Page 63 of Tormented Bastard
God, I was a fool.
A muted ding signaled the elevator had arrived, and thankfully the car was empty and stayed that way. I pressed the button to the top floor where the Presidential suite was located and leaned against the wall. I wanted to close my eyes, but if I did, I’d probably fall asleep standing. Insomnia had ruled my world since returning to New York.
Instead, I scrutinized my appearance in the mirrored walls of the elevator. I might have been working, but since I would be presenting the speaker to the crowd, I had to dress the part. The deep emerald-green strapless dress brought out the green in my eyes, stopped just above the knee, and the wraparound style of it hugged my curves and created new ones in all the right places. I’d put my hair up on top of my head in an elegantly messy bun to show off the diamond and emerald teardrop earrings that were once my mother’s.
They were the nicest thing she’d ever given me, and she had to die for that to happen.
The dress was an oldie but a goodie and made me feel sexy. I wasn’t blind to the looks I’d received from the men in the room. And after the last week or so since I’d left Sandy Seas Island, I needed something to make me feel like a woman again.
Katie was right—my dress was banging. It was the only thing banging in my world lately.
The red digital numbers on the elevator climbed higher while my vision blurred. I still had no idea how I was going to face Chase tonight. I hadn’t spoken to him since the day I left the island. All of our correspondence in dealing with the speaking engagement had gone through Liz. He’d never called or texted me once.
I had to face the fact that the man who owned my heart didn’t want it. He didn’t want me. He’d rather hide in his misery and in the past than have a future with me. There was nothing I could say or do to change that.
I just wish my head and my heart could land on the same page.
I finally made it to the top floor, and before the doors opened, I dabbed under my eyes to clear any evidence of tears and not smear my makeup I’d worked so hard on.
Shoulders back, head up. You can do this, Eden.At the rate things were going, I wouldn’t see Chase until absolutely necessary.
My stride was purposeful and confident as I walked to the door. I knocked sharply twice on one of the heavy, white double doors. When they both opened, my heart met my heels.
Chase stood on the other side, looking better than any man had a right to in a charcoal-gray suit. The stark white of the button-down shirt and bright red tie offset his tanned skin.
I prayed I wasn’t drooling.
And I didn’t want to think about what we’d been doing the last time I saw that tie.
His smile turned my insides to liquid. “Eden. Come in.”
He stood off to the side, and in a daze, I crossed the threshold. But with each step I took into the suite, my courage strengthened. The doors clicked shut behind us, and I turned around to face him.
With one hand in his pocket and the other rubbing his chin, he walked toward me, his green eyes shining. I lifted my chin as he got closer, not wanting him to see how he affected me, even though my heart raced, and I could barely catch my breath.
Chase stopped in front of me, and his gaze traveled from the top of my bun to the tips of my heels. Heat bloomed in my belly, and it was all I could do to keep my knees from buckling when he was so close to me. I could smell his cologne and the scent that was just…Chase.
How did one explain pheromones?
“Eden, my God. You look…” He blew out a breath. “You take my breath away.”
My eyes flicked away from his for a moment. “Thank you.” I cleared my throat, trying to gain some footing. I didn’t know what the hell to do with my hands, so I clasped them in front of me. “What are you doing here? I’m supposed to meet Liz here.”
He looked at me from under his lashes, his thumb rubbing his lower lip. A tiny smile played on those lips that made me remember too many things I’d rather forget. “Yeah, that was me.”
I jerked my head back. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I wasn’t sure you’d talk to me after the way I treated you.”
I scoffed. “Of course I would have talked to you. We have a business arrangement.”
“I don’t mean professionally. You’re the consummate professional. You wouldn’t have shut me out there.” He paused, his intense emerald-green gaze on me. “I meant just you and me.”
The way he said “you and me” made a million tiny wildfires ignite in my blood. But I couldn’t say he was wrong. If he had contacted me, I may have told him to fuck off and hung up. He’d broken my heart—worse this time because it wasn’t just young love—and I missed the hell out of him, but I wasn’t going to let him walk all over me.
“I don’t have time for this, Chase.” I started toward the door and almost made it, but he was quick.
He stepped between me and the door, his back against it. “I’m sorry I brought you up here under false pretenses, but I needed to talk to you. And I didn’t know any other way.” He sighed. “Look, give me five minutes. Just five. After that, you can walk out that door and never give me another thought if that’s how you feel. Please?”
