“Okay.” I held my hands up.
My eyes were watering.God, why did I love this man?
“Just tell me what you want to buy her.”
“That’s the thing,” he said. “I don’t know. She’s hard to shop for. She’s never really told me what she likes. She’s always keeping things to herself. It’s annoying.”
“Well, I’m sure she’ll wear just about anything you ask her to,” I grumbled. “They always do, don’t they?”
His smile fell flat, and he shook his head. “Is that what you think?”
He looked hurt, and I didn’t know why. But I couldn’t let it get to me. This was exactly why I was leaving.
“What I think is that the store will be closing soon. So if you want me to help you pick something out, you’d better at least give me some ideas.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I think I’ve had enough.”
Chapter Four
The Stryker Broadcasting Group’s annual Christmas party.
Every year, Kane spared no expense to ensure his employees had a good time, and this year was no different. There was a ballroom. White linens as far as the eye could see. The entire place looked like a winter wonderland.
The only thing missing was him.
My eyes scanned the room one last time before I decided to go for a walk. The last place that I expected him to be is where I found him. On the balcony, in the freezing cold, watching the snow fall.
He had a drink in his hand, and he didn’t hear me approaching. So for a moment, I just allowed my eyes to wander over him. To take in his profile against the beautiful backdrop and engrave it on my memory.
My heart squeezed again.How was I ever going to leave him?
“You should be inside.” He didn’t look up, and I was a little taken aback that he knew it was me.
“Says you,” I retorted. “What are you doing out here?”
“I can tell by the way you walk.”
“Huh?”
His words weren’t slurred, but he wasn’t making a damn bit of sense.
“You were wondering how I knew you were there,” he explained, still not looking at me. “I can tell by the way you walk, Aspen. I’ve heard the click of your heels more times than I could count over the last three years. You think I don’t notice these things, but I do.”
I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself. I didn’t know what to say. He seemed solemn.
It wasn’t all that surprising. I knew this time of year was always hard for him. His parents died in a car accident on Christmas Day six years ago. Ever since then he’d holed himself up in a cabin for the holiday with no outside contact to the world.
But he always made an effort at the Christmas party, to look like he was having a good time at least. Not tonight, though.
The part of me that wanted to hang onto him told me I should try to comfort him. That I should ask him if he wanted to talk. But Kane had always been closed off. He used sarcasm to deflect his emotions, and I knew that’s what I’d get right now if I were to ask.
But I couldn’t just leave him out here. I didn’t want to.
“Kane, I…”
The door opened, and Alayna walked out with an icy smile on her face. Her eyes raked me from head to toe before dismissing me and landing on Kane.
“Lover.” She pouted. “Come dance with me.”
