I head for the kitchen, but pause as there’s a knock at the suite door.
I move to the peephole.
“You’re kidding me.”
I throw open the door before I remember I’m in my robe.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I ask, wishing now I’d ignored the knock.
Zach looks at me, his eyes imploring.
“The manager at the apartment building told me you’d move here. Look, I need to see you. You’ve refused my calls, left my emails unanswered.”
“And that wasn’tpointedenough?”
I stand in the doorway, blocking his entrance.
He looks around me.
“Can I come in?”
I fold my arms over my chest.
“Why? I don’t think we have anything to say to one another.”
“Kat, don’t be like this, please. I just want to talk.”
One of the doors further down the corridor opens, and I remember where we are. The last thing my family needs is for me to be caught airing our dirty laundry in public.
I step back reluctantly and wait as Zach enters. In his defence, he doesn’t look smug. If he did, I may have been tempted to knee him in the balls.
He enters, keeping his distance.
“Take a seat and don’t touch anything. I’m going to put some clothes on.”
There’s no way I’m having a conversation with Zach, wrapped in a bathrobe.
I get dressed in record time, pulling on some leggings and a jumper, before scooping my damp hair into a top knot.
Zach is returning to the sofa when I get back.
“I thought I told you not to move,” I say.
“I was…” he says, shaking his head. “Never mind.”
He runs a hand through his hair.
I fold my arms over my chest.
“Say what you have to say and leave,” I snap, my patience running thin.
Him being here, in my space, makes my skin crawl. I left the apartment because of what he did, and I loved that place. Now he’s threatening to pollute my new home.
“I just wanted to see if you read my letter.”
“I did,” I say, my eyes never leaving his. “Quite the set of excuses you gave. Do you take responsibility for any of it?”
“I take responsibility for all of it,” he says, more firmly than I anticipate. “I never meant to hurt you, Kat. When you finally agreed to be with me, I was over the moon. When Darrathreatened to tell you everything, I didn’t know what to do. I had to keep her quiet. She was going to ruin everything.”
