Page 34 of Even if It Hurts

Silencing the alarm, I avoided Jackson’s pleading stare as I whispered, “I have to go,” and finally got out of the booth.

“Lainey,” he began, grabbing my hand to stop me from leaving once again, “you know what you have to do.”

My gaze snapped to the side to find bright green eyes studying me expectantly.

“If something was getting in the middle of us, I’d do everything to remove it.”

My shoulders sagged at the clear implication of his words. “Jackson, don’t ask me to quit.”

He nodded a few times before releasing my hand. “And that’s why we’re onlyfine.”

I studied his profile when he straightened in the booth, dismissing me, before hurrying out of the diner and to my car as tears fell relentlessly.

I don’t remember inching through traffic on the drive to downtown Dallas, looking for a parking space, or even if I said anything to the woman I nearly bumped into as I walked through the parking garage. I was just suddenly beside the daytime doorman, numbly watching as he pushed the button to call the elevator.

“Thank you,” I murmured, the words sounding strangled and coming far too late.

He nodded in return before clearing his throat. “You, uh...you doing okay, ma’am?”

It wasn’t until his words and tone finally registered that I realized I hadn’t even stopped to see what I looked like before getting out of my car. Glancing at the reflective wall in front of me, a groan left me when I saw my smeared mascara and puffy, red eyes.

Fantastic.

“I’m great,” I lied as I hurried to do what I could about the makeup.

“It’s only the beginning of the day,” the doorman said as we stepped onto the car, and he used his keycard to give me access to the twenty-ninth floor, “things can only get better.”

I offered the old man a grateful smile when he stepped back into the lobby but couldn’t seem to meet his eyes as I maintained, “I really am great,” just before the doors shut behind him.

I told myself that same lie a dozen more times as the elevator rose. But it was the anticipation as I watched the floor levels tick higher and the thought of getting even a glimpse of that horribly frustrating man that finally had my tensed muscles and constricted lungs relaxing.

By the time I entered Asher’s apartment, I was questioning my sanity and taste in men, and desperately trying to ignore the eagerness now dancing through my veins.

But then every careless thought and emotion came to a jarring halt when a stunning woman in a pair of loose sweats and a strappy sports bra came out of the kitchen to see who’d just arrived.

“Oh, um...I’m sorry,” I whispered as I quickly retreated a few steps, wondering if I was supposed to call before coming up and kinda wishing Ihad.

“Ash?” the woman called out, intrigue and confusion playing across her features as she openly studied me. “Who are you?”

“No one,” I hurried to assure her at the question she’d directed my way. “I’m just the nanny.”

Her eyebrows lifted at that. “Nanny?” She said the word as if it tasted bitter to her, then turned at the exact moment Asher rounded the hallway with Kaia and snapped, “You got ananny?”

“Necessary,” was all he said as he stormed up to where I stood, already holding Kaia out so I would take her.

“Hi, pretty girl,” I whispered as I reached for her, trying to match my smile to the one spreading across her face. But just when I went to pull her into my arms, Asher shifted Kaia back against his chest seemingly instinctively.

The movement surprised me so much that my gaze darted up to find his hardened eyes locked on my own, forcing a chill to sweep down my spine. Because this look? It promised destruction...but it was just as fascinating as it was terrifying.

If it weren’t for the excited wriggling of the baby we were both holding, I was sure I could’ve spent an eternity right there, lost in the dark depths of his eyes.

“Can I take her?” I asked, hesitation wrapping around each word as I told myself again and again to look away, but it was all I could do to remember how to breathe as I stood there, trapped in a stare I was sure would make others run.

Asher handed his niece over wordlessly, but his eyes followed me like a predator tracking its prey as I stepped around him until the other woman cleared her throat.

As soon as Asher’s attention snapped in her direction, I dropped my stare to the floor and hurried to the kitchen to start Kaia’s breakfast.

“Let’s try this again...” the woman began once I’d passed her, “you got ananny?”

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