Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 226(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 226(@300wpm)
The sight of her had softened my heart and provoked a subtle longing, but her hostility chased it away. “You called me. Remember?”
She rose from her desk before she came around it, moving gracefully in her heels as if they were flats. “It was an accident.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me that?”
She faced me, keeping more distance between us than we’d ever had before. There were more than just walls up between us. She’d dug a moat and filled it with alligators. She held my stare but seemed to lose her nerve.
“You had the opportunity when I called again. And again.”
She glanced at the door like she hoped someone would come in and interrupt this conversation. Last time we spoke, she asked me to give our relationship a chance, and now it was like that had never happened. What the fuck had changed so drastically?
“A fucking text message would have sufficed, Astrid.”
“What do you want from me?” She lost her cool, her eyes growing wide with anger. “I’m sorry I called you. Now get off my ass—”
“You can always call me, sweetheart. That’s not the issue.”
“Please don’t call me that.” Her voice turned surprisingly soft…almost weak.
The ring on her left hand hurt me, hurt me like she’d betrayed me. “I just needed to know that you were okay.”
“If you cared whether I was okay, you would have picked up the first time I called.”
My eyes narrowed. “So you did call me for a reason.”
“I’m just saying that you would have taken my call if I were important to you.”
“You are important to me.”
Her arms crossed over her chest. “Right.”
“Would I be here right now if that weren’t true?”
“Would you have dumped me if that were true?” she countered.
Words I couldn’t release stayed on my tongue until they died. “I was in a meeting when you called. If I’d known it was important, I would have taken it.”
“Well, it wasn’t important,” she said. “It was an accident, like I already said. So whatever guilt you feel is unnecessary. You’ve seen that I’m perfectly alright, so you can go, Theo.” Her arms remained crossed over her chest, her wedding ring blinding because of all the diamonds. It was a clear day with sunshine, and the light entered the gallery at just the perfect angle to illuminate the spectrum of colors in the gems.
I continued to watch her face, seeing the same woman who’d slept in my bed, who wore her heart on her sleeve with the kind of brave vulnerability that I found courageous. I was so broken I couldn’t even string a few words together to tell her my story, and that was pathetic. “Next time you call, I’ll answer. I promise you.”
“Fuck off, Theo,” she snapped. “I hope this is the last time I have to see your goddamn face.” When she looked at me, there was so much hatred there, the kind of hatred I’d felt for my enemies. “You’ve got a lot of gall coming in here.”
Her words felt like a hard slap against my cheek. “Do I?”
“I was stupid before, but I’m not stupid anymore.”
My eyes flicked back and forth between hers, trying to read the story behind that gaze. “What did he say to you?”
She gave a slight shake of her head. “Just go.”
“Whatever he said to you isn’t true, Astrid.”
“And yet, he’s the one who took my call—and you didn’t.” Her eyes drilled into my face, a mixture of anger and disappointment.
What was that phone call about? What did she need? Whatever it was, she’d gone to me first and Bolton second. “What did he say to you?” I pressed, needing to know what lies he’d used to poison my soil and destroy my crops.
Her arms remained tight across her chest, all the light gone from her eyes. “You knew his name before I told you what it was. I didn’t notice it at the time, but now I see. I see it all so clearly.”
“I didn’t know the entire time, if that’s what you’re insinuating.”
She stared at me, her eyes looking long dead. “Sure.”
“I didn’t. I wouldn’t lie to you.”
“You used me as a pawn to get back at Bolton for whatever he did to you. Well, congratulations. You destroyed our marriage and our lives like you intended.”
“I didn’t destroy your marriage,” I snapped. “He did. When he decided to revoke his wedding vows. A vow is an ironclad promise, irrevocable, and he fucking pissed all over that. Don’t let him manipulate you, Astrid. You deserve a lot better than him, and I’m so fucking disappointed that a woman so fucking perfect would settle for someone so far beneath her. You’re a damn mountain and he’s a shadow. You’re the ocean and he’s a stream. You’re a goddess and he’s a damn peasant. You deserve a man who will bend at the knee and worship you. Who doesn’t look at another woman, even when you aren’t in the room. Who says good things behind your back and talks shit to your face. That’s not him.”