Page 58 of Deny Me
She forced herself to back away until her spine met the chair. “Wes, no.”
His beautiful blue eyes opened, so like King’s they made the tears slip from her eyes. She sucked in a shuddery breath.
Wes was quiet for so long that she wondered if he’d ever speak. Then, “It’s King, isn’t it? He’s the reason you won’t leave.”
He’s always been the reason, for everything.She wouldn’t hurt Wes by telling him that.
“I won’t leave because it’s the right thing to do. I don’t want to get hurt, believe me. But leaving is not an option.” She paused, put a hand up to stroke the clean-shaven cheek of the man she would always love like a brother. “But King and I are back together, Wes.”
His face went blank; his breath stopped. “What?”
She blinked, feeling more tears on her cheeks. “You know I’ve always loved him.”
“He left you, Charlotte.”
“He did.” And it had nearly killed her. “But second chances happen, and this is ours.”
“No.” Anguish darkened his eyes to navy. “No.”
“I’m so sorry.”
He jerked to his feet, turned his back on her. She waited, her heart breaking in two as she watched his shoulders straighten, watched him force himself under control. Long minutes passed with only the sound of her tears and Wes’s heavy breathing. And then he faced her.
“Wes—”
“I understand.”
No, he didn’t. But he would want her to accept his words.
His smile only lifted half of his mouth, the pain in it ripping at her insides. “You’ve always been open with me, Charlotte. Always.” He took an aborted step forward but jerked to a stop. “We’ve been best friends for years, and I’d always hoped… But no, it wasn’t meant to be, was it?” He gave her a slight bow. “I’ll leave you be.”
“Wes?”
Those straight shoulders didn’t waver as he made his way to the door. Charlotte called him again, unsure what to say but feeling the need to ease his pain. Wes never responded.
When the door closed behind him, she collapsed in her chair, the tears overwhelming her.
Chapter Twenty-Six
King and Saint headed for Jessica Arnold’s apartment as soon as their meeting concluded. Dain gave them both a sour look as they left the room. Regret simmered below the surface at his boss’s displeasure, but King refused to let it grow. Dain and regulations and everyone else’s opinions had taken a step back the minute he’d made love to Charlotte. She was his priority now, nothing and no one else. He wouldn’t let anything come before her again, even his job.
Saint’s low whistle told King his friend hadn’t missed the look either. He didn’t acknowledge the sound until they’d reached the car. Turning the key in the ignition, he gave Saint an annoyed glance. “Spill it.”
Saint flashed a smile his way as he kicked the seat back, his long legs filling up the footwell. “I don’t spill. Anything I let loose is a hundred percent intentional.”
King shuddered. “Ew.”
Saint chuckled.
“You know what I meant,” King said, steering his car toward the gate without a glance in the rearview to see if Charlotte stood in one of the front windows, looking down on them. “If you’ve got something to say, get it over with.”
Saint sobered quickly. “I don’t have nothing to say about Charlotte, bro.” He crossed one leg over the other, his knee poking dangerously close to the gearshift. “I knew what was gonna happen between you two from day one, so sleeping with her, client or not, isn’t a surprise to me. The only thing I have to say is congratulations. She’s a good woman.”
King let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. “Thank you. She is.” Far better than he deserved. “I know I should’ve waited, but…”
“But when it’s right, it’s right.”
“How would you know?” Saint was a serial dater. He wasn’t a dog, but neither did he show any inclination toward sticking with one woman. Not yet, anyway.
