I drank a lot that night.

My drink of choice? Old Fashioned.

My penthouse had never felt so empty. My life had never felt so lonely. I wasn’t happy before Titan came along, and now that she was gone, I felt even worse than I had before. My bed wasn’t comfortable anymore. Everything was heavy with the ghost she left behind. Her spirit haunted me. Her smile lived in my dreams.

I sat on the couch with her father’s book on the sofa table. I’d read over half of it, getting to know a man I didn’t have the honor of meeting. He mentioned Titan a few times, and I felt like I knew her as a young woman. She was more innocent then, unaffected by the evil in this world. She was pure and beautiful.

I missed her.

Brett called me, but I almost considered not answering. I wasn’t in the mood to talk—only drink. But something compelled me to take the call. I answered. “Hmm?”

“I read the article about Titan…why did you leak it?”

“Fuck you.”

“What?” he asked.

I rested the cool glass against my temple. “I didn’t leak it.”

“The reporter said you did.”

“Well, I didn’t,” I snapped. “I would never do that to her…I love her.”

Brett turned silent, probably because he’d never heard me say that about her. He’d never heard me say that about anyone. “Are you drinking?”

“What else would I be doing?”

“I’m down the road. I’m gonna come by.”

“Why?”

“Because you sound like shit.” Click.

I tossed the phone on the table and poured another drink. The amber liquid reminded me of her dark hair. I missed fisting it every night. I missed making love to her without a condom. I’d never been with a woman without latex wrapped around my dick. We had an experience I’d never enjoyed with anyone else. She was special to me in so many ways. I admired the beauty behind those bright eyes. I admired her for her courage, her strength, not all the money in her bank account. I loved this woman with all my heart.

Brett walked inside ten minutes later. I was so drunk I had no grasp of time. It seemed like only a few seconds had passed. He helped himself to my kitchen and got a glass of water before he came back. He snatched the liquor out of my hand and downed it himself.

“Get your own.”

“I’m cutting you off.” He grabbed the bottle of whiskey and tucked it into his side on the couch. “You turn into an ass when you drink.”

“I thought I was already an ass.”

“Well, you are. But you turn into a bigger ass.”

I drank the water just so I had something to do with my hands.

“So, you didn’t go to the newspaper?”

“Fuck no. Like I would ever do that.”

“Then what happened?”

I told him the story, up until my recent conversation with Titan at Stratosphere.

“You really think someone is framing you?”

“What other explanation is there? They impersonated me to the reporter. He wanted me to take the fall.”

“And Bruce Carol is the only person you can think of?”

“Yeah.”

“Shit.” He rubbed the back of his head. “And she really thinks you did it?”

“Yes. But she would have believed me if she hadn’t found those papers in the bottom of my desk. Why didn’t I throw those away?”

“You really didn’t read them?”

“No. I realized it was a jackass thing to do, so I stopped myself. I respect that woman like a queen. I would never do anything to hurt her in the slightest. I know she knows that…deep down inside. She’s been hurt, and I understand why she’s afraid to listen to me. She’s been through a lot, and it’s already hard for her to trust people. She puts on a brave face for me, but I know she’s devastated… I know how much I hurt her.” I dragged my hand down my face, overwhelmed with misery.

“But you didn’t hurt her, Hunt. Someone else did it—not you.”

“She doesn’t know that, Brett. She thinks I never really loved her…that I was just using her.”

“Then we have to figure out a way to prove it to her.”

“How?” I demanded. “I could have my PI follow Bruce Carol around, but what good will that do? The damage is already done.”

Brett sank into the couch and looked at the TV. It was on, but the volume was low. The blue and yellow glow from the screen bounced off the walls of the living room. He stared at it for a long time, wearing the same expression I wore when I was seriously considering something.

All I’d been doing was thinking about how to fix this. If only those papers had been thrown away, Titan would still be mine. She would have listened to me. I know she would have. Why did I have to be such an idiot?

“There’s one thing I can think of…”

“I’m desperate, Brett. Tell me.”

“You aren’t going to like it.”

“Shut up and tell me.”

He could have made a smartass remark in return, but he didn’t. “The best way to bury a story is to get everyone talking about something else.”

“Okay.” How did that help me?

“If you give the media something else to print, then no one will care about Titan’s story. It’ll fade into the background.”

“Well, I don’t have any other stories.”

“That’s not true.”

“I’m drunk, Brett. Be clearer.”

“Everyone wants to know what happened between you and your father. Reporters have pestered both you and Vincent about it, and neither one of you have talked.”

“For a reason.”

“If you gave them the full story, people wouldn’t shut up about it. It would make the front page of every newspaper and magazine. It would be on every news station. Nobody would give a damn about the abusive boyfriend Titan had ten years ago. All the attention would be on you, not her.”

I rested the back of my neck on the edge of the couch and stared at the ceiling. “My father and I already hate each other. He’s pissed at me over Megaland. I don’t want to stir the pot.”

“I said you wouldn’t like it.”

I sighed into the room.

“Not only would it get everyone talking about something else, but Titan would have to acknowledge your own actions. You’d basically be falling on your sword, sacrificing yourself for her. It might make her believe your innocence. And if not, she would at least think you were sorry for what you did.”

That was tempting.

“Or you could prove you were framed. But like you said, that could be impossible.”

I ran my fingers through my hair, wishing it was Titan who was touching me. “If I do this, I’d basically declare war on my father.”

“It’s not like you’re on great terms anyway.”

“But he’ll think I’m provoking him.”

“Maybe you should give him a heads-up.”

I shook my head. “I’m not speaking to him ever again.”

“Then I’m out of options. That’s all I can think of.”

I didn’t throw Titan under the bus to begin with, so it wasn’t fair for me to sacrifice myself to distract the rest of the herd. But I had to get this woman back—at any cost. Just like water, air, and food, I couldn’t live without her.

I’d die without her.