He ran into the bathroom. The sounds of him using it effectively ruined the moment, though there wasn’t much of it lefttoruin.
I wanted to hear what Sebastian was about to say before we were interrupted, but when I turned my head again, he was already gone.
CHAPTER 21
Sebastian
SHE CONSUMED ME.
I’d spent months avoiding her, but one errant glimpse, and I unraveled at the fucking seams.
My appearance at the bar was supposed to have been a simple drop-in. Valentine’s Day was a big day for business, and I usually spent it checking in on key places in our portfolio to get a feel for the crowd. I’d already visited four spots before I swung by the Velvet Apothecary.
Then I walked in, and there she was.
Maya was clearly on a date, and she’d been so engrossed in her conversation that she hadn’t noticed my appearance.
I should’ve left immediately, but nothing prepared me for the hot, irrational spike of jealousy that lodged in my chest. I’d seen her on dates before, but this time was different. This time, she looked… happy, and the sight of her genuinely smiling at someone else hit me like a punch to the gut.
I wanted her to be happy, but I wanted her to be happy withme. No one else. I didn’t care if that was selfish or fucked up.
And even though I knew she had a deadline for finding ahusband, and I had no right to stop her, I’d sought her out. I’d talked to her when I should’ve stayed away. Baited her when I should’ve kept things neutral.
Touched her when I’d known it would ruin me.
My jaw tensed. I stared at the clock, watching the minutes tick toward three.
A week had passed since the bar incident. I’d left before I did something I’d really regret, but she still haunted my every waking moment. My every sleeping one too.
And now, I had to see her and pretend everything was normal.
I drummed my fingers against the table. Restlessness wound tight inside me.
I’d arrived early to get my bearings before our meeting. Maya wasn’t here yet, but I saw her vividly in my mind’s eye—the heavy-lidded sensuality of her gaze and the way she’d pressed into me, her body language all but begging me to give her what we both desperately wanted.
It was almost enough to make me forget why I’d stayed away all these years.
Almost.
Two minutes to three.
I should’ve canceled today’s meet-up, but I’d already missed our last one because of a production emergency. There’d been a spinach shortage for the quiche recipe, and one of the managers had substituted it with fuckingkalebefore someone else caught it and alerted me. We’d had to scrap that entire batch.
One minute to three.
Maya should be here by now. She was the one who always said being on time was the equivalent of being late, and—
The door opened.
My drumming stopped. I leaned back and schooled my face into a neutral expression as Maya walked in, bundled up in along coat and scarf. She’d styled her hair into a braid again, and I curled my fingers against the sudden urge to tug it loose so I could run my hand through the silken strands.
“You’re late,” I said.
“You’re early.”
I almost smiled at the reversed roles of our first meeting at the Valhalla Club, but the flare of amusement vanished when she shrugged off her coat and scarf and took the seat across from mine.
Awkward silence descended, punctuated by a fleeting memory of her soft moan.
