‘Bet you were gutted when you didn’t catch me shagging Fabrizio in a hotel room.’ The sarcasm slipped out. ‘Is that what you thought? What you’ve always thought, ever since you met him? That he’s fancied me, and the second you left Paris, the two of us jumped into bed? Is that what this is?’
Then it hit me. ‘Is that why you left Paris so suddenly? You didn’t actually leave, did you? You just pretended to, hoping I’d fall into his arms so you could catch me red-handed.’
Ashton tried more than once to cut in, but I steamrolled right over him.
He’d always had stalker tendencies. I saw that the day he bought the flat across from mine. Then he showed up at a bar I’d picked at random. When I moved into Oakwood Apartments, he bought the entire building.
It had unsettled me, yes, but back then, we were two people tangled in a lie, each trying to solve our own mess. I didn’t feel it was my place to call him out.
But I couldn’t keep ignoring it.
I shot out of the chair and started pacing. Bloody hell. Why hadn’t I added all this up sooner? Ashton needed control. He had to know everything, be in charge of everything. And I hated being controlled.
Why had I ever thought this relationship could work just because he liked me? This text is hosted at novel-fire.ɴet
‘Can I speak now?’ Ashton asked.
‘I wasn’t stalking you, or trying to catch you out. I tracked you down because I had news, something I had to tell you in person before it hit the press.’
‘You could’ve called.’
‘I did. I called and texted. You didn’t answer.’
I fished out my phone. Sure enough, a few missed calls.
‘I was in the middle of an important dinner.’
‘Yes!’ I spun around and glared at him. ‘And instead of trying to seduce him, I was trying to get him locked up.’
In clipped tones, I told him about Inspector Silva, his visits, and my undercover dinner. ‘Fabrizio was just about to give me a name when you barged in. Now the whole thing’s a mess.’
I folded my arms and shot him a look that said, ‘This is your fault.’
But instead of looking guilty, Ashton looked... angry?
‘You shouldn’t have done that,’ he said.
‘Accepted Silva’s request. You put yourself at risk.’
‘Fabrizio’s not dangerous.’
‘A white-collar one. He doesn’t go around waving guns and murdering people.’
‘Back someone into a corner and see how quickly they get violent.’
‘He’s not armed. And I can box.’
‘That’s not the point. You shouldn’t have done it.’
‘So now I need your permission to do things?’
‘That’s not what I meant.’
‘It’s exactly what you meant!’
He went quiet for a moment, then admitted, ‘It is. I just wish you’d talked to me first.’
He was right. That was the worst part.
If I’d shown him Valmont’s books from the start, he might’ve spotted the red flags. He was sharp, and had a better eye for finance than I ever would. Maybe then I wouldn’t have dumped five million euros into a sinking ship, and I wouldn’t be scrambling now to recover it.
It wasn’t even the money that stung. It was the humiliation of screwing up, of looking stupid. And that was why I hadn’t told Ashton. I hadn’t wanted to lose face.
‘I don’t need you monitoring my every move,’ I said.
‘Silva used you. He could’ve made an arrest with what he had, but he wanted more, so he pushed you to get it. He used you to boost his own career.’
I knew that. I just hadn’t cared. If the plan worked, Silva got his promotion, and I got my money back.
But the plan didn’t work.
Now I could only hope Fabrizio was too drunk to remember how desperate I’d sounded tonight.
‘You should’ve come to me. I would’ve got your money back,’ Ashton said.
‘I KNOW! I know you could’ve fixed it. You run a bloody empire and have strings everywhere. You could make things happen with a single call. But that doesn’t mean I should crawl to you every time something goes wrong. I don’t want to be that woman, Ashton. I’m not going to fall apart and beg you to fix my life for me.’
There it was. Every insecurity I’d buried since we got serious. Ashton’s power didn’t comfort me, it made me feel small. I could ask for help, and he’d gladly give it. He was like a towering redwood, solid and immovable. Under that canopy, I’d be protected.
But what if one day that tree came down?
I didn’t want to be some parasitic vine, living off someone else, incapable of surviving alone.
Maybe it was better to end this before I forgot how to stand on my own.
I touched the engagement ring on my finger. It was a beautiful piece, simple, elegant. He’d clearly gone to one of the best jewellers.
But had he forgotten I was a designer too? Why hadn’t he asked me to design our rings? Wouldn’t that have meant more?
Or maybe he hadn’t forgotten. Maybe he just didn’t think my work was good enough.
I started to pull off the ring.
‘Mira!’ Ashton’s voice snapped.
He was staring at my hand. ‘I have news.’
‘So do I.’ I was done being a coward. It was time to walk away from the man who seemed too good to be true.
‘It’s about your father,’ he said quickly.
‘What about him?’ Wasn’t Franklin still in prison?