Page 85 of My Forbidden Boss

“I’m eager to find somewhere for us to live.” I ignore David’s stillness and my chest seizes, feeling his hurt across the room with only air between us.

Unbearable.

I focus on the safety of the stack of coasters on the coffee table before I can launch myself across the room and climb onto his lap. I want David with every fiber of my being. I want him beyond reason. I want him, despite knowing one day he’ll wake up and see me for who I really am, and I want to beat that day before it happens.

I can survive if I leave now.

I won’t have a shred of my soul left if I give in.

Mom is wrong. I won’t take anything David freely offers, because in the end, it isn’t free. Everything has a cost and this is the steepest cost there will ever be in life.

I scramble for words. For a change of topic because this line of thinking will only lead nowhere. I need to remember I’m here for Mom. Desperation is a great motivator. “Do you think Max will go for it? The plan might be too simple.”

“Max’s ego is his Achilles heel. He won’t want to lose to me as he’ll think I’m buying dead projects, when the opposite is true. He won’t know it, but I’ll be his greatest downfall,” David says.

I understand downfalls. David is mine.

“I’ll send someone past him when Max goes to his club tonight. Make sure he overhears that his secret is out,” Tristan says. “He’ll want to pull out quickly and get what he can while it’s on offer.”

David leans forward. He hasn’t taken his gaze off me and now it sears. “I’ll ask you to send Max a text. Tell him you overheard me talking. That I’m on-side with his property developers and putting pressure on them to end his contracts.”

My palms sweat. I run them across my thighs, but there’s not enough material that’ll soak up this heat. I take my cell from my robe pocket and swipe up Max’s number, noticing several texts from Maddy, but I’ll get back to her when my head isn’t spinning so badly. I open my chat with my sperm donor and type in some words. “How does this sound?” I tell them what I’ve written.

“That’s perfect, love,” David murmurs.

I hit send, dropping my attention to the phone because it gives me an excuse not to be pulled into David’s universe. I wonder if Max will take the bait. If this will be as easy as David and Tristan think it will be. Mom and I might be homeless after our best attempt, so I won’t get my hopes up.

Margaret reappears and slides a tray onto the coffee table. “Here we go.”

I spot a bowl of cereal topped with fresh fruits and a mug of coffee with chocolate curls melting on the top. My gaze flies to David. It’s the breakfast I had every day while we were in Florida. My treat.

The side of his mouth tugs up. “I see everything about you, love.”

I won’t survive this.

“Well. This looks wonderful. A regular feast. Thank you so much, Margaret.” Mom picks up my bowl and sets it in my lap before sliding some waffles onto a plate for herself. She reaches for the jam and cream. My heart squeezes. The last time she had a breakfast like this, I’d taken her out for her birthday. A once a year occasion. My finger rims the bowl on my lap while my stomach bottoms out.

“I’ll be back with the rest,” Margaret says, and my eyes bulge. How much did the woman make?

“I didn’t know what you’d prefer, Lira, so I asked Margaret to bring in a selection,” David says.

Margaret returns with another tray filled with crispy bacon, perfectly fried eggs, an assortment of vegetables, and a jug of orange juice. I wouldn’t put it past the woman to have freshly squeezed it.

“I for one, will hire her when she’s sick of working for you,” Tristan says.

“She’ll never be sick of working for me,” David says as he helps himself to his breakfast. When his plate is piled, he lifts his gaze to me. “Eat, Adeline.”

I sip my coffee, my stomach too heavy to put any food into it. I know what he’s doing; playing the long game, making it harder and harder for me to cling to any semblance of good sense, and I know — I know — that accepting him and staying is the answer I’ve looked for all my life.

But it would be a convenient answer.

Loving David and leaving him is going to be the hardest thing I’ll ever have to do in my life.

Chapter 31

David

Patience is my mantra. I’ve pushed her enough. Any more and she’ll run.

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