When she’d said she would meet me, I was beyond myself with relief and joy. She was giving me a chance to prove myself to her, and I wanted to do anything do make her believe me.

I’d seen the story on the news about the hotel being torn down and figured out what had made Alexandra so angry. She’d heard about the place being demolished and she thought I was lying to her from the start.

Shit. That was so fucked up. Not only I was pissed off because of that lie, but I was also mad that I could lose Alexandra just because of some misunderstanding.

I was so furious. I didn’t know who the contractors were or why they would want to spread lies about my project. It was absurd, and I shouldn’t be surprised that it had already reached media. These things happened from time to time when our competition tried to ruin our reputation. They would spurt nonsense and try to make us look like we were on the verge of bankruptcy.

I hated that side of our business. No matter how hard we tried to build our reputation and make more contracts with clients, there were the unscrupulous sharks that lied shamelessly about things that were far from truth.

How did they know about the project, though? Maybe someone at the bank leaked that the expense was higher than the value. Yes, that could be possible.

Shit. These things happened, but this time it was different. This time I could lose Alexandra, and I couldn’t allow that. I’d promised her she could make whichever design she wanted, giving my best to find the money she would need, and I had to show her all of that was real. I didn’t really care how this happened or why—I had to prove to her I was a good guy and didn’t mislead her about the project.

Now I understood why she was angry at me, probably thinking I just wanted to use her. She couldn’t be more wrong and I wanted to give my best to prove to her what she meant to me. I got so addicted to her in this short period of time that I couldn’t imagine spending another day without her. I needed to see her. I needed her to believe me.

I went to the hotel and headed for the old bridal suite. After Alexandra told me how much this place meant to her, I remembered this room, and I’d wanted to use it once to surprise her. I’d never thought I would have to use it in this way—trying to get her to forgive me, but what was done, was done.

If anyone had told me I would be so crazy about some woman, I would laugh at them and then laugh some more. Hell, until recently I joked about Grant being so in love with Madison, not really understanding that connection they shared.

Now I wanted nothing more than to be with Alexandra and never get separated from her.

I loved her.

Shit. I loved her. I loved that woman who was so serious, but at the same time so fiesty and seductive when she wanted to be. She was smart and talented, and she was so beautiful. There was no one else like her. She was truly special and I needed her. I had to make things right with her.

After an hour, I set up the old bridal suite with roses and candles. It had already been furnished with the double bed and floor mirror, and I brought blankets and pillows. I lit the candles and stepped aside to take a look of the work I’d done.

I shoved my hands into my pockets, feeling too nervous. My heart was racing and my palms actually started sweating. Seriously, what was wrong with me? I was acting ridiculous.

I was worried she wouldn’t forgive me. What if she wasn’t the “roses and candles” type of girl? What if she didn’t trust me in the end?

“Stop this, man. You will sort it out. Come on, you act like you’re a teenager on a first date.”

I took my phone out of my pocket and texted Alexandra to let her know where she could find me.

The more time passed, the more nervous I became, and by the time I heard the knocking on the door, I was already pacing around the room in circles and imagining the negative outcome.

Shit. Okay. Here we go. I opened the door and felt my heart skip a beat when I saw her. She was wearing one of her boring business suits, but she’d never looked prettier to me. Even though her face was pale and she had dark circles under her eyes, there was no one more beautiful than her.

“Alexandra.” I approached her, my hands itching to touch her, but I noticed the way she tensed and I halted mid-step. I smiled slightly at her, trying to ease the atmosphere, but she didn’t return it. Okay. I needed to take baby steps with her. “Come in.” I let her pass, stepping backward to give her some space.

She entered and stopped when she noticed how I’d decorated it.

“Oliver...,” she began, but her voice died off.

I closed the door, suddenly worried she would decide to bail from here. I got to the other part of the room, making sure to show her I didn’t want to pressure her or anything.

“I’m sorry if it was too much. Do you like it? I mean, I hope you like it. This doesn’t mean I wanted... I... Shit,” I was mumbling, terribly nervous, and I had to pull myself together. I moved my hand through my short hair and thought carefully about the right way to start our conversation. “Why don’t you take a seat?” I pointed at the chair that was placed opposite from the double bed.

