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“You already lost,” she whispered. “On the island we were so happy and for that time I really thought we could come back here and build on that. But once again, I was naïve where you were concerned. As soon as we stepped foot back in Alma, you turned into that take-charge man who didn’t want to look like a fool in front of the cameras. You were embarrassed to be seen with the maid, and then when you realized just how much of a jerk you were being, you opted to propose? Did you honestly think I’d accept that?”
Will was close enough to touch, but he kept his hands propped on his hips. “I reacted without thinking. Dammit, Cat we’d just had the best few days together and I was scared, all right? Everything about us terrifies me to the point I can’t think straight. I’ve never wanted anything or anyone the way I want you and I’ve never been this afraid of losing what I love forever.”
Catalina gasped. He didn’t just say... No, he didn’t love her. He was using those pretty words to control her, to trick her into...
What? What was his end game here?
“You don’t love me, Will.” Oh, how she wished he did, but that was still the naïve side of her dreaming. “You love power.”
“I won’t deny power is important to me. But that also means I can use that power to channel some pretty damn intense emotions.” He leaned in, close enough for her to feel his breath on her face, yet he still didn’t touch her. “And I love you more than any business deal, more than any merger or sale. I love you, Catalina.”
She didn’t want to hear this. He’d used her full name so she knew he was serious, or as serious as he could be.
“I don’t want this,” she murmured, trying to look away, but trapped by the piercing gaze. “I have plans, Will, and I can’t hinge my entire life around a man who may or may not put me above his career.”
And even if she could give in and let him have her heart, she carried this secret inside of her that would surely drive another sizeable wedge between them.
“Listen to me.” He eased back, but reached out and placed his hands on either side of her face. “Hear every single word I’m about to tell you. For the past four years I’ve fought to get you back. At first I’ll admit it was because my father wanted something else for my life and I was being spiteful, but the longer you and I were apart, the more I realized there was an empty ache inside of me that couldn’t be filled. I poured myself into work, knowing the day would come when I’d take over Rowling Energy. Even through all of that, I was plotting to get you back.”
He stared at her, his thumb stroking back and forth along the length of her jawline as if he was putting her into some type of trance.
“Just the thought of you with another man was crushing, but I knew if I didn’t fight for you, for us, then you’d settle down and I’d lose you forever. I’ve always put you first, Cat. Always. Even when we weren’t together, I was working my way back to you.”
When she started to glance away, he tipped her head up, forcing her to keep her eyes on his. “You think I was working this long to win you back just to have sex with you? I want the intimacy, I want the verbal sparring matches we get into, I want to help you pick up those little seashells along the beach and I want to wake up with you beside me every day for the rest of my life. Rowling Energy and all I have there mean nothing in the grand scheme of things. I want the money and the power, but I want you more than any of that.”
Catalina chewed on her bottom lip, trying to force her chin to stop quivering. She was on the verge of losing it and once the dam burst on her tears, she might never regain control.
“Before you decide, I don’t want anything coming between us again,” he went on. “I need to tell you something that is quite shocking and I just discovered myself.”
Catalina reached up, gripped his wrists and eased his hands away from her face. She kept hold of him, but remained still. “What is it?”
“There’s no easy way to tell you this without just saying it.”
Fear pumped through her as her heart kicked up the pace. What on earth was he going to reveal? Whatever it was, it was a big deal. And once he told her his shocking news, she had a bombshell of her own to drop because she also couldn’t move forward, with or without him, and still keep this secret.
“I found out that my father and your mother had an affair.”
When Catalina stared at him for a moment, his eyes widened and he stepped back. She said nothing, but the look on his face told her all she needed to know.
