“I’m going back to New York when the project is over, and I won’t be coming back.”
“Kat—”
“Don’t.” She shook her head. “There’s nothing you can do to change this. You’ve done enough.” She didn’t have to say it out loud to confirm what she was thinking. He’d ruined everything.He’d destroyed her already slim chance at getting her father to agree to this plan.
“It’s over,” Leo.” She didn’t have to look at his face to know he understood the meaning of her words. Their relationship was over. The plan to stay was over.
Everything was over.
Kat pushed past him, unable to meet his eyes. She couldn’t handle the pain she knew would be written there.
“Kat,” he called after her again.
She blinked back the tears that threatened to fall. Coming to the party had been a mistake. She shouldn’t have come. There were plenty of people who had probably witnessed their argument, and she didn’t want to ruin the event.
“Kat, will you please just… slow down,” Leo called out. His hand reached for hers and she dodged it.
“Stop following, me, Leo. I’m leaving.”
“You can’t drive in this weather,” he insisted.
“I’ll call a cab.”
They’d reached the exit of the building by this point and once again, she spun to face him so he would finally get the point. “Please don’t do this. Not here, not now. It’s your cousin’s party. Go back in there and support him.”
“But—”
“No. I’m heading back. I’ll be fine. Maybe we can… talk about this later.” Inwardly, she grimaced. She had zero intention ofdoing that. The best thing for them would be to sever ties completely and leave it at that.
One more blink and a tear escaped. Leo didn’t miss it and he stepped forward.
“Don’t,” she rasped. “Just…” She pleaded with her eyes. “go back in there, Leo.”
He hesitated for a couple more seconds before he nodded sharply. “Fine. We’ll revisit this later.” With that, he charged back into the banquet hall, leaving her alone, wishing things had turned out different. There was no use telling him the arrangement with Chaz was back on. That would only add insult to injury.
If she could avoid him for the next couple of weeks, then she could head home without causing any more pain—to either of them.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Time was running out.
Leo cursed under his breath when he entered the house. He could already tell that Kat wasn’t in the kitchen for dinner. She’d taken to avoiding eating with them. Their roles had reversed. Thankfully, his mother wasn’t insisting that he speak to her about what was happening.
She looked worried most of the time, but she kept her nose out of it.
He moved toward the kitchen despite knowing Kat wouldn’t be there. It had been a week and a half since Simon’s party. And since that night, Kat refused to be alone with him, making a quiet conversation impossible. What they had to discuss wasn’t something everyone needed to know about.
Just as he’d expected, the only person in the kitchen was his mother. She hummed softly to herself as she loaded dishes into the dishwasher. There were four places at the table, but the food wasn’t out of the oven yet.
Leo leaned against the doorway, arms folded as he considered what Kat would do if he threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes in order to make her eat with them.
“Whatever you’re thinking, it’s probably not a good idea.”
His focus shifted from the table to his mother. “And why do you say that?”
“The crease between your brows. You’re clearly plotting.”
Leo scoffed, turning his attention back to the table. “Serenity finally get sick of feeding Reese at her place?”
