her curiosity to explore the environment in which Gaston worked. At first glance, it looked just as sterile as his home, so it was probably just as horrible. But after placing a large chair in between them, she turned to face him. Her chin went up defiantly when she took in his stance, knowing that he wouldn’t let her out of his office until he’d had his say.
“Okay, I’m here. Tell me what you want to say and then let me clear my materials out of your laboratory.”
That stunned him. He’d pictured her ignoring him and fighting him every step of the way, but he’d never imagined her abandoning her work. He knew she’d had too much trouble gaining funding for her idea. So why was she throwing in the towel now? He wasn’t sure how to handle her in this mood. He preferred the fighting, angry Elana over the sad and defeated woman standing in front of him.
It didn’t matter, he told himself resolutely. He wasn’t going to let her get away from him. Not again.
“I’m sorry, Elana. What I did seven years ago was stupid and pointless. And I hurt you more than I realized, not to mention making both of us miserable in the process. I’m asking you to forgive me for my stupidity.”
She blinked, completely taken aback by his abject apology. She crossed her arms over her stomach protectively. “Why should I accept your apology?” she asked, but her determination was faltering. She’d pictured him demanding she put the past behind them but never in her wildest imaginings had she thought he’d completely accept blame for their breakup. This was unheard of. Gaston was strong and powerful. He never admitted defeat.
Okay, so he wasn’t admitting defeat. In fact, he wouldn’t even let her admit defeat. But this wasn’t what she was expecting.
“You’re not playing fair, Gaston.”
He chuckled softly, a deep, sexy sound that make her stomach muscles tighten. “When have I ever played fair?” he asked, moving forward after pushing away from the door. “I want you. I want you in my life forever. I want all of those things we talked about seven years ago and I’m willing to admit that everything was my fault and I was an idiot.”
Her chin trembled with his words.
“But don’t let us suffer any longer.” His heart ached to see her tears spring back into those lovely brown eyes. “Don’t put us through any more torture for something I stupidly did all those years ago. I admit I was wrong, honey. What do I need to do to get us past this?”
She shook her head and couldn’t stop the tears from falling once again. “Why did you do it?” she asked, her voice cracking with the pain of what they’d both endured. “And why all those women, Gaston?”
He sighed and stopped when he was less than a foot away from her. “Because I was so furious at the idea of another man touching you. I couldn’t stand it.”
“Why did you believe the picture? And who gave it to you?”
Gaston thought about telling her that her father had sent him the picture, but why push the pain deeper? “Does it matter who gave me the picture? I’m at fault. I should have ignored the picture. I should have believed in what we had together. I didn’t then, but I’m fighting for us now. I know what we have together is special. Don’t throw it away again.” He paused, watching her brown eyes. “Please.”
Elana was silent for a long moment, looking down at the floor. She wasn’t sure what to think anymore. Gaston was still too arrogant, too confident and she wasn’t sure if she could trust him. But something about him, the way he was standing and the unusual silence was telling her something. It hinted at a vulnerability that she’d never seen in him before.
When she realized that, her heart stopped, then sped up with a frantic pace, her eyes looking up at his once again. “If I told you that I’d spent the night with another man last night, what would you say?”
Gaston jerked, feeling like someone punched him in the gut but then he looked down into her pretty brown eyes. He almost laughed as his muscles unclenched and he took several steps towards her. “I would demand that you prove it.”
Well THAT definitely wasn’t what she’d been expecting. She straightened her shoulders defiantly, her chin lifting somewhat in disbelief. “I could have!” she snapped back at