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As I passed the study, a spectacular grin broke out across my face at the sight of my beautiful boyfriend. He was regally positioned at the desk, Tribeca and the Hudson River spread out in the floor-to-ceiling windows behind him. I paused in the doorway, admiring one of my favorite rooms and the man in it. Two leather chairs the color of a worn saddle were positioned in front of the desk, framed nicely by the dark wood paneling of the walls. A matching sofa faced the fireplace. But it was the man behind the desk who made the space.
His broad frame filled out my favorite three-piece black suit, the black tie knotted around his neck as fresh as when I’d tied it for him this morning. I ran my eyes over his face. Even after nearly eight years together, the sight of him still made my heart beat faster. There was simply no getting used to Daniel Elliott.
"What are you doing home so early?" He’d flown to Washington, DC this morning to meet with one of the sitting senators. I hadn’t asked the purpose, because most of the time I trusted his judgment that the less I knew about his business, the better. His early arrival home meant one of two things: it had gone extremely well, or it hadn’t.
I hurried across the room to give him a kiss, my lips already tingling in anticipation, but I only made it to the edge of the desk before he gruffly ordered me to sit.
The glow I felt quickly faded. He knew better than to take that tone with me, but I let it go for the moment. "What's with all the bags in the hallway? Are you going somewhere?" I said lightly, still smiling despite my nerves. When he didn’t respond right away, didn’t even glance up from what he was doing, I obeyed, for once, sinking into a seat with the desk a barrier between us.
He snapped the file in front of him shut. I flinched. His knuckles were white as he clenched the edge of the folder and stuffed it into the cabinet under his desk. The lock clicked in place with a decisive turn of the key, the sound setting me on edge.
"No. Those are your belongings." He gazed at me stoically, his onyx eyes cold and distant.
"Mine?" I asked dumbly.
"It's over."
Two little words sent the world crashing down on me. This had to be a joke. Not two minutes earlier, I’d been excited to be home, couldn’t wait to see Daniel to tell him about my day. His generosity had made so much of it possible.
I fought to keep the hot tears pooling in my eyes at bay, the man I loved a blurry vision sitting across from me like a stranger.
"I've secured an apartment for you and deposited a generous sum of money into your account. You can keep your credit cards. It's not fair for me to turn you out with nothing." His lips were moving. I heard bits and pieces, but none of it registered. All I could do was stare blankly at him. "If the money isn't enough, I'll take care of it."
Each word was like a slap, stinging my heart instead of my cheeks. I tried to take a deep breath but came up short.
"No." It was all I could manage under the circumstances, and it felt like quite an accomplishment.
"No?" he repeated incredulously, eyes flaring, sparking my senses to life.
“No,” I reiterated, this time with some backbone.
“Don’t make this difficult.”
My eyes narrowed. “Did you think I would make it easy?” I growled, clenching my jaw.
“Have you ever.” It wasn’t a question, the acid in his tone burning my gut. That was one of the things he’d liked best about me. I didn’t do anything the easy way.
“How about we rewind, Daniel. Because I’m having a hard time catching up.” I took in a deep breath to steady my temper and adjusted my attitude in hopes of figuring out just what the hell was happening.
“No, you aren’t. You simply don’t like what I’m telling you.”
“Damn straight about that,” I confirmed with a nod. “Why don’t you fill in the gap between what happened this morning and now? Because when you made love to me last night, leaving me didn’t seem to be—” I stopped abruptly, thinking about the way he had woken me at two a.m.
Oh. I deflated. I hadn’t seen it then, but now it was clear. He’d been saying goodbye.
One dark brow lifted. He knew I’d put at least one piece of the puzzle together.
“What happened?” I whispered. I searched his face for a sign of something—anything—and came up short. I didn’t know this man staring at me. This was the one who went on lockdown, who refused to let anyone inside the vault with him. Except didn’t he realize I was already there?
“We’ve run our course,” he said indifferently.
I shot to my feet and came around the desk until I was beside him. He didn’t turn, so I swiveled his chair, forcing him to face me. I shoved between his thighs and cupped his cheeks. “You can’t just cut out your heart and throw it away. It doesn’t work like that.” A tear slipped down my cheek, and Daniel tensed against me, the only tangible sign that he was uncomfortable.
There wasn’t just steel around him, but a wall of ice too. “The time has come.”
“Liar,” I whispered, bringing my mouth closer until it hovered above his.
“I’ve never lied to you,” he promised. And he wasn’t lying now. I could see it in his eyes.
