Page 36 of Double or Nothing

“Is that so?” he asks with a chuckle.

I’m sure the way I so easily responded to his kiss told him a different story. Maybe at that moment, it was true, but I won’t let it happen again. I refuse.

The subtle brush of his hand against my cheek sends a shiver through me.

“Don’t. Don’t do that. You ended us a long time ago. You don’t get to just waltz back in here and…” I take a few steps back so that I am out of his reach.

“And what? What exactly am I doing, Kat?”

“That,” I say, pointing at him. The look in his eyes, the smile on his lips, his amusement in all of it. He’s enjoying this. Hell, he loves it, but him being here is breaking me.

“Looking at you?”

“Looking at me like you used to. Like you’re still the guy I fell in love with.”

“I am,” he says, his voice filled with promise.

“Really? Because that kiss back there,”—I say, pointing toward the living area—“that was one hundred percent Sutton Cole, the rock star. The guy who thinks he’s invincible and can take whatever and whoever he wants.”

“That’s not true. That kiss was one hundred percent the Sutton Cole who still wants you more than he wants his next breath.”

“But not enough to be patient and wait for me.”

“Kat…”

“No. Stop. You don’t get to do this. I might have to be your casino host, but I sure as hell don’t have to like you.”

Stunning him and telling him the one thing he doesn’t want to hear—that I don’t like him—I make my escape. Heading toward the door, I swear I hear a soft apology but choose to ignore it. He owes me more than an apology, even if I’m not willing to accept it.

Standing in the small elevator lobby outside Sutton’s room, I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Being in close proximity to Sutton again, all the air that drained out of me is refilled. My lungs expand, my head stops spinning, and for the first time since he arrived, I relax. Someone clearing their throat interrupts the moment I need to compose myself before heading back to the casino floor. When I look up, Mac’s kind face and knowing smile look back at me.

“You okay?” His question sounds sincere.

“No.”

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. I know this can’t be easy on you,” Mac says.

I’m not sure exactly why he’s the one apologizing to me, but I appreciate the sentiment.

“I just don’t get why he’s here. Why come back? Why now?”

“I think you know why he’s here, Kat. He might have to do a concert here, but if he didn’t want to see you? He would have found a way out of it. You know as well as I do, he never wanted to leave. Not without you.”

“I tried, Mac. I told him we would make it work. He’s the one who walked away.” I’m angry he’s defending Sutton when I’m the one left behind. “Not me.”

“You know how he gets, Kat. Once he heard you say no…” Mac shakes his head. “He overreacted and has regretted it ever since.”

“Really? You really believe that? Because I don’t, Mac. If he really cared? If he ever cared, he wouldn’t have walked away like he did. He wouldn’t have made me choose. And he sure as hell wouldn’t have been with another woman when he should have been here, with me, at my mom’s funeral.”

Not waiting for a response, a look, or anything really, I bolt past him and step onto the elevator, refusing to look up. My eyes are on my phone and the client I need to tend to.

Chapter 20

Sutton

When I hear the door to the suite open, I can’t help wish it was Kat walking through it. Instead, it’s Mac’s smug face.

“Looks like that went well.” He laughs as he enters the suite.

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