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“Didn’t you get Amber’s message? She isn’t here. She’s at Michelle’s for a sleepover.”
“What? Don’t play games with me, Linda.”
Her mouth curves into a smile. “I reminded her of her planned weekend with you, but she told me she preferred having a sleepover with her friends to spending a boring weekend with you.”
I know there’s no way Amber would have said that. She was looking forward to being with me when we spoke earlier.
“Where is she? Why is her phone switched off?”
“That's probably because she doesn’t want to speak to you.” She stares at her nails. “I told her how I begged you with tears rolling down my face for us to get back together so we could be a family again, but you bluntly refused.” She smiled with saccharine sweetness. “She was pretty upset that you couldn’t put her before anything. Your own daughter.” Her eyes glower with malice. “So, stop the pretense, Gareth. She knows you don’t care about her. You’re more interested in keeping your billionaire status as a tech mogul than making her happy.”
“Someday, Linda, you’ll look back and regret keeping Amber from me. She’ll find out the truth and hate you for it. Enjoy your vindictiveness while it lasts.”
“Vindictiveness? You don’t know the meaning of the word. By the time I’m done with you for rejecting me, you’ll understand that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”
Shaking my head, I turn away and stroll back to my car while she carries on lamenting. I drive away as if the devil is chasing me, and I curse repeatedly. I was looking forward to spending time with Amber. Her presence would have lifted my sour mood.
I might as well go back to the office and work until I doze off. How did my life get so shitty? No Amber, no Hailey to spend the weekend with. I realize with a start how much I’ve come to depend on Hailey to make me smile. But now, she’s making another man smile and probably moan with ecstasy.
Loneliness stares me in the face. I’m a successful billionaire about to spend the weekend alone. I can call a past mistress to keep me company, but I only want two people—Hailey and Amber.
How pitiful.
My mood still dour, I ride up the elevator to my office. The whole place is deserted, which is hardly surprising. It’s a Friday night. I wonder where Hailey and Brad are.
I enter the connecting office meant for Susan and Alex, and I ground to a halt. Standing by the file cabinet, peering into a file is the woman who has haunted my dreams for the past week.
What is she still doing here? More importantly, how do I resist her in such a rotten mood?
CHAPTER19
HAILEY
My breath catches when I see Gareth standing by the door and devouring me with his eyes. Or is it just my imagination? All week he has treated me as if I didn’t exist. Even when it’s only the two of us in his office, he behaves as if I’m not there. But now, he’s giving me a look that tells me he wants to rip my clothes off and have wild sex with me on the carpeted floor. Or is it just wishful thinking on my part?
“What are you doing here?”
The anger in his voice tells me his wanting to relive our past passion for each other is only in my head. Disappointment flows through me. I have tried everything I can to forget about him and get over the way I feel about him, to no avail. His treating me as if he wouldn’t come close to me even with a ten foot pole all week should have sent the message that he’s no longer interested. But my heart refuses to listen.
“Cat got your tongue?”
I shake my head. “I want to make sure everything is perfect for tomorrow.”
He nods and curtly says, “Go home. It’s late. We’ve already seen to everything.” And with that, he strolls forward.
My heart thuds in my chest in anticipation, but he brushes past me without pausing and enters his office. My shoulders slump, and I blink back tears of frustration. Maybe I’m only tired from the stress of the past week. I should go home and wet my pillows with tears again, like I do every other night. I’m an emotional wreck these days. I didn’t even act this way when I broke up with Ron in college.
I shouldn’t have fallen in love with my boss. It was crazy having a secret relationship with him, but falling in love with him was so much worse. I can only hope that Amber is happy to have her dad back in her life… and maybe together with her mom.
I go back to my office and pick up my purse. I debate on whether to tell him I’m leaving for the night or not. I give in to the temptation of seeing him one more time. After tomorrow, there won’t be much work left to do, and after the election the following week, my work will be practically over. I’ll move a few floors down. I might only catch glimpses of him now and then. So, I might as well make use of every opportunity of being alone with him, even for a few minutes.
Taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, I knock on the door and push it open without waiting for his summons. Longing consumes me when I see Gareth standing by the floor-to-ceiling length window with his hands in his pockets, staring at the busy city with its glimmering night lights. He has taken off his jacket, leaving only his coffee-brown shirt.
“I’m leaving,” I inform him in almost a whisper.
He curves his body slightly in my direction and nods.
“You should go home, too. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow,” I add quietly.
