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“Not by a long shot.” But he could tell she wasn’t listening. “Meet me after the restaurant closes tonight.”
“I have too much hotel business to take care of before I fly back to New York tomorrow afternoon. I promised Grandfather that I would step into his shoes for a while. It was the only way I could get him to rest and not worry about the company.”
“When will you be back?”
She shook her head. “I’m not sure. It might be a permanent move.”
Ashton’s heart sank. She would spend the rest of her life living a lie. He wanted what was best for her and this wasn’t it. But there was a bright spot to her decision.
“Then I guess we’ll be seeing a lot of each other. Lifestyle Network agreed to most of my demands.”
“Not all?” Her half-smile was wry.
Ashton gave a one-shoulder shrug. “Those I didn’t get aren’t all that important.”
“You’re going to do the show?”
“It means we can be together in New York.”
She avoided his gaze. “You know you’ll hate being stuck in the city.”
“I don’t know that.” Her lack of enthusiasm for their upcoming proximity left him questioning whether she wanted him in her life. “New York has a lot to offer in terms of culinary experiences.”
“Did you agree to cut your hair?”
“It’s part of the rebranding.”
“Don’t do it.” She reached up and swept her fingers into his hair, tugging his head down. “Promise me.”
“I can’t. They’re right. In order to appeal to a wider audience, I need a different look.”
“You won’t look like you.”
“It’s just hair.”
“It’s not. It’s part of your image. You are the daring adventurer. The guy that charges into dangerous locales and bravely eats whatever exotic fare the population considers typical.”
“I can’t be that guy the rest of my life.”
“Why not?” She stared at him intently. “That’s the man I fell in love with.”
Her words hit him square in the breastbone. Living without her these past few days had been hell. He couldn’t face a future apart from her. But telling her that he loved her wasn’t going to make the problem between them go away.
“Because I realized after meeting your father that the traveling I do keeps me apart from people I care about. I don’t want to be alone the rest of my life. I want you.”
“You can have me and all the adventures you could ever want.”
“A part-time relationship with you isn’t what I had in mind.”
Then her lips were on his and his arms went around her slim body. The kiss was frantic and tasted like goodbye. Ashton’s heart was a bowling ball in his chest by the time her lips peeled away from his.
“We’re good together,” she said.
“The key word is together.” He cupped her face and kissed her lightly on the lips. “Tell your grandfather the truth and we can go adventuring together.”
“I thought you wanted the Lifestyle Network show.”
“I’d rather have you happy and whole.”
