He and Lacey occupied different worlds. Still, she was smart, and beautiful, and he supposed he’d felt a thrill standing next to her at one time. Not any longer. Now he just needed to work with her and keep his cool, something he didn’t do too well.
In fact, if someone were to grade him on his ability to keep cool lately, he’d get a failing grade. At best, a “Participant” ribbon.
After what happened to Jane Ashton, he hadn’t felt very calm or collected. He certainly hadn’t been in the mood for romance. His failure with Lacey was just as much a case of bad timing as it was incompatibility. They’d been over before they began. “We rushed into things. This whole experience just proves we were never right for each other.”
“That’s your opinion.”
“Hell, yeah. Call me old-fashioned, but I don’t think I’m cut out for the swinging lifestyle.”
“I’m not a swinger, Michael. I had a…lapse in judgment.”
“Among other things.” The headache made Michael’s tone sound gruffer.
“Look, no matter what you think of me, we still have to work together. That means you need to cut out the open animosity. You can’t arrive late to my meetings and treat me with contempt. Whether you like me or not, we are part of the same team.”
“You’re right, but I agreed to do this show because it had integrity. Little by little, I see it changing. I don’t want any part of that, even if HGTVshows interest.”
“Michael, I have your back, but I also need to uphold network decisions. Our show is doing well right now, but it can do better. You can’t call it a day because the network vision doesn’t match yours. Think of the crew. People’s livelihoods are at stake.”
“I don’t want to disappoint anyone, but I’ve built my career providing a superior service. If the network wants this to becomeHandymen, Kardashian Style, they’ve got the wrong guy.”Throb, throb. He rubbed his temple.
“Just have faith in me, okay? We’ll find a way to make it work, but surely you understand this isn’t just about hammering nails into the wall. We need to tug at the viewers’ heartstrings and share stories that will make them laugh and cry. We’re not just fixing homes, we’re changing lives.” She dropped her gaze and her long dark lashes swept over the tops of her cheeks. “And for the record, I acknowledge sleeping with Alistair was the worst decision of my life. I know we had our problems, Michael, but I miss you.”
He didn’t reply. That saddest part of the whole situation was the fact he didn’t miss her. A warped part of him felt relief upon breaking off their relationship.
“Would it help if I say I’m sorry? Again.”
Michael believed Lacey felt remorse but it didn’t matter. He wasn’t sure why she still pursued him. He’d always annoyed her as much as she annoyed him, and it wasn’t like she didn’t have other offers.
She ran a hand up his sleeve. “Let me show you how sorry I am. Don’t keep pushing me away. We could be good together again. You know we could.”
He removed her hand. “Don’t.”
“Oh, come on, Michael.” She moved closer, crowding his space. Her strong perfume made his headache flare. “Don’t tell me you’re not even a little bit tempted.”
Anyone else might be. Lacey Styles was a sought-after woman. With her long, dark hair, blue eyes, and model figure, she turned many heads. She’d turned his for months. As soon as he’d begun work onHandymen, he’d grown entranced. Their affair had begun one night after meeting with a potential sponsor for the show. One unexpected kiss had turned into a week-long sex fest, and before he could catch his breath, she’d moved in.
Lacey had spent the next couple of months trying to fix him. Trying to dress him up and take him to gallery openings and museum galas. He appreciated culture, just not when it was being thrust down his throat. To make things worse, she’d treated him like a little girl’s doll. Hell, she’d gone so far as to ask him to wear a tie to a picnic lunch.
That hurt almost as much as her cheating.
Clearly, her affair was the universe’s way of letting him know Lacey wasn’t “the one.” If anything, her old boyfriend Alistair had given him the out he’d needed.
He would not go back there.
When all was said and done, Lacey wasn’t a bad person, and he knew she hadn’t meant to hurt him, not really. If he went back to her, he’d only end up filling her days with frustration. Michael, at thirty-six years old, knew what he liked and knew he wasn’t about to change. If a woman couldn’t accept him and his slouchy, “good old boy” ways, then she wasn’t the woman for him.
He extricated himself from her still-roving hands. “Lacey, I…”
“You haven’t forgiven me. I get it. You’re still hurting.”
“It’s not that I haven’t forgiven you. I’m just not interested anymore. I’m sorry.”
All of a sudden she became fascinated with her designer shoes, digging the pointy toe into the fibre of the carpet.
“I need to know you understand what I’m saying. We can’t have this conversation again. It makes no sense. If you snapped your fingers, Lacey, you’d have men falling at your feet. It’s time to move on.”
“Thank you, Michael. I think I’ve managed to absorb the message.”
