Page 93 of Captivating Mr. Second Chance

“You were supposed to take me ignoring you as a sign that I was ignoring you for a reason. Why would you think I’d want anything to do with you?”

“Babe,” he said, wrapping his hand gently around her arm. “Come on, let’s sit down.”

Laney let herself be pulled toward the lobby, hoping that if she gave him a few minutes, that was all it would take. Bobby found two chairs, upholstered in an ugly flower pattern, and he dragged them to face each other, their knees almost touching. He scrubbed his hands over his face a few times then leaned his elbows on his knees, holding her hands between both of his. “Laney, I am sorry. There aren’t enough words to tell you how sorry I am for what I did.”

She blew out a breath and sat back, slipping her fingers out of his grasp, but he wasn’t to be deterred. He sat up tall, drawing attention to the physical attributes she’d admired him for, the set of his shoulders, the muscle of his chest, the physique of a swimmer. But as quickly as she remembered why she’d found him attractive was as quickly as she shook her head. “I accept your apology, but that doesn’t mean I am interested in getting back together.”

“Come on, joey, we were so good together.”

Laney crossed her arms over her middle. “I used to think that nickname was cute. Now it makes me sick to my stomach.”

“No, babe, why?”

“Why?” She surprised herself when her laugh came out all watery. She couldn’t help the tears that formed when she forced herself to recall how hurt and angry she was. “Because you made me feel insignificant, that I meant nothing to you. I—”

“That’s not true,” he said. “You mean everything to me.”

“Clearly not enough to say no to Suzette.”

Bobby’s brow crimped like he was annoyed. “I told you it was a one-time thing. It meant absolutely nothing to me.”

She lifted one shoulder. “That makes me feel worse. That you threw away everything we had for something that meant nothing to you. I’d at least understand it better if you had feelings for her. But…” She waved her hand between them. “You can’t say I mean everything to you and then choose to have sex with someone who supposedly meant nothing to you.”

He hung his head with a sigh, rubbing his hand along the back of his neck. After a few seconds of silence, when Laney swiped her finger under her eyes, he lifted his gaze to her again. “Please tell me what I can do to prove it to you. Prove that I love you.”

“You can’t,” she stated quite simply.

“But I love you,” he said, his voice pitching higher, like he was really desperate. “Nothing has been the same since you left.” He touched his hand to his chest. “I haven’t been the same.”

She huffed a bemused laugh. “I think you’re getting confused between love and need.”

“No, I—”

She stopped his argument, slicing her hand through the air. “You needed me, Bobby. You needed me to make you feel good, to pick you up when your day was stressful. You needed me on your arm and liked when I wore that long black dress with the slit up the side. You liked when your friends complimented me, complimentedyoufor havingme,” she said, shaking her head at the memories. “Made you feel liketheman, right? Having the woman with the big tits with you. The girl with pretty pictures online who knew all the perfect angles and exactly what to say.”

“That’s not—”

She moved forward, barely sitting on her seat anymore. “That’s exactly right, Bobby, and you know it. You used me like you would an assistant. I took care of your everyday life, plus improved your social media outreach tenfold, all while taking a pay cut. But I did it because I loved you.” She tipped her head to the side. “Or, at least, I thought I did. I gave up a job I loved for you. I gave up my own dreams to help you succeed. And for what?” She opened her hands like she’d finished a magic trick. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing except for heartbreak and a few kicks to my self-esteem.”

Bobby’s face paled, and he sat back, gnawing on his upper lip. “I’m so sorry, Laney. Truly, I never meant to hurt you. I wasn’t thinking.”

“I know you weren’t. I was the brains of the operation.”

He gave in to a laugh at that. He was always one for an easy joke. “You really were.” He rubbed at his scruffy chin, watching her, and she refused to break eye contact. She had to make him understand that she was not going to change her mind, even when he said, “Come back and work with me. You can have whatever title you want and the paycheck to go with it.”

For a moment, less than a moment, she considered it, but… “No. I have a life here. I am not going to work for you.”

“You have a life here, eh?” He tipped his chin toward the direction they’d come from. “With your boyfriend?” he added with a slight curl to his lips.

“You sound jealous.”

He nodded. “I won’t deny it.” He spread his legs wider, an alpha move that Laney had become well accustomed to. “Moved on fast. Like, maybe it’s a rebound.”

Laney barked out a single laugh. “Or maybe you were the rebound.”

Bobby angled his head, his hazel eyes narrowed. “What?”

“Ethan and I have a long history. Longer than you can imagine.”

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