Page 63 of Surrender to the Ruthless Billionaire

But he was not hers to hold.

Breathing out slowly, she shifted backwards.

His arms loosened, and as she looked up at him he said, ‘I went looking for you and I tried calling—’

His voice was steady but she could feel his pulse leaping beneath his skin. He had been worried about her, and the fact that he cared made her want to cry all over again.

But instead she managed a weak smile. ‘I put my phone on silent when we went into the hospital…’ Her voice faltered. Her skin felt numb and her brain seemed to be working at half-speed, but she could picture it still—her father’s face as he’d turned and looked at her. Or rather looked through her. As though she wasn’t there. As though she didn’t matter.

Her stomach gave a lurch.

She had gone to see him, believing that he wanted to see her. That he wanted to talk to her, make amends, maybe even ask for forgiveness.

Forgiveness? What a joke!

Suddenly she was perilously close to tears again.

He hadn’t even known she was coming, and he certainly hadn’t wanted to see or speak to her, much less ask for forgiveness. Nothing had changed. He still didn’t love her or want anything to do with her.

An ache of misery was spreading inside her. It had been crushing to realise that fact when she was thirteen. More crushing still a year later, when he’d turned his back on her in that hotel foyer, for that time his rejection had been public.

But at least then her pain and shame had only been witnessed by strangers. This time Laura and Luis had been there to see that she was not worthy of love—not even from her own father.

‘Cristina?’

She felt Luis’s fingers curl around her hand.

‘You have every right to be upset. But your father’s very ill. He didn’t know what he was saying.’

She shrugged. ‘I know that, and I’m fine. Really, it doesn’t matter.’

Like hell it didn’t.

To Luis, the aftershocks from that encounter with her father were palpable. Her face was pale and set, and she had obviously been crying, His stomach muscles clenched and he felt anger spike inside him for he hated seeing her so upset.

But he was just going to have to keep his feelings under wraps. Right now, Cristina came first.

Realising that he needed to tread carefully, he glanced at his watch. ‘Look, it’s nearly three o’clock Let’s have something to eat now, and then maybe we can pop back to the hospital tomorrow—’

Her head snapped up.

‘Or we could go back today,’ he said.

Slowly she shook her head. ‘I’m not going back today or tomorrow or any other day. Don’t you understand, Luis? I don’t want to see my father again. Not now. Not ever.’

He held up his hands placatingly. ‘I know you feel that now, but—’

‘But what?’ Cristina looked up at him challengingly. ‘Do you seriously think it will make any difference how many times I go back to that hospital? You saw him today—he didn’t even want to look at me.’

‘I know. But he was probably in shock. He wasn’t expecting to see you—’

‘So what are you saying

? That this is my fault, somehow?’

He frowned. ‘No, of course not. I just meant that he’ll have had a bit of time to think—’

She cut him off before he had a chance to finish his sentence. ‘A bit of time? How much does he need? He’s had eleven years.’

---