Page 75 of Between the Lines

I’m being studied in return.

“And you like them like that,” he says. “Not serious, so you don’t have to deal with any loose ends when you move on to the next place.”

His frank assessment makes me frown. “I guess so, yes.”

He reaches for the wine glass. “We’re more alike than I initially thought.”

“You don’t like loose ends, either?”

“No.” He takes a long sip of the wine. “And I don’t like leading women on. So I don’t.”

I tilt my head and study him. He’s still in a suit from work, but he must have tossed the jacket somewhere on his way up to the second floor. His white shirtsleeves are folded back, and the top two buttons are undone. His skin is just as tanned at his collar as it is on his face. His thick, black hair is messier than usual. And stubble is sharpening along his jaw.

I wish he’d grow it out more. Like he had it in Utah.

“Your work. That’s what ends most relationships for you,” I guess.

“It’s been my primary focus for a decade. Yes. It’s hard for a woman to compete with that.”

“Why do you work so hard when you don’t have to?”

He shakes his head once, a slight smile on his lips. “Only you, Chaos.”

“What?”

“When I ‘don’t have to’? What does that mean?” He tosses back the last of the wine.

“You’re incredibly rich,” I say. “Right? You could retire tomorrow and spend the rest of your days doing the things you enjoy. Like being out in nature, surfing, hiking, traveling… I’ve seen the history books you keep in your bookcases downstairs. You could study that to your heart’s content.”

“And live a life of leisure,” he says.

“Yes. Many people would, with your resources. So tell me, why do you work so hard instead? Why did you try to turn Titan around these years? Why didn’t you just sell it or let it go bankrupt?”

He shakes his head again. “My family name was being dragged through the mud every day for a year, my sister was getting papped, my mother was forced out of the life she spent decades building, a staff of thousands was threatened with unemployment… and you’re suggesting that I should have retired and lived a life of meaningless pursuits instead?”

There he is. I had suspected the answer. But it came out more forcefully than I had expected.

“I hadn’t thought about it like that,” I say carefully.

“I work hard because there’s no other option,” he mutters and sets the glass down on the coffee table. “My father made damn sure of that.”

“You resent him for it.” It’s the closest we’ve ever come to a conversation about his dad.

Aiden’s eyes darken. “Wouldn’t you?”

“This isn’t about me.”

“Then let’s make it about you.” He drapes an arm along the back of the couch, his hand coming to rest close to mine. “Have you thought about the night we slept together?”

CHAPTER 28

CHARLOTTE

I look away, heat racing through my veins. It’s the one thing I try to avoid thinking about when I’m around him. But the answer is clear on my face. I feel my skin scorching.

“That’s what I thought,” he murmurs. “Yesterday, I kissed you to hide you from view.”

My gaze flits back to his. “Yes. You did. Thank you for helping me.”

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