Play Along Read Online Free Page B

from Louie ' s hurt expression.
    "I'm sorry. I'm the one who's out of line." Mark tossed the rag into the bin behind him and left the bar, turning back to offer Louie a weak, apologetic smile before retreating to his office in the back of the building.
    Sitting down at his desk, Mark glared at the three days' worth of mail waiting to be sorted. With a resigned sigh, he got to work sorting through the bills and junk mail. He hated busy work, but it had to be done and pawning it off onto someone else was unthinkable. If nothing else, at least the bills and bookkeeping were still his responsibility.
    Finally reaching the bottom of the pile, Mark's hand stilled over a large lavender envelope. When he picked the damned thing up his hand trembled, and a quick glance at the return address confirmed his fears. It was from Nathan and Annabelle Marshall.
    Mark's head began to pound and angry tears built behind his eyes. What had he done to deserve the cruel reminder of his first heartbreak? Trying to ignore the painful memories, Mark forced himself to tear it open and slide the card out of the envelope. It was almost identical to the one he'd received twenty-five years ago, with the same paper and the same font. "After twenty-five years of wedded bliss, Mr and Mrs Nathan Marshall will be renewing their vows…"
    Twenty-five years. Nate had been married now for twenty-five years. God, how could that be? It just didn't seem real. He didn't love Nate anymore, but he had never been able to completely let go of the hurt from the way things had ended between them. Staring down at his shaking hands, he realized that he still needed closure, and his heart flooded with guilt. He had spent twenty-two years loving a wonderful man who'd loved him back, but through it all, a small part of him had always clung to the dream he'd shared with Nate.
    And damn it, his dream had come true, but with Ricardo instead. He should have done something to show his appreciation for Ricardo, to publicly acknowledge the huge role he played in his life. He should have changed the name of the business when Nate left. Ricardo ' s influence could be seen all over the bar, in the décor and the set-up, the type of music that they played… but Nate ' s stamp still hung over the door.
    A knock on the office door drew him out of his musings, and he glanced up to see the green light next to the door flash, indicating that the pass code had been entered before the door opened. Louie slipped into the office sat on the edge of Mark's desk. "You've been back here a long time, boss man, everything okay?"
    Mark picked at the corners of the invitation he held in his hand, trying to decide how best to answer his friend. Louie reached out, touching his hand and then grasping the card between his thumb and forefinger. "May I?"
    Mark nodded and Louie took the card from his hands. He laced his fingers together and studied his hands while Louie read the card. Louie snorted and Mark jerked his head up, surprised to find him grinning. "Something funny?"
    Louie shook his hand and waved the invitation in Mark's face. "This is perfect! It's exactly what you need. They're friends of yours, right? And they're in Florida, clear across the country! You need to get out of Sacramento for a while, man. Take a vacation—get away from all of this and find some peace."
    The look on Louie ' s face was triumphant, and it made Mark smile. Louie didn ' t have any idea who Nate was, he wasn ' t familiar with their history and didn ' t fully understand what he was suggesting, but Mark had to agree that he was right. He did need to get out of Sacramento, and this was a perfect opportunity. Mark needed a vacation, and more, he needed closure.
    Maybe seeing Nate again, still with Annabelle after all of these years, would finally allow him to put their aborted relationship behind him. Maybe he could find a way to bury his first love and to remove the shadow it had cast over the rest of his life.
    Mark snatched