“No.” My voice doesn't waver.
Gerald swipes thick chunks of cherry in a sugary syrup off his eyelids.
“What in the fuck is wrong with you?” he spits vehemently.
“I don’t deserve a life not being loved. That’s not fucking fair.”
“Oh grow up, nothing in life is fair!”
“Fuck you, and fuck Vail, and fuck this!” I grab the hefty stone off my finger and chuck it right at his open mouth. I watch as it flies directly to the back of his throat almost in slow motion and gets lodged somewhere just beyond his uvula. His hands spring to clutch his neck, and his eyes bulge out as he chokes on my engagement ring.
“Oh my god, someone help him!” I rush out of the booth and pull his seizing body from the booth. I try my best to get my arms around his torso and perform the Heimlich—but he’s so much bigger than I am, I’m having a hard time getting enough force to dislodge the diamond.
A pair of strong hands pulls me off Gerald’s back and sets me aside.
“Last chance to just let him die,” Andri announces with raised brows, his face almost hopeful.
“No!” I yelp.
“I’m just kidding,” he says somewhat unconvincingly.
He wraps his arms around Gerald easily, and with two exaggerated pumps of his clasped fists the diamond goes flying, hitting the tile floor with a sharpclink.
Chapter nine
Andri
WeleaveGeraldgaspingon the floor like a deflated accordion as Daphne storms out coatless into the freezing night. I’m right on her heels.
“What the hell just happened back there?” I call, surprised that even my feet are slipping a little on the icy sidewalk.
“What happened? We’re over, that’s what happened!” she snaps, hugging her bare arms as the wind whips her hair around the back of her head. She stomps to the crosswalk like the asphalt personally wronged her.
Holy shit. She’s single.
The thought hits me like a snowball to the dome. I actually bite the inside of my cheek with my fangs to keep from grinning like an idiot. But then she spins around, her mascara streaked from crying, her bottom lip trembling. My stupid grin shrivels. My chest drops.
And then—Daphne drops.
She looks like a baby deer as she flails, her sexy but completely impractical heels skidding across a slick patch of ice. Her ankle twists, and she yelps as her heel snaps clean off.
I lunge forward before she can hit the ground. Her knees never meet the concrete. Instead, she crashes against me, fistful of my chest hair in one hand, her forehead thunking into my pec with the force of a headbutt.
“Uh—ow,” I grunt, but I don’t let her go.
Her face lifts slowly, and I’m braced for a trademark Daphne one-liner. Something self-deprecating about her clumsiness. But instead, she lets out the smallest, most heartbreaking whimper I’ve ever heard.
It just about kills me.
“Hey, hey—it’s okay,” I murmur, steadying her. I pull her up a bit, attempting to set her onto her feet again. But the second she puts pressure on her left foot, she winces.
“Of course I sprained my ankle!” she sobs. “I’ve got nowhere to go, and now I can’t even walk there if I did!”
I don’t think before acting and adjust my hold to swoop the petite human up in my arms bridal style.
“What are you doing?” she gasps, eyes going wide.
“Helping. Obviously.” I hitch her closer as the snowflakes thicken. “You can’t walk, and lucky for you, I happen to own a hotel.”
