Page 82 of Undeniable Temptation

He balked, the shock quickly settling to comprehension. “I understand.”

No, he didn’t. He didn’t understand how she had to change her tactics and make this a selfish request just to get him to listen. This was all about him. His child. His life. Her reluctance didn’t matter.

“I’ll get going, th—”

There was a knock on the door. The cavalry.

“Who’s here?”

He backed away and she struggled not to go after him.

“Mitch. He’ll help you get to a hotel.” She strode for the door and pulled it open to welcome Mitch and Alana. There was no comfort from their appearance. Only the guilt of betrayal. “Come in.”

“You OK?” Alana gently gripped Leah’s wrist while Mitch strode ahead.

“I’m fine. I just need help getting Ryan out of here. If he walks out alone, it’ll cause headlines we don’t need.”

“Are you sure that’s all it is?”

Leah nodded and turned to see Ryan at the end of the hall, Mitch at his back.

“Did you tell them?” he asked, his face shadowed.

“No. I haven’t said a word.”

“And we’re not going to ask.” Mitch clapped Ryan on the shoulder. “Whatever has gone down is between the two of you. I’m only here to make sure you get to a hotel safely.”

“Or you can stay with us,” Alana offered. “We don’t mind.”

“For the record,” Ryan started forward, “I don’t want to go anywhere.” He stopped in front of Leah, his hand skimming her waist.

He leaned into her and she welcomed the brief swipe of his lips. Nothing would ever beat the taste of him. Alcohol riddled or not.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he murmured against her mouth.

“OK.” She squeezed her eyes shut, not strong enough to withstand his stare.

There was a brush of his fingers, another swipe of lips, then he was gone and all that was left in his place was defeat.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Ryan climbedthe jet stairs and pivoted sideways to allow for his heavy duffle to fit through the door.

“Sorry I’m late.”

The hostess smiled and grabbed for his bag. “No problem. Take a seat and we’ll get going.”

He hunched over and worked his way into the main cabin, closing the security partition behind him and flicking on the Do-Not-Disturb light. Everyone else was onboard. Mitch and Alana were in the back in the recliners, looking at him in uninformed pity, while Mason, Sean, and Blake sat on the sofa opposite Leah, staring at the tablet she held up in display.

“Nice of you to join us.” Mason leaned back, one arm spreading across the top of the head rest. “We were about to leave your ass behind.”

He ignored the taunt as the jet engines rumbled to life. “I lost track of time.” Truth. He’d spent the night detoxing, trying to clear his head in an effort to think straight. He hadn’t been able to sleep, hadn’t been able to do much of anything other than type messages to Leah and then delete them again. He must’ve passed out somewhere around mid-morning because he woke with an hour to spare before their flight was scheduled to leave.

“You look like shit.” Sean scrutinized him. “Did you and the boss have a late one?”

“No. I crashed in a hotel.”

Blake narrowed his stare. “Didn’t want to risk getting caught?”

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