Page 95 of Unleashed

I gasped. “You didn’t wash them?” My voice came out as a squeak.

“I did not,” he whispered. “I love how you smell. I wish I could bury my face in your little cunt right now.”

Heat flushed through me, my core tightening at the thought. I bit my lip to stifle a groan. “Stop it.”

“Stop what?” he teased. “Am I getting to you? Do you want me?”

“Not at the moment,” I lied, my breath quickening.

“Were you lying when you said you loved me?” His voice dropped, a challenge hanging in the air.

“I wouldn’t lie about something like that,” I said softly, my chest tightening.

“Then why can’t you give yourself to me fully?”

I closed my eyes, leaning against the counter. “I don’t want to talk about this right now. You said after the weekend.”

“And I meant it,” he said, his voice firm. “Be ready for a real conversation. My office should be finished by then. We’ll have privacy.”

“You mean so you can seduce me?” I shot back, though the idea was tempting.

He chuckled darkly. “There will be plenty of time to christen my new office. But first, I need to know where I stand with you.”

“Fine,” I relented, my heart thudding against my ribs. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go.”

“Don’t forget me, Morgan,” he whispered, the intimacy of his tone making my pulse race.

“Impossible,” I whispered, then hung up, my hands shaking.

CHAPTER 19

Ten Months Later

Michael’s disappearance made my decision easy, though it tore me apart. That Fourth of July weekend, he took his boat off the coast of Maine and never returned. The boat was found adrift, without its captain. No foul play, no answers. Just gone. And with him, my heart shattered.

I spent days, weeks even, trying to process it all, but the truth was undeniable—I loved him, far more than I had admitted to myself. When his absence became permanent, Elliott Engineering collapsed. Without Michael’s leadership, the company crumbled within weeks. Meanwhile, I returned to Abbott, where I slipped into a higher position after Thomas Marsden was fired for incompetence.

Slade tried to bring order back to the office, instituting mandatory harassment classes and policies that actually started to make a difference. And somehow, life moved on. I begandating Slade exclusively after that July, and by winter, during a snowy walk through Central Park, he asked me to marry him. I said yes. I did love him—most of my heart was his. But a small part of me would always belong to Michael, no matter what.

Today, on the first of May, it was our engagement party. I convinced Slade to wait until warmer weather, wanting all my friends to be there. Erika, my ever-party-girl best friend, had taken charge of the planning. She was a natural at this kind of thing, and I followed her lead, despite being the bride.

"What dress are you wearing today?" she asked, standing in front of my closet.

“The emerald green one,” I said, rubbing lotion into my legs.

She pulled the dress off the hanger, holding it up to admire. “This is stunning.”

“Thanks. I like that it’s simple but still makes a statement.”

She eyed the plunging neckline. “Simple? Girl, this is a showstopper. That neckline—whoa.”

I chuckled, pulling the dress from her hands. “I’m not putting on a show, but Slade likes a little cleavage.”

“A little?” She raised an eyebrow. “You’ve got the body for it. Flaunt it!”

She wasn’t wrong. The neckline dipped daringly low, just how Slade liked it when I tried it on. He’d been dropping hints about us moving in together lately, and I was seriously considering it. We were already spending almost every weekend at his place.

“Thanks for always hyping me up,” I said, slipping the dress over my head. “And, Erika… thank you for everything. I never thought planning an engagement party could be such a headache.”

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