Chapter 78 Watching them From the Shadows
Max's POV:
Ever since Veronica left with my brother, I hadn't been able to regain my consciousness... my mental balance... my center, whatever the hell you wanted to call it.
I felt like a madman, pacing the beach house at all hours, unable to sleep... unable to focus on anything except her.
The way she'd looked that day beneath me in the motel. She was beautiful... but it didn't even begin to cover it.
She'd been vulnerable and powerful at once... the way she easily became my sub, but didn't hesitate to dominate me after that...
The way I'd held her in my arms afterward, feeling something shift in my chest that I'd spent years making sure never shifted.
I couldn't take it anymore.
On impulse... or maybe desperation... I booked a ticket to New York. I didn't tell anyone. Or didn't even plan it out.
Just threw some clothes in a bag and left the next day, telling myself I just wanted to support her presentation... to see her succeed on that global stage.
But I knew the truth. I needed to see her.
I needed to make sure she remembered what we had... what we'd discovered together... before Theo had a chance to... what? Erase it? Replace it with his version of love?
The expo hall was massive, and I slipped in through a side entrance, finding a seat in the back where I could watch without being seen. The stage was so far away I could barely make out details, but the screens on either side showed everything in high definition.
And then she walked out.
Veronica.
My breath caught in my throat just at the sight of her. She looked... radiant. There was no other word for it.
She practically glowed under the stage lights, moving with a confidence and grace I'd never seen in her before.
When she started speaking, she was clear and strong. There was no hint of the anxiety that she'd been fighting for weeks regarding this presentation.
She was just perfect!
I felt pride swell in my chest... that's my girl... but then I noticed something that made me twist.
The way she looked at Theo.
He was standing slightly behind her, presenting along with her... he was her partner...
And every time Veronica glanced at him, she was beaming... looking extremely happy at the sight of him... Like appreciation for everything he was. She just seemed mesmerized...
My hands clenched into fists, feeling the sting of it...
Hell was literally burning inside me, as I watched the rest of the show... While Theo was right there beside her, his hand on her back, guiding her, playing the perfect partner.
I should have left then. I should have just gotten on the next flight back to California and let whatever was happening between them play out. It was the right thing to do, wasn't it?! It was part of the contract we all signed...
But I couldn't. Like I'd said... I was a madman. I was obsessed and consumed.
So I followed them.
I kept my distance and stayed in the shadows. I told myself I was just making sure that they reached their destination safely.
But really, I was stalking them, wasn't I?!
I was on 'Joe-Goldberg mode'... watching every interaction, every touch, and every smile they shared.
They went to dinner at an upscale restaurant. I sat at the bar, gulping a whiskey, all while watching them through the crowd.
Veronica looked free and was chatty with him... gesturing as she talked... and Theo listened with that focused attention as if she was the only person in the world.
They were only eating vegan food. And Veronica seemed happy with it?! Wasn't she a meat lover?!
My baby brother was skilled enough to turn a 'hardcore meat-lover' like her into plain vegan food?! The worst part was that she looked happy with the food.
When they finally left the restaurant, I followed at a distance, keeping to the opposite side of the street.
They walked slowly back toward their hotel, and I could hear fragments of their conversation drifting across the evening air.
"...couldn't believe the response..." Veronica's voice was still bright with excitement.
"You were incredible..." It was Theo's response. "I'm so proud of you, Veronica..."
Then they stopped under a streetlight, and I ducked into a doorway, watching them from the shadows.
Veronica turned to face Theo, reaching up to cup his face in her hands. And then she kissed him.
It was not a quick peck or even a friendly gesture. It was a real kiss, that looked deep and meaningful, her body pressing against his as his arms came around her waist.
I felt like I'd been punched in the gut for so many reasons. Why was I even watching them?! I'm a pathetic fool!
"I could have never done this without you, Theo," she said when they finally broke apart. "Whatever we did that night... that sex... You really bring out the best in me."
That night. They'd had a night together. Of course, they had.
That's what the contract said... one-on-one courtship. But hearing her reference it, knowing that while I'd been going crazy back in California, they'd been...
"I have never felt any joy like this," Veronica continued, and the way she said it with such conviction, and such certainty... it made something crack in my chest.
Because I'd given her joy, too. I'd shown her passion and intensity. But apparently, whatever Theo had shown her seemed to have eclipsed all of that.
I watched them continue walking, hand in hand now, and felt jealousy burn through me like fire.
This wasn't supposed to happen. I was supposed to be the one who made her crazy.
And Theo was supposed to be the safe option... the boring choice... the one she'd ultimately pass over for the excitement and passion I offered.
But looking at them now... at the way she leaned into him, the way he looked at her like she'd just hung the moon and came back to earth... I wasn't so sure anymore that I could win her.