Page 25 of Ravaged By Lust

“It isn’t pretty when two hearts break, Bishop.”

“I see. So you haven’t changed then?”

“Mom likes to say I’ve become a lot more cynical. Especially of pretty boys with honeyed words.”

“I’ve noticed.”

“Well, I guess it’s time for you to go into Drake’s car, then,” I say, trying my best to hold firm. “We’ve got nothing to talk about.”

But Bishop is not over with me yet.

“Have you got a boy waiting for you back in Crystal River?” he asks. “A boyfriend? Husband?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

He smiles. “So that’s a no, then. Good. Perfect for me.”

“Lay off it, Bishop. I’m never giving in to you or your demands.”

“I’m going to be persistent, just like you.”

“Yeah?”

“Chloe, it’s time to drop the façade. I know you’re still that girl whose window I used to sneak through.”

“That girl is long gone,” I reply sternly, holding my head high. “I’m not in Los Angeles for you. I would very much like for you to disappear off the face of the earth.”

“That’s a real shame,” he replies. He takes a step towards me, penetrating into my personal space. I don’t budge an inch, but I do ready myself. He’s so big and broad-shouldered and just an intense presence. “Don’t you remember the way we were both addicted to each other? How we couldn’t get enough of each other’s bodies? That we couldn’t face time apart from each other?”

“Hm.”

I’m stoic and unmoved. I also remember the hard times. How things ended.

But Bishop takes another step towards me, and I feel my defenses crumbling under his gaze.

He’s a hard worker, that’s for sure. He really doesn’t like to lose.

However much I despise this man for what he did to me, he’s still the only man I can talk to like this. Openly. Honestly. Even though we are at loggerheads right now, he’s still listening to every word I say. No man has ever come close to this. He’s paying complete attention to my body language and the way I’m speaking. His desire for me is clear as day.

Who doesn’t want to be wanted? Even me, even with my stone-cold heart.

He’s still making me feel, seven years later, like I’m the only woman in the world.

“I worshipped the ground beneath your feet,” the rockstar says softly. “So how come we ever split apart? What have these last seven years been?”

“It was your fault,” I whisper back at him.

“I remember the way you made me feel, Chloe. I remember the taste of your lips on mine. I want that again.”

I say nothing as his hand moves to my face. He takes my cheek.

I don’t move.

“What are you doing, Bishop?” My words are strong, but they come out of my mouth breathless and insincere. I know exactly what he’s doing, and there’s a part of me that doesn’t want him to stop.

“Maybe we can start over again,” Bishop says, his voice barely above a murmur.

I feel heat rise in me. My heart rate quickens.