Richard stared at me, then stepped even closer. His huge shadow fell over me. "You call this freedom? Living in a place not even worth Blackwood's storage room—this is what you wanted? Look at yourself. Pale, dark circles under your eyes, so thin a breeze could blow you away."
He paused, voice lowering, tone like coaxing a child. "Natalie, even tantrums have limits."
"Yes. This is exactly the life I want." I stared into his eyes, enunciating each word. "Richard, I can tell you clearly—leaving Blackwood Manor, leaving you, was the best, most clear-headed decision I ever made! These two months, I've earnedmoney singing, done whatever I want. It's a thousand times, ten thousand times better than being your wife!"
Richard looked stung by those words, his gaze turning darker. He suddenly grabbed my arm, shoving me back. My spine hit the door. Richard leaned down, his burning chest nearly pressed against mine, hot breath laced with anger and that familiar male scent that made my soul tremble, completely trapping me between him and the door.
"You've lowered yourself to this filthy place, doing this degrading work. Your father's company is drowning in a cash flow crisis, your whole family is desperate because of your wrong decision... and even then, you won't come back? Does being my wife make you that miserable?"
Again. When would Richard understand I married him because I loved him, not because of my father or Green Technology?
"Even if Green Technology goes bankrupt tomorrow, I will never go back to you. Blackwood Manor is a cage. My father's house isn't any better. I'm done going back to LA to be a trophy, to be a tool!" I was panting, venting all my fury without restraint. "And how many times do I have to say it? We're divorced, Richard! Legally, emotionally, in every sense, it's over! Even if I get with someone else, even if I fall in love with someone tonight, even if I sleep with someone else, you can't do anything about it! You have no right!"
The living room went completely silent.
Outside, the Vegas night still roared, neon lights staining the sky orange-red, leaking through the curtain gaps, falling on Richard's profile, making his features look especially sharp.
"Who do you want to sleep with?" Richard growled.
Damn it. After all that silence, that's what he focused on?
Chapter Sixteen
Richard
I'd seen all kinds of rejections in my life.
The kind at business negotiation tables, polite with room to maneuver, I could flip those in three minutes flat. Boardroom rejections, all high and mighty, I could dismantle with my eyes closed. And women's rejections—the ones where their eyes said no but their body language screamed come closer, I'd learned to read those since I was eighteen.
But the way Natalie stood there, telling me "I'm not going back," didn't fit any of those.
She had her back against the door, chest heaving, a few strands of hair falling across her face. She looked messy, exhausted—and still lifted her chin, staring at me like she was ready to bite.
God, Natalie was gorgeous.
No makeup, hair a mess, drowning in that oversized David's shirt, feet in slippers.
Damn. I had to admit, even like this, I wanted her.
"Tonight, you come back to L.A. with me. We'll pretend these two months never happened. I won't hold it against you—"
"You won't hold it against me?" She cut me off. "Listen to yourself. You won't hold it against me. What the hell did I do that needs your forgiveness?"
"Natalie—"
"We're legally divorced," she said. "What business of yours is my life now?"
I blew out a hard breath. Don't get pissed.
I wasn't here to argue with Natalie.
I reined it in, figuring my offer wasn't sweet enough.
"Alright, I know you love singing. L.A. has way better resources than whatever you've got here. Hell, I could even set up your own record label."
After I said that, Natalie laughed.
But it didn't make me happy. Two reasons: First, this wasn't her usual smile—it meant she was digging in harder than I thought. Second, it crinkled the corner of her eye in this perfect curve, making me want to crush her against me in half a second. And the vibe between us right now? Not the time.
