Chapter 25
—I was born to love you.—
Three days later
Lucy stared out the window of her condo, shoving back that little voice in her head telling her she was about to make a mistake.
She wasn’t making a mistake. She was doing what had to be done. Even if it carved her up inside.
The dust hadn’t exactly settled, but she wasn’t scheduled to see the FBI again anytime soon. After having “meetings” with them the last three days straight, she was exhausted. Now she was taking time off work to go get Liliana and bring her back to New Orleans. Though the truth was, she didn’t want to work at The Sapphire anymore. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to live here anymore. She had too many things up in the air right now, and Leighton didn’t deserve to be dragged into the mess of her life.
“Hey, everything okay?” Leighton’s voice sounded behind her and she nearly jumped. He’d told her he’d be back, but she hadn’t heard him come in.
And the way he asked her, she realized he must have said her name a couple times. “Yes,” she said automatically. “I mean…” She looked down at the little bag he had in his hand. “What’s that?”
“I got you those pastries you like. I know you’ve got a lot of stuff to deal with today and thought this might help.”
He was definitely making this a lot harder than it had to be. And she hadn’t even told him she’d be leaving today. “Thank you,” she murmured, taking his other hand and leading them over to the couch. “We need to talk.”
He instantly sat, twisting so that he faced her, his knees touching hers. “That doesn’t sound good.”
She tried to muster a smile but couldn’t because she hated everything about this. “Now that we’re both free and clear for the most part, when are you going back to Redemption Harbor?” He’d told her a whole lot more about his life, including where he lived, over the last three days, and she loved everything about him. And she hated that she couldn’t be with him. But the timing was wrong. Everything was wrong.
“You’re trying to get rid of me?”
“No. I just know that you have a life and you can’t be stuck here helping take care of me. I’ve got a handle on all of this and I don’t want you to feel obligated—”
“I don’t feel obligated. I want to be here. And I’m going to stay as long as you need me.”
That was what she was afraid of. The man was honorable and would stick here with her long after he wanted to go. And she wasn’t going to let that happen. “I am incredibly grateful for everything you’ve done for me. Everything. I still feel like a giant mess but I’m getting more of a grip on everything. Or I will once all of my uncle’s estates and other crap are settled.”
A lot of it was being seized by the government but not all of it. Thankfully, her trust and her cousin’s trust were completely separate and untouchable, per her very high-priced attorney. But she was letting the lawyers figure out all that crap because she didn’t care. She didn’t want any of his dirty money anyway. And if she ended up with something from him, she was going to donate it to charity. Or add it to Liliana’s trust.
“Where are you headed with this?” he asked quietly, not taking his gaze off her.
“I booked a flight out of here tonight,” she said. “I need to get my cousin. She never wanted to go to school over there and right now she needs me. I’m not going to ask you to be in a relationship with me when I’m literally about to become a parent. Not technically, but I’m her guardian, so I’ll be a single parent for the next few years. I have so many decisions to make right now regarding her, where we live, my job…everything.”
“Why can’t I be with you while you figure things out?”
She leaned forward and kissed him gently for a long moment. God, she was going to miss him. “I never want to be something you feel burdened with. And you are sweet enough and honorable enough that you’ll stick around even if you’re tired of me. Tired of all the responsibility I’m going to have soon. It might sound okay now, but trust me, it’ll get old fast.
His expression darkened. “You think I’ll get tired of you?”
“I honestly don’t know. I just know I’m facing a lot right now and I can’t put that burden on you. It’s not fair. And the guilt would eat away at me.”
“Spell it out, Lucy.”
“There can’t be an us. I know what you said the other night—”
“I didn’t even get to say it,” he growled. “You wouldn’t let me tell you that I love you.”
She clapped a hand over his mouth and shook her head. “Don’t say it.”
He gently grasped her wrist and dragged it away from his mouth. “Covering my mouth won’t change anything. I love you. So you go get your cousin. And when you come back, I’ll be waiting for you. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Leighton. This is not how breakups work. I’m breaking up with you. I’m ending things. You can go home guilt free. You’re officially off the hook now.”
He leaned forward and kissed her, long and deep.
She leaned into him, savoring his taste and masculine scent for as long as she could have him. When she pulled back, her heart was beating out of control and her breathing was uneven. “I think you need to go.” Because if he kissed her again, she wasn’t letting him go. She wasn’t that strong.
And she didn’t want to be selfish where he was concerned. He didn’t deserve to be saddled with all her baggage.
“Tell me you don’t love me,” he whispered.
She tried to find the words, but couldn’t force them out. Couldn’t force the lie out. There had been enough lies in her life. But just because she loved him didn’t mean they could be together.
He gave her one heated look before he kissed her forehead and stood. “I’m always a phone call away.”
Disappointment stabbed deep, cutting right through her chest cavity, that he was giving up so easily. Which told her all she needed to know. She’d done the right thing. Cutting the cord now before she’d fallen too hard… Okay, that was a total lie. She’d already fallen for him. It hurt now and it would hurt even worse later.
