No hug came, though, and he kept me at arm’s length with my hand stuck in his.
“Okay. No hug. Thank you for everything, too.”
“Goodbye, Miss Davenport.” He released my hand and headed to the door.
His tight ass in his expensive slacks sent my emotions, my desire, and my body into hurricane mode. I thought we had developed some chemistry. I thought we could explore that chemistry with his wife gone. My mind raced, thinking of all the things I might have done wrong.
I suddenly felt more devastated than I had ever felt in my life. Mr. Dark Eyes had just walked out of both my office and my life for the last time. There would not be any fairy-tale ending to our erotic romance.
And I so wanted the fairy-tale ending.
Chapter37
Surprise Dinner
I satat my desk on Friday afternoon, still trying to figure out how things had gone so wrong. A dull pain in my chest, which had grown stronger since Monday, weighed me down. My last appointment had ended three hours ago, but the sheer misery of my situation had me staring at my notes, idly shuffling papers, and reviewing my appointments for next week. My focus was scattered at best.
There was a knock at my door.
“Come in.”
Penny pushed the door open and peeked in. “I’m heading out.”
“Okay.”
“You want me to lock up?”
“No. I’ll be leaving shortly.”
She nodded and gave me a half-hearted smile filled with concern. I had seen that smile from her and Chastity all week. I sighed, tired of the pity.
“You okay?” she asked, concern laced in the two simple words.
“Yeah.”
“You sure?”
“Yes. I’ll be okay. I just need time.” The smile I tried to put on my face only seemed to open the faucet of tears.
Penny nodded and closed the door.
This mood, which I had struggled with all week, puzzled me even as it brought tears to my eyes. I hadn’t fallen for a man this hard since I was twenty-one and Ricardo, a foreign student from Spain, had swept me off my feet with his charming good looks, charismatic smile, and promises of flying me around the world.
Once I found out his family were simple, poor farmers in Spain and he had only been on the one plane that flew him to the United States—coach and not first class—his love charm over me faded. Not that I was a gold digger, like Scarlet. I simply discovered then that I disliked people who weren’t authentic and honest.
The thought of Scarlet brought back images of being locked up in the warehouse, of Wagner approaching me with a drug-filled syringe, the shooting in the warehouse, and of Scarlet mocking me. Nightmares haunted me almost every night.
The worst nightmares, though, involved Dirk embracing me, kissing me, making love to me, only to push me aside and walk out of a suddenly dark room. Those dreams usually ended with Scarlet threatening to come back and make sure I was dead. Even thinking about the dreams caused me to shudder.
I wiped a tear away with a tissue and pushed myself away from my desk. After debating whether to take my laptop with me, I grabbed my purse and phone. I had no desire to work this weekend. I locked up the office and then took the elevator down to the first floor.
When I got to the parking garage, I hurried to my car, focused diligently on my surroundings. The sound of another vehicle approaching from behind made my stomach knot up. That had been another symptom of my ordeal—anxiety and hyper-vigilance. I reached my car and a black SUV pulled up beside me. The vehicle stopped right behind my car. I hurriedly pushed the button to unlock my car and opened the door without turning to face the vehicle.
A car door opened and closed. I slid into my car and locked myself in. Images of the man breaking my window glass and threatening me flashed through my mind. I immediately tensed up.
“Miss Davenport.”
I recognized that voice. Turning my head, the figure of Trace approached me. His bald black head, glistening from the lights of the parking garage and his broad frame brought with it a wave of calm. Dirk’s black Navigator was behind him, blocking me in my parking spot.
