Page 59 of Once Upon a Prince

“Your dad had been good about keeping you and Nic separate. I thought he never talked to you about him,” I asked.

“He hadn’t, I guess he forgot or wanted to share the good news. It doesn’t matter. I don’t know. I don’t care. Nic stopped being friends with me years ago so I shouldn’t care what he’s doing now.”

“Yet, you are,” I said to Layla.

“I only brought it up to Ara because I was sure she was going to hear about it at her school. Part of the program Nic is going to be involved in will be working with university students.”

“Real estate rarely comes over into the medical department,” Ara said, clearly not believing her.

“Whatever. He’s doing well, he’s happy, I can be happy for him and share in his good fortune, or share in my father’s good fortune. He stands to make a lot of money with this venture too.”

“Good for him, for both of them. Have you thought about calling Nic and congratulating him?” I asked.

“No. I probably don’t even have the right number anymore. He’s forgotten about me and I don’t want to have that awkward conversation if he were to answer the phone. We’ve moved on from each other. Friends drift apart, it happens,” Layla said.

There was still some hurt in her eyes and I wondered if she would ever get the closure, she needed with Nic or if this wound would continue to fester. I looked over at Ara and wondered the same thing about her and Bash.

Chapter 34

Dax

“Now that is a sight I could definitely get used to seeing every day,” I said to Ella as I walked toward her desk.

“Good morning, sir. How are you?” Ella asked.

She wasn’t usually so formal with me, only doing it if other people were around. At first, I thought she was teasing me as I had told her on numerous occasions to call me Dax. Considering everything we did in Buenos Aires she should. But as I looked at her, I could tell she was serious.

I was taken aback by her comment and wondered what I had done wrong. I had missed her the night before. I wasn’t one who liked having a woman in my bed, but I had wanted Ella there. I found myself reaching for her multiple times in the night. I didn’t like waking up wanting her and not having her there. If I had my way, it was a problem that was going to be justified that night.

“Good. How are you?” I asked slowly.

“Wonderful. I had a restful and exciting trip and am ready to get back to work. Are you?”

“Most definitely.” I leaned against her desk and took the messages she had for me. I flipped through them and occasionally looked over at her. She wore a simple brown dress that tied at her side. The V-neck showed off her breasts but not so much that it would be deemed inappropriate. I knew how beautiful those breasts look when they were in my hands and seeing them even covered reminded me of that.

“You need to stop looking at me like that,” Ella said after a minute.

“Like what?” I asked and leaned away from her.

“You know exactly how you’re looking at me. Like you’ve seen me naked and want to again.”

I leaned toward her and whispered in her ear, “But I have seen you naked and I very much want to see you like that again.”

“Dax, you can’t talk to me like that here.”

“Why? It’s the truth?”

“We agreed to be professional. It isn’t fair for you to say those things to me and then expect me to answer your phone or talk to anyone and not sound like I’m all hot and bothered.”

“Did my comments and looks make you hot and bothered?” I moved off the desk and stood behind her. I placed my hands on her shoulders and dropped my head down. “If you are, I’m sure there’s a way to fix that.”

“There isn’t time, not if you’re going to make your eight o’clock meeting. And you said we would find a work/life balance. You wanting to take me into the nearest coat closet as soon as

I walk in the door isn’t doing that,” she said.

“I can wait twenty minutes,” I teased and Ella laughed.

“Again, all things I shouldn’t be hearing. Go, get to your meeting. I have work I need to do and I can’t be distracted by anyone, no matter how sexy they are or how good they are at kissing.”

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