When The Wrong One Loves You Right 1: A New Life

Chapter 1: Mark

Central Park is one of my favorite places. There are no horns, no traffic, and compared to the rest of the city it's quiet. It's a good place for me to find peace. I come here when I get stir crazy from being cooped up in my tiny flat. I like to come here to unwind after long days at my new job. I like to think, run, and blow off steam here.

I moved here from a small town in Idaho, but its not my first time in the city. My father has a home here. When I was a child I spent a lot of time in Buffalo, New York during the summer at my grandpa's house. My father moved back and forth between Idaho and New York City for work.

I have one brother, his name is Leo. He is twelve years older than me and we have different mothers. He lives in New York City. I would visit him for two weeks in the summer then go to grandpa's. When school started again I would fly home to my mother for the rest of the year. I haven't seen my brother since I ran away when I was seventeen. I doubt he even knows I live in the city.

My name is Anabeth Gianna De' Marco, but I have been using my mothers maiden name, Harkins. My father's family is mostly Italian. My mother is Irish. I'm only twenty-three but my past is dark. So dark I hope I never have to face it again. That's why I ranaway.

The reason for my visit to the park today was because of the two men in my life. One of them takes up all my free time. He is a drooling, hairy mess but I love him. My dog, Reno. His favorite activities are chewing on my overpriced heels and furniture legs along with bringing me the most disgusting things he can find in the park, dropping them at my feet proudly. He used to be a family dog. My dad's best friend and then my dad passed away. My mom decided to travel after dad passed and letting the best dog in the world go to a shelter was out of the question, so I brought him with me.

The other man is always on my mind. He takes up all my thoughts and established permanent residency in my brain. I met him on my first day of work. He's clouded my mind ever since I met him. His name is Marcus Vazquez. He's a graphic designer. Mark and I get along really well. Almost too well perhaps, that's the good news. The bad news is that he's a coworker and we share the same oversized office cubicle, so a relationship with him would be risky and complicated. If something went wrong we could both lose our jobs.

I started working at Carson and Sons about four and a half months ago in advertising. Mr. Carson Sr. started the firm in the late 80's before I was even born. After a series of rather unfortunate events my ex-husband helped me get this job. He helped hide me from my past. I am grateful because it's become one of the most influential companies in the city.

I remember my first day of work. I was sure I was going to be fired before the day even started. My anxiety kept me up the all night, so I woke up late. Then I spilled my coffee on my clothes in a rush to leave my flat, I also forgot my bag in the taxi. Lucky for me the taxi driver came back in the afternoon and left it with the ground floor receptionist who brought it up to the receptionist on my floor, her name is Lexi. I'm happy that I confided in the taxi driver while my nerves where through the roof because my life is in this bag, literally. The laptop I carry around with me contains a journal I started writing when I was a child. It has everything I've ever done buried inside it.

Lexi was showing me the office at first because Mark was late. Mark came in beaming with a big smile on his lips. I was so overwhelmed that day, I felt good with him straight away. He made me laugh within minutes of meeting him. He told me the most horrible dad jokes but we hit it off quickly. I found him sweet, but as more of a friend that cheers you up when you're down then someone you would be romantic with and spend an evening with.

We bumped into each other one night when I was feeling kind of low. I invited him back to my flat. I was over being around people, we sat and talked for hours. I fell asleep in his arms, I haven't been comfortable in a man's arms for a while. The last time was with my ex-husband, Vincenzo Montorini. Three years isn't really that long ago, but to me it is.