Surrender

chapter 23

Chapter 23

Balancing her sandals in one hand, she turned the key to her family's New York apartment door with the other. She didn't know what time it was, but she was certain it must have been past midnight. The soles of her feet contracted with an aching pulse and her sore limbs begged for a very long good night's sleep, but that didn't conform to her plans. She was simply going to gather her belongings and call a cab to take her to the airport. There was nothing here in New York for her. She needed to go home to Cape Coral. That was where she belonged.

            With a blanket draped over her folded legs on the couch, Angie scrolled through a webpage on her tablet in the living room, a deep frown wrinkling her brow as she bit down on her bottom lip.

            "Angie," Sophie said.

            Angie jumped with a hand pressed to her chest. A strand of hair escaped from her loose ponytail as she whipped her head around to face Sophie. "God, you scared me. Where have you been?" she demanded.

            "With Chris." The mere mention of his name was enough to make her stomach churn. She placed a hand on the nearby bookshelf to steady herself.

            "Are you okay?" Angie reached out to grasp Sophie's hand and pull her down beside her on the couch.

            Shaking her head, Sophie struggled to come to terms with the fact that she may never be okay. That "okay" was a thing of the past. "Okay" was some kind of extinct creature in her realm of existence. "Okay" might as well have been stricken from her dictionary.

            As Angie placed the blanket over Sophie's lap, Sophie glanced at the tablet.

            "What is this?" she asked, panicked.

            Angie sported a guilty look. "I tried calling you so many times."

            "My phone was off."

            "And I didn't know where to look for you so I checked the tabloids. I was worried sick about you."

            Sophie couldn't tear her eyes away from the photo lighting up the tablet's screen. It was a clear shot of Chris's arms shielding her from the crowd seconds after the crazy woman dumped the Slurpie down her dress. As she closed her eyes, she could feel the comforting touch of his hands cradling her to his side in the taxi, his soft lips whispering against her ear, assuring her that she was safe. When she opened her eyes, she looked down at the stain on the front of her dress and exhaled a painful breath as she rose, unable to sit still. Rain splattered against the windowpane, blurring the red, white, and blue lights of the EmpireStateBuilding that shined like a beacon in the distance. Goosebumps broke out on her arms and on the back of her neck.

            "Sophie, why didn't you tell me you were seeing Christopher Hastings?"

            "I didn't know, Angie." She crossed her arms in an attempt to pull herself together as tears accumulating in her eyes for the millionth time. "I didn't know." She raked a hand through her wet, messy waves. "I am such a fool."

            "Honey, no--" Angie started, but Sophie cut her off.

            "Don't. Don't try to make me feel better. I am so angry at myself, and nothing you say will change that. I'm so sorry about ruining your photo shoot. I know it was really important to you and that you could have chosen Joan and Scarlet over me and yet you didn't. God, I keep screwing up. I keep disappointing you." It took all she had not to kick herself in the head. "I should have never come to New York. I'm going to make it up to you, I swear. But right now, I can't stay here. I need to go home."

            "Okay, I'll have to cancel a few things, and then I'll book a flight back to Florida for tomorrow morning."

            "You don't understand, Angie. I need to go home now."

            "Now?" Angie straightened up, placing the tablet on the couch.

            "I have to go." Sophie shouldered her small duffel bag and didn't look back as she left.