Page 51 of The Billionaire's Seduction Revenge

Emma’s heart cracked.

“Vasilios,” she whispered, so his eyes jerked to hers and there was such accusation in their depths that she stalled. “Are you really going to let me walk out that door?”

“It’s not my place to stop you.”

“Don’t do that,” she said, shaking her head, wanting more than anything to go to him, but instead staying right where she was, arms wrapped around her torso, bracing herself. “Don’t make it sound like you’re giving me a choice.”

“Of course you have a choice.”

“But you’re leaving.”

He hesitated for the smallest moment then nodded. “I never meant to stay, Emma. I only came to be here for Costa. This was—has been—,”

She waited, breath held, but Vasilios shook his head.

“I have to get back to my life.”

It didn’t make any sense. She needed clarity. He poured another measure of scotch, then held the glass aloft, for her to take some. She shook her head. “And you don’t want me in that life?”

God, putting that question out there was terrifying, because there were only two answers: yes, or no. And he’d made it pretty clear from his behaviour that it wasn’t going to be the former.

“What do you want?” He asked.

It wasn’t an unreasonable question. She’d started this conversation and he had as much of a right to ask questions as she did.

“I want you to talk to me,” she said urgently, tears filming her eyes. “I want you to tell me—,”

“What?” The word whipped around the room. “What do you want me to say?”

“What’s happened?” She roared, frustrated and fed up beyond bearing. “God, Vasilios, a week ago I would have said we were almost closer than two people on earth could be. My God, what I’ve shared with you, whatwe’veshared,” she pressed her fingers to her chest, the pain making speech almost impossible. “And now you’re treating me like a stranger.” Breathing was difficult and her eyes stung, her throat hurt. She was miserable and furious all at once.

“You said this didn’t mean anything,” he replied sharply, reminding her of how desperately she’d wanted to believe that, at first.

“It didn’t. It wasn’t supposed to.” She gaped, words flooding her brain but failing to release from her mouth. “But then,” she twisted her hands in front of her stomach, searching, trying to express what she felt. “But then, Vasilios…everything’s different. In Paris…”

His eyes narrowed, his jaw squared, something in his features softened, briefly, as he scraped back his chair, moving towards her, standing right there but not reaching out to touch.

“In Paris,niente,” he denied. “It was just you and me: the same rules in a different place.”

Her heart ached. “You don’t really believe that.”

She waited, needing desperately to hear him be honest, to hear him say that everything had changed for him, too, but he only shook his head. “I can’t give you what you want.”

“What does that even mean?”

He lifted a hand then, lightly caressing her cheek. “I like being alone.”

“Do you?” Emma’s lips tugged to the side. “A few weeks ago, I would have said the same thing.” She sucked in a shaky breath, forcing herself to be brave. To hell with the consequences. “And then I met you.”

His eyes narrowed, assessing her. “And?”

“And you changed me. I was determined to stay single, to always be single, because of how Jack had hurt me. Because of how losing our baby hurt me. I never wanted to be hurt again. But then you showed me that sometimes, for the right person, it’s worth the risk.”

“I’m not that person,” he said urgently. “Emma, please, listen. I want you to feel that way. You deserve to be happy, to trust someone, to love,” his voice cracked slightly. “But not with me.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because I don’t want what you want, and never will.” His voice raised slightly then he swallowed, making a visible effort to calm down. “I was here because of Costa.” He dropped his hand away, looked down at her with a face that she now struggled to recognise, so taut were his features, so cool his eyes! “If it hadn’t been for him, and his illness, I would have left a long time ago.” She barely noticed the way his hand formed a fist at his side, as though steeling himself for something. “This wasn’t about anything more than convenience, Emma. I thought you understood that.”

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