through, we figure it out. If you want to still leave after all that, we fucking leave together.”
“I advise you to stick to dating princesses, Gus.” Zipping up her bag, she turned to face him with eyes that felt as cold as the frozen block of ice in the pit of her stomach. “They’re shallow and not used to standing on their own. They won’t give you any pushback. Career women will, so give us a wide berth. Clearly, we’re out of your depth.” Head held high, she marched around him and out the door.
Chapter Ten
Joelle sat at her work desk by the bay window in her townhome, staring blankly at the computer screen. It was barely six in the morning, and Alice was curled up on the couch behind her. It had been almost two in the morning by the time her flight had touched down in Chicago, and a sleepy Alice had been there to pick her up. She’d had some explaining to do, of course. Her foster sister hadn’t even known she was out of town, much less in California, so Joelle knew she’d eventually have to tell Alice everything. But she simply hadn’t been up to it then. She’d felt too gutted.
Not to mention it hadn’t helped her state of nerves that Gus had followed her all the way back to Chicago.
At first, she’d thought Gus was hot on her heels because he wanted to drag her back and “hash things out” as he’d put it. That had obviously been his intention when he’d followed her out of their bungalow, shoeless and shirtless, to the B and B’s main lobby, where she’d called for a cab. She’d done her best to ignore him when he stood right beside her, telling her—and the woman at the desk who’d called for an airport shuttle—that Joelle wasn’t going to leave, and that they weren’t finished.
Then he’d sat with her outside as she waited for the shuttle, telling her the same spiel.
Telling her.
Not asking.
When the shuttle had come and she was on her way, she’d thought the agony of it was over, and she now had the breathing room to pick up the pieces. A few silent tears had fallen, but with Gus’s “it’s cute and I love it” comment echoing in her ears, she told her stupid, aching heart that calling it quits with him before she got in too deep was for the best. She had her job to keep her busy, so that was what she needed to focus on now.
Though her job would never hold her the way Gus had.
Or make her feel the way he’d made her feel.
Her job wouldn’t fascinate her, or capture her imagination, or have her heart race, or make her feel like the most protected person on the planet.
No.
What she had was her job, and she loved it.
The problem was that she also loved Gus.
She knew that without a doubt the moment she’d seen him again, this time in the airport’s passenger area as she’d waited to board her flight back to Chicago. Thankfully he’d taken the time to put on shoes and a shirt, though he still had that dark, almost manic gleam in his eyes. Despite that look and everything he’d said, the irrational joy in seeing him there told her what was truly in her heart. Then he sat next to her, dropping his bag beside hers, and though she’d told herself not to even look his way, she hadn’t been able to help herself.
“We’re not done, you and I,” he’d said simply, lacing his hands over his taut middle. “Do what you have to do. Be as pissed at me as much as you want. I deserve it, and I wholly own that fact, no excuses. But know this, my lady—we are not fucking done. Not by a longshot.”
She hadn’t known what to say to that, so she hadn’t said anything as they boarded. She didn’t ask why the hell he was taking a commercial flight back to Chicago when he had his own private jet right there to fly him back. Nor did she ask him why he walked with her to the curb where she was picked up by a baffled Alice, who’d clearly thought Gus had been left behind in California.
Her need to not speak continued as Alice drove her to her townhome, where her foster sister had insisted on staying overnight. Joelle had allowed that only because she didn’t have the energy to