“Judge Landis,” I greet smoothly, “thank you for meeting with me.”
“Of course. My friend Faiz here said I should.”
Faiz stands, grinning at me from the seat opposite the judge.
“Landis and I go way back, don’t we?” He grins over at him. “He and my father are good friends. I told him you’re trustworthy. Come and sit.” He holds out a chair for me like a gentleman, and I hate it, but I sink into it. I don’t want to fight in front of the judge, not when I need him on my side, and Faiz knows it.
“So, Mr. Xander, what would you like to eat?” the judge asks, oblivious to the daggers I’m silently shooting at a grinning Faiz as he slings his arm over the back of my seat in a familiar way.
“Ah, I’m afraid I don’t have a lot of time. If we could discuss the land—” I begin.
“Pfft.” The judge throws his menu down. “You kids don’t know the importance of discussing business over lunch, do you?”
“He’s right. I’ll order for you.” Faiz puts in my order, and I hate that it’s all my favorite things. His hand lands on my thigh under the table as he grins at me. “Don’t be rude, Z. The judge has given up his time for you.” He looks at the judge. “You’ll have to forgive my boyfriend. He’s all work and no play.”
Gripping his hand on my thigh, I try to shove it off, but he squeezes it to the point of pain. I grip his fingers hard enough to break then push his hand off. He spares me a wink, nothing else.
“Boyfriend, huh?” the judge asks. “You’re one lucky man, Mr. Xander. I’ve been trying to set Faiz up with my daughter, but now I see why he kept turning me down.”
“Ah, sorry about that, Judge Landis. Judy is lovely, but my Z is the love of my life.” His eyes meet mine, and his expression turns serious. “I’m never letting him go.”
I fight the urge to grab a steak knife and drive it into his smirking face, and instead, I turn to the judge and smile sweetly. “Actually, your daughter can have him.”
He laughs like he thinks I’m joking, so I lean in like I’m sharing a secret. “Faiz and I broke up six months ago because he couldn’t keep his dick out of everything that moved.” I smile pleasantly. “I’d warn your daughter about that. He’s a good enough fuck, don’t get me wrong, but who knows where he’s been? He’s like a stray you see wandering in the streets. Actually, they probably have more loyalty.”
“Zia,” Faiz snaps.
My eyes land on him, fury tightening my features, and he shuts his mouth at my look.
“I have been silent out of respect for the love and friendship we once shared, but do not push me on this, Faiz. I showed you respect you didn’t show me. No more.”
I swallow my anger and smile at them as I stand. “I’ll be in touch about the land, Judge Landis. If you’ll excuse me, I no longer have an appetite. Seeing your cheating ex will do that to you.” I look at Faiz. “Stay out of my life. This is the last warning unless you want your private life to no longer be private.”
They are both silent as I walk out of the restaurant. I am beyond pissed.
How dare he?
The worst part of all of this is that there is no physical wound to show people what he did! The heart is a cruel organ. It suffers in silence, unlike the body. There’s no visible scar to show the agony he caused.
I’m left to suffer silently, and it’s making me hate him.
I walked away from Faiz and the pain that followed him like a shadow. I was able to drag myself away even though I loved him, and now he’s just digging that knife in.
How can he hurt the person he’s supposed to love like this?
Why do I keep letting him?
EIGHTEEN
Ihaven’t seen Zia since the night he stayed over. He snuck out in the morning without even saying goodbye. It wasn’t exactly a subtle message, so even I understood it. He told me time and time again that this is nothing more than sex, but my heart still aches.
I should be focusing on my upcoming matches and reaching the top, but he’s all I can think about. Is he okay? Is he stressed? Is he eating? I want to reach out and ask him, but he would probably ignore me, or I might even make it worse.
Four days later, I’ve had enough.
I’ve gone from concerned to annoyed, pissed, then downright furious.
He can’t do this to me. He can’t come into my world, make me care, and disappear. It’s too fucking cruel. Zia will say it’s just sex, and that’s fine, but he can’t dictate how I feel. He can’t just walk away when he starts to feel too much or get attached. He can’t pick me up and put me down like a toy when it’s convenient.
