Chapter Nineteen

“You need a pep talk?”

Caleb glared at the man by his side. “We went from abject apologies to mockery rather quickly.”

Alec shrugged. “I’ve got years of joking to make up for. But seriously, is there anything I can do?”

He straightened his lapels and sighed. “I don’t think this is something you can help with.”

“Well, at least I got her here. Plus, my driveway is really long, so if she storms out, you still have a good few minutes to follow her and make your case.”

“And we’re back to the mocking.”

The grandfather clock in the corner of the study chimed loudly. Hailey would be here any minute.

Caleb paced the length of the room. The Charrs’ city home was just as he’d remembered it, even though it’d been years since he was last here. He remembered lying on the Persian rug in this room with Alec, walking him through a math problem. Cynthia would be by their side, looking over their shoulders to make sure they were on track while her husband worked at the big mahogany desk behind them. They had spent many a cozy evening in this room.

And now he’d have one more memory to add to it, for better or worse.

“What if she won’t give me another chance?” he asked, voicing his deepest fear aloud.

This time Alec didn’t have any mocking words to say. The other man ran a hand over his jaw and sighed. “If things are really over, then I’ll help you do what I did when Lana left. Drink yourself into oblivion.”

“Sounds healthy.”

“We could take a trip,” he offered. “Visit the parents. They’ve been picking at me for years to repair things with you.”

He glanced up. “Really?”

“My father was furious with me after I ran you out of town. He claimed that wasn’t how a family solved their differences.”

“I always assumed they hated me as much as you did.”

Alec shrugged. “Turns out they never really liked Lana.”

He snorted. “I know the feeling.”

“Look, just tell her the truth. Lay everything out there so you have no regrets if things don’t go your way.”

“You think that’s likely?”

“I think Hailey has a right to be angry. And I’ve seen her in action when she feels like justice hasn’t been served.”

“Why do you think I wanted to poach her?” he said.

“I’m going to have a devil of a time replacing her. While you’re at it, see if you can convince her to come work for me again.”

“Staffing your legal team is rather low on my list of priorities.”

“Shame.”

A knock sounded on the door, and Alec crossed to answer it. He conferred with the butler before turning back to Caleb.

“She’s here,” he said. “Should I send her up?”

Caleb took a deep breath. This was it.

“Yes.”

The butler bowed and backed away while Alec held the door open. “That’s my cue,” he said. “Good luck.”

“Thank you for helping me get this chance,” he replied.

Alec inclined his head and slipped from the room.

Alone, Caleb tried to quash the nerves clawing at him. Everything was riding on this conversation. He’d either get a second chance or lose her forever.

And a future without Hailey wasn’t an outcome he ever wanted to consider.

…

“Right this way, please.”

Hailey followed the butler through the gorgeous halls of Alec’s home.

Halls Caleb roamed as a child.

Stop it.

This wasn’t about Caleb. This was about her freedom. She doubted this meeting would take long at all. Perhaps Alec just wanted to apologize for his role in all this.

But when she stopped before the door the butler indicated, she had to take a minute to roll back her shoulders and take a deep breath. Opening the door, she stepped into the room beyond.

A man waited by the window dressed in his customary elegant suit. But his hair wasn’t a tousled blond.

“Wait,” Caleb said when she reached for the door. “Please.”

Her fingers hesitated on the knob. Adrenaline pumped through her veins as she wrestled with the urge to run as far and fast as she could.

But another part of her leaped back to life at the sight of him.

“Give me a chance to apologize.”

She turned, dropping her hand from the door. “What is this? An attempt to ease your guilt?”

He shook his head. “This is about you. Only you.” He took a step toward her. “I’m sorry, Hailey. For everything.”

She flinched. “Everything, huh?” Including kissing her? Spending the night with her?

Pain and humiliation warred in her chest. She had no intention of standing here and listening to him explain exactly why she’d never been good enough to be more than a pawn. She may have been an idiot before, but the wool had been pulled from her eyes. There were no illusions left.

Turning, she reached for the door.

“Stop.” He took another step. “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”

Black humor coursed through her. All she wanted was a fresh start, but Caleb seemed determined to stomp on her heart a few more times before she got it.

“I could have been anyone.” She shook her head. “Do you have any idea how it feels to be so utterly interchangeable?”

It was a sledgehammer to her pride. To her self-esteem. He’d made her feel like a goddess and then brought her brutally back to earth.

“You’re not replaceable,” he denied, his voice harsh. “Don’t think that for a second.”

Her laugh was hollow. “But it’s the truth, and we both know it.”

A tortured expression crossed his face. “It was never meant to happen this way,” he said. “I thought this plan would be easy to carry out. But as the month progressed, you know what I discovered? A conscience I thought was dead.”

“Congrats. You’re a human being. Not a very good one, mind you, but human.”

“Every time we spoke, my doubts about my plan got stronger. Every time I kissed you I wanted to block out everything happening with Alec and simply be the man you thought I was.”

“But you didn’t.”

He sighed. “Not until it was too late. I swear to you, Hailey, I went to Alec that day to make things right, not use you against him.”

