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I dropped my gaze. “Kissed me.”
He wasn’t visible, but his reaction was potent, like deadly gas filling the entire room, entering our lungs and making our eyes smart.
“I ended it right away.” I lifted my gaze and looked at him. “So, nothing happened.”
His hands came together, and he leaned forward, his knuckles resting against his forehead. He was wordless, but his anger was hot, humid like a sauna. It was silent but so loud it blocked out all other noise. “You want to be with him, then?” He kept his pose as if he didn’t want to look at me…couldn’t bear it.
“No.”
He lowered his hands and returned his gaze to the mirror.
“I told him I was married and it wasn’t going to happen.”
He stared at me with a stoic expression, as if he couldn’t believe the words coming out of my mouth.
“I made a commitment to you, Liam. I don’t want to have an affair with a man who plays with my heart. And I don’t want to leave a marriage to be with a man who would kiss someone’s wife.”
The relief in his expression was touching, as if that meant the world to him. He straightened his position. “Who is he?”
My heart started to race.
“Anna.”
I was pissed at Damien, but I wouldn’t feed him to the wolves. “Does it matter? I told him to leave me alone.”
“It does matter. Because I’ll tell him to leave you alone myself.” He cracked his knuckles, the noise loud in our quiet bedroom.
“It’s over. Let it go.” I took off the rest of my jewelry then pulled the clips from my scalp so my hair would come loose and move across my shoulders. I didn’t tell Liam so he would be angry. I did it because it was the right thing to do. I just hoped there wouldn’t be long-term consequences for my integrity. “I picked you.”
That reminder calmed him down. “I don’t deserve you.”
I stared at my wedding ring on the vanity.
“Anyone else would think it was fair…”
“That’s not the kind of person I am.” I looked at his reflection in the mirror.
“I know.” He rose to his feet then walked to me, his hands moving to my shoulders. “And that’s why I don’t deserve you.”
I was sitting inside my office when Damien texted me.
I want to talk.
I ignored his message and locked my phone. If I weren’t so infatuated with him, I would have seen the signs a long time ago. He would forget our plans all the time and wouldn’t even text me back. He would ignore my phone calls because he was in a bad mood. He never gave a damn about me. When he agreed to exclusivity, it was just to ditch the condom. No other reason.
Hours passed, and he texted me again.
Annabella.
I ignored him again.
This time, he didn’t wait hours before he texted me again. Please.
I finally caved. Don’t text me again. Ever. I locked the phone.
This time, he called.
Motherfucker. I picked up but got my message across before he could say a word. “Don’t call me again. Ever.” I hung up.
He called back.
I got so fed up, I turned off the phone altogether.
He took it a step further and walked into my office at the end of the day.
“You’ve got to be kidding me…” This time, I wasn’t enticed by his appearance in the tight shirt and the jeans that squeezed his sculpted thighs. I didn’t notice if he’d shaved or not because I didn’t check.
“Annabella.” He started to shut the door behind him. “Just listen to me—”
“Get the fuck out, or I’ll call Liam.”
“You think I’m scared of him?” He approached my desk, his head tilted to the side slightly. “Call him. I don’t give a shit.”
I didn’t call his bluff. Instead, I hit the button on my phone and used the intercom. “Sofia, could you help me with something?”
He groaned in frustration.
Sofia was hesitant but agreed. “Uh, yeah. I’ll be right there.”
I glared at him. “How this plays out is up to you.”
She opened the door and stepped in seconds later, mildly surprised that Damien was in there with the door shut. “What’s up?”
I stared at Damien, threatening to throw him under the bus to Sofia, whose opinion actually mattered to him.
She must have picked up on the tension because she glanced back and forth between us.
Damien wasn’t afraid of Liam, but he was obviously afraid of Sofia. “I’ll let you get back to work…” He let himself out without argument.
I was victorious. “I just need help with these spreadsheets…” I left the chair so she could take my vacated spot.
Sofia stared at me for a few seconds before she sank into the leather chair. “Everything alright?”
“Yeah, I just wasn’t sure where to put these invoices.” I fished them out of the pile.
“No.” She didn’t look at the computer. “Everything alright with Damien?”
