Chapter 24
Chapter 24
ASTRID
To someone who used to
love spending so much time with Tristan, it’s strange how I keep drawing my gaze to my wrist, counting down to when I can finally walk out of this restaurant, get in my car, and go home.
My mom is nowhere in sight. I even asked one of the waitpersons if they’d seen her, and the lady said no. She went further to say that Mom didn’t make any reservations.
I fiddle with the napkin, wrinkling it and imagining it’s wrapped around Tristan’s neck. He hasn’t changed at all. The nerves of him to expect me to show up in a red dress because he said so amuses me. What the hell!
How can one man be so arrogant, rude, spiteful, dramatic, and, of course, incapable of reading the room? I should be pissed, right? Pissed that I had put up with him for two years. But I guess I’m done hating him. Now I feel sorry for him and the next woman he’ll drag down with him.
“Why are you so upset?” Tristan asks blankly, staring at my face.
I feel a chill. Not the good kind, but one that feels like a creep is scrutinizing me.
Ha! When did love morph into so much hate? How did we get here?
“I’m not upset. I’m trying hard to determine why you’ve refused to let go.” I push away the half–eaten plate of salad and roasted chicken. “There’s nothing left for us, Tristan. You know that, I’m sure of it. So why in heaven’s name are you still here?”
“I’ve not stopped loving you. I don’t think I’ll ever stop. We were supposed to get married and have kids. We had plans, babe. Don’t you miss that? Don’t you miss us?”
“What’s there to miss? We’ve had this conversation before. Are you not tired? I’m exhausted. Sitting here alone, staring at you across the table, bores me to death.”
“Babe –”
“Astrid. My name is Astrid.” I say in a surprisingly calm manner.
“You’re certainly not the girl I fell in love with, but I’m willing to overlook everything, the unnecessary drama, your stubbornness, and the fact that you’re acting like I’m a stranger to you. Let’s go away for a few weeks, a month, maybe. Get away from everyone and everything and work on getting back together.”
He stares at me as if he can’t believe his eyes. I sit there, detached, bored, and still counting the seconds as the clock ticks. When I feel his hands brush mine across the table, I stiffen and pull back, shooting him a stern glare. “Babe?”
“My mom isn’t here. Did you convince her to lie about meeting a client here?”
He leans back on his chair as he watches with irritation flickering in his eyes. That was definitely not the words he was expecting.
Tristan must be nuts to think I’ll go away with him. Go anywhere. Leave everyone and everything? Bah! I give him a pointed look, silently asking him to
answer my question.
He audibly sighs and then lifts a shoulder in a nonchalant shrug. “Stella is a smart woman. I bet she knows something is up.” He straightens. “My dad is back. I don’t know what he’s planning with your dad, but I heard they will meet next month. Let’s go away before that happens. No one needs to know.”
“In a pig’s ear.” I sneer, then push the chair backwards and stand up.
don’t care if my parents find out about us. You can go ahead and tell them, Tristan, and while at it, tell them I have no interest in whatever they have to say about my decision. I don’t want to play your games anymore, and I hope this is the last time you’ll ask me out to dinner using my mom as bait.”
A grin traces the doorman’s lips as I approach the lobby. Alex. He’s a man of few emotions and often comes off as unfeeling.
1/4
Chapter 24
Stoic
Under my right arm is a box of pizza. He offers to take it, but I wave him off.
Tristan’s consistent stares and bland conversation didn’t allow me a chance to enjoy my meal. The little I managed to shove down my throat burned out when he suggested we go on a trip together.
That man really needs to get his head checked. He’s beginning to act like a nutsack.
“Your mom was here. She said she tried your cell several times but kept hitting voicemail.”
“Did you believe her, Alex?”
He chuckles. “You told me never to believe your folks, Ms. Volkov. And
e looked excited.”
“Of course! She shipped me off to a date night with my ex and came around to sneak on me.”
Alex says nothing. I stop in my tracks and turn to look at him. “Did
He spreads his palms. “No.”
I pin my eyes on his face. “I don’t buy that. Spill it, man.”
Buy anything else to you?”
“Uh, she said she’s happy you went out and said I should tell you to call her as soon as you get back.”
“Right!”
“So, Tristan. Is he bothering you?”
Dear old Alex. Always eager to help. “No. I mean, nothing I can’t handle.”
He nods. “If you get tired of handling him or something, I’ll be glad to take over. I never liked that guy.”
I furrow my brows. Really?
“But you used to chat with him like he was your buddy or something. What’s changed?”
“He’s no longer your man. That’s what’s changed. I did all of that because you were with him. Now, I don’t have to fake it anymore, and next time I see him, I’m breaking his jaw.”
I incline my head towards him. Damn. The man isn’t playing. “For his sake, I hope it doesn’t get to that.”
“I hope it does.” Alex returns.
Hlaugh and continue on my way to my elevator. It’s past 9. After I left the restaurant, I drove around a bit. I made a pig stop at Jordan’s townhouse but couldn’t be ballsy enough to get out of the car. The lights were on in two rooms, and I could have sworn I saw him walking around in one.
