Page 79 of Diamonds & Deception

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

My brain does not wantto focus. I finished the article by my deadline and sent it to my editor even though it was crap. I’m deep into researching a contractor who’s been blasted on social media by past clients when I feel a presence behind me.

I spin in the leather chair and see Drake leaning casually against the door jamb to the in-home office.

“Hi. I hope it’s okay. I’ve been trying to get caught up on work.”

“Me too.” His arms are folded casually across his chest as he stands there studying me.

I remember the last time he caught me on his computer and I’d been staring at a picture of him and the blonde bombshell. His first true love. Words I’ll never forget. He said them to hurt me and hurt me they did.

It’s not like we’ve declared our love or even discussed being in a monogamous relationship before I ruined it all. No. I ruined it before it even started. And then I told him I cared for him, which he ignored.

“Full disclosure.” Drake’s voice is a soft timbre. “She hasn’t been a part of my life for over a decade.”

I don’t need to ask who he’s talking about. He read my mind. He’s fully aware of my jealousy and how I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the two of them together.

“You don’t owe me an explanation.”

Drake pushes off the wall and comes closer, resting a hip on the edge of his desk. “I think I do, especially after you opened up to me last night.”

I cast my eyes downward. “It wasn’t exactly opening up. It was what I should have told you from the beginning when you asked about my family.”

“Nora.” He puts two fingers under my chin and tips my face so I’m looking at him. “Thank you for letting me in.”

“Sure.”

We stare at each other in silence for a few beats before he drops his fingers from my chin and rests them on his thighs. “I hadn’t seen Kelsey since she broke up with me shortly after we graduated from MIT.”

“Smart and beautiful. No competition at all,” I mutter.

“Correct. Smart and beautiful, yes. There is no competition.”

I furrow my brows and lift my gaze to his. His beautiful brown eyes are locked on me. He licks his lips and I shiver at the intensity of his stare.

“I was hurt and ashamed by her rejection, but I got over it quickly. The next day I started my job at Foxwoods, and never once thought about calling or texting her. I was one hundred and ten percent focused on my job. Playing with numbers. That’s what I loved, not her, I realized.”

Well, doesn’t that suck? He loves numbers more than women. I nod and pretend to have some level of understanding when really, my heart is sinking lower and lower in my chest.

“For the past twelve years, I haven’t given women or relationships much thought. I learned from the higher-ups at casinos and from financial advisers. I couldn’t get enough of learning, investing, and growing my portfolio. Not because I’ve ever cared about money. I’ve only cared about numbers.”

I swallow the lump in my throat and again give him a courtesy nod. At least he’s letting me down easy. Explaining why a relationship won’t work between us. It’s not only because of the lack of trust but because he’s not capable, or at least not ready or willing to love another human being.

“I never wanted a nine-to-five job. I never cared about having someone to come home to. When I had sexual needs, it wasn’t hard to find a woman to satisfy me for a night. It wasn’t often.”

I look away and blush. We haven’t talked about our sexual history. By the way he kisses and touches me, I assumed he’d been around the block a dozen or a million times.

“And then I met you.”

My heart skips a beat, and I bite down on my lower lip to avoid interrupting and asking him stupid questions.

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