Page 19 of King of Greed

“Yes, I— ” My response abruptly cut off when the elevator doors slid open.

Oh, you’ve got to be kidding.

“I have to call you back,” I said, not taking my eyes off the spectacle waiting for me outside the apartment. “I’m fine, but something…something came up.”

Correction: a hundred somethings, judging by the number of bouquets littering the hallway. Pink roses for affection, white lilies for forgiveness, golden trumps for strength and triumph over obstacles. I tried to ignore the meaning behind each bouquet as I focused on the garden that had exploded inside the building. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out who they were from.

I’m going tokillDominic.

“Hi. Alessandra Davenport?” The delivery boy handed me a pen and clipboard. “Can you sign, please? We have more downstairs but, well, we can’t fit them all in the hall.”

I didn’t touch the pen. “How did you get up here?”

Sloane was in Europe dealing with Xavier Castillo, one of her most difficult clients, and building security wouldn’t let any deliveries in without informing the recipient first.

The delivery boy shrugged. “A…” He checked his phone. “Mr. Dominic Davenport called and arranged it. He said he knows the building owner?”

I was going to have aserioustalk with the head of security after this.

“Thank you, but I don’t want the flowers,” I said. “Can youplease bring them back to the store? I don’t want them to go to waste.”

Panic filled the boy’s face. He exchanged glances with the other employees from the flower shop, all of whom wore similar stricken expressions.

“Our boss said wehaveto make this delivery. He’s going to check for your signature when we get back.”

I suppressed a groan.

The boy couldn’t be more than eighteen or nineteen. He was probably doing this as a side gig, and it wasn’t his fault Dominic was so…soinsufferable.If he thought inundating me with flowers was going to make me back down from the divorce, he didn’t know me at all.

And isn’t that the problem to begin with?

“How about this?” I took the clipboard. “I’ll sign, but you take the flowers to the nearest hospital instead. Your boss doesn’t have to know I didn’t keep them.”

It took some cajoling, but the boy eventually relented and agreed to my plan. On his way out, however, he handed me the note that accompanied the flowers and left before I could protest.

I entered the apartment, my eyes locked on Dominic’s messy, familiar scrawl.

I’m sorry I missed our anniversary dinner and so many more dinners before that. Flowers alone won’t make up for it, but give me a chance to make amends in person and I will. A thousandfold.

His handwriting became near illegible toward the end, but I understood him. I always did.

A tiny drop of wetness smudged the ink. My heart threatenedto smash free from my chest as Dominic’s words dragged me back in time.

One day, I’ll buy you a thousand real roses. I promise.

I won’t forget. I promise.

We’ll work this out. I promise.

So many promises. He’d only kept a fraction of them, but I fell for them every time.

Not this time.

I ignored the ache in my chest as I set my jaw, crumpled the note, and tossed it in the trash. After a quick shower, I flung open my closet doors and searched for an appropriatefuck yououtfit.

I’d stayed home too many nights waiting for Dominic when I should’ve been out living life, and it was time to make up for lost time.

Starting with tonight.

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