“She’s here.”
“Who?”
“Sasha,” I whispered, dancing in a circle. By the time I was facing her direction again, she was no longer coming toward me. She was standing at the bar with a glass of whiskey in her hand.
“Fuck,” I muttered.
“What? Where is she?” She was trying to look around me.
“She’s at the bar, drinking.”
“So, she saw us together?”
I nodded.
“Why don’t you just go talk to her? Explain things to her the way you explained them to me.”
“She won’t listen. She’ll just push until I give in and do something stupid. Again.”
“If the two of you can’t stay away from one another, there’s probably a reason for that.”
“She’s better off without me. She needs to go off and live her life, explore all her options, and find her place in the world. I can’t offer her anything. We can’t even go out in public together without risking her parents disowning her. I need to piss her off enough that she lets go.” That’s when I glanced toward her again, and our eyes locked.
I knew what I had to do. I took a step away from Casey, causing her to look up at me with confusion. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my credit card. “Go get us a room. I’ll meet you at the front desk.”
She took the card with a lifted brow. “Are you sure about this?”
“Just go.”
She didn’t argue. She just turned and walked toward the door that separated the ballroom from the rest of the club. Once she was on her way, I started toward Sasha at the bar.
The moment I approached, the bartender put a glass in front of me, so I picked it up and threw it back.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, not looking at her even though she was staring up at me.
“You didn’t give me much of a choice. We have a lot of things to talk about, and that’s pretty hard to do when you refuse tocome home. Am I the reason you’re avoiding the house and your daughter? Because if I am, I can move out.”
“Don’t be stupid. Sophia needs you far more than she needs me.”
“She needs both of us, Roman. She’s just a little girl who has no idea what’s going on. She’s had an endless line of women marching in and out of her life since birth. She has a father who’s had little to nothing to do with her for most of her life. Then she gets a month of dinners, play time, and bonding with you, only to lose you again. She doesn’t understand. She thinks she did something wrong.”
My eyes closed as the pain sliced through me. “I don’t need you telling me all the ways I’m fucking up. I know.” I finished off the glass and set it on the bar top. I turned and looked down at her. “I have to go. I suggest you do the same because I won’t be around to get you home safely if you happen to drink too much. Just go home, Sasha.”
I turned and headed toward the door, but I could tell that she was following my every step, so once I exited the ballroom, I turned to find her behind me.
“Why are you doing this?”
I clenched my jaw.
“You can pretend all you want, but I know that you don’t want this.”
“I do. I want you to leave.”
She grabbed my hand, and it felt like my skin was on fire. “You’re lying. You’re scared and running.”
“No, I’m not.” I pulled my hand away from hers. “Why is this so hard for you to understand. I don’t want you. I took the best part of you the night I fucked you.” The second the words were out, I regretted them.
She fell back a step as her lips parted, but no words came out. She was speechless. She was hurt, judging by the way those lineswere forming between her eyebrows. I never wanted to hurt her, but it was the only way.
