For a heartbeat, everything went still.
Then he stood and cleared his throat, and whatever spell was over the room quickly faded. “Heels are done.”
I nodded and frowned. “Where’s your suit?”
He ran his hands down the front of his sweatshirt, and his lips curved up slightly, but not enough to even call it a sad smile. “Donovan said there would be enough security tonight so I could sit this one out.”
My brows pulled together as I made a face. “You’re speaking to Donovan?”
He shook his head as he leaned in the doorway. “No, your brothers shot me a quick text.”
Of course they did.
“Donovan’s driver is here.”
“Oh!” I shot up from the bed and stumbled towards the doorway.
“You’re going to trip running around like that,” He reached forward but didn’t touch me.
The words slipped from my lips before I could stop them. “You could always catch me.”
This time, his smile was sad. “Don’t tempt me, Poppy.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Ivan
Lingering touches?Check.
Heated glances?Check.
Slight flirting that wasn’t too heavy.Double check.
None of it felt like it mattered. It felt like I was the one falling head over heels in love with her, and she was just watching it happen. The plan the girls helped me orchestrate felt silly as I watched her leave in a sparkling lavender dress.
I’d even bothered to send her flowers when I went off with the girls, and she met with her brother. But by some dumb stroke of bad luck, the card that had my name on it got lost. She thought they were from Donovan. She’d gushed all evening,how did he know my favorite flower was dahlias?I didn’t bother with correcting her; what was the point? She was enamored with him, it seemed.
I’d paid enough attention to know her phone screen was of a single dahlia. It was a light pink, almost orange, and it looked like a picture she’d taken herself. It was beautiful, andit made sense that it would be her favorite flower. I’d even offered up small, simple compliments that made the tops of her ears turn pink.
I dropped onto the couch, elbows braced on my knees, and stared at the faint imprints her heels made in the rug.
Her soft perfume still lingered in the air, and all I wanted to do was breathe it in, but I knew it would only make things worse. I thought I was doing everything right, but it wasn’t good enough.
My phone buzzed on the table beside me. A notification from one of the news apps I should’ve deleted days ago.
“Donovan Madden and Poppy Fairchild Attend Annual Charity Gala Together”
The photo showed her off in the dazzling dress with her hand on his arm, and his gaze fixed entirely on her.
It shouldn’t have hit me like a punch to the ribs, but it did.
I let the phone fall to the cushion beside me and stared at nothing. The silence in the penthouse was suffocating. Even the clock on the wall sounded too loud, too steady — ticking through the seconds she wasn’t here. Jane went out with friends, Don with her, and I was here… All alone.
The silence and empty rooms had never bothered me before. But now? Now it was suffocating knowing she should be taking up space here, but she wasn’t.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Poppy
