Blaire’s stomach roiled. She had told herself that if she didn’t get this promotion, she would be okay with it. Her father had done this to her several times. He’d passed her over when she clearly had the work ethic that deserved to be rewarded.
And every single time, she had taken the announcement with grace and poise. She had been sure she’d get this one because it wasn’t supposed to be announced until after the new year. What had her father been thinking? How could he have given this one to Tucker when she’d been hoping he’d finally give her a crumb?
“Blaire…” Tucker’s breathless word came from right behind her.
She waved him off. “I don’t want to talk to you.”
“I don’t even want it.”
She spun around to face him, her eyes flashing with fury. “And that’s supposed to make it better?” Covering her face with her hands, she let out a groan. “I can’t believe I was so stupid. This was all just a big game to you, wasn’t it? You thought you’d poke some fun at the daughter of the guy who clearly doesn’t appreciate her.” She threw her hands down at her sides. “I can’t believe you didn’t say something.” Her voice broke, and she hated just how weak it made her sound.
“That isn’t it at all.”
She huffed, slicing her hand through the air dismissively as she continued toward the elevator. Her father hadn’t even mentioned it. They were both just laughing at her behind her back. This was a betrayal on so many levels.
The conversations she’d had with Tucker while they’d been here ran through her mind like an old-time movie. She flushed, squeezing her eyes shut as she recalled the one in which she had told him her dreams for the future. He might not have realized it, but a promotion was a stepping stone into doing something she loved. She’d been working for her father for years, and to move to another publisher would take leverage. Why couldn’t anyone understand that?
But it was more than that.
Tucker had intentionally kept this from her.
“Blaire, will you stop and just talk to me?”
She skidded to a halt and faced him.
Tucker nearly collided with her, stopping a few inches away.
“Sure. We can talk. We can talk about how you lied to me.”
“I didn’t lie.”
“Lying by omission is still lying, Tucker. We’re both reporters. We both know how people can twist something simply by refusing to say a single part of the story. The fact is, you didn’t tell me even though you had several opportunities to do so.” She shook her head, her shoulders slumping. “You got close to me. I told you things. And you chose not to tell me anyway. How could you do that?”
He shifted under her gaze. His discomfort almost made her feel bad for the way this conversation was going.
Almost.
“You know what? Maybe it wasn’t your ex that was the problem.”
He stiffened.
“Maybe you were the kind of person she couldn’t be around because she never knew if you were going to be up front with her.”
His gaze darkened, and his jaw tightened. She didn’t miss the way his hands balled into fists at his sides or the way his face flushed. Tucker deserved to feel guilty over his choices. She didn’t know what had possessed her to say such things. Perhaps it was a deep-rooted need to push him away. She wasn’t even that upset about losing the promotion. It was how she felt betrayed by him—how he’d listened to her career plans and kept his mouth shut the whole time.
“You’re right, Tucker. We’re nothing alike, and we never would have worked. This resort is a literal paradise, and for a little while, it can make people forget they live in the real world with real problems. The fact that you didn’t feel you could tell me about your promotion is all the proof I need to make my decision. It’s over, Tucker. You don’t have to worry about how you’re going to have to break it off with me when we get back home, because there’s nothing to break off.”
She whirled away from him, ignoring his calls for her to come back and finish their conversation. From where she stood, the conversation was over. They had nothing left to discuss. Tucker had let their job get in the way of their happiness, and she didn’t want to be with someone who didn’t know what they wanted in life.
A few days later, Blaire left Sweet Paradise Resort without notifying anyone. She slipped out at the earliest possible moment and managed to catch the first flight home. It was unclear when Tucker would leave. Maybe he had already. She figured he’d had his own plan for getting out of there. He was the king of avoidance, after all.
She was tempted not to come in to work after she got home. It would have been so easy to take the allotted time off she deserved. But that wasn’t her style. To take even one extra day off would show her dad that he was right about her and that she didn’t deserve the promotion he’d given to Tucker. There were always incentives being handed out, especially when one of their stories was good enough to sell more copies.
So Blaire marched up the steps to the building where their offices were. She took the elevator to the right floor then flipped on all the lights because she was the first one there. Staring around the empty office, she let out a sigh. It was lonelier here than she had remembered—colder too.
Her heels clicked on the tiled floor as she moved through the bullpen to her desk. She passed Tucker’s desk and immediately tore her gaze from it. He was an unfortunate part of her past that she was better off forgetting.
It was time to get him out of her head and focus on her next project. She sat down at her computer and waited for the screen to light up. Good thing she had several ideas up her sleeves. She wouldn’t allow this to get her down.
First things first: she needed to check her email.
But then her world shattered.
The first email she opened was from Mira. Several photographs of herself with Tucker populated her screen, and Blaire couldn’t seem to drag her attention from the way she stared at him in each and every one.
There was only a short message.
Love can be found in the most unexpected places.
Blaire moved her mouse, hovering the icon over the trash can on her screen. But she couldn’t bring herself to erase this part of her life. She didn’t want to forget the way he had made her feel.
That made one thing perfectly clear.
It didn’t matter how much she despised Tucker right now. She still had feelings for him—feelings that wouldn’t disappear any time soon.
She placed her head in her hands, squeezing her eyes shut to ward off the emotion that threatened to make an appearance. Tucker might not be in today, but he’d be coming back to work soon. And she wasn’t sure she was ready to see him again.