Page 51 of Hold You Close
Okay. I need to take advantage of his hopefully hazy-bad-decision-making wakeup. “Nothing’s wrong, I just have a problem.”
Ian groans. “So something is wrong if you have a problem.”
“Right.” This is going so well. “I have to go out of town . . .”
Silence.
“Ian?” I prompt.
“When?”
“Umm, I have to fly out late tonight. . . It was totally unexpected, and my boss is being really rigid on it. I tried so hard to get out of this, but I’ve been trying to land this account for a year. It’s . . . it’s just not something I can say no to, but I don’t want to let you down either,” I ramble as fast as I can before his wrath is sure to come.
And I wait.
And wait.
However, the only thing that happens is complete and total silence.
I bite my lip, and nerves flutter in my stomach as the quiet speaks loudly. Did he hang up? Is he so mad he isn’t even going to respond?
I look down at the screen to check, but the time is still going.
Well, this awkward.
“You’re running away,” he finally says.
“What?”
“You’re running away. We have sex and now you suddenly need to leave town on the day you say you’ll watch the kids.”
He’s got it all wrong. “I’m not running anywhere and this has nothing to do with what happened this morning. This has to do with my job. I don’t have a choice, Ian.”
I know Ian lives in the world where everything revolves around him, but this isn’t fair. I love those kids and I just fought with Casey about going in the first place.
“Whatever,” he huffs.
“You’re such a dick. I didn’t want to have to call you. I didn’t want to do this, but I have a job too, you know?”
“Do whatever you need to, London, just like I will.”
“What does that mean?”
“Nothing. Can I go back to bed now or do you want to tell me you’re moving and I need to get a live-in nanny since you’re unreliable already?”
So he’s going to punish me for needing to work? He’s acting as though I enjoy going back on my word.
“I’m sure one of your conquests would be up for the job,” I say, letting my anger come through.
Ian lets out a laugh and then goes quiet.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing, just that I thought I already had that. But seems the women I fuck aren’t able to hold up their end of the bargain. Or maybe it’s just the one I fucked last night.”
The air vanishes from my lungs and it feels like I’ve been punched. I can’t say anything because words fail me. I knew what happened last night meant nothing and that I left, but his words were cruel. Tears prick my eyes, but I hold them back.
“Yeah, seems we both had misconceptions about the other person. Thanks for the reminder, Ian.”
