Total pages in book: 61
Estimated words: 57188 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57188 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
“I know and as much as I appreciated that and wanted to share parts of my life with you, I wasn’t expecting you, Toni. It made me skeptical. I didn’t know that I should expect a woman like you, sassy and fiery and vibrant, curious to know about me as a man, not just a multi-millionaire. A woman who liked me for me? It was a goddamn fantasy which made it even harder to believe.”
“I never asked you for anything. Not once.” Nothing other than details of his life and that, apparently, was too much to ask.
“Yeah and it was too unbelievable that a woman like you was genuinely interested.”
“You keep saying that as if it’s an excuse and it’s not. You were deliberately cruel to me for no damn reason.”
“No good reason,” he added with a flash of a smile. “I didn’t know a better way to process my feelings, which is no excuse, simply an explanation.”
He made it difficult to stay mad at him, which was saying something because I could stay mad at people I didn’t even know but it grew harder and harder to hang on to my anger. “You keep saying that you have these feelings, that you need to process your feelings but even now you’re skirting around what those feelings actually are.”
He stared at me like everything was so obvious, so crystal clear that I should already know the answer. I had my suspicions, despite his behavior, but I needed to hear the words. If there would ever be a chance at something more between us—and I was doubtful—he needed to say that words.
Out loud.
I waited and stared.
He stared back, stricken with fear.
I sighed and shook my head.
Brady continued staring. Staring yet not saying a word.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” I couldn’t deny the disappointment that stole through me or the sadness that crushed down on my chest and made it difficult to breathe. “Goodbye, Brady.”
Fear flashed in his silver-blue eyes and then shock that I was actually leaving and finally, heartbreakingly, resignation.
He accepted it.
Easily. Too easily, in my opinion.
Luckily I hadn’t brought much to the mansion so packing everything up took less than an hour. It would have been done sooner if not for the tears that blurred my vision. Two sweeps of the room and I was confident that no trace of me was left behind.
There was just one thing left to do.
“Hey Layla, you have a minute?”
“Toni!” She jumped up from her little desk and ran over to me, wrapping her slender arms around my waist. “You’re back!” She pulled back and smiled up at me, so happy and excited, her eyes so full of love.
I was sure the next few minutes would kill me. “I am back. For now.”
I saw the moment my words registered. Layla’s shoulders fell and her smile dimmed. “You’re not staying.”
“I’m not” I confirmed. “But that doesn’t mean that I don’t love you or that we can’t still be friends.”
She put more distance between us and folded her arms angrily. “I’ll never see you again.”
“That’s not true,” I insisted and pulled her close for a tight, near suffocating hug. “You can see me whenever you want, if your uncle says it’s all right. I consider you a friend. In time you’ll have more friends your own age and you’ll forget all about me but I will never forget you Layla. Not ever.”
Tears streamed down her cheeks and she shook her head. “Why? Why can’t you stay?” Her words grew louder and more emotional. “Did Uncle Brady do something to hurt your feelings? I’ll make him apologize and then you can stay. Right? Right, Toni?”
I sighed, swiping at my own tears because I felt out of my depth with her sadness. “I can’t stay, Layla. But this isn’t goodbye for me and you, okay? It’s see you soon. All right?” Her tears gutted me and I held her tighter and kissed her cheek. “I’m sorry I let you down Layla but I promise you that I’m not gone forever. I promise.”
Her sobs shook us both and never in my life had I felt so low. I promised Layla I wouldn’t be another person to leave her and here I was, leaving. And not even for a good reason, for something as silly and as cliché as ever. Falling for the boss. “I love you, Toni.”
“Love you too, Layla.”
The little girl rushed back to her bed and cried like her heart was broken. Unable to stand it any longer, I grabbed my things and hurried from the mansion, eager to put this part behind me.
Chapter 33
Brady
“Dammit, what in the hell can I do to fix this?” It was a testament to just how out of my depth I was that I was asking my creative time for love advice. I stared at the monitors, each contained an image of Sierra, Cal and Tori in their individual offices. They all stared back at me, half-terrified as if they were concerned I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. “Well? Anyone have any ideas? Please.”