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“So what happens next?” My heart pounded so hard it almost bruised.
A quizzical line formed between Kai’s brows.
“This.” I gestured between us. “Us. What are we doing?”
“Recovering from excellent orgasms, I presume.”
The full weight of disappointment anchored my stomach. “You’re too smart to play dumb,” I said, hurt by his cavalier attitude.
I’d broken a years-long vow to myself for him, and he couldn’t take me seriously enough for one meaningful conversation.
Kai’s smile gradually dissolved. His eyes searched my face; whatever he saw made him wince.
“You’re right. I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “But I thought you knew.”
This time, I was the confused one. “Knew what?”
“That there’s no going back after this.” His admission was a warm breath on my skin. “You should’ve never let me take you, Isabella. Because now that I have, I won’t be able to let you go.”
CHAPTER 19
Kai
Iwas fucked, both literally and figuratively.
If Isabella had dominated my thoughts before we had sex, she’d utterly consumed them after. It’d been a week since I took her to the Barber, and not a minute had passed without the memory of her taste haunting me.
I rubbed a hand over my mouth and tried to focus on my mother’s closing speech. It was the last day of the company’s annual leadership retreat, which took place in our Manhattan office this year. High-level executives had flown in from all over the world for four days of seminars, workshops, and networking, all of which I’d breezed through.
I may have been distracted, but I could still outsell, outsmart, and outperform every other member of the Young Corporation with my eyes closed.
My phone buzzed with a new text.
“…lean into your individual strengths as leaders to build an even bigger, better company that reflects the direction of the market…” My mother’s voice faded in and out as I checked my messages.
Isabella:are you alone right now?
A small smile curved my lips.
Me:No. I’m at the company retreat.
I hadn’t seen her since the retreat started, but we texted every day. Our conversations consisted mostly of memes and funny videos (sent by her), interesting articles and food recommendations (sent by me), and flirtatious subtext (sent by both of us). Normally, I wasn’t a huge fan of long text conversations because they inevitably lost their point, if there was one in the first place, but I looked forward to her messages with embarrassing anticipation.
Isabella:perfect. then i have a picture for you;)
A photo popped up on-screen. I instinctively swiped my phone off the table, but to my relief and disappointment, it wasn’t anything scandalous.
Isabella lounged on the couch in the library’s secret room, her cheeks dimpled with a mischievous grin and her hair fanning around her in a spray of amethyst-tinted silk. Her free hand clutched a bottle of Mexican Coke.
Isabella:behold, a future bestselling author working hard
My smile ticked up another inch.
Me:I see that. Your hands must be tired from typing on your invisible keyboard.
Isabella:first of all, brainstorming is working too, judgy mcjudge
Isabella:second of all, i’ve come up with an incredibly detailed sex scene that i was going to tell you about
