“Are you going to ignore me?” I ask, following her into the bedroom.
She drops the bag next to her suitcase and glances at the black dress I laid out earlier for her. “Are you going to talk to me like I deserve to be spoken to, or am I still your outlet for your annoyance?”
The pain that sneaks through into her voice cuts through me, and I walk to her. I fold her into my arms, bringing her close to my body, savoring the feel of her against me. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I was wrong to take it out on you.”
“Fucking right you were.” She wraps her arms around my waist and rests her head against my chest. My heart thumps beneath her ear. “Don’t do it again.”
“Ever?”
“Ever. Next time I won’t be so nice to you, nor will I walk away. Talk to me like crap again, Mr. Stone, and I’m going to tear you a new ass**le. Got it?”
I bend down, bringing my mouth close to hers. “Got it,” I whisper, taking her sweet lips with mine.
This could be the last time I kiss her. I linger on that thought, unwilling to let the kiss break. Damn if I don’t need this woman.
“Are you going to tell me who has you in a bad mood yet?” Dayton pulls away, flicking her hair over her shoulder, and tugs her sports bra over her head. My c**k twitches at the blue bra she slips on, more so when she adjusts her tits inside it.
“Someone from my past who delights in making my life incredibly hard.” I discard my shirt on the chair and take a freshly laundered one from the closet, sliding it over my shoulders. I button it up, focusing on them instead of her. I’m a f**king coward. “If there were a way to get out of this tonight, you can bet I’d find it.”
“Wow. I can’t imagine disliking someone that much.” Dayton steps into the dress and reaches behind her, struggling with the zipper. “Who is it?”
I step up to her and knock her hand away. With my fingers clasped around the zipper pull, I slide it upward smoothly and take a deep breath. I know this is it.
This could be the last time I get to brush my fingers against her skin, get to touch her, get to be anywhere f**king near her.
“Aaron?” she repeats, apprehension tingeing her tone.
I take a second deep breath and close my eyes resignedly. “The person organizing tonight is my wife.”
The One Where She Walks Away
She moves from me suddenly, her sharp jump a punch in my gut. It’s what you were expecting, I remind myself. I knew this would happen.
“Wife?” Her voice is barely more than whisper, tinged with accusation and disbelief. Her hands are clasped in front of her slightly bent-over body, shaking so discreetly that no one but I would ever notice it.
But I do. I know her so f**king well my next word cuts as much as the last seven did.
“Yes.”
She covers her mouth with her hand, turning away from me with closed eyes. Jesus. I can feel the pain emanating from her and wrapping around me in a suffocating blanket. Fuck. I can’t feel this—the pain I’m causing her. I have to explain, to somehow justify my decision to keep her a secret.
“She’s my ex-wife, actually. We’d be divorced if she didn’t keep stalling on the agreement,” I ramble, my eyes following her.
“You’re still married. She’s still your wife.”
“We’ve been separated for two years.”
She shakes her head, her eyes still closed. “And you never thought to tell me?”
“I didn’t know how to. I kept putting it off until it became impossible. I wanted to, Day.” I move to her and gently rest my hands on her arms. Shit. I wish she’d understand. I need her to f**king understand why I didn’t tell her!
“Don’t you dare touch me.” Her voice is hard when she steps away. A pang hits my chest when she rubs her hands across her arms where mine just were. Rubbing my touch away. “Don’t you f**king dare stand there in front of me and try and justify this. Shit, Aaron. You’re married! Fucking married!”
Her eyes open, and in them, I see pure contempt. Anger. Disbelief. A sliver of hatred that hurts more than the prospect of losing her.
“Didn’t she sit still long enough for you to work your shit out, huh? So much for making sure you’d work it out. Fuck! All that was a lie, wasn’t it? How much more has been a lie? How many more lines have you said that actually mean f**king nothing?”
“Our marriage was a sham, Dayton. Naomi cares for nothing but money and fame. She was an up-and-coming model struggling to break into the industry. I met her one night at college and could see her potential, so I gave her the in. I set her up with one of our agents, and she was…thankful.” I rub my forehead. Lamest f**king excuse in the world.
“I bet she was.”
“We started seeing each other casually, and every time I went to break it off, my father’s assistant convinced me it was good for us to be together because of our profiles. Our ‘relationship’ was no secret, and she was always being hit with the fact that she’d only made it because of me.”
“She did!”
“We both knew that. I was a buffer for that. I claimed we met after she signed with our agency and that was that.”
“And you woke up one morning and decided to marry her, right? Because it was the ‘right’ thing to do?” She raises her eyebrows and storms past me.
I sigh heavily. “It didn’t work out. After eight months, we separated. I’ve been fighting her for two years. She’s not entitled to half of everything I own, but she won’t take what I am offering. There’s a reason I don’t own the company on paper yet.”
“I can’t even look at you right now. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about her. How couldn’t you tell me, Aaron? Did it not ever cross your mind while you were watching me sleep or pouring me coffee to tell me? How about when you were kissing me or f**king me? Or when you were writing little f**king notes and hiding them?!”
I finally find her eyes again and hope my gaze can show her everything I feel. “I was so scared to lose you, Day. So scared that if I told you, you’d get up and walk and that would be that.”
“So you thought you’d ignore it and she’d go away eventually? That I’d never find out? Even when you were begging me to move in with you—did you really think then that you’d never have to tell me?” She closes her eyes and pushes her fingers into them, and even I can tell she’s fighting tears.