I miss Jamie.

I miss him with all my heart, and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about it. He walked out of my life and didn’t so much as give me one last glance goodbye. As I think about things now, I’m not even sure I could have made things right if I’d gone after him.

I sit at my office desk in Atlanta and look out my rain-streaked window, as tears and grief threaten to consume me. I hate it here. I hate everything about this building, my work, my colleagues—especially Trevor and his brothers. I miss Blue Bay—a place I truly felt I belonged.

Home.

I close my eyes to pinch off tears. Did Jamie really think I was the kind of woman who’d sleep with him if I were engaged to another man? I guess I should have told him about Trevor. Then again, there were things he should have told me too.

Do I really think he’s the kind of man who’d rape a woman? We both had secrets, and in the heat of the moment, I asked if it was true, but it was a knee-jerk reaction. So much was going on, and I was frightened as the men faced off against each other, frightened to realize it was Trevor and his brothers who beat Jamie and left him deeply scarred, inside and out.

Jamie is a good man, the bravest man I know, and I hurt him so deeply by questioning him, not believing in him—the only thing he ever wanted from those who loved him. I bite back a gut-wrenching sob. After everything he’d been through, he showed me a kindness and gentleness that gave me such respect for him. The need I feel for him curls through my bloodstream. A noise sounds at my door and I glance up to see Trevor. Weary, I quickly swipe away the tears and straighten in my seat.

“How’s your day going?” he asks.

“Good,” I say and grab a file, any file from my desk, even though I haven’t been able to concentrate on anything since I came to work early. I didn’t have to officially start for a couple more weeks, but all I was doing at home was moping around in misery.

“Want to grab lunch?” he asks.

“No, I have plans,” I say, lying. Why is this man still pursuing me after finding out I was sleeping with his number-one enemy? That thought gives me pause. What’s in it for him?

“Can you break them?” he asks and comes farther into my office. He straightens his tie, and I get a whiff of his expensive cologne as he moves closer.

“No,” I say.

“Kylee. Look at me.” His voice is firm, a little demanding, and it totally reminds me of my father.

I lift my head, chills moving along my spine. “What?”

“Why are you making this so hard?” he asks, changing tactics by softening his tone. Does he really think that’s going to work with me?

“Making what hard, Trevor?” Needing to occupy my hands before I get up and choke him, I grab a pen and tap it on my desk.

He waves his hand back and forth between the two of us. “This. Us. Don’t you realize we’d be a power couple around here? We’d move up the ladder together.” He shakes his head. “Together . . . we could do so many things . . . even make partnership.”

“So that’s what this is about, then, a promotion for you?”

“That’s how life works, Kylee.”

I think about Jamie. That’s not how things work in his life. He was true, honest, not a manipulative bone in his body. He didn’t sleep with me for any other reason than he wanted to—he wanted me. A little thrill goes through me, but then sadness moves in when I realize I’ll never see him again.

“Why do you love law?” I ask, and push back in my seat.

His look is confused at first, then he says, “The power, the money, prestige. I’m sure your reasons are the same.”

Where was the passion? The love of helping others?

“Then you’d be wrong.”

“Come on, Kylee. Don’t tell me you’re still hung up on that rapist asshole.”

My spine stiffens, anger boiling my blood. “He didn’t rape your sister,” I say through gritted teeth.

“And you know that how?” He walks up to my desk, puts his palms on it, and leans forward.

“I just do.”

“I know what the records say, that my sister lied, but that’s bullshit.”

I take a moment to mull that over. “I didn’t read the records. I didn’t need to.” I touch my heart. “I know it in here.”

“Well, he left you, remember? It’s over, and now it’s time to think about me and you.” He taps his head. “You need to be smart about your future. That guy can’t offer you the things I can.”

Before I even realize what he’s doing, he comes around to the side of the desk and goes down on one knee. He reaches into his jacket and produces a velvet box.

I jump to my feet and my chair hits the wall behind me. I stand there, completely shocked, the room closing in on me. I gulp down a mouthful of air, unable to believe he’s proposing.

“Marry me, Kylee. We’ll make a great team.”

A great team? Another wave of anger takes hold. Marriage isn’t just about making a great team. While teamwork is important, marriage is about love, respect, truth, taking pleasure in the person’s successes, being there in the good times and bad, and helping that other person be the best they can be. They way Jamie supported my dream of being a designer and helped me be the best person I could be. Honest to God, the man messed with my life so thoroughly, how could I have thought for one second that I could go back to this? How could I let a man like that walk out of my life without a fight?

My gaze lifts when I see movement in my doorway, and I take in my father as well as Trevor’s brothers. My father has a huge smile of his face.

“Of course she says yes,” he bursts out, his eyes narrowing in on me, as if he’s daring me to say no. As I look at him, my heart races. I think about Jamie and his bravery, the way his father was always there for him and supported his passions by getting a tattoo. In that moment, I do what Trevor says and use my brains to think things over, figure out what’s important and what isn’t. I think about how hard I worked for my law degree, the years I’ve invested to make my own father happy, the lengths I’d go to be his obedient daughter, just for an ounce of his love, respect . . . and time. As I consider all that, a plan forms, takes shape, and I feel a new measure of calm.

“Answer him,” my father says.

I inhale a shaky breath and release it slowly as I warm to the idea bouncing around inside my brain. “I will,” I say and look at the man on his knees before me.