How she wanted to believe him. But she wasn’t naive enough to be tricked twice.

“You’d do whatever you needed to in order to get what you wanted.”

“Yes,” he agreed. “I would have. And I did something else,” he said, striding to the desk and retrieving a brown envelope. “Here.”

She hesitated a moment before her curiosity got to her. Striding to him, she took the package from his hands. “What’s this?”

“Your contract.”

She hissed a breath, breaking the seal and pulling out her contract with Charr Industries. She’d thought he couldn’t betray her more, but here was the proof.

“How do you have this?”

“I wanted you away from Alec any way I could get you. I thought with that contract I’d have the information to make you offers you couldn’t refuse.”

“The coffee break,” she said, her voice dull. “The day you came to see me.” She’d been so happy he’d showed he cared. Instead he’d been stealing her information. Was this his plan B? If she’d resisted him, he’d turn around and offer her a perfectly crafted contract she couldn’t refuse?

Her eyes closed. He’d planned for everything.

“I hope you notice that envelope was sealed.”

Her eyes opened. She’d ripped through the top to get inside. The Charr Industries logo was stamped on the outside. He’d gone to the effort to steal her information without trying to use it?

Without even bothering to read it?

He took a step toward her. “Knowledge is power. But when I got my hands on that contract, I couldn’t use it.”

She traced the broken seal with a soft finger.

“Even then I knew, Hailey, that I wanted more from you. This wasn’t about luring you away to a different company or seducing you because Alec cared about you. It very quickly became just about you. Wanting to know you. Touch you. I wanted to be better for you.”

Her fingers tightened on the file.

“I have something else for you.”

Hailey looked up to see him gesturing to the desk. Three files waited on it.

“Those are job offers,” he said. “From Incortech, Charr Industries, and our third competitor. If you really want to be out of our lives, you’ll find that third offer is very generous. Your professional life shouldn’t be stalled just because I brought you into this fight.”

“Looks like you’re trying to buy me off,” she said.

“I’m trying to make amends,” he corrected. “I’m trying to make things right in the best ways I know how.”

She collected the files, not sure of what to say.

“I’ll look them over.”

“Alec wants you back.”

She shook her head. “I don’t think I can be around either of you and your war.”

“There is no war,” he replied. “Not anymore, at least. We’re taking steps to patch up our relationship. Alec finally believes what happened all those years ago. I have you to thank for making that possible.”

Her brows rose. “I didn’t think you had it in you to forgive him.”

“I didn’t, either,” he said with a shrug. “You know my first thought when he showed up at my door?”

“I can hardly imagine.”

“You.”

She glanced up.

“I thought about what kind of man you believed I was, and I didn’t want to let you down again.”

She took a shaky breath. “I’m glad you and Alec are working things out,” she said. “And I will look at that job offer. Consider your amends made.”

Turning, she strode for the door.

“That wasn’t the only reason I wanted to see you.”

Hailey rounded on him. “Let me guess. You love me.”

He blinked. “Yes.”

“I’m supposed to believe that Caleb Langston, playboy extraordinaire, fell in love with his mark.” She rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what you think you can gain going down this path.”

“I’m not lying.”

She looked at him, seeing the earnest expression on his face, and shook her head. “When we were together, I couldn’t believe it was happening,” she said. “Why would a man like you fall for me?” A helpless laugh escaped her. “I almost let myself believe the fairy tale was real. And then I learned the truth. Of course you’d never looked at me twice.” She tossed up her hands. “Go back to your world, Caleb, and I’ll go back to mine. Let’s just leave it at that.”

Gripping the door, she yanked it open and fled before her resolve could crumble. She dashed past the startled butler and hopped down the stairs to the driveway.

It hurt hearing him say he loved her and knowing he didn’t mean it. Not the way she needed him to. Not the way she loved him. And she did. Despite the terrible things he’d done, she closed her eyes and remembered him smiling down at her as he covered her body with his. She remembered the kiss in Lux that had left her breathless and the half-eaten tacos they’d abandoned on the pier.

It had been a game to him, but to her it had been very, very real.

She heard footsteps behind her before Caleb jogged into her path.

“I can’t believe Alec was right about the damned driveway,” he muttered.

“What do you want?” she demanded. “Let me go.”

“I can’t,” he said, shaking his head. “If you leave, my life goes back to being empty, and I can’t face that.”

“That’s nonsense. You run a billion-dollar company. Your life is anything but empty.”

“My personal life is,” he denied. “Before you came along, I was happy to drift through the days, never settling down, never caring for anyone longer than a few dates. It was easy. And then you went and complicated the hell out of my whole world.”

She scoffed at his words. “I seriously doubt it.”

“If all you were to me was a mark successfully used, why would have I arranged to meet today? Why would I have recruited Alec into tricking you here? Sounds like a lot of effort for someone I don’t care about.”

He had a point.

“You wanted to give me a consolation prize,” she reasoned, lifting the files.

“It would have been simple to have those delivered.”

Maybe he wanted to rope her back in because he wasn’t done enjoying her in bed. But the thought rang hollow. He didn’t need her for company, and he was going to an awful lot of effort to win back a bedmate.

