At least she hadn’t been the only one fooled by her ex. He’d been a master at hiding his homosexuality. “Now he’s out of the closet and ecstatic. By the way, his business partner, now husband, is who I had to buy out and when I slid the check over to them, Broderick wished me the best of luck with a condescending ‘You’re going to fail big-time’ snarl. He didn’t think I could run the place. He’d told me so on numerous occasions throughout the divorce proceedings.” She crossed her arms over her chest. His attitude had irked her to the point of spite. Just because she hadn’t been able to keep him satisfied as a wife didn’t mean she’d fail at the venture, even though her heart wasn’t really in it. Pride was named one of the deadly sins for a reason. “I couldn’t have him take away my chance at a family along with bursting my ego, so I decided to prove him wrong.”
The room pulsed with the unstated words of her failure. To her revulsion, tears stung the backs of her eyes, and she tried to swallow the lump of disappointment, which had come from nowhere and refused to leave. She had to get out of there before she embarrassed herself even further. This time she didn’t speak as she jumped out the chair and ran toward the door. She knew for certain now that coming to the man who’d driven her into Broderick’s arms in the first place had been a colossal mistake.
Firm hands held her by the shoulders and turned her around before she could grip the handle of the door. When he pulled her in close, she pressed her hands against his chest and tried to push away. She really did, but ended up gripping the lapels of his suit jacket so she could rest her head against his broad chest.
For the first time since the night he’d destroyed her, she released the pain she’d been holding in. The sobs shook her body as he rubbed her back. She cried so hard that his words were lost on her, but the calming vibrations passing into her chest soothed. When the dam finally closed, she sniffled as the hiccups made their unfortunate appearance.
He released her and looked down into what must look like a monstrous mess of a face. Wiping the tears from her cheeks with the pads of his thumbs, her heart stilled when for the briefest of moments, he angled his head as if he was coming in for a kiss. Her captured breath burned within her lungs in anticipation, ready to relive his soft lips pressed to hers. Her nipples tightened at the prospect. Without warning, he stepped away.
Leading her to the couch, he sat her down and handed her a box of tissues. The unladylike sound that came when she blew her nose didn’t make her feel any more comfortable. He went to the refrigerator, took out a bottle of water and twisted off the cap before handing it to her.
Tanya gulped the liquid to reduce the flame of mortification heating her head while she avoided his gaze. Had she actually thought he’d kiss her? She may have lost weight and looked okay, but he could have any woman in the world. Why would he want her? She’d never forget how he’d treated her.
“You must have really loved him,” he said.
The water she’d just sipped slid down the wrong way, eliciting a sporadic cough. He actually thought the tears were for Broderick and the end of their marriage. If she wasn’t fighting for her life, she’d have laughed. She’d thought she’d loved him and that their marriage had been good. No television show could’ve presented a more perfect one. Over time, she’d realized her love had merely been on a friendship level. Their marriage had been doomed from the start. Only he’d known the reason, though. Yet she’d also been at fault. Why had she ever attempted to give her heart to one man when it belonged to another?
His heavy hand banged on her back. “Are you all right?”
She nodded while pushing his arm away. “Yes,” she croaked out, and held up a finger so he wouldn’t call 911. “Just...need a minute.”
The concerned man holding out his arms as if ready to catch her if she should faint was not what she’d expected after following the lifestyle he’d lived over the years. He’d recently calmed his partying, being seen on the celebrity circuit less frequently and dating women for longer than a week at a time, but even those few monthlong relationships never lasted and she wondered why.
The only thing the women he dated had in common was that they were gorgeous and all seemed to possess the same social rank. If the media were correct, he didn’t look at race, culture or size when choosing his females. He’d dated Amelia Wilson and Sara Bloom, both of whom weren’t just overweight, but obese. Her heart broke with each woman he’d been photographed with. Why couldn’t he have fallen for her?
Not paying attention to his romances would’ve led to a happier life, but she couldn’t fully release him from her world. And now here they were. Together.
She noticed the wet area on the lapel of his jacket and gasped. “Oh, my goodness. I’ve ruined your suit.” She pulled out a wad of tissues from the box he’d given her and attempted to dab the area. As if that would help her save a garment that could probably pay off a month’s rent on the club. It didn’t ease her guilt to see that she’d gotten lipstick on the tie. She’d heard he favored Hermès.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said, gripping her wrist. “Besides, it’s nothing my dry cleaner can’t get out.”
Every pulse point in her body bounded at his touch. With reluctance, she slipped out of his grasp. “Okay. I’ll pay for the dry cleaning.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
She waved her hands at his chest, remembering how solid and supportive he’d felt holding her. “But it’s my fault.”
Shaking his head, he grabbed her floundering hands and held them between his. “Really, Tanya. It’s no big deal.”
Ignoring the heat thrumming into her from his touch would require too much effort from her drained body, so she pulled her hands away and picked up the bottle of water from the table.
Once again, a softness returned to his eyes. What was he thinking?
“I’ll help you get the club up and running.”
Had she heard correctly? “I... I only wanted your advice. You don’t have to help me any more than that.”
“You know Josh even better than I do. The only time he asks for help is when the situation is desperate. I can’t let him down.”
He and Josh had been close since the moment they’d met. It had taken effort to tamp down the jealousy she’d had of sharing her sibling with Miguel. “Thank you. But I’ll pay you for your consultation.”
He cocked both his head and brow.
“I don’t have the money now, but with your Midas-branding touch, I’ll be rolling in dough soon enough.”
She had missed his contagious laughter over the years. “I still won’t take your money. This is a favor to a friend. And his sister.”
Tanya bowed her head to hide the sting. So they weren’t even friends. Sure they’d spent ten years not speaking, but it sounded harsh for him not to acknowledge what they’d once been. She’d always wanted more from him, but hadn’t been able to get it, so she’d ended up with nothing. Now they’d be working together. Would she be able to keep her heart locked up and safe? Did she have a choice? She looked up to have his glorious eyes fill her vision, and for a moment, her hands itched to hold his face still so she could feel his luscious lips against hers just one more time. Maybe the need for his touch would go away if she indulged her whim.
He nodded. “No argument for once? Good.”
“I will pay you back,” she vowed.
His grin brought out those delectable dimples. “Obstinate as always, I see.”
Out of all the things that had changed, her stubbornness had probably gotten worse. “You don’t know the half of it.”