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He opened his mouth to argue, but stopped short. The more he thought about his brother’s words, the more he realized that they were right. Sutton had never had feelings for a woman like he had for Lauren. She hadn’t just been a distraction from his problems. She had become the reason he had to fight through them and come out the other side stronger. She was the first thing he thought of when he woke up in the morning and the last thing on his mind as he drifted off to sleep. When he wasn’t with her, he felt like there was a hole in his gut and no amount of antacids could fix it. Only holding her in his arms again did the trick.
And it wasn’t just about sex, for once. Relationships with him had always centered around physical gratification and having fun. And when he grew bored with either, he moved on. It was completely different with her. Sex with Lauren was mind-blowing, no doubt, but he was also content to just snuggle with her on the couch. He liked to draw the scent of her shampoo into his lungs and try to memorize it. He felt like the world was instantly better when he saw her smile.
There was no longer any doubt in his mind. He hated to admit it, but Sebastian was right. He was in love with Lauren. She just had to bail on him to reveal the truth of it.
And now that he knew, he just had to figure out what he was going to do about his runaway lover.
Twelve
Lauren wasn’t quite sure how to handle her new normal. In order to get the restaurant up and running, she had to relinquish control of other things. That meant not spending every waking moment dealing with the food trucks. Ed and Javier still ran the second truck, but she’d hired someone to help Amy work the first truck. She developed the daily menus a week in advance and let Amy and Javier handle the details.
It was a big step for her, but in order to keep everyone gainfully employed and funds coming in, the trucks had to keep going for now. Especially with business booming after the exposure of the pop-up night. Once the restaurant was open, perhaps she could keep hiring on folks to run the trucks and move her main crew to the kitchen. They knew her food better than anyone and she would need their support to make it a success.
But that was a decision for later. Right now, she had plenty of things to think about that had to be dealt with immediately. She’d already signed the lease on the restaurant space, so every day that went by without them making money, the more nervous she became. That meant she had to move quickly on choosing contractors for repairs, paint, carpet and more. Things she wanted to focus on—namely the menu—had to take second place to all the environmental decisions.
Thankfully, she had Gracie to help. The new millionaire and investor wasn’t quite as silent a partner as Lauren had expected, but it had turned out for the best. Gracie wanted to help with as much as she could, so Lauren was turning over a few decisions on the decor and furnishings to her. So far, she’d chosen flatware, plates and even the new fixtures in the restrooms. Furniture was on order. That took a few worries off Lauren’s plate.
It actually took enough off her mind that she found her thoughts straying periodically. Normally, she was too busy to think much about her life and how it was going. But now that she had a little time, her brain seemed all too happy to put aside menu ideas and circle back to thinking about Sutton and the look on his face as she drove away. About how much she missed him. And how she’d run out on him without explaining why or what happened.
With a sigh, Lauren dropped her pen back onto the counter and sat back. Thoughts of shrimp and grits went to the wayside as she glanced over at her phone. She had six missed calls. All from Sutton, although they were coming less frequently now. Soon he would stop calling entirely, a reality that both relieved and terrified her.
She needed to explain herself. To explain to him why she ran off. But it seemed stupid every time she tried to come up with an answer. The truth was ugly and hard to explain. How do you get the town golden boy, the millionaire playboy tycoon, to understand that she had low self-esteem? He wouldn’t understand. And yet, he’d contributed to it, likely without even knowing what he was really doing.
Lauren already spent most of her time feeling insecure. His constant suggestions about her business, coupled with running into Kaylah at the club of all places, was just too much. She didn’t feel good enough for this town most days, but that afternoon she’d gotten confirmation that she was right. She was a great chef and could happily serve the elite of Royal amazing food, but she would never be one of them.
The sooner she admitted that to herself, the easier it would be in the end. She might love Sutton. And he might be infatuated with the idea of her. But he would never love her. His family and friends would never accept her. So the next time the phone rang and it was him, she would continue to ignore it. It was easier on her heart this way.
As if on cue, her phone started to play the ringtone she’d assigned to Sutton. She sighed and turned away from the phone. Instead of answering, she got up and made herself a glass of iced tea. But the moment the phone stopped ringing, her doorbell pinged loudly through the house.
Lauren frowned and made her way to the front door. She couldn’t keep up with the packages showing up of late. She opened it, expecting to find a delivery man with eight cases of dinner plates, but instead found Sutton on her porch with another bouquet of herbs in his hands.
Her heart leaped as she saw him, ignoring the sinking feeling of dread in her stomach. It seems he wouldn’t take no for an answer when it came to her and she loved that about him. And hated it at the same time. How was she supposed to convince herself she could move on without him in her life if he wouldn’t let her try?
“What are you doing here, Sutton?” she asked in a defeated tone. She hadn’t answered the phone because she wasn’t ready to talk to him. Showing up on her doorstep just forced her to face the feelings and words she was too emotionally exhausted to deal with right now.
He smiled and held out the bouquet. “I’m here because I’m not sure what happened between us, but I’m determined to fix it.”
“You don’t have to fix it, Sutton. Or fix me. I’m supposed to be your girlfriend, not a pet project for a bored businessman trying to avoid the problems in his own life.”
He looked confused and slightly stunned by her sharp words. “What are you talking about?”
She wasn’t sure what he was missing from the conversation. What was he talking about? His befuddled look made her just as perplexed. She just shook her head. There wasn’t time for this. “Just go home, Sutton.”
“I was home,” he said. “But it felt cold and empty without you there with me. Nothing feels right since you ran off and I don’t know what to do about it, because I’m not sure what I did wrong. So tell me and let me do something about it, because I need you.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Lauren replied, trying not to react physically to his bold words. She felt cold and empty without him, too, but she wouldn’t say so.
“Then why did you run out on me at the club?”
“Because you deserve better!” she shouted.
Sutton’s jaw dropped at her forceful words. Then his expression softened with sadness in his eyes. “There isn’t anything better than you, Lauren.”
Now it was her turn
to be struck silent by his words. He meant it. She could feel the truth of his proclamation down to the soles of her feet. But she couldn’t understand why. Everyone seemed to realize their relationship was doomed but Sutton. He was just too stubborn to see it.
“May I come in?” he asked softly.
