Bad Boy Billionaires 2 : The Wall Street Shark(50)

Evan hung up without saying goodbye. He'd had the urge to drink since he'd been discharged from Havilland but it had never been this strong. He clenched his fists and pounded the mattress a few times. He thought about Carson and how disappointed he'd been when he'd discovered Carson wasn't as interested in a serious monogamous relationship as Evan had thought he'd been. Although they were still friends and Evan didn't hold anything against him, Evan couldn't help wondering why he always seemed to attract the same kind of man. He'd thought it would be different with Carson and he'd been wrong again. But more than that, he'd given up all hope of ever having a real marriage and family with anyone.

Before he got dressed, he phoned Cadin to see how Michele was doing. Cadin answered on the second ring.

"She's just sitting on the sofa, staring at a martini glass," Cadin said. He spoke in a soft whisper so Michele wouldn't hear him. "I've never seen her take anything so hard." 

Evan sighed aloud. "I'm coming over. I'll be there in about a half hour." Michele had been seeing the same guy since Evan had been back from Havilland and she'd sounded so happy. They hadn't seen much of each other because she'd been so busy with the new boyfriend. That night, at Evan's thirtieth birthday party, Evan would have met the guy for the first time.

"I think that's a good idea," Cadin said. "Between the two of us I'm sure we can at least make her feel a little better."

The last thing Evan felt like doing that night was cheering someone else up. And Cadin sounded just as depressed at Michele. But Evan couldn't disappoint Michele. She'd always been there for him and now it was his turn to be there for her. "Did you phone everyone and tell them the party was canceled?"

Cadin said, "Yes. I took care of all that. What about Jeffery?"

"Don't ask," Evan said. "I'll see you in a half hour."

After he hung up, he put on the clothes he'd been planning to wear to the party: a black sport jacket, white shirt, and new jeans. Then he went downstairs and walked to the avenue to hail a cab. But it wasn't always easy to get a cab in his neighborhood, so he continued walking toward the West Village. Each bar he passed along the way made him tighten his fists and lower his gaze to the sidewalk. At one point, he stopped and gaped at the open door of a bar he'd been to in the past. He held his breath and counted to twenty, holding back the urge to run inside and head for the bartender nearest the door. This overwhelming urge, this craving for alcohol of any kind, consumed him so fully nothing else seemed to matter.

But he took a deep breath, exhaled, and continued walking to the next corner. When he finally found a taxi, he climbed into the backseat and told the driver where to go with such a sense of urgency the driver sent him a second glance before he pulled away from the curb. For a moment, Evan felt a slight sense of relief. He rested his head back on the seat and closed his eyes. He'd been strong enough to resist the urge to go into that bar. A year earlier he wouldn't have resisted that urge. He would have gone inside and he wouldn't have come out until the bar closed. There was no doubt in his mind he would have left the bar with whatever man there at the time had shown him the slightest amount of interest.

Although the urge to drink lightened a little by the time he reached Michele's apartment, it didn't disappear. It never really did, not forever. He should have known; he should have expected this. His doctor at Havilland had warned him. When Cadin answered the door and he walked in and found Michele sitting on the sofa with a martini glass in her hand and a huge tray of food on the coffee table, the urge to drink returned with even more intensity.

He kissed Cadin on the cheek and crossed to the sofa. He sat down beside Michele and put his arm around her. "I'm so sorry," he said.

Michele shrugged and leaned into him. "I'm sorry I ruined your birthday."

He held her closer. "Sweetie, this isn't about my birthday. You've been through a shock and that's all that matters."

Michele sat up and said, "You have no idea, trust me."

"What do you mean?" Evan asked. He glanced up at Cadin, who'd been standing next to the sofa, and Cadin rolled his eyes.

"It's the last thing I expected," Michele said.

Evan felt a lump in his throat. He had a feeling he knew what she was talking about. "Is it another woman?" They were both getting older and Michele wasn't dealing with it well. She'd just turned thirty and she was already doing Botox and talking about plastic surgery.

"Not exactly," Michele said. "It's another man."




 

 

Evan's head jerked back. "You were dating a gay guy?" He sent Cadin another look and pressed his palm to his throat. They'd always joked around that Michele would be happier if she could just find a nice gay man and settle down. But they'd never been serious about it.