Total pages in book: 166
Estimated words: 169305 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 847(@200wpm)___ 677(@250wpm)___ 564(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 169305 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 847(@200wpm)___ 677(@250wpm)___ 564(@300wpm)
I called him once, demanding to know why he felt so strongly about it. He dodged my question, insisting he was looking after me and my interests.
I was frustrated and confused, but mostly disappointed.
I’d thought Andras was on my side.
Zach and I acted recklessly, slipping to the rose garden to steal kisses and orgasms. Guilt sat in my stomach like a brick, sinking me down, and yet—I was a willing participant.
At night, he’d crawl into my bed, wringing emotions and sensations out of me I didn’t know existed.
He worshiped every part of my body, and for the first time in my life, I felt like someone’s choice, not default. To the extent that I realized we needed a frank conversation about where we were headed.
This didn’t feel like a project anymore.
It felt like forever.
Afew hours before our flight home, Zach left a note on my nightstand.
Two p.m. at the rose garden.
The butterfly wings caressing the walls of my belly told a tale as old as time.
Zachary Sun wasn’t my boss and my fling—he was my everything.
It was time to have the talk I’d put off for months.
I arrived at the bench in the garden a few minutes early. Lush red-and-white flowers and thorns cradled the swan-shaped stone, twisting into one another like swords.
I busied myself with my phone, skimming emails from my lawyers. I’d never been a coward, but telling Zach my feelings gave me cold sweats.
The rustle of leaves swished behind my back. I glanced up from my phone, surprised to see Eileen trudging in my direction.
Her heels dug into the damp soil. A brown maxi dress swayed as she walked, paired with a thin Hermès belt.
She wore minimal makeup, a placid expression, and her hair gathered into a flawless, elaborate bun.
I stiffened, finding it hard to meet her penetrating gaze. She was privy to my indiscretions with her fiancé.
It didn’t matter that both of us had agreements with him—and neither of us had technically broken them. Up until this moment, I’d managed to avoid her in the sprawling mansion, thanks to her disappearing act.
Now, she was like a mirror, forcing me to look my sins in the eye.
I stood.
“Oh, please, Miss Ballantine.” Eileen waved a hand. “You’re not an employee of mine. You can sit back down.”
“I’m an employee of your fiancé’s.” The word scorched a path up my throat, burning my tongue.
“Even so, I come to you today as a woman speaking to another woman.”
My heart spiraled downward dangerously fast.
Eileen slid beside me, forcing me to scoot to the edge of the bench.
She propped her bag on her lap. “I appreciate you for coming here.”
“I don’t appreciate you tricking me into thinking it was Zach who invited me here.”
“Perhaps you don’t appreciate it, but surely you can understand it.” Eileen nodded. “That’s why I kept it vague. I couldn’t risk you refusing my request. Time is not on my side in this matter.”
I clung to my mask of indifference, feeling a looming catastrophe barreling straight into my life. “How can I help you?”
“I think we both know how you can help me.” She rummaged for something in her bag, lips pinched together. “Stop fucking my fiancé.”
Her demand sliced my chest, reached deep into my heart, and grabbed it. There was no point denying the obvious, even if it was my knee-jerk reaction.
If nothing else, Eileen deserved the truth.
I retreated into my jacket, forcing words out of my mouth. “It’s not serious.”
Not a lie.
For Zach, at least.
He repeatedly reminded me—and himself—that we were just a temporary arrangement.
Still, it felt dirty to say. Like a white lie.
Eileen’s eyes explored my face. Behind them, I saw so much of the same emotions I’d been drowning in. Agony, jealousy, and desperation. Raw self-pity that made it hard to breathe.
Her eyes glossed-over with tears, but I knew she wouldn’t let them fall. Eileen, like me, viewed vulnerability as weakness. She didn’t allow herself to break.
“It might not be serious for you, but it’s serious to me.” She flattened her dress, smoothing out a wrinkle. “My dream has always been to marry him.”
I reared my head back, brows pinched together. “I thought you didn’t even know each other until a few months ago?”
She rubbed her red nose, shaking her head. “Goodness gracious, aren’t you naïve?”
Shoving her hand inside her bag again, she retrieved a tiny old-school photo album, handing it to me. I flipped it open.
My heart sank further when my eyes landed on the first two pictures. Two squishy babies with thigh rolls and matching mullets grinned at me.
No.
No, no, no.
“This is Zach and me as babies.” She pointed to the second photo. “And this one is us at two years old. Our dads were good friends.”
“Zach never mentioned this.”
“He doesn’t remember it. When Constance reunited us, I didn’t want to embarrass him by bringing it up. I’ve waited for this for a long time. I…” She closed her eyes, her cheeks flushing pink. A beat later, she shook her head. “Oh, never mind.”