Page 59 of Fire

She needed him to be cruel? Fine. He could do that. Easily. Even if it would twist like a knife in his gut while doing it.

Creating an indifferent I-don’t-give-a-shit-about-anything pose, he leaned farther back to appear as if he were getting comfortable. He planted his elbows on the arms of the chair, and bringing his hands together, steepled his fingers, spreading them wide. Then tapped his pointers together. Tap. Tap. Tap. All the while, looking her right in the eyes, seemingly deep in thought.

“No,” he paused then added carelessly, “I just want to fuck you.”

Her face paled as her back went ramrod straight.

Score two.

“So, everything you said at my parents’…”

“Was bullshit. Again, I knew what I needed to say to keep fucking you.”

“Right. Well…” She stood, glancing around for what appeared to be her bag because she stopped looking, her eyes flying back to him when she spotted it on the floor by the elevator. “I’m not sure what to say.”

“Goodbye?” He raised an eyebrow for effect—trifecta.

Game won.

He didn’t look away from the hurt that etched her face. Wouldn’t allow himself to. It wasn’t nearly a fitting enough punishment for what he’d just done but between that and the emptiness he now felt in his chest, it would have to do.

“Right. Goodbye, then.” She paused for just a second as if waiting for him to stop her and when he didn’t, she gave him her back.

If she would have turned back around right then, she would have seen the anguish that lined his face before he got his emotions back under control. But she didn’t. She went straight for the elevator, pressed the call button, then dipped down to retrieve her bag. She stepped on, hitting the down button then gave him one final look as the doors closed.

He never once looked away nor did he allow himself to call her back and ask for forgiveness.

Another punishment.

He’d always thought nothing could be crueler than his father’s harsh treatment.

How wrong he was.

Chapter 15

Gwen didn’t remember the trip home. After calling an Uber, she’d completely zoned out, itemizing and cataloging in her head every piece of the fall line they’d received at work in an attempt to make it home without breaking apart.

Allie had been surprised to see her until she’d gotten a good look at her face. They say a picture paints a thousand words, well, her expression must have told a horror story because Allie’s next words had been, “Ice cream or solitude?”

Gwen opted for solitude, needing some time alone.

She’d held it together until she got in the shower. Standing under the spray, with the pounding water muffling her sobs, she tipped her head back and let the hot water wash away her tears as fast as she could produce them.

She’d like to say her crying jag had been cathartic, but she actually felt worse. Lying in the middle of her bed, eyes puffy and swollen, head achy, and her heart shattered, she wondered how she could have fallen for Blake so fast, and when it had happened.

Had it been the first time their eyes met? The first time they spoke? Made love? Or had it been a combination of all those things that had brought her to this point, feeling devastated by his loss.

She already missed him.

Missed his laughter—the small lines that formed around his eyes when she made him smile. She missed the little things he said and did that made her heart melt and her stomach fill with butterflies. She longed for one more soft caress of his fingertips skimming her cheek and the fierce press of his lips against hers. But what she missed the most was the way he looked at her as if he didn’t want to ever tear his eyes away.

She picked up her phone and stared at the black screen, daring herself to hit the button to wake it to see if she missed a phone call or text while she’d been in the shower. Sighing, she dropped it to the bed without looking. She didn’t think her heart could take any more disappointment.

A soft knock sounded at her door a couple of hours later, and Allie poked her head in. “You still awake?”

Gwen raised her head, squinting against the light from the hall. “Yeah.”

“Need anything before I head off to bed?”

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