“His presence obviously upsets you. Why? What happened in your past?”
She tipped her head back, eyes on the ceiling, and exhaled. “I can’t talk about it. It’s just too painful.”
A rage I didn’t recognize surged inside me. Never had I wanted to maim someone the way I wanted to maim Jonas.
“Did he hurt you?” The words slipped out, too personal, but I had to know. If he had, I was already calculating how to avenge her.
“No. No,” she said quickly. “It’s not like that.” She offered nothing else on the matter.
“Maybe if you talked about it, it would help.”
I had to stop myself from reaching for her.
She finally met my gaze, her eyes brimming with tears. I hadn’t even known she could be this raw with her heart locked. Jonas must have shattered something deep.
“That’s really sweet,” she whispered, “but some things are better left in the past.”
“So you’re saying you don’t think there’s a future for you and Jonas.”
“I don’t know how there could be after what happened between us.”
Her evasiveness was maddening. I needed her to tell me everything.
“What if I told you that when we invited him on the show, he called you the love of his life—and said he was hoping for a second chance?”
The words tasted like poison in my mouth.
She paused, considering.
“Well, that’s really sweet. But I just don’t see how that could happen. And he knows why.”
She drew a deep, cleansing breath.
“I think our viewers would like to know why too.”
And Jupiter help me, so did I.
“I’m sure they would,” she said sweetly. “But a girl has to have some secrets.”
Was she taunting the audience? Me? What were these secrets?
Frustration slipped into my voice.
“Do you think this show can still help you find love with Jonas here? Do you still think I can?”
What was I saying? I sounded like a lovesick fool.
She didn’t hesitate. “I really hope so.”
“Is there anything I can do to make this easier for you?” The words tumbled out before I could stop them.
She flashed me that brilliant smile of hers, and for a beat, I didn’t care that I was practically begging to be fired.
But just as quickly, the smile vanished. She straightened, businesslike, stone-faced.
“You promised you’d do your best to find me love. I’m going to hold you to that, Roman Archer.”
My name on her pouty pink lips never sounded so good.
