Page 54 of American Beauty

“Which is why I came to you.”

I force a polite nod, but suspicion needles at me. Of all the designers in Charleston, he walked throughmydoor? A door I didn’t even have two months ago. A door I’m terrified won’t stay open if I don’t make this work.

Despite the warning bells in my head, I flip to a clean page in my notebook. “Tell me more about the space.”

“Luxury with a twist of charm. Filled with Charleston’s history but not outdated. Sleek and inviting. Modern with touches of tradition. I want a place people walk into and instantly know they’re somewhere special. A place they’ll never forget.”

He’s saying the right words, but I can’t shake the feeling that this, whatever it is, has nothing to do with hotels and everything to do with me.

A nagging unease creeps in, the same feeling I get when something is too good to be true.

“This is an enormous investment. You could’ve chosen any designer, not someone whose firm is in its infancy. I think we both know this is about something else.”

Tyson’s brow lifts, that damn smirk never wavering. “What do you mean?”

My gaze meets his head-on. “You and Alex have history—and not the good kind. I’m his ex.”

There it is—the flicker in his eyes, the faint twitch at the corner of his mouth that tells me I’ve hit the mark.

His laughter is a rich, indulgent sound that grates against my nerves. “So what? You think Sebring would care? Hate to break it to you, Miss Steel, but he’s moved on.”

My stomach drops, but I do my best to not let it show. “Moved on?”

Tyson nods, his smirk widening, like he’s enjoying this far too much. “Heard through the grapevine he’s in a serious relationship. Lucky bastard foundthe one. He’ll be marrying her any day now.”

The one.

He’ll be marrying her any day now.

It takes every ounce of willpower not to react, not to let the sharp stab of pain show on my face. Instead, I force out a laugh that sounds hollow even to my own ears. “Good for him.”

Tyson watches me with something that almost looks like amusement. “Alex is all about marriage. Family. Stability. He’s getting exactly what he wants…again. He’s always been pretty good at that––getting what he wants.”

A lump rises in my throat, and I swallow hard, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing how much his words hurt.

“Look, Miss Steel. There’s no scenario where taking this job would hurt Alex. You aren’t a thought in his mind anymore.” He waves a hand in a dismissive manner. “This is business. That’s all.”

I nod, but deep down, my heart is splintering. “Right. Business is business.”

A sharp ache settles in my chest, heavy and unrelenting.

You aren’t a thought in his mind anymore.

It shouldn’t hurt this much. I should have been prepared for this—for the possibility that Alex wouldn’t cling to the wreckage of what we had the way I have. But hearing it spoken aloud, in such a blunt manner, makes it real in a way I wasn’t ready for.

“Good for him,” I say a second time, but the words taste bitter, like regret and humiliation.

Alex doesn’t care about me. Maybe he never did. Because how else could he move on this fast? How could he replace me with such ease, slipping into someone else’s life––and bed––like I was nothing more than a passing fling?

A fool. That’s what I am. A complete and utter fool.

Love is a foolish game. Play foolish games and win foolish prizes. And a broken heart is the fool’s ultimate prize.

And damn, did I win big.

My grip on my pen tightens until my knuckles ache.

I won’t let Tyson McRae see me crumble. I won’t allow him to see he’s struck a nerve.

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