An Unlikely Deal(15)

He stares at me for a while, then finally says, "No."

"Sure, lie throu-" I stop abruptly. "'No'?"

"No."

I'm deflated … but only a little. "Well, then, that makes you a hypocrite."





 

 
"I know, and I'm sorry. But I swear Faye and I are just friends now. Nothing happened."

"Nothing … " I cross my arms. "So you never slept with her? Not ever?"

"Not while I was with you."

The bitter knot I've had in my gut since finding out about Faye eases a bit before I remember he hasn't always been entirely honest with me. "Not while I was with you" sounds like he's claiming he was faithful to me for our seven months … but it might also mean he slept with her during those months but when I wasn't physically with him. After all, he did take her to those parties, and Faye is a seriously beautiful woman. Hell, I might be tempted if I were a man.

I shake my head. "Well, none of that matters now. I made the right decision to leave you."

His eyes sharpen. "Ava."

"It's been two years, Lucas. You can't just," I cast around for the right word, "unilaterally decide to come back and impose yourself on me."

A dull shade of red colors his cheeks. A vein throbs in his forehead, a clear sign that his patience is wearing thin. "Was it fair then that you unilaterally decided to dump me when I was at my most vulnerable? I have no idea what Blake said, but you never gave me a chance to explain."

"Because you were deliberately staying away from me." If he'd come for me as soon as he was out of surgery …  Maybe we would've ended up differently.

"I stayed away because I didn't want to look clingy and pitiable. I was waiting for you to come back."

"Then why now?"

"Someone let me know where you were. Once I knew … I couldn't stay away."

"Then pretend you don't know anymore. That's what I want." I dig the heels of my palms into my eyes. "Lucas, I really need some sleep. Now that we've talked, can you just land in Osaka and let me off?"

He presses his lips together. "We are not finished."

Every cell in my body tenses, ready for a fight.

"But I'll let you off in Osaka."

I sag in my seat. "Thank you."

This is a victory. I got to say my piece, and he's going to let me go, contrary to his announcement.

But somehow I don't feel triumphant.





Chapter Six



Lucas

I watch the taxi disappear into the early Osaka dawn … carrying Ava away. It's an effort not to run after it. I hate that she's vanishing right before my eyes.

But she's not really gone. You know exactly where she is now.

The talk I planned to have with her didn't go as anticipated. Truth be told, I'm still reeling a bit. I had no clue she'd met Blake-or found out about Faye and drawn the worst conclusions imaginable. 

It's clear enough what Ava thought was going on between Faye and me. Clear … and fucking unfair because nothing's happened between us. I haven't touched Faye in five years.

But Blake …

I have no clue what he's done. Thanks to his snotty mother, he's related to the Pryces, one of the richest and most well-connected families in the world. He carries himself with a superior attitude, and being the oldest, he's patronizing on top of everything else.

I pull out my phone and call him.

"Blake," he answers.

"What the hell did you do to-"

"I do a lot of things. Be more specific."

I hiss out a breath. "Condescending asshole."

"I did something to a condescending asshole? Sounds like he deserved it."

"No, you're the-" I tighten my hand around my phone, wishing it were Blake's neck. "What did you do to Ava?"

Blake's voice is flat. "Ava?"

"Don't play dumb. You know exactly who I'm talking about."

"Actually, I don't." There is genuine bemusement in his quiet tone.

Is whatever he did so insignificant that he doesn't remember? It's a real possibility with Blake. He's excellent at compartmentalizing things, and a lot of those things go into a box labeled "beneath notice".

"She's my … "

It is now my turn to stop and consider. Exactly what was Ava to me back then? We were exclusive, fucked often and spent some time together although I made sure to return to my own place every night. I also paid some of her expenses, even though she wasn't exactly "kept". No. She was too independent and too angry about me paying for anything to be a kept woman.

But she wasn't precisely my girlfriend either. What we had wasn't really dating …

Finally I settle on: "She's a woman I started seeing almost three years ago. She broke it off two years ago, and now I find out you're the cause."