Page 7 of Scarred Heart

I cringed now at the memory of offering the moving crew an eye-popping amount of money to tell me where they were going with Rowan’s things.At the time, I’d almost exploded in rage when they refused and then threatened to call the cops if I trailed them.

Fuck, I had almost wanted them to.For the first time in my twenty-two years, I’d felt sorry for something I did.I wanted to be punished.

That was the one thing that stuck with me, that I wished I might have told her if she’d given me the chance.I couldn’t blame her for turning her back on me after what I had done.I couldn’t ask for forgiveness.I had no right to it.I had destroyed her life, killed her dreams, left her with a future that in no way resembled the one she’d been working toward.

Things didn’t look so destroyed now, considering what I’d observed earlier.She had found a way to turn everything around and build something for herself.Somehow, I doubted her current success meant I was off the hook for my part in the pivot she’d been forced to perform.

A wry grin tipped the corners of my mouth as I signaled for another tequila.It was a few minutes until eight, but I wasn’t worried.She’d show up.And if she didn’t, there wouldn’t be any hiding from me this time.I could find her, or else I would forfeit any hope of a decent night’s sleep until I knew for sure there was no hit coming out against me.

My eyes roamed lazily across the room, scanning the dimly lit lounge, drifting from table to table.Then, they shifted, almost of their own accord, snapping to the hostess stand, and there she was.My entire focus narrowed until all I saw was her golden hair, a beacon in the dimly lit lounge.I had to be out of my mind—that was the only explanation for my rapid pulse and shortened breath.

I imagined destroying her beauty for good like she ended up as some grotesque monster because I took a blind curve without easing up on the gas pedal.If anything, she was more beautiful than I remembered.The way she wore her hair, parted in the middle and hanging straight, meant most of her thin scar was covered.Anyone looking up from their table as she approached would see a blonde, blue-eyed, porcelain skin goddess.

My mouth went dry as I stood, waiting for her to slide into the high-backed leather booth.It was a semicircular shape, but rather than meet me in the middle, she sat close to the end.Like she wanted to hedge her bets in case a quick escape was necessary.

“Thank you for meeting me,” I offered, noting her chilly attitude.

She hardly looked at me as she settled in with a sigh.“You didn’t give me much of a choice.”Rolling her eyes, she added, “Threatening to get my number from Lex Landry.You move in different circles than you used to.”

“That makes two of us.”Everything about her was polished, from her glossy hair to the Birkin bag she carried over one shoulder and the stilettos she walked in like they were tennis shoes.The girl I used to know was gone.

I wanted to get to know the woman now.The idea sparked hunger deep in my core, so sudden and intense it shocked me before I pushed it down.Jerk off later.Business now.“You look great.Professional.”Fuck me, what kind of line was that?I’d have any other woman eating from the palm of my hand by now.

This was not any other woman.

Her smile was weak.“Thank you.”

“I was impressed seeing you today,” I added.“You’ve made a good name for yourself from what I hear.”

Her head tipped to the side.“You know, you don’t have to compliment me.I don’t need you to make me feel like things aren’t so bad.”

A server dropped by long enough for Rowan to order a glass of wine while I reconsidered my plan of attack.She was too sharp to fall for compliments, and she wasn’t shy about referring to the accident and any guilt I might feel.

“That’s not what I was doing,” I insisted once we were on our own again.

“I’m just saying, I know where this is coming from, and I don’t need to hear it.”A smug grin tipped her mouth.“I’m fine.My life has gone well.”

For the sake of keeping things positive, I forced myself to overlook the smugness.“I’m glad to hear it.Tell me about your practice.”

“You don’t really want to know about my practice, do you?”

Her deadpan delivery brought me up short.So much for pleasantries.“How can you say that?”

“Can we cut the bullshit for a minute?”Her wine arrived, but she left it untouched, folding her slim arms on the table.“Why did you want me to come here tonight?It’s been eleven years, and somehow fate put us together in the same room, and you tell me there’s something important we have to talk about.No, I think the word you used wascrucial.It was crucial that we have a drink tonight.Why?To catch up?Respectfully, I have other things to do.”She lifted her glass and took a sip, her gaze unflinching, silently daring me to cut to the chase.

I had the sense of sand slipping through my fingers no matter how tightly I clenched them.This was all going wrong, but then again, there was no way for it to go right.Considering her cold, hostile attitude, things weren’t looking good.If Damian Fields approached her now, promising money if it meant ruining me, she would’ve taken it without blinking.

I couldn’t afford to take chances.It was time to backpedal and smooth things over.Yet, I had next to no experience with this outside of business.Personal issues were normally cut and dry.Then again, nothing about Rowan had ever been that simple.

After sipping my drink, I started again, cutting to the chase this time.“There is something important I need to discuss with you.But there’s something else you need to know first.”

The word contempt came to mind when she snorted.She’d had a lot of time to seethe over what I’d done.I couldn’t blame her for that, but this attitude was starting to strain my patience.“I can hardly wait to hear whatever it is you think I need to know,” she murmured, sipping her wine again.

I would walk away from this with bruised balls if she didn’t let up a little.Nothing mattered more than keeping her on my side, keeping things civil if not friendly.Not that I would’ve minded a little warmth, especially since the proximity was beginning to stir up all kinds of memories, but I couldn’t ask for too much.I’d settle for reaching an understanding.

“I looked for you.I didn’t want to leave you alone.You were transferred to another hospital, and nobody wanted to tell me where you went.I didn’t know your real name.Besides…” I added, “Hospitals don’t hand out personal information, not even when your last name is Collins.But I tried.I did.”

She wasn’t expecting that.For the first time since sitting, her haughty bitch attitude slipped.Her lashes fluttered, and for one brief moment, there was a sense of getting through the wall around her.

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