Page 5 of Scandalously Yours

Kristopher

Ihadn’t planned to talk to anyone during what was supposed to be my alone time, but once I saw the girl who looked so lost, my plans changed and as we made our way over to the fallen palms, I was glad they had. This sure as hell beat sprinting across the sand alone like I had first planned to do. We stopped when we reached the destination and I waited for her to sit down before I joined her.

I glanced at her as she looked off toward the water. Her cheeks still seemed flushed from our earlier introduction. She had no way of knowing who I was, so it had been an honest reaction. The more I stared at her, the more I wondered about other ones I could bring out of her. She was very pretty and possessed an air of innocence about her. There was something hidden behind her eyes, a secret of some sort, and I wanted to seduce it out of her. If I put the moves on her, however, I’d be exactly the type of man she’d been warned about.

It hadn’t surprised me in the least that my reputation preceded me. I wasn’t one to mince words when it came to dealing with others, and I was a stickler for rules. I also wanted and expected things a certain way, and I hadn’t been shy about reiterating that in my interactions with the hospital staff so far.

“Why would they think that?” she asked, which made me turn back to her.

“Many have been working longer to get to the places I’ve gotten in far less time,” I tried to explain. “They—”

“They’re jealous?” she answered, and I nodded.

She took the words right out of my mouth. This position hadn’t been something simply handed to me because I was a Titan. It was something I had worked hard for, and I was now glad I had. If Hayley had her way, I’d lose it and more. I didn’t want to think about my soon to be ex-wife, so I chose to keep with the same topic. “I’ve always been in positions of leadership all the way back to my school years and because I’ve only been practicing medicine for close to a decade, others that have worked longer feel slighted.”

She let out a hmm, but didn’t elaborate further.

I continued to stare at her, even when she would turn. What I wouldn’t give to know what was going on inside her head. I’d always been able to read women and their motives. She could’ve been like some I’d encountered and tried to flirt to cement their position with me, but not her. She seemed disinterested in my success. It was sort of like a gut punch, while being wholly refreshing all at the same time.

“Are you one of those that believe age and experience trump talent and skill?”

She turned suddenly as her eyes widened. “N-no,” she stammered.

I picked up her hand and smirked as it started to tremble in my grasp. “Do I make you nervous, Alessia?”

She looked like she was about to shake her head, but nodded instead. “I suppose you do. And you can call me Ale. Not many people call me by my full name.”

“Ale,” I said, wanting to feel it on my tongue. I did prefer her full name to it, but I wanted to put her more at ease, so I decided to respect her wishes. “Very well. Tell me a little about yourself.”

Her body visibly relaxed at that command. “I’ve wanted to be a doctor all of my life. Ever since I was a kid, I would—”

“No,” I interjected. “Not about your career. Tell me something about the woman.”

She tensed right back up, and I realized she didn’t enjoy talking about herself. I had no idea why, but now I was even more intrigued to know. She was silent and I could see she was trying to come up with something to say.

Deciding to help her, I asked, “Are you married?”

“No,” she replied softly. “You?”

“Sort of,” I answered. She would hear about my marital woes soon enough because Hayley was determined to either make me come back to her or else she would try to make good on her threat to ruin me. Alessia arched her brow, so I added, “I’ve been legally separated for almost seven months. Once we reach the year mark, our divorce will be final.”

“What’s a legal separation?” she asked me.

“It’s a court ordered arrangement where we live apart and lead separate lives. The only reason we didn’t get an actual divorce to begin with was because of the children.”

“Children? How many do you have?”

I hated to talk about my personal life, and especially about my son and daughter. I’ve tried my hardest to keep them shielded from the bitterness between me and their mother, as well as out of the public eye. “Two. Karter is eight and Kaylee’s five.”

“I’m sorry,” she told me, and I almost laughed aloud. This divorce might be hard on the children, but once everything was final, I could finally breathe again. Right now, I had to swallow things down and do things Hayley wanted me to do because she held the power at the moment. It was a very uncomfortable feeling, and not one I relished having to experience too much longer.

“Don’t be. Sometimes, relationships don’t work out no matter how much time and work you put into them. Do you have any children?”

Something flashed in her eyes, and she turned her head. I reached over and cupped the side of it. Something warm and damp dropped onto my thumb and I realized she was crying. “Whatever it is, you can tell me.”

I know she didn’t know me from Adam, but I wanted to relieve some of the sadness I had just caused her. She took a breath or two, then raised her watery eyes to mine.

“I don’t have any children, although I’ve been pregnant before.”

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