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“Sure I do. That first night, remember? You stayed with me. Comforted me. I owed you the same.”
“It was sweet of you.”
“Look”—she fidgeted, her fingers shaking as she set a mug on the counter—“I really need to talk to you.”
“What about?”
“This is hard for me, Dallas.”
“What is it? Are you in trouble?”
“No. Of course not. Nothing like that. I just…” She cleared her throat. “I don’t like talking about my first marriage.”
“You don’t need to.”
“Yeah, I think I do.” Her voice wavered a little, cracking.
“Your first marriage isn’t any of my business.”
“I think it is. It’s keeping us apart.”
“What?”
“I know why you decided not to be with me.” Her face turned that adorable shade of pink. “You didn’t like that I stayed on the pill when my husband wanted kids. There’s a reason, Dallas.”
“No.” He slammed his fist on the counter, worsening the throbbing in his head. “Damn it. I don’t want to hear it.”
“What?”
“Annie, I just spent the last four hours interrogating my men. Do you know what I found out? One of them was paid off, probably with my own money. Money I gave Chelsea for a settlement. The whole thing was orchestrated by an employee of Chelsea’s father’s. She was pissed off about something. Probably got a wild hair up her ass after finding us together.”
“An employee. What does that have to do with Chelsea?”
“He’s an old friend of hers. Obsessed with her or something.”
“Is that any reason for us to be apart?”
“Not the fact that she saw us. Or that some guy is obsessed with her. Of course not. But this morning’s whole debacle just reminded me what I had decided when I divorced Chelsea. I have another reason.”
“Which is?”
“I won’t get involved with another deceptive woman.”
“What?”
“You heard me.”
“But I’m not a deceptive woman. I’m as honest as they come.”
“You deceived your first husband.”
“But I had a reason! If you’ll just let me explain.”
“No. It doesn’t matter. What’s done is done, and I won’t be with you, no matter how much I want it. I won’t go through that again. I learned a long time ago—”
“Never to make the same mistake twice.” She finished for him, her voice low, robotic.
“Yes. I never make the same mistake twice.”
