Kat pressed against the door, her hands flush with the wood. “Leo,” she whispered breathlessly, her eyes flashing with fear, “I already told you this was over. I didn’t want to cause more pain than I already had. You went too far. Everything has changed.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” Leo only stopped moving when she was pinned between him and the door. He stared down at her, searching her face, reveling in her beauty. “It’s not over. You can’t tell me that what we had meant nothing to you. That would be a lie and you know it.”
Her breathing was more uneven now. Each rise and fall of her chest drew his attention. This wasn’t fear. It was… anguish. Whatever she was thinking, feeling, it hurt her.
Leo reached out and pushed her chin upward with his knuckle. “Talk to me, Kat. What happened in New York?
She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. “Nothing.”
“Don’t lie to me,” he muttered. “You said yourself that everything changed.”
Slowly, her lashes fluttered as she stared up at him. “Everything and nothing has changed. Our plans. They’re not going to happen. I’m going back to New York. You’re staying here?—”
He couldn’t handle hearing her say such things. The fear in his chest was all consuming. He couldn’t lose her! His lips crushed down over hers, stealing her next words. She wasn’t going to runfrom him. Not after all the progress they’d made to be together—to work past their differences.
He heard the sound of the slap before the sting of her palm against his cheek registered. Leo’s head snapped to the side then he slowly turned his dark gaze back to the woman he loved. “Kat,” he growled.
“No,” she whimpered, “no more talking. No more kissing. I told you it was over. You know that my career is the most important thing to me and if I can’t bring it out here, then there is no chance for us.”
“You can’t actually believe that.” Dang it! Why did his voice crack? Why couldn’t he keep his emotions in check? Leo could feel the burn of her rejection building behind his eyes and deep in his chest. She just needed to feel his love for her better, more clearly.
He moved to kiss her again, but she turned her face and whispered, “I’m engaged.”
That stopped Leo cold. His spine stiffened. His hands curled into fists.
No.
She was lying.
This was all a ploy to get him to let her go. It had to be.
Kat’s eyes were still shut tight when she continued. “To Chaz.”
And just like that, she shoved the dagger into his heart.
“You—you’re—don’t do this,” he pleaded.
“It’s already done,” Kat whimpered.
“No.” Leo stepped back, digging both hands into his hair as he turned away from her. “No, you’re lying.”
“I’m not.” This time, her voice sounded hollow—nothing like the woman he’d fallen in love with. “I’m engaged to Chaz because that’s what will be best for me. For the company.”
He whirled around to stare at her.
Shock.
Disgust.
An all-consuming pain that roared like the fires in the underworld itself.
Leo shook his head.
“I think you should leave,” she whispered.
He let out a dark laugh. “Why?”
“Because. Like I said, it’s over.”
