Needing Happily Ever After - Elena Aitken Page 0,59

believe her and it was easy to see why when he passed her a box of tissues. She hadn’t even known she was crying.

Chapter Sixteen

Damon’s head pounded and the handful of painkillers he’d taken that morning had done very little to touch it. He thought about taking more, but didn’t bother. He deserved the pain. Hell, he deserved a lot more than a headache. He welcomed it as penance to his behavior from the night before.

His hand reached up to touch his cheek where Katie had slapped him. The mark was long gone. But the sting of it remained. He almost wished it had left a mark. It would have served as a visual reminder of what an asshole he’d been.

Damon almost never drank as much as he had the night before. And there was a reason for it. Alcohol had a tendency to loosen his tongue and it made him say things that he didn’t mean.

Like most of what he’d said to Katie the night before.

Most.

Because he’d also said a lot of things he’d meant.

Maybe he should have said more?

Damon squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, causing a fresh round of pain to shoot through his temple. Good. He needed to remember how, in just one night, he’d let his jealousy and insecurities ruin everything he had with her. Or could have.

Because after all, they were good together.

Drunk or not, Damon remembered very clearly the look on Katie’s face when he’d said that. Of course it had been true. He did think they were good together, but more than anything, he thought a whole lot more than that. It went way beyond just functioning well as a partnership. Way beyond that. He loved her. He was absolutely sure of it. And maybe love was making him act like an ass. Not that it was an excuse, but…an explanation?

It wasn’t good enough.

Damon rubbed at his face and tried once more to focus on the papers in front of him. The real estate contract from his father. His lawyers had sent them over for final review. All he had to do was sign them.

But he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

He pushed the papers away and pulled out another envelope. The loan documents for Katie’s store. They’d also arrived the day before. But instead of telling Katie, he’d tucked them away. Also unwilling to sign them.

Both documents represented everything that was wrong about their relationship. And that was bullshit, because there was way more good about them than wrong. There always had been.

Katie had stormed out the night before. It had been the first night he’d spent away from her in just over a week, yet it felt like a lifetime. How could he not remember at all what an empty bed felt like?

If it hadn’t been for the alcohol, Damon never would have slept at all. It was a small mercy, really.

Just for good measure, Katie had taken his truck keys with her when she left. It had probably been a good idea, because no doubt he would have tried to go after her, despite the state he was in. He assumed she’d gone to her mother’s. An assumption that was confirmed when Logan showed up with his truck keys about an hour earlier. Thankfully, he hadn’t said anything to indicate that Katie had told him about their fight. That was a good sign, right?

A sign of what?

That she was keeping their secret as promised? Or maybe, and more likely, that he’d screwed up more than even he thought he had.

Oh yeah, he’d definitely screwed things up. Damon pushed away from the desk and the papers. He walked to the window and looked out at the gray day. He was a smart man. Some might even say a genius. But genius or not, he could be pretty friggin’ stupid. He put his hand straight on the glass in front of him and leaned in.

He refused to believe that it was over. Not like that. Not from a drunk night. And definitely not if he had a say in it.

An idea began to formulate as his mind cleared from the drunken fuzz. He moved toward the desk and the paperwork scattered there that only a few days ago had felt like the most important thing in the world. But he’d been wrong. Katie was the only thing that mattered.

And he was going to prove it.

With a deep inhale, Damon nodded, his decision made, and gathered up the papers. He