Page 12 of The Den of Sin
Ryan’s deep brown eyes stared at me, and I knew each second of delay caused him pain.
I smiled to assure him there was nobody else for me but him.
“That’s a big step, Ryan.” It ended up coming out, instead of the yes. “Let me think about it.”
His hopeful expression shattered and guilt hit me straight into my heart at being the cause of it.
“Please,” I added in a soft voice, my fingers tangling through his hair. “There is nobody else I want to do this with… I just-”
The words escaped me. What could I possibly say? I needed time. We’ve been dating for two years. A lot of people moved in after just a few months of dating.
“I understand,” he muttered, shifting away from me.
I pulled him back to me, meeting him halfway. “Please let me think about it. You are leaving for your tour. When you are back, we can discuss it, and how we would go about it. Please, Ryan. Let us not part like this,” I begged.
A soft smile lit up his face and his nose brushed against mine. “Okay. You are right. I want to be here when you are moving, so we can do it together.”
And that was how we parted. His nose brushed against mine, then his lips searching out mine. Ryan was everything… gentle, soft, thoughtful, caring.Everything Vasili wasn’t.
I should tell him yes tonight. It was the right move, a step in the right direction. He wouldn’t watch me with a cruel sneer on his face as he shattered my heart into a million pieces.
I waved at the doorman of Ryan’s building and he smiled back. Something about his smile though; it was almost pitiful. I ignored it, attributing it to melancholy. The next instant I understood it though, there was a group of paparazzi and cameras swarming the hallway.
This was what I hated the most about dating Ryan Johnson. He was always surrounded by paparazzi. My back went rigid and I scurried along, hoping they’d fumble with their big ass cameras and I’d be inside Ryan’s apartment before they caught up.
No such luck though. They were right on my tail. Usually, they weren’t allowed inside the building, and I pondered why they were inside now. Maybe some publicity stunt was going on, I guessed.
I took the stairs, two at the time, and fished the keys to Ryan’s apartment out of my purse on my way to his floor. There was only one more floor above his and that was a penthouse that belonged to the building owner. Apparently, nobody knew who that was. A huge mystery that intrigued the residents.
Pushing the key into the lock, I barely made two steps in when I saw it.
Ryan naked as he fucked some blonde bombshell bent over his couch. Both of them naked, her boobs on full display, his body behind hers. My heart spiraled lower and lower while their grunting and moaning indicated they were reaching their peak. My chest tore with each sound, the unbearable lump choked my throat, and then, I just went numb.
I should have said something, done something. Instead, I stood there frozen. Incapable of moving or speaking. The clicking sound of cameras and flash was what finally startled me out of my stupor. Those two never even realized I entered the room. Ryan’s eyes lifted and everything stilled. The woman panted, demanding more. Ryan’s eyes met mine and my breath halted for several heartbeats. I had started to open my heart to him, and for the second time, it got smashed to pieces. By two different men. A look of guilt replaced the love in Ryan’s eyes.
At least he wasn’t smirking like-I couldn’t even think about that right now. It would break me.
I turned around without a word, softly put his apartment keys on the nearby table and left through the door. The cameras still flashed from the hallway, capturing every single moment of my heartbreak. The last time a man broke my heart, at least there weren’t witnesses. This time, the whole world would see and know. I shut the door to his apartment and my heart, firmly but softly.
I would not do this again.
Chapter Four
Isabella
The annoying persistent doorbell buzzing woke me up.
Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.
“Ugh, go away,” I mumbled under my breath.
There was no point in getting up. Ever since the incident with Ryan a week ago, my phone has been blowing up and so has my doorbell. The reporters and paparazzi have been harassing me so badly that on my third day at work, after pictures of Ryan banging a woman went viral, the head of the ER department asked me not to come back to work. I needed that job, not only for the paycheck but also to finish my residency, so I could be fully qualified. Besides, it helped to throw myself into work to get me through the days, this heartbreak and humiliation.
She said to stay away till things calmed down. I could understand her request; those reporters were getting out of hand. Entering the ER, faking injuries, even obtaining real injuries, just to get close to me and snap a picture.
I thought as the time went on, the interest would ease up. It didn’t. If anything, it became an even bigger topic.
Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.
