals, and find support.

Outside, it stands on the corner of a bustling street lined with similar homes, each transformed into various small offices and community centers.

Mrs. Debbie’s eyes fill with tears. “Max, you’re such a generous human.”

I adjust my wet t-shirt. “I’ve walked in similar shoes. Your resources helped me all those times I needed them. I’m giving back. I have a roof over my head and food to eat. All I need is my woman, and I’ll have everything.”

Ad If ads affect your reading experience, click here to remove ads on this page.