Page 21 of Billionaire's Promise
I take a step forward and connect with something hard and solid. The scent of crisp mountain air and pine trees envelops me. Then he wraps his hand around my shoulder. "Stay here," he rumbles.
"Not going anywhere, considering I can’t see—"
A light flickers through the darkness. I blink, glance up to find him towering over me. I know he’s big, I’ve seen him in broad daylight, but in the darkness, he seems larger than life. Big. Vital. Strong enough to weather any storm. Solid enough to lean on. I could pour all of my worries, my troubles, onto his shoulders and he would take it.
The air between us shifts, thickens into something hot and lusty and… My thighs clench. I lower my gaze and look away. He clears his throat, turns to shine the beam ahead, lighting a path through the darkness. "Come on." He grips my hand and his warm, thick fingers encircle my wrist, making me feel small and fragile in comparison. My nerve endings pop. Heat twists my lower belly. I bite down on my lower lip, allowing him to lead me across the corridor, down the flight of stairs, and out through the front door and onto the sidewalk.
Once there, he releases my hand, and of course, I miss his warmth. Shit, this is not right. How can I be so attracted to him, so quickly, when just a few days ago I’d been obsessed with Edward and couldn’t stop thinking about him? Clearly, I am on my way to becoming a slut. Someone with no loyalty, someone who lusts after every good-looking man who happens to cross my path.
And that isn’t true either.
I don’t lust after everyone. Only Edward…and now him. Baron. One of the Seven. Edward’s friend. Someone who hadn’t revealed to me the real reason he’d been there to help me when he first met me. Do all the men in my life have to turn out to be such douches?
I pause. Baron takes a few steps forward before he turns to search for me. He frowns, angles his body toward me. I shake my head. "We’re done," I mutter. "I don’t want to see you again."
"Now, hold on—" He takes a step forward and I throw up my hand.
"I don’t know what game you and Edward are playing, but I want no part of it."
"No games, Ava, honest—"
"You think I am going to believe you after what you revealed earlier?"
He scowls. "I expect you to think this through rationally."
"Oh, but I am. After what Edward did to me, the last thing I am going to do is have my emotions involved in any decision. It’s why I am saying with complete confidence that I don’t want anything to do with you."
"You don’t mean it."
"I’ve never meant anything more in my entire life."
He takes a step forward and I hold up my hand. "One more step, and I swear, I’ll scream."
His shoulders bunch. He glances around the deserted road then back at me. "At least, let me see you back home."
"No, thank you."
"It’s not safe for you to head back on your own this late," he insists.
"It’s nine p.m."
"It’s late."
"I can take care of myself." I draw myself up to my full height, which still means I only come up to the level of his chest. "I’ve been doing so all these years."
"That was before."
"Before what?"
He hesitates, "Before I came on the scene."
"Nothing’s changed, then, for it makes no difference to me. You’re still not in my life, in any form. This association, whatever it is between us, ends here."
"No," he grinds out.
"Yes." I tip up my chin. "You don’t get a say in it. I don’t want anything to do with you, Baron."
Turning, I walk toward the tube station. The hair on the back of my neck prickles and I’m sure he’s following me. I will not look back. Will not give him the satisfaction of finding out that he makes me nervous. By the time I reach the tube station I am out of breath. I duck inside, walk through the ticket barriers, and onto the platform. Only then, do I allow myself to glance down the platform. I don’t see anyone who looks like him. Whew. Okay. That’s good, right? Doesn’t mean that I am disappointed that he took me at my word and gave up the pursuit so quickly.