She let the tears fall as she heard the door shut behind him. But she only allowed herself to cry for a little while. She had to pack and she had to get her shit together because she was soon going to be Liliana’s guardian.
She had to be strong for Liliana. Because her cousin had just lost everything. As awful as her father had been, Alexei had still been her father. Sighing, she swiped the last of the tears and stood.
It was time to face reality.
* * *
Lucy rolled her carry-on behind her, her purse tucked against her shoulder. She’d forgotten how much she hated Heathrow Airport. It was the most congested airport in the world, she was certain. But she’d made it through customs and would soon see her cousin. All the sights, sounds and people were a blur as she passed them. Just streams of noise and color she’d found she was really adept at tuning out.
But soon she’d be face to face with Liliana. Who knew she’d killed Alexei. They’d talked on the phone and FaceTimed and Liliana hadn’t been angry at Lucy for what she’d done. She’d…known about her father. Not all of it, but she’d known a lot more than Lucy. She hadn’t hated him, but apparently she hadn’t loved him either. Something she’d never told Lucy. Right about now, Lucy needed to hug her, to see her in person.
And to take her home.
As she stepped out onto the curb, she looked at the line of waiting cabs and the dreary, overcast sky and sighed. She knew how this worked. The cabs started from the front of the line and you took whatever was available.
She started heading that way, but jerked to a halt when a very familiar, very sexy man stepped in front of her. Looking rested and good enough to eat. She blinked, certain she was seeing things. “What are you…? How did you…?”
“I’m helping a friend in her time of need,” Leighton said, giving her a grin that was far too wicked. “I flew over on the company’s jet and now I’m taking you to pick up your cousin. And we’ll be flying back on the jet as well.”
She blinked, staring at him as she tried to find her voice. “We broke up. This is insane.”
“Nope. You broke up with me. And I decided to reject that.” He said it so matter-of-factly. As if this was all normal.
“You can’t reject my breakup.”
“Pretty sure I just did. Come on, I’ve got a waiting car. And I’m pretty sure it’s about to rain so unless you want to get soaked…” He moved lightning fast and grabbed her carry-on before she could protest. Not that she really wanted to.
She hurried to keep up with him, knowing exactly what he was doing. He was trying to make this impossible for her to say no to him.
She watched him, all long, lean lines and hard muscle covered up by a sweater and jeans. His clothing did nothing to cover up the predator underneath. The man she’d been having dirty dreams about. The man she’d been missing more than breathing. After putting her carry-on in the trunk of a hired car, he waved the driver off and opened the back seat for her.
Numb and exhausted, she slid in, grateful the seats were heated. And okay, she was grateful he was here now.
“How was your flight?” he asked all casually. As if he hadn’t just surprised her in London.
“Honestly I barely remember it. I slept most of the time. I seriously can’t believe you’re here.”
“I can’t believe you thought you could get rid of me. If you’d told me you didn’t love me, I’d have walked away. But I saw that look in your eye.”
The driver pulled away, clearly knowing where he was going. At this point, nothing surprised her about Leighton. He’d known where to pick her up so of course he knew where she was going now.
“Look, if you really don’t want a relationship with me, fine. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be in each other’s lives. I love you, and that’s not changing. But I also like you. And I don’t want to lose your friendship. You need a friend right now. And I can be that person, no strings attached. I don’t need anything from you.”
“You can’t say stuff like that,” she whispered.
“But it’s true. And I do love you.”
“I love you too,” she said, not whispering now. “I love you so much. I just don’t want to be a burden—”
“Stop with that shit.”
“I just want you to know, that you don’t have to feel—”
“I’m a big boy,” he said.
“You’re not a boy.”
His lips quirked up. “Fine. I’m a grown man. I can make my own relationship decisions. And you were trying to make them for me. Why the hell would you think I’d let you deal with all this on your own?”
“I have no idea where I’m even going to be living soon! I’m literally living one day at a time as I figure things out. And bringing my cousin back home with me is the first one on my list. After that, I’ve got to decide if I want to stay in New Orleans or move. Then, if I move, which I’m pretty sure I’m going to, find a job. Oh, and figure out where Liliana will go to school. Then—”
He kissed her, soundly, and the only reason she pulled back was because they had a driver. It was weird enough the guy could hear their conversation. She wasn’t going to have a full-on make-out session with Leighton.
“You’re going to figure things out,” he murmured, leaning close to her ear. “And I’m going to give you orgasms every night.” He spoke so low she could barely hear him, but his words surged straight to her core, making heat blossom between her legs.
“You’re very sure this will work,” she whispered, pulling back so slightly.
“I am,” he said, looking into her eyes. “Because we are meant to be.”
There was no way she could argue with that. And she didn’t want to. Because she felt the same way. She felt like she’d been made for this man. This wonderful man who’d given her back her parents in a way. Because of him, she knew that her life with them hadn’t been a lie.
And now he was offering to be her rock, and she was going to take it. She’d lost so much, and she couldn’t bear to lose Leighton.
Not when he’d flown across the ocean for her. No, this was a man worth fighting for.