Page 177 of Pure Recklessness

‘And yours was stupid too. What kind of crazy woman lets a talented man like you slip through her fingers?’ Ellie smiled, but my jaw tensed. The last person I wanted to think about right now was my ex. ‘Sorry!’ Her face fell. ‘I didn’t mean to… What happened between you? You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.’

I froze, my mind racing.

My first instinct was to shut the conversation down then flee to my office.

Or anywhere which meant I didn’t have to discuss the biggest, most painful fuck-up of my life.

I could already feel my chest tightening.

Talking about this would bring up a cocktail of emotions.

And none of them were good.

Embarrassment.

Rage.

Betrayal.

Hatred.

But despite my attempts to prevent it, things between Ellie and I had developed.

I could deny it all I wanted to, but this was no longer just about sex.

We were beyond that.

She meant something to me.

A lot.

Exploring the town hand in hand with Ellie yesterday, knowing I could kiss and touch her whenever I wanted to, felt fucking fantastic.

And it wasn’t just the physical side of things.

I could talk to her about anything without worrying that she’d judge me.

Whenever I was with Ellie, all the tension I was so used to feeling slipped away.

I wasn’t Blake the CEO or Blake the older brother who needed to set an example.

I could just be me.

That feeling was priceless.

Ellie had opened up to me. Told me about parts of her life that were difficult.

Despite this, I’d stayed guarded and kept a cage around my heart.

I’d let what had happened before close me off.

Been afraid to let anyone in.

But I didn’t want to do that any more.

I couldn’t let my shitty past get in the way of what could be a beautiful future.

Ellie had given me her trust.