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A soft sigh came from the other end, and though it was a small noise, there was so much hidden in it, so much left unsaid.

“Why did you call, Gabby?”

“I… I don’t know.”

This was fucking humiliating.

“I wanted to hear your voice,” I finally settled on saying.

He took a sharp intake of breath. “How honest are we being here? Is this a one-off, all cards on the table, type of situation? Are we laying it all bare, and then business as usual tomorrow?”

“You have something you’d like to get off your chest?”

“Princess, I could write a book with all I’d like to say to you,” he chuckled softly. “But I won’t if you don’t want me to.”

“I want you to,” I whispered.

“So, we’re in agreement?”

“I guess.”

“No, no guessing. Is this a one off, all cards on the table, business as usual tomorrow type of phone call?”

“Yes,” I said firmly.

“Good. Then let me start. Did you miss me?” he asked softly, and my pulse kicked up a notch.

“I—”

“All cards on the table,” he reminded me, sensing my hesitation.

“Yes, I miss you. Do you—do you miss me?”

“Of course I fucking miss you, Gabby. Every second of every fucking day. It’s been years since our nightly texts, and yet I still find myself writing at least one before I can sleep.”

“Vienna…”

“I’m not going to apologise. All cards on the table. We said we’d be honest.”

I didn’t say to fucking gut me.

But I didn’t say that. Instead, I said, “Some people have a nightlight. Others have white noise. Who knew the biker VP needed to type out ‘U up?’ to get to sleep.”

He laughed properly then, and I could easily picture his beautiful smile. “Don’t be saying that out loud. You could ruin a man’s reputation with such talk.”

“In the nicest way possible, Vienna, I think that ship sailed a long time ago.”

“You’re probably right. But there are other ways my reputation is still intact,” he murmured, and if I wasn’t mistaken, there was a teasing lilt to his voice.

“Oh, yeah? And how’s that?”

And just like that, something shifted.

My stomach tightened.

I adjusted where I sat on the bed, suddenly too aware of the heat gathered between my thighs, of the thin fabric of my nightdress against my skin, of the fact that I was alone in my room talking to the man I had once planned an entire life around.

“I’ve been known to be very skilled over the phone a time or two.”