The Billionaire's Legacy Collection. Кейт Хьюит

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СКАЧАТЬ in. Now was as good a time as any to say everything that needed to be said. And if she said it aloud maybe it would help both of them. “There’s something else—” She saw him tense and felt a flash of guilt that he felt the need to be defensive around her. Definitely time to clear the air. “I owe you an apology.”

      “For what?”

      “For misreading the situation the other night. For making things awkward between us. I was...” She hesitated, trying to find the right words. “I guess you could say I was doing an Eva. I was looking for things that weren’t there. I was close to panic and you were trying to distract me. I understand that now. I don’t want you feeling that you have to avoid me, or be careful around me. I’d never want that. I—”

      “Don’t. Don’t apologize.”

      He gripped the railing and she noticed his knuckles were white.

      “I wanted to clear it up, that’s all. It was a kiss. Didn’t mean anything. Two people trapped in an elevator, one of whom was feeling vulnerable.” Shut up right now, Paige. “I know I’m not your type. I know you don’t have those feelings. I’m like your little sister. I get that. So—”

      “Oh, for— Seriously?” He interrupted her with a low growl and finally turned to face her. “After what happened the other night you really think I see you as a little sister? You think I could kiss you that way if I felt like that about you?”

      She stared at him, her heart drumming a rhythm against her chest. “I thought— You said— I thought you saw me that way.”

      “Yeah, well, I tried.” He gave a humorless laugh and drained his champagne in one mouthful. “God knows, I tried. I’ve done everything short of asking Matt for a baby photo of you and sticking that to my wall. Nothing works. And do you know why? Because I do have feelings, you’re not little and you’re not my damn sister.”

      Shock struck her like a bolt of lightning.

      They were the only two people left on the terrace. Just them and the Manhattan night. The buildings rose around them—dark shapes enveloping them in intimate shadows and the shimmer of light.

      The storm clouds were gathering, creating ominous shadows in the dark sky.

      The sudden lick of wind held the promise of rain.

      Paige was oblivious. The sky might have come crashing down and she wouldn’t have noticed.

      Her mouth was so dry she could hardly form the words. “But if you feel that way, if you do have feelings, why do you keep saying—” She stumbled over the words, confused. “Why haven’t you ever done anything about it?”

      “Why do you think?”

      There was a cynical, bitter edge to Jake’s tone that didn’t fit the nature of their conversation. None of the pieces fitted. She couldn’t think. Everything about her had ceased to function.

      “Because of Matt?”

      “Partly. He’d kick my butt. And I wouldn’t blame him.” He stared down at his hands, as if they were something that didn’t belong to him. As if he was worried about what they might do.

      “Because you’re not interested in relationships—or ‘complications’ as you call them?”

      “Exactly.”

      “But sex doesn’t have to be a relationship. It can just be sex. You said so yourself.”

      “Not with you.”

      His tone was harsh and she took a step back, shocked. They’d often argued, baited each other, but she’d never heard that edge of steel in his voice before.

      “Why? What’s different about me?”

      “I’m not going to screw you and walk away, Paige. That’s not going to happen.”

      “Because of our friendship? Because you’re worried it would be awkward?”

      “Yeah, that, too.”

      “Too? What else?” She stared at him, bemused.

      He was silent.

      “Jake? What else?”

      He swore under his breath. “Because I care about you. I don’t want to hurt you. There’s already been enough damage to your heart. You don’t need more.”

      The first raindrops started to fall.

      Paige was still oblivious.

      Her head spun with questions. Where? What? Why? How much? “So you— Wait—” She struggled to make sense of it. “You’re saying that you’ve been protecting me? No. That can’t be true. You’re the only one who doesn’t protect me. When everyone else is wrapping me in cotton wool, you handle me as though you’re throwing the first pitch at a game.”

      He didn’t protect her. He didn’t. Not Jake.

      She waited for him to agree with her, to confirm that he didn’t protect her.

      He was silent.

      There was a throbbing in her head. She lifted her fingers to her forehead and rubbed. The storm was closing in—she could feel it. And not just in the sky above her.

      “I know you don’t protect me.” She tried to focus, tried to examine the information and shook her head. “Just the other night, when we found out we’d lost our jobs, Matt was sympathetic but you were brutal. I was ready to cry, but you made me so angry and—” She stared at him, understanding. She felt the color drain from her face. “You did it on purpose. You made me angry on purpose.”

      “You get more done when you’re angry,” he said flatly. “And you needed to get things done.”

      No denial.

      He’d goaded her. Galvanized her into action.

      “You challenge every idea I have.” She felt dizzy. “We fight. All the time. If I say something is black, you say it’s white.”

      He stood in silence, not bothering to deny it, and she shook her head in disbelief.

      “You make me angry. You do that on purpose. Because if I’m angry with you, then I’m not—” She’d been blind. She breathed hard, adjusting to this new picture of their relationship. The first boom of thunder split the air but she ignored it. “How long? How long, Jake?”

      “How long, what?” He yanked at his bow tie with impatient fingers.

      His gaze shifted from hers. He looked like a man who wanted to be anywhere but with her.

      “How long have you cared? How long have you been p-protecting me?” She stumbled over the word—and the thought.

      He ran his hand over his jaw. “Since I walked through the door of that damn hospital room and saw you sitting on the bed in your Snoopy T-shirt, with that enormous smile on your face. You were so brave. The most frightened brave person СКАЧАТЬ