Page 98 of The Promises We Break

What the hell? Seamus is the epitome of control. He is not in control.

“Shay, what’s going on, man?” I ask.

“Did she pass through here?” He finally looks me dead in the eye. It makes me flinch back.

“Yes, she was heading to the front door. I think she left.” My eyes look at the front door, searching for her, even though I know she’s long gone now.

“Shit.” He moves around me, racing toward the door.

I turn, taking a few steps to follow him, but stop and watch him disappear as he rounds the waterfall that separates the room from the exit. Placing my hand on my hips, I chipmunk my cheeks while exhaling.

He’s on some kind of mission. Maybe she stole something from one of the rooms or snuck in.

Deciding that’s a lost cause, I turn back and trek over to the group standing in a circle still chatting, but I don’t see Ember.

“Hudson.” Elena’s soft voice greets me as she leans in, giving me a chaste kiss on the cheek. Christian and I havebecome closer over the past few months, with some of the company events I’ve attended with Ember. He holds out his hand, and we pull each other in for one of those semi-professional bro hugs.

I glance over at Jake, and he nods at me, taking a drink of his whiskey, acting weird as fuck.

“Hudson, this is Corbin Maren. He runs my east coast operations,” Christian introduces me, and I hold out my hand.

“Hudson Byrnes. Great to meet you,” I reply, still unsure if it’s really great to meet him or if I need to crush his hand for putting it on Ember’s back.

“Hudson Byrnes, as in the Smashers’ new all-star catcher?” He squints, attempting to get a better idea of who is behind the mask.

My lip turns up and my chest fills with a bit of pride. A half a second away from Tarzan, beating my chest in front of him.

“The one and only.” With a bit more confidence than I would usually reply.

“Also, Ember’s husband,” Jake grits out, annoyed, side-eyeing Christian and Elena.

What the hell is his problem?

“Oh, wow, how did I miss that? I didn’t put two and two together,” he replies in awe. “Ember is something special.”

Yes. Yes, she is. I sip my drink, dipping my head and flicking my eyebrow in a silent agreement with him.

“I’m thrilled she agreed to come to New York.”

As an impulse, my drink shoots out of my mouth, spraying back in the glass chute.

“What?” I look around at my three friends, all staring at me with looks of shame, guilt, and pain etched over their faces.

Corbin, living with too much excitement, doesn’t read the fucking room and continues.

“Yes, the director position in our Manhattan office. She’s perfect for what I’m looking for. She’s?—”

He pulls his phone out of his jacket pocket and looks down with a curious look, “Excuse me for just a moment,” and steps out of the circle to a secluded area of the club.

My gaze jumps between all of them again. I am torn between a mix of emotions. How am I just fucking hearing of this right now? She doesn’t need my permission to do anything. I know this. I fucking know this. But they could have paid me a tad bit of respect and told me that was on the fucking table.

“Was no one going to say fucking anything to me?” I finally break the silence.

“Corbin just asked us earlier today if he could talk to her about it tonight,” Elena replies softly, defensively.

“And what? He slides in, offers her the job of her dreams, and she fucking says yes without a second thought. What are you going to tell me next, that she’s leaving tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow night.” I practically snap my neck to look at Christian. “Just for a week to check—” I toss my hand up, stopping him, to avoid hearing anymore bullshit from his mouth.

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