Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 64767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 324(@200wpm)___ 259(@250wpm)___ 216(@300wpm)
“I think so. It’s great to drive. I’ve never owned a brand-new car before. It’s nothing special, but it gets me where I need to go,” I babble on to Atlas.
“It’s a safe car, Theadora.” He doesn’t step closer keeping a safe distance away from me.
I look up at the two-story house where my nephew lives.
“Happy Birthday, for last week,” Atlas says, making my eyes snap back to him.
“Thank you,” I answer.
“You had a good night?”
“I did…” I pause. “You know I went out?”
“I own the club, Theadora.”
Oh, yes, he has mentioned that to me previously.
“It’s a great place, the girls all love it there.” Then I remember the alcohol, and how we had our own table. “You organized it, didn’t you? You gave them the table…”
“And alcohol,” he says, finishing my thought.
“Umm, okay. Well, thanks again.”
“I especially liked it when you kissed that man.”
Those words are totally sarcastic, and my back straightens.
“You were there?” I ask.
“No, I was shown.”
“That’s not creepy… at all,” I say with an eye roll.
“Do you want to visit your sister?” he asks. This time he does step closer. I can smell him, and my hands start to shake wanting so much to reach out and touch him. I once thought, when I first met him, that he was just a man, a powerful man, but how wrong I was.
He is everything.
Plus, more.
“I assumed I wasn’t allowed to.”
“It’s my facility. If you wish to see your sister, just ask.”
And there it is—he wants me to ask him for something.
“I think I’ll be fine, thank you.” I try to walk past him, but he sidesteps in front of me.
“How are you, Theadora? I miss you.”
My heart speeds up while my hands clench at my sides. “I’m good, Atlas. How have you been?”
Atlas’s eyes rake over my body, and he does it ever so slowly that I can feel my pulse beating in my neck. P-pump. P-pump. P-pump.
“I could be better.”
My throat constricts, but I manage to swallow. “That so?”
He looks wistful while gazing at me. “You look… good, Theadora. But then again, you always did, didn’t you?”
I’m not sure how I’m meant to answer that. So, I don’t. Instead, I look past him to the door. No one is there, and I’m not sure how much longer I want to stay here chatting with a man I want so badly but know I can’t have. I’m not sure how much willpower I have when I am around him, and the last thing I want is to test it.
“You’re avoiding looking at me, Theadora.” He says my name as if he’s tasting it on his tongue.
I furrow my brows as I look at him, then glance away.
“Relax, Theadora,” he says low enough that my eyes find him again. “I won’t bite.” His eyes graze over me again.
“But you do bite, and you take what’s not yours,” I say. “I wasn’t yours, and you took me with no questions asked,” I clarify, confident that he will get the message.
How wrong I am.
“Only you, Theadora. Only you.” He’s pulling me in, his eyes glancing over me, not leaving one inch of me unexplored.
“If you say so.” I grind my teeth together angrily, fed up with all his words. “I have to go.” This time I manage to slide past him, and don’t look back as I step to the door. I knock fast and heavy, hoping my beating heart will calm down sooner rather than later.
Willow answers with a beaming smile and steps by to let me inside. “You just missed Atlas. He’s amazing with Benji,” she coos. “Benji smiles for him, it’s beautiful to see.”
I bet it is. A man like him with a baby in his arms, most women would pay good money to see that.
“Benji was just put down for a nap, would you like a coffee before we wake him?”
“I can wait, and coffee would be great. I just need to call work, I won’t be long.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’s fine. I’ll step out for a few minutes.” I smile. It’s forced, but I manage to pull it off.
Walking outside, I shut the door behind me and look over at his car. Atlas turns and looks back just before he slides in, dropping his sunglasses, hiding his glare from me.
I can’t read him anymore.
I look away, and with my hands shaking I press call on my cell. As he pulls out onto the road, I hear the rev of his engine behind me.
And suddenly I’m falling back into him—down to where I was before.
Down to Atlas’s level.
Now, I have to try and claw myself out of there again.
It’s not going to be an easy feat.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Atlas
Seeing her in person is a shock to my system.
She’s everything I want.
And I have no fucking doubt about it.
Now, I just have to convince Theadora that I’m enough for her, that I can be enough for her.