Page 84 of Square Deal

My brows furrowed, and I ran a hand through my mussed hair. “What are you saying?”

A lone tear slipped down her cheek, and she looked away.

“God, this is so fucking embarrassing,” she muttered. Hannah’s southern accent came out more when she was tired or emotional. Right now, she was both. “I want more than what you can give me,” she stated calmly.

She was steeling herself to make a run for it.

I was Isaac Fucking Lawson. I could give her the world on a goddamn silver platter if she wanted.

“Tell me what you want. I’ll make it happen.”

She shook her head. “I wantlove.”

“I can’t promise you that.” I didn’t dabble in L-O-V-E. There was only one thing I was good at: making money. It required a ruthless approach.

I excelled at quick fucks and good times. If I was honest with myself, I was afraid that loving someone would soften the edge I needed to survive at the top of the food chain.

But the notion that I wasafraidof love didn’t sit right with me either. After all, I wasn’t a pansy.

I clenched my jaw, gritting my teeth so hard I was sure I’d shatter a molar or twelve. “Just give me time.”

The corners of her mouth trembled, and she shook her head—a sucker punch to the gut. Hannah crawled out of my arms and stood, straightening her nightie.

I followed, standing up and grabbing her hands. “This doesn’t have to change anything.”

“Did you mean what you said at the club?” she asked. “About falling for me at Maddie and Luca’s wedding?”

“I didn’t want to,” I admitted. “I never expected to. I tried—God, Hannah—I really fucking tried not to fall for you. I’ve never… I don’t know what the hell I’m doing. You wreck me. You confuse me. I can’t get the upper hand with you, and I fucking hate it. I didn’t want to fall for you, but I did.”

Hannah squeezed her eyes shut, leaning into my touch. “I don’t think that’s an outcome you get to control.”

She saw right through me.

"Hannah," I begged as my knees buckled. I nearly dropped to my floor right there.

“I don’t know where we go from here,” she said, walking over to the window that peered down on the horizon of skyscrapers. If it had been any other place and time, she would have run—I was sure of it. There was an upside to her being on my turf.

I stood behind her, placing my hands on top of her willowy shoulders. She didn’t bother shrugging them off, and I counted it as a point in my favor.

“Is being with me that terrible?” I asked. “So terrible that you can’t stomach the idea of having feelings for me?”

Hannah sighed quietly. She was tired of fighting. Her resolve was fading. “I don’t want to lose myself by falling for you when we both know you can’t give me the future that I want. I don’t have to jump off the cliff to know what happens at the bottom.”

“Why are you so hellbent on being right that this—us—wouldn’t work?” I asked.

“Because it wouldn’t! We’re opposites! We don’t even remotely want the same things in life!”

“What if I want you?” I growled. “Isn’t that enough? Don’t run away from something that could change your life just because it doesn’t fit in your neat little box. I want to be with you.”

“All of me?” she nearly shouted. “Or just sex? Because I’m sorry—I thought I could separate the two, but I can’t. It will never be just sex for me. I can’t sell myself short anymore. I know what I’m worth, and it’s a hell of a lot more than just being your hobby.”

I fisted the silky fabric of her négligée, yanked her against me, and kissed her.Hard.She didn’t fight it. Hannah gave it back to me just as much as I was giving it to her.

When I pulled away and stared her down, her cheeks were flushed, and her lips were swollen. “One shot. Give me one shot to do this right. If I screw up, you can point your finger in my face and say, ‘I told you so.’”

Hannah’s lips parted and her eyebrows rose. She paused for amoment, pondering what I had said. I thought she was going to flat-out say no, but to my surprise, she just nodded. “One shot.”

A victorious smile flickered at the corner of my mouth, but I wasn’t ready to celebrate just yet. “Do we have a deal?”

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