“You feel guilty,” she tried.

He nodded. “Incredibly so. But that’s why I went to Alec after our night together. I didn’t want to follow through with my plan. You were more important than revenge.” He took a step forward. “I didn’t have to lure you here to forgive me of something I don’t want to forget. My guilt over what I did to you will help ensure I never make the wrong choice again. Love is worth more than hate. You made me see that.”

She took a step back, trying to think of any other reason he could have called her here.

“You wanted to thank me,” she said. “That’s why I’m here.”

A smile so tender it took her breath away curved his lips. “I do,” he agreed. “Without you, I doubt Alec and I would ever have healed old wounds. Without you, I know I wouldn’t have learned what it is to love another human being so much their needs matter more than your own. But that’s not why you’re here.”

“You can’t love me,” she whispered.

“Turns out I can,” he said. “Completely and utterly. I might lose you today, but that truth won’t change. You’re the one for me, Hailey. For better or worse. I don’t want anyone but you.”

“I was a bet.”

He nodded. “Then you became more. Then you became everything.”

Her breath froze in her chest.

“I know I hurt you.” He took a cautious step forward. “And I hope I can make up for that the rest of my life. Give me another chance, sweetheart.”

Her heart thundered in her ears as she stared up at him. He was using her own love of logic against her. She wanted to believe there was some other reason he hadn’t stopped pursing her, but it didn’t make any sense. If he didn’t care for her, what did he have to gain from any of this?

“I’m afraid to believe you,” she breathed.

Regret shone from his dark eyes. “I know. It’s my fault. But you love seeing the best in people. Do it now. See the best in me. I can be what you need, Hailey.”

She shook her head, looking away. “This could never work. You’ll get bored. I’ll feel trapped. We’ll end up killing each other.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Caleb. Be serious.”

His hands cupped her shoulders, sliding down her arms to catch her hands in his. “I’m in,” he said. “Whatever time you want to give me, I’ll take. But I can promise you this. I’ll never get bored. You’re the one who brought me back to life.”

Her heart thundered in her ears. She didn’t want to make another mistake. He might be lying to her again.

Or he might be telling the truth. If Caleb actually loved her, wouldn’t she move heaven and hell to be with him? She’d seen for herself how he’d changed over the course of their time together. Maybe what had started as a cruel ruse had blossomed into more.

After all, she’d vowed never to love him, and look where she was now.

“I was alone for so many years,” he said, leaning close enough to breathe in her ear. “I got good at it. Until I met you. Please, Hailey, don’t send me back to that life.”

He was making it too hard to think reasonably. Her heart wanted her to leap into his arms while her head cautioned against anything that might hurt her further.

“Give me another chance and I promise I’ll make this up to you. I’ll make you fall in love with me if it’s the last thing I do.”

She looked up into his gaze. Did he really not know? Maybe he was just as much a fool as she was.

The wind brushed against her skin as she came to the precipice. She had a decision to make. One that would alter the course of her life. Walk away from Caleb and stay safe in her grief and anger. Maybe she’d find someone else eventually, but she’d always be holding a little piece of her heart back. The piece that she’d never be able to reclaim from him.

Or leap. Throw logic out the window and trust in the man she’d thought she’d seen in him. The man she’d fallen in love with.

“You’re an idiot,” she said, the words having no heat.

“Your idiot,” he agreed.

“Do you think I would have been so hurt by this if I wasn’t already crazy about you?”

Surprise shone on his face. “What?”

Nerves tugged at her. She felt exposed. Vulnerable. If he let her down again, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to knit the shards of her heart back together.

Lifting her chin, she strengthened her resolve.

This was her chance to claim what she wanted. If she left, she’d never kiss him again or wake up in bed beside him. She wouldn’t fight with him or laugh with him or do a million other little things that made up a lifetime.

This was a gamble, but when was life ever certain?

“I don’t run,” she said, her lips dropping to his mouth. “I don’t take the easy way out. I fight for those who are important to me.”

“Then fight for me,” he said. “Please.”

How could she say no when this battle might ensure her happiness for the rest of her life?

“If you ever make a bet on anything again I’ll kill you,” she murmured, rising to her tiptoes.

“Not so much as a coin toss,” he agreed. “Besides, who needs to gamble?” His lips brushed against hers. “The life I’m envisioning for us is a sure thing.”

“Is that so?”

He rubbed his nose against hers. “Mmm-hmm.”

“I love you,” she whispered, her fingers running through his hair.

“And I love you,” he replied. “Only you.”

The words wrapped around her, banishing her doubts. With his inability to give up and her skills at overcoming the challenges thrown her way, there was nothing that could defeat them.

“I’m still mad, you know,” she warned. “It might take you years to make up for this.”

“That’s fine,” he replied. “I’m great at angry make-up sex.”

“You’re hopeless.”

“And utterly yours.”

His lips came down on hers, and she smiled against his mouth, liking the sound of that. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him close as she kissed the love of her life. Through all the twists and turns this bet had brought, this time they had both come out the winners.

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