Page 51

I ROLLED OVER,and shied away when the warmth of the sun hit my face. I inhaled, recognizing the distinct smell of Caleb’s cologne combined with a long night of sex, and smiled into the sheets tangled around my body. I stretched, wincing slightly when I moved my legs, and opened my eyes. I blinked away the harsh rays of light, and looked around, allowing the memories from the night before to replay in my mind.

Caleb was right about it being a long night. We hadn’t fallen asleep until around 4 a.m. and despite the exhaustion, I was deeply satisfied. I finally understood what all the fuss about, why women often complained when they were left orgasm-less after a night of rolling in the sheets. It was addictive, that explosive high, and well worth the effort to get there. Not that it took Caleb much to get me there. The man played me – and my clitoris – like a fine tuned instrument, and God, did my body sing.

I sat up, clutching the sheet to my chest, and frowned when I realized that I was very much alone. It was a colossal bed, but Caleb had been next to me from the moment we collapsed into a sweaty heap of tangled limbs, and racing hearts. I spied the wrappers on the floor, all five of them, and covered my mouth to smother my unexpected giggle.

Jebus Christ on a cracker.

Five times?

No wonder my vagina felt like it had been in a war.

Not that I was complaining about Caleb’s enthusiasm.

I stood up – definitely going to need to soak in the bath – and picked Caleb’s shirt up off the floor. It was a gorgeous morning, and I was grateful to have the day off work. I slipped into the bathroom, tended to business, and then went in search of the man of the hour. I frowned when I saw that Braelynn wasn’t in the nursery, and headed into the kitchen next. Caleb was packing Braelynn’s bag, and talking on the phone in a hushed tone until he saw me walk in. I smiled, feeling a little giddy after our night together, but he didn’t return it. In fact, he barely acknowledged me before he ended his call.

“Caleb?”

My stomach sank when he didn’t respond.

I waited for him to say something, but he just carried on packing Braelynn’s things. Then I noticed a black overnight bag on the floor next to the carrier Braelynn was in.

“Where are you going?” I asked, looking between Caleb, and Braelynn. Little Miss was fast asleep, and blissfully unaware of the turmoil I was feeling because of her daddy, and the same turmoil he was obviously feeling because of me. What I couldn’t understand was what had happened between the time we’d eventually gone to bed, and now.

“I’m taking Braelynn to the Hamptons for a few days to see my father.” Caleb kept his attention on Braelynn’s bottles, which were already tucked into the bag. It was clear he was just looking for an excuse to avoid looking at me, and it was pitiful that fiddling with baby bottles was the best he could come up with.

“Is this about last night?”

When Caleb stilled, I clenched my fists. “It is isn’t it?”

Nothing.

Indignation fused its way into my bloodstream, making my pulse skitter. His jaw ticked, and when he could finally work past his cowardice to look at me, the mien in his eyes was like a wrecking ball to my self-esteem. It was contrition, guilt, and oh God, pity.

“Alfie will be here all weekend,” Caleb ignored my question. “Make sure he goes with you if you go out. I’ve left money in your bedside drawer if you need anything, or if there’s an emergency.” Caleb cleared his throat and my eyes burned.

I will not cry. The fucker doesn’t deserve to see me cry.

“The issue with Jennifer has been resolved too, and if she so much as breathes your name to the press she will be fired. You won’t have to worry about her again.”

“You’re just going to leave without talking to me?”

The crack in my voice gave Caleb pause, but then he picked up a sleeping Braelynn and walked into the atrium where he passed his overnight bag to Terminator One.

Caleb sighed, and could barely look me in the eye when he spoke to me over my shoulder. “Last night was a mistake. It should never have happened.”

My mouth opened, but my throat had dried to the point where even swallowing was difficult. I didn’t know what to say, so I stood there, watching stupidly as Caleb stepped into the elevator and disappeared behind the silver doors. I saw my reflection, and even with the distortion caused by the metal I could still see how piteous I looked, dressed in Caleb’s white dress shirt from the night before with my messy hair and nothing more.

I shook my head, wondering how I could have been so credulous as to expect any other kind of reaction from Caleb, or how I could have been so trusting. He must’ve thought me an easy target, and in all likelihood said exactly what I wanted to hear just to get me to spread my legs. I should have been relieved to hear about Jennifer, but Caleb’s regretful disposition and cool reception was at the forefront of my mind, and if given the choice, I would rather have all my dirty laundry gracing every newspaper in the country than be on such precarious terms with Caleb. I was the one who was supposed to be weird after what we both decided would be a one-night-stand, but instead he was the one running. And by the looks of it he couldn’t get away fast enough.

With a tremulous breath, I pivoted on my bare heels and walked through the soundless penthouse to the guest bedroom. My evening gown was still on the floor, the bed still made, and suddenly I wanted to be anywhere but there. Angry hands ripped Caleb’s shirt from my body, and I stormed into the bathroom, turning the shower on as hot as my skin could tolerate. If he was running, then I was going to wash him from every patch of skin, until there was no trace of him, or his smell left. Of course I could still feel his presence between my legs, but I was going to have to ignore that as best I could. I was sure that you didn’t just forget sex with Caleb Callahan, but I was going to be the first woman in history to try.

And hopefully succeed.

When my skin was red, and almost raw, I turned the water off, and grabbed a towel. I’d just walked back into the bedroom when my phone rang, and when I saw “Mom” flashing across the screen I thought twice about answering. She was probably calling because news had broken about my ‘relationship’ with Caleb, and wanted to know why I hadn’t told her myself. I wasn’t sure I could deal with her just yet, but then again, I needed to talk to someone about what had happened.

I flopped onto the bed, resigned, and swiped the screen to answer.

“Hi Mom.”