“Okay.” She sat down on it and waited for me to take a seat somewhere. Strangely, I felt too restless to sit, so I just stood.

“Look, I saw the news about the hotel today, and now I understand why you were so angry yesterday.” She opened her mouth to say something, but I raised my hand to stop her and looked at her with my pleading eyes. “Please, let me just say this. That was a lie. We never planned to tear down that hotel. Shit, I want to do opposite from it.”

“Then why did that contractor say that?”

“To ruin the project.”

She looked at me like she couldn’t believe me. “What?”

“Yes. Someone lied to ruin our project.”

“I can’t believe you. That is not possible. That is horrible!”

I shrugged my shoulders. “Yes, it’s possible, and you’re right—it is horrible.” I sat on the bed and leaned my elbows on my knees. “Those things happen all the time in our line of business, Alexandra. There are people who would sell their own mother to beat their competition, and the market is too big. There are a lot of strong players, and each one of us wants to be the best.”

She paled and her eyes widened in shock and displeasure. “Do you want to say that your firm does those things too?”

My heartbeat accelerated again, realizing how my words sounded. “No! Of course not, Alexandra. Not all companies are like that. I assure you that LQT is not that kind of company. We’ve always worked hard to succeed on our own, without resorting to such things. We’re military, remember? We work together. We’re family.”

“How can I trust you, Oliver? I trusted you so far, but then I heard this...”

I wanted to take her into my arms badly, but I didn’t want to scare her away again. “No, Alexandra...” Shit. She had to believe me. “I’m not that kind of person. Everything I’ve told you until now is the truth. I do my job because I have passion for it. My partners and I are the same—we do things we love and we strive to be best on our own. We rely on our own strength and skills.”

“And how about the hotel?”

“I wanted this hotel for a long time. I had the vision for it from the start. I’ve always wanted to bring its old beauty back, and then you came—with your passion, vision, and talent—and I was hooked. You are perfect for the project and you are perfect for me. I’ve never wanted to demolish it, and assure you that hotel won’t ever be demolished as long as I’m involved.” I exhaled, deciding to be completely honest with her. “Look, the truth is that I worried a bit about not being able to give you all the funds you need for the project. I fully believe in you and I want you to redecorate it no matter how expensive it is, but according to my calculations, there was a possibility that finding all that money might not be possible.”

“What? But—”

“Look, that doesn’t mean I won’t find the money. I will find it because I want you to make your design come true, but in any case—the place won’t be torn down.”

She was just looking at me for several moments, twisting her hands on her lap as she thought about my words.

“I thought you were lying to me, you know. I thought you just wanted to use me and dump me when you got bored.”

Screw baby steps. I got up and crossed the room in two strides. I knelt in front of her and took her by the hands. I frowned when I felt how cold they were. “Angel, I never wanted to use you.” I kissed her hands, holding them tight. “I admit that I was a complete jerk in the beginning, and nothing justifies my awful behavior then, but it would be a lie if I told you I wasn’t attracted to you from the start. Then you showed me your worth during the interview and got me completely crazy for you these last few days.”

She was still frowning, like she couldn’t still believe my words completely. “Because of sex.”

“No, angel.” I kissed her hands again and looked her sincerely. “It was never just about sex. While I enjoy our sex more than anything I’ve enjoyed in my life, you’re more important to me—you, as a person. Alexandra...” I sighed. “I can’t be without you. I want you to believe me. I need you. I need you more than anything, and if you can’t believe me, than I don’t know what I’m going to do...”

She didn’t even move as she examined my face carefully. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “Okay,” she finally said.

“Okay?”

She nodded and offered me a slight smile. “Okay. I believe you.” She shook her head and bit her lip. “This is really difficult for me, because I was really hurt, Oliver. I thought you were lying to me about everything... And this project means a lot to me. And not only this project.”

“Not only this project?”

“You also mean a lot to me.” She brought my hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly. For a moment I thought I didn’t hear her well. My heart threatened to jump out of my throat.

“Can you repeat that, angel?”

She bit her lip again, and of course, my cock immediately twitched. “You... You mean a lot to me.”

Alexandra. She was an angel. My angel. I actually wanted to jump from happiness. She believed me. She felt something for me.

That was it. I needed to have her right now.