“Did you?” His voice was oddly gentle. “Is that why you wrote that law review article? Because you’d put me behind you?”
Ice cold anger burned inside her, along with mortification that he saw her so clearly. “I will tell my father and the press everything if that’s what it takes to get you out of this office.”
He took a step toward her. She put a hand up, tilting her head and glaring at him. He froze.
“Skye—”
“Just go.”
“What will you tell your father? He’s going to wonder why I walked out of here.”
“I’ll just tell him the truth. That you realized I wasn’t even close to good enough for you, and so you decided to just walk away.”
Chapter Nine
Two Years Ago
“Leo!”
Skye’s voice hit him the moment he and Jürgen stepped through the door at The Fix on Sixth. He searched the room, quickly finding her by the dartboard with Hannah and Griffin. She grinned and waved. Best of all, she didn’t appear the least bit self-conscious about shouting his name.
He blew her a kiss and pointed to a booth. She nodded, then hugged her friends before hurrying toward him while Jürgen—an excellent bodyguard and an even better friend—made himself scarce.
As she got closer, her smile widened, her brown eyes glittering with joy as she threw herself into his arms, her legs locking around his upper thighs so that he was forced to palm her ass to hold her up. Which wasn’t a bad thing at all.
“Guess what?”
“I’m going out on a limb and saying that it’s good news.”
“They posted grades.” She spoke slowly, her breathing steady despite her obvious excitement. “Now guess which girl got all A’s—including the high-A in antitrust law.”
“Um, Ellie?” Skye’s law school bestie was a charming woman, but she was also barely skating by.
“She managed a C-minus, and she’s thrilled.”
He bounced her in his arms. “Then I’m guessing you’re the girl who got all A’s.”
She nodded happily. “And I managed that despite … spending far too much time with this cute guy I’ve … been hanging around with.”
“Perhaps that guy is your good luck charm.”
She leaned forward and kissed him, soft and sweet. “Maybe he is.”
“I’m thrilled for you. But not at all surprised. I know how hard you’ve been studying.” He’d been there beside her for each study session, poring over his own physics notes and annotating the results of various simulations he and Professor Malkin were running. They’d both worked hard—with some quite delicious study breaks to make the time pass faster.
Still in his embrace, she nodded over her shoulder toward Griffin and Hannah. “Just to make sure my ego … didn’t get out of control, they were kicking my ass at darts.”
He gave her butt a squeeze. “I can think of things to do with your ass, but kicking isn’t one of them.”
She leaned forward, kissed him, then playfully bit his lower lip, tugging on it just enough that he felt the heat curl all the way down to his cock, until he had no choice but to put her down or risk entirely inappropriate behavior right there in the bar.
He loosened his grip, and she slid down his body, the motion doing such incredible things to him, it took all his effort not to moan. She made him feel things he’d never felt before. Arousal, sure. But something deeper. More intense. More meaningful.
He craved her more than he’d ever craved any woman, and he’d waited longer for her than he had for any woman. He knew he’d fallen hard and fast, but it felt real. It felt right. And although that was undeniably odd, he couldn’t deny that he liked it.
And honestly, why should he deny it? Quantum entanglement was real enough, he knew that without a doubt. The phenomenon of paired particles reacting and responding to one another even when they were separated by great distance. It applied to people, too. Because damned if he wasn’t certain that Skye had been there all along, his paired particle.
“I like that,” she’d said when he’d told her as much during a study break. “I think it’s the perfect metaphor … for us.”
He knew she didn’t understand the physics of it, but she understood the core. He’d kissed her then, long and hard and deep. She’d moaned, her mouth against his, then she’d boldly pulled off her shirt, and he’d almost died on the spot. She was perfect. Her breasts spilling out over the top of her bra, her pale skin begging to be kissed.
He’d unfastened the front clasp, then tasted her nipple, sucking on it as she made the kind of whimpering sounds that drove him absolutely crazy.
He wanted more, and he’d kissed his way down her body, his tongue teasing her navel, his teeth tugging at the button on her jeans, then moving lower and lower until…
Except they hadn’t gotten to until.
She’d stopped him, telling him she wanted to, but that she was still a virgin and thought it better to wait until after finals. Especially since her antitrust class was kicking her ass.
“I’m sorry.”
“No,” he’d told her, kissing her gently. “I like having something to look forward to.”
That had led to three full weeks of wild desire topped off by a permanent ache in his cock that became his new normal.
It had also led to some soul-searching and guilt. Because how the hell could he be her first when he knew nothing could come of it? As the heir to the throne, he would be expected to marry, yes. But his choices for a bride were limited. And American lawyers were not within those parameters.
The bottom line was that whatever was between them couldn’t last. The most they could have was a Texas fling, and while he’d had many a fling with many a woman, Skye deserved more.
He didn’t want just sex with Skye. He wanted romance. He wanted passion. He wanted a connection.
Most of all, he wanted her. And there was no way that he could have her.
An hour later, his melancholy had passed, replaced by the laughter and teasing that came with drinking beer while playing darts with her, Hannah, and Griffin.
They were about to take a break and order another round when Skye tugged him sideways. He stopped, looking quizzically back at her. After a moment, she cleared her throat and gently tugged her hand away. He mourned the loss of contact, but at the same time, he was grateful for it. More and more often, he was finding it hard to let her go.
She cleared her throat. “There’s something I want you to do. It will be a total blast.”
“Oh no. What are you dragging me into?”
She gave his hand a tug. “Just come with me,” she urged. He didn’t protest. Right then, he was certain he would follow her forever.
But when she led him to the far wall, he felt his trepidation rising. He knew exactly what she was about to ask, and he started to shake his head. “Oh no. No, no, no.”
“Please.” She grinned at him and batted her eyes, exaggerating every movement until he had to laugh.
“I don’t want to be on the board,” he protested.