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“Just remember what I said,” I firmly said before I changed direction and headed to the conference room. Malachi Pearson had been the man I was seeing before my engagement had been arranged. I liked him, and the sex was good. We’d dated for about five months. He wanted more, and I didn’t. Trusting a man seemed damn impossible after Gavin, so I only had casual relationships. Our last conversation didn’t go well when I told him we couldn’t see each other anymore. I should have known I would see him again because he hadn’t adhered to my erected personal boundaries.
Malachi was a stockbroker on Wall Street hungry for money and position and had done well for himself by the time he made thirty. He held the latest Black Enterprise magazine in his hand when I passed by the glass window on my way to the door. Once I walked into the room, he immediately stood and opened his arms for a hug. I politely hugged him and stepped back. “Can I help you?”
“Why are you sounding all professional like you don’t know me?” He tried to hug me again, and I held my hand up, blocking him.
“I own this hotel, and I’m working. I would never stop by anyone’s place of business without notice.”
“Exactly. You own this hotel. No one is reprimanding you for breaking the rules.” He chuckled.
I didn’t crack a smile. “Malachi, why are you here?”
“Look, I can slow down if I came on too strong. I miss you. Hoping we can still go out.”
“No. I thought I made that clear.” I folded my arms. “If that’s what you’re here for, then you should leave.”
The diamond on my ring finger sparkled, and his forehead creased. “What the fuck is this?” He grabbed my hand roughly, and I immediately clocked him in his jaw. He held his starting-to-swell face and yelled, “What’s your fucking problem? You cheated on me, and I get hit?”
I pointed at him and hissed, “Don’t ever fucking grab me. We were never a couple. I didn’t cheat on anybody, and if you don’t leave -”
“If you don’t leave now, I’ll kill you myself,” Gavin spoke from behind me. The unexpected sound of his deep voice sent chills down my spine.
Malachi looked past me. “Who are you?”
“Her future husband.” He slid his hand in his pocket and grinned. The smile that somehow magnified both his beauty and his beast. “I won’t repeat myself.”
Melachi’s nose flared, but he didn’t become a winner on Wall Street without trusting his instincts. Without another word, he walked past me and Gavin. Gavin slammed the door, locked it behind him, and moved me away from the clear glass and out of sight of any guests or staff. He pushed me against the table, and I shoved his chest. “Get off me.”
“Let me make you understand who I am now. No man will ever touch you again but me. If I see it happen again, he’s dead. I’m not playing Storm.”
I jabbed the air. “I just punched him for touching me, Gavin. I can handle my own and severed all ties with men I’d been seeing. Have you done the same?”
He clenched and unclenched his jaw. “How many men have you been with?”
I hit his chest again, and he didn’t even flinch. “I’m at work. Move.”
Gavin growled, “Answer me.”
“Why? So your crazy jealous ass can go down the list and kill every man I fucked?”
He lifted one brow. “That many?”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not answering any questions about my past because I know you’re not about to be truthful about how many women you’ve fucked since we broke up. What’s your count?”
Gavin’s nose flared, but he finally backed up slightly enough to give me space. He still entrapped me in his strong arms. “Yours better not be as high as mine.”
“You’re something else, you know that?” I shook my head. “I swear we’re not raising our children with double standards.”
A bright, infectious smile graced his features, warming his ocean-blue eyes. “I hope we have a daughter first so I can spoil her.”
His apparent joy at the thought of us having children eased my guard, and I cupped his face. “Despite everything, I believe you’ll be a great father.”
“I want to be an even better husband.” He gazed into my eyes. “I’m not giving up on making you love me again. I already have your body and soul. All I need is that mind to let me back in.”
“My soul? You don’t own my soul.”
Gavin nodded, his joyful expression sobering to an imploring one. “You told me we were meant to be the night we met on your twenty-first birthday. I knew I met my wife that night, too, even after I realized you were the enemy. It’s been seven years since that night, and my love has never waned. I plan to spend the rest of my life proving to you that not only do I love you but that I’m deserving of your love again.”
I added my other hand to his face and pressed my lips to his. I broke the kiss before he could add his tongue and pressed my forehead against his chin. “Why are you here in the first place? I thought we were getting together tonight.”
