The point was to get her here.
Now she’s right where I want her.
She throws her hands up. “You actually think you can waltz back in, throw some money at me, and we just roll over and let you take everything my mother and I have worked for?”
I tilt my head, watching the fire in her eyes, the flush on her cheeks. She’s fucking breathtaking when she’s angry. “Yes.”
Her mouth parts like I just slapped her.
Then she lets out a sharp, humourless laugh.
“Right,” she says, shaking her head. “Of course. Because Ben Ashcroft doesn’t just buy things. He breaks them first.”
That lands.
A muscle ticks in my jaw. I push off the table, closing the space between us. She doesn’t back away. I drop my voice. “You think I want to break you?”
Her voice is sharp, but beneath it, there’s something else. Something unsteady. She lifts her chin, dark eyes blazing. “Isn’t that the plan? Wear us down? Make me beg?”
I exhale sharply, a dark hunger curling low in my gut.If she’sgoing to beg, it’ll be for something much filthier.
“No?” She tilts her head. Taunting. Daring. “What do you want, then?”
I scramble for logic, for something that makes sense—the cafe. The damn building. Money.
Her.
But I don’t say that. I can’t.
Instead, I hold her gaze, letting the silence stretch. Her eyes search mine, dark and stormy, something unreadable flickering beneath the anger. Then she lets out a quiet, bitter laugh.
“Why now, Ben?” Her voice is steady, but there’s something raw beneath it. “Why Nottingham, of all places?”
I keep my expression blank, but my jaw tightens.
She exhales sharply, shaking her head. “We both know why you’re back.”
Something in the way she says it makes my pulse kick up.
We both know.
Do we?
I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. Because for the first time in years, I don’t have the right words.
She steps back, putting space between us, but her eyes never leave mine. “You can pretend this is about business. But we both know that’s bullshit.”
A muscle ticks in my jaw. “Careful, Lila.”
Her eyes flash. “You don’t need to hurt other people in the process.”
I frown, my head tilting slightly. “What the hell does that mean?”
She doesn’t let me interrupt.
“You’re not just punishing me, you’re threatening the livelihoods of everyone in that street. You’re trying to force us out,and for what? A bigger bottom line?” Her voice cracks slightly. “This is people’s lives. Our community.” She exhales, quieter now. “You’ve already made it, Ben. Congratulations, you’ve done well for yourself.” Her eyes linger on mine, softer but still firm. “But you don’t need to prove it here.”
Her words hit harder than I expect, slipping under the armour I didn’t realise I was still wearing.
