with psycho parents to the billionaire bad boy with psycho parents who was also dumped by a duchess.”
“You’re not bad,” Paige says with a whisper of a smile.
“You’d like to believe that.” I wink, trying like hell to lighten the mood. Really, I’m trying to deflect the ache tainting my bones.
“But you couldn’t move past it, could you? She became your ex.”
“I’m getting there,” I whisper, running my hands over my face before I continue. “We made the mistake of having this big engagement dinner for our families to meet. I didn’t invite my parents, because—well—you’ve met my mother.”
Paige nods, barely breathing as she waits for more.
“Dad got pissed he wasn’t invited and showed up anyway. Drunk as a skunk, of course. Grandma asked him to leave, and he grabbed a bottle of wine off a waiter’s tray and smashed it against the table. He yelled and screamed at everyone there until the cops came.”
“Oh my God,” she hisses. “Ward...”
“It gets better. They dragged him off in handcuffs because he refused to go peacefully. As you can imagine, dinner ended early. I went back to my penthouse, wondering how I’d ever explain the shitshow, and Maria arrived a little later. She didn’t hold back. I’ll never forget her words, when she said, ‘I don’t see how I’ll ever have a normal family with kids. Not with that hideous man in my life.’”
I pause, watching as Paige’s eyes widen.
“Key word being my life. Not ours. I knew where it was going then. She cut my heart out and the worst part is—the fucking worst—I couldn’t blame her. No one should have to put up with the shit Nick and I deal with. So I told her I’d make it easy and call the engagement off. I expected her to act upset, then tell me I was right. No, she just smiled and hugged me. She thanked me for doing the right thing, for freeing her, and walked right out the door.” I’m pinching the bridge of my nose, the physical pain numbing the sting of that night.
“It’s okay,” Paige whispers, stroking my arm. “She sounds like a selfish piece of—”
I don’t let her finish.
“No. I was selfish that night. I could’ve put Nick to shame with my stupidity when I hit the closest bar and brought some woman home. One of Osprey’s bloggers got a nice picture of her leaving with me the next day when I gave her a ride home. Rumors flew that the engagement ended because I cheated. Maria never spoke up to clear the record, not after she was back in Paris and far from Chicago drama. I never corrected it.”
“Holy shit. That’s almost worse than Austin!”
“I’m over it,” I grind out, hoping that’s true.
“But you loved her?”
With a heavy sigh, I shake my head.
“Maybe once in another life. Maybe I was just fooling myself. Anyone I can extricate from my life that easily, I couldn’t have had much of a connection with.”
“You have no reason to protect Maria. What she did was disgusting, Ward.”
“She didn’t deserve my family’s BS. She panicked and bailed for herself. Frankly, you don’t deserve it either, Paige. Can you imagine if you were stuck in this abusive drama web that has no end? It’s no damn wonder I’ve lost my capacity to love. You don’t need this shit. You’re the warmest person I know.”
“What did you just say?”
She stares at me, her lips trembling.
“I don’t want a dysfunctional life for you. Not after we’re moving ahead with Winthrope. Your parents worry about you. Your dad called me after you gave them the NDA, you know. He told me you’d better come out of this better off than you went into it, or he’d castrate me. And if anyone ever asked why it ended, I’d admit to wrongdoing.”
“Crap! I wish you would’ve told me sooner. I never wanted them butting in,” she says, turning a shade paler.
“Your old man was looking out for you, and he should. That’s the kind of family you deserve. You don’t need a man who can’t feel.”
She stares at me like I’m insane and purses her lips into a thin pink line.
“What?”
She inches closer and cups my face with her hands, brushing her fingers through my short beard.
“Ward, you’re so wrong. You can still love just fine. You love Nick and your grandma like crazy. You’d do anything for them. You’re only a dick to people in the office to hide how much you want the best