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Fuck, fuck, fuck. What was she going to do? Having to make a decision eventually was very different from having to make one in an hour. Of course there would be other offers, but her mother would never forgive her if she turned down this one for something smaller.
Confusion mixed with anger. It felt like a boulder was sitting on her chest, slowly crushing her to death. She tried to hold it together. Just one more hour, then she could drop Luke off and freak out in private. But it was getting harder and harder each minute.
“Are you okay, sweetheart?” Luke said, finally breaking the silence.
At that, the dam broke and she burst into tears. Covering her face with her hands, she tried to do it quietly but soon she was gasping deep breaths and close to hyperventilating. She felt the car swerve, then come to a stop. A second later, she was up against Luke’s chest, his big hand covering her head as he crooned in her ear.
“What’s wrong with my girl?”
His girl? How she wished it were true. If things were different, if she really was his, he could help her. She wouldn’t feel so goddamn lonely. All she wanted to do was crawl into his lap and have him pet her.
“Shh.” He stroked her hair. “What happened? Who was that?”
Part of her wanted to tell him everything—just to have someone to confide in—but the wiser part of her held back. She trusted him—it wasn’t about that—but he didn’t need this burden. And what would he think of her? Here she had the biggest decision of her entire life to make and she’d been out gallivanting in the forest like she hadn’t a care in the world.
He’d think she was an irresponsible idiot.
Childish. Just like her mother had said.
“It’s okay,” he said. “You can tell me when you’re ready. Or not at all.”
God. Why did he have to be so nice about it too?
Oh, fuck it. She pushed from his chest and inhaled a shaky breath. “I’ll tell you.”
“Okay,” he said and turned toward her seat. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I need to. But . . . just don’t judge me, okay?”
His brow quirked. “Did you kill someone and hide the body?”
That won him a chuckle, then she shook her head. Wiping her eyes with the back of her hands, she tried to pull herself together. Luke handed her a tissue and she used it to blow her nose.
Once she was calmed down, she finally looked at him. Concern made a crease above his brow. Such a sweet man. It was hard to believe this was the same person who’d whispered dirty things in her ear and made her beg for anal.
She shook her head to clear that from her mind.
Folding her hands on her lap, she began. “When my dad died, he left me the company. All of it. Millions of dollars’ worth of hotels and stocks and . . . I don’t even know what else! He didn’t give me any direction. All he did was write in his will that it’s mine.”
Luke nodded solemnly. “That’s a big responsibility for one person.”
“My mom wants me to sell it. The newest bid is a lot of money, and my mom is pushing. But I still don’t know what my dad would’ve wanted. I wish he’d left me some instructions but his death was so sudden . . . I think he just ran out of time.”
“How did he die?”
“Heart attack.” She paused. “We didn’t even know he had heart problems. He was home alone. I was . . .” Her throat closed up. “At some dumb party . . .”
Tears streamed down her cheeks, but she didn’t bother trying to hide them this time. It’d been months. She shouldn’t be struggling to talk about it still, should she? God, she was such a baby.
Luke grasped her hand and squeezed it. “You know it wasn’t your fault, right?”
Did she? If she’d been home, she could’ve called an ambulance. Maybe he’d have recovered. Maybe he’d still be alive right now.
“We can’t guard the people we love from bad things twenty-four/seven,” Luke said. “That’s impossible.”
She nodded. “I know that. In my head I know that.” After a deep breath, she went on. “I just don’t know what to do. This is too much pressure. My mom thinks I’d be an idiot not to sell it but the thought of someone erasing his legacy breaks my heart. At the same time, what business do I have running a company? I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing.”
Luke listened patiently as she rambled.
