For Alice, With Love

Chapter 14 - Ride

Mel had just saddled her horse when he walked into the stable. It was a bit windy, and the tip of his nose was red from the chill of morning air. He glanced over the stable aisle, then at her, exhaustion plain on his face. Obviously he hadn't slept either. Good. She was still mad as hell, and wanted him to suffer like she had.

"Hey," he said quietly.

She patted Red, leaving him in the cross-ties and joined him by the door.

"Hey," she clipped, leaning against the doorframe. It seemed strange to break the peace of the morning with voices, and hers cracked slightly. "Do you need me?"

"I have to go into the city. Frank just called. Gill is freaking out about these damned paintings. The current owners of our condo sold them and she is threatening to sue."

Mel grimaced at the news. His ex worked fast, although given how awful she was yesterday, that was not surprising.The fact that this was over her lost paintings was baffling and surreal. She had to call her mother today and tell her the entire bonkers story. They wouldn't believe it. She hadn't called last night, too upset to even want to talk to anyone.

"Okay. Will you be back tonight?" she asked.

He nodded. "Yes. I'll likely look up some friends for dinner, but I'll be back after that. Listen... About yesterday—"

"What about yesterday?" she interrupted, turning from him, going back to her horse. "The part where you told me that my stolen paintings had been in your house this entire time, or the part where you told me you never noticed them, which I find hard to believe?"

She watched his face as she put in the low blow, wanting him to feel the emotion she had bubbling under the surface. She wanted him to know how much it hurt. The knowledge that those paintings had been under his nose this whole time, paired with the utter shock knowing that his ex-wife had sabotaged any hope of a relationship first by likely reading and destroying the letters she had written was gutting her.

How had he not known? It had played through her mind all night. It was a rollercoaster of emotion she was still trying to wrestle even now, with him in front of her. The paintings were found, which had made her relieved in all this mess, but to have them so close by, in relative terms, was devastating.

Could she trust him? She had gone back and forth, thinking about how easily he lied, then wondering if he had, second-guessing his words, wanting to believe him. Had she been a fool to open herself up to him again? Late last night, she concluded part of her anger about the whole situation was because she was falling for him again, or her feelings had resurfaced, or...

"What happened... I— I want it to be good between us, Mel," he stuttered, and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "I'm feeling pretty rotten about the fact that those paintings were hanging on the walls of the condo. You have to believe me I had no idea they were stolen."

"I have a hard time believing you couldn't have put two and two together, Preppy."

"Dammit Mel, I didn't! I rarely went in there and as far as I know, neither did my mother, who would have recognized them immediately. She never even mentioned them or that they were stolen from your house or... I swear to you, I had no fucking idea. I'm not even sure Gill knew who had painted them," he shouted, his temper rising. He flailed his arms out, and Mel grabbed Red's crosstie to still him when he startled from the movement.

"Sorry," he mumbled, and put his hands in his pockets. "Sorry, dude," he added, addressing Red. He rubbed at his eyes and sniffed, looking away, clearing his throat.

Mel blinked in shock, and all the molten anger building in her lost steam as quickly as it had built. That reaction had been genuine. Could he be telling the truth? She studied him as he regained control of himself.