I tug off my shoes at the door, walk barefoot into the kitchen, and drop the box on the table.
Mom.
I should call her now and get it out of my way before figuring out what to do with the rest of my night. Now that I’m done with Ava’s book, I have no pending tasks, and all the reports at my other job are dusted and emailed to Pete for review.
Ava said she still needs me to look over some of her finances. Help her make up her mind on the best steps to take.
I unzip the black dress and drag it down. It’s a piece I wore last year for a funeral in LA at a colleague’s mom’s funeral.
Tristan hated the dress. He nagged about the neckline, the color, and, of course, the length. He said it way too long and made me appear like a widow.
Chapter 24
My phone dings. It’s a text. After hanging the dress, I swipe my finger across the screen. My first thought is to the & the content of the messag
It’s mom, of course I wonder why she’s so eager to hear about my date, and I’m also curious about her reason for lying about meeting a chant at bas
“Stella is a smart woman. I bet she knows something is up.”
Ishove Tristan’s words aside. That asshole is the last person I want to waste my thoughts on
I tap on the messaging app, but on second thought, my thumb slides across the phone browser. I type in X–rated material in the search bar.
Several search results pop out. My heartbeat picks up as I scroll through the links. Fuck! There are so many of them, and my finger trembles. To be honest, I have no idea what has come over me. I keep having these thoughts – these unfathomable fantasies about Jordan and me. No matter how hard t try, I can’t seem to stifle the hunger gnawing at my centre, making it throb like it has a heart of its own.
lease down on my bed and spread my legs as the video begins to play. I make short work of my underwear and bra, discarding them on the floor. “Hold them up.” The man in the video orders the woman viciously, his eyes burning with arousal as he strokes her knee and pushes them up slowly. “And stay still.”
She obeys. I feel my breath beginning to grow heavier. His tongue snakes inside of her mouth. She gasps. I jerk, almost dropping the phone.
My finger enters my slit. As the man begins to move his finger in and out of her, I match his rhythm, pumping my tight hole and whimpering as my body tightens.
My eyes widen in horror when he adds two fingers, stretching her. Fuck!
I add another and rock my hips. I can’t reach it. I can’t seem to do it the way my body craves it. I groan in frustration and roll on my side.
The thought of Jordan burns my mind, but I can’t seem to let go. I mutter a lewd curse. It’s getting worse by the day, and I’m taking in all of it. Perhaps it’s the fact that hell with Jordan is more bearable than heaven with anyone else.
Someone like Tristan.
I sigh and close my eyes, imagining being bent over a waist–high kitchen counter. My stomach lurches in response as his handsome face fills every corner of my mind. My front is pressed into the cold surface of the counter, and my back arching as Jordan caresses my thighs and then glides to my center and rubs my clit in a punishing yet nerve–splitting rhythm.
One minute, he’s kissing my back, murmuring incoherent words, and the next, he’s parting my legs, seeking my entrance with the tip of his shaft, pushing in bit by bit, making me whimper, begging him to go all the way in a strangled voice.
I shudder, the walls of my hole clamping around my fingers. Over and again, my legs pull up, then back down, rolling on the bed.
Jordan slams forward, his shaft hitting the one spot that makes my insides explode. Pain mingles with pleasure. It’s the most incredible thing–the most amazing feeling in the world.
I lift my head off the desk -pillow–screaming at him to fuck me harder. He obliges. His arms hold me in place as he thrusts in and out. My fingers work my hole, in and out, mirroring his moves.
Finally, unable to hold off any longer, I reach for my nipples with a shaky hand and squeeze them. Oh fuck!
Jordan cups my shiny and wet slit, thumbing my clit as he fucks me from behind. I arch my ass, pushing backward. I begin wiggling my fingers, a pattern that always drives me wild.
I curve my middle finger slightly, ensuring it brushes the sweet spot as I slide in and out. It doesn’t take long before I let out a muffled screan my thighs and pausing movement, only rocking my hips against the digits still buried in my pulsating hole.
ropen my eyes. The video is still playing. The woman is cumming too, her head thrown back as the man rams into her from the back.
As I lay in my bed, trying to catch my breath, my phone dings. I sigh, roll on my side, and tap on the notification. It’s from Dad.
ezing
Chapter 24
I’ve spoken with Jordan. Dinner next Friday. I’ll send you the reservation details when my PA books us a spot
Ilove you, baby,
My face lightens, and the surge of relief! Just felt evaporates. I vividly recall Jordan walking away from me, acting like what we shared that night chan nothing to him.
Like I’m insane and alone in this.
An idea begins to form. This dinner might be just the perfect opportunity to find out what he really thinks about me. Dad would be there, yes, so I need a plan. One that won’t backfire.
And I need to find the perfect dress, too. Something Jordan won’t be able to keep his eyes away from something sultry.
I smirk, curl my tongue over my upper lip and run my hand over my naked breasts.
Jordan won’t know what hits him.
AD
