Total pages in book: 122
Estimated words: 115997 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 580(@200wpm)___ 464(@250wpm)___ 387(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115997 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 580(@200wpm)___ 464(@250wpm)___ 387(@300wpm)
“You’re seriously going to ask me that? Like I’m the one who’s been cheating in this relationship?” I slid off the counter but left my arms loose at my side, ready to reach for the panic button in my pocket if Jeremy decided that grabbing onto me wasn’t enough this time.
“He put me into the wall, Isa.” A corner of Jeremy’s mouth quirked upward but didn’t quite reach smile number two, the smirk. “Pretty passionate response, if you ask me. Pretty dangerous one, too, if you ask me.”
“He’s. My. Security. Detail.” I bit out every word.
“Security would have held my wrist. Your man went for my throat.” He blinked, and then his expression shifted, like he was calculating something. “Hold on. This can work.”
“I’m sorry?” Every minute I spent in his company was convincing me of the opposite.
“As much as it chafes my pride, you’ll see that I can compromise. I came here to get you back, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do. You want to get back at me? Fine. Do it. You can have him, and I can continue with more . . . discretion.” There it was, smile number one, the politician.
My jaw dropped.
“Don’t you see?” He shrugged, the gesture disturbingly happy. “It’s perfect. Our families will get what they want, our careers will flourish, and we’ll both find satisfaction elsewhere. It wouldn’t be the first arrangement of its kind. Half the relationships in DC are staged. Think of it as less of a marriage and more of a partnership. An alliance.”
I stared in open shock as any feelings I carried for him shriveled and died. Maybe I’d always known that our relationship was remarkably convenient, but I’d still thought it was based on mutual affection and love.
But that dull ache in my heart at the memory of Jeremy’s infidelity was nothing compared to the way it hurt to even breathe knowing that Nate was on the other side of the wall. Damn it. I’d been fooling myself for the last two years.
“This is great,” Jeremy continued, nodding enthusiastically. “Everyone gets what they want.”
“Except that I don’t want you.” I yanked the ring from my finger.
“No one has caught wind of what happened. We still have time to salvage this. We’ll say that I flew here out of gallant concern for your safety, and the media will eat it up.” He ignored me, staring off into the center of the room as he spat out how to spin it, how to control whatever fallout there might be.
“Jeremy,” I said with enough force that he turned back toward me.
“What?” His brow knit almost comically.
“I made a mistake, and I’m sorry.” I reached for his hand.
His face softened as our fingers brushed. “It’s okay. It’s all fixable. I still want to marry you.”
I pushed the ring into his palm, and then curled his fingers, closing his fist around the heirloom diamond. “But I don’t want to marry you. I made a mistake thinking that what I felt for you could grow if I gave it enough time. I made a mistake giving in to what my parents wanted just because it was comfortable, because I thought I’d finally earn their approval. I made a mistake in settling for someone who obviously doesn’t know the meaning of love, or devotion, or exclusivity. I will never be what you want, and you will never give me what I deserve. I made a mistake when I said yes, and now I’m remedying it.”
He stared down at his closed fist. “You don’t mean that.”
“I do.” I nodded, using the opportunity his shock provided to pass by him and walk toward the desk where he’d left his jacket. I took the expensive fabric in my hand and then moved to the door, grasping the handle.
“You don’t,” he argued, pivoting to face me, shaking his head emphatically. “You aren’t telling me no. That’s not possible.”
I sighed and opened the door as a wave of pity washed out whatever was left of my anger at him. “Oh, Jeremy. Someone should have told you no a long time ago.”
His eyes flew wide.
“Hey,” I said into the hallway, then startled. It wasn’t Nate standing guard at my door. It was Sergeant Gray.
My stomach sank.
“Ms. Astor?” Sergeant Gray asked, lifting his thick brows.
“Right.” I forced a smile. “Sorry. Mr. Covington was just leaving. Could you please make sure he gets back to his room?” I asked.
“Isa!” Jeremy argued.
Sergeant Gray quickly squelched a smile. “Absolutely. Mr. Covington, I believe your suite is next door.”
“Fuck this.” Jeremy stomped past me, snatching his jacket out of my hands. “You’ll regret this, Isa, and when you do, I might not be willing to take you back.”
Sergeant Gray stoically ignored the exchange.
I let Jeremy have the last word, knowing the conversation couldn’t possibly end any other way. He’d just keep talking.