SOAR (The Indigo Lounge Series Book 4) (10 page)

Noah
vaulted to his feet. “I need to go.” Grabbing his wallet, he dropped a stack on
the table.

“Care
to fill us in on what just happened?”

“No.
I don’t.” He looked at Mike. “But thanks.”

Mike
frowned, then shrugged. “Gentlemen, I think he’s just found his personal woman-deciphering
holy grail.”

***

Noah
paced his suite after he left his sixth message, debating whether to storm that
Palm Beach monstrosity of a mansion where Leia lived.

Two
things stopped him. One, it was past midnight and he didn’t want to come across
like a desperate, stalking creep, even though he could probably talk his way
round that. Two, he was drunk enough to make good on the temptation to do
bodily harm to Snyder should the other guy get in his way, a scenario that was
highly likely to unfold if he attempted to reach Leia at…he peered at his
watch…1.23 a.m.

Gritting
his teeth, he pressed the button on his phone again.

“Dammit,
Leia, you have your fucking phone back now. Use it and call me back. Making me
wait to hear from you isn’t doing my disposition any good. And you sure as hell
don’t want to keep doing it.” He stabbed the end button, then immediately redialed.
Voicemail.

“Oh,
and I know why you ended us. But I need you to have the balls to tell me to my
face. After which, I’ll tie you to my bed and make you pay for the shit you’ve
put us both through. Good fucking night.”

ELEVEN

I
know why you ended us
.

Leia’s
hands shook as she replayed the message for the twentieth time on her way to
the office. Part of her felt relief that Noah had finally remembered she
couldn’t have children.

But
elation had turned to despair very quickly. He’d called her a faithless little
liar long before she’d told him the lie in his office about not wanting to be
saddled with a kid. A brief moment after she’d uttered the words, he’d looked
highly skeptical. She wasn’t sure what had changed his mind but it didn’t
matter anyway.

Why
would he want anything to do with her when she remained a broken body and soul
he would tire of eventually?

Or
maybe that was the problem. Maybe he just wanted a fuck toy to play with until
the more serious business of becoming a father kicked in for him. Lying in bed,
pondering everything his message meant, she’d veered toward the temptation of
being just that – his fuck toy for the next seven months. A few months of
Noah was better than an eternity of nothing, right?

But
could she walk away after that time?

It
had nearly killed her to walk away after a few days of meeting him. Months
would rip her soul to pieces.

Because
being with Noah would only deepen her feelings for him. Look at what had
happened in the parking lot on Sunday night? Even at his most icily domineering
and condemning, he’d made her want him to the point of insanity.

She’d
craved his merciless hand and his wicked tongue so badly, she would’ve given
her life for a taste of his brand of pleasure. She’d goaded him into letting
him leave his marks on her, marks she still treasured because she was that
pathetic.

Hell,
she’d briefly panicked this morning when she’d noticed the finger marks around
her neck were beginning to fade.

Prolonging
contact with him was asking for trouble. He’d become so ingrained into her
sexual psyche that she’d been unable to get herself off in the shower this
morning. Despite the residual pain and pleasure of a frenzied masturbation, her
body had held back on her, wishing for Noah’s hand, his mouth, instead.

Dear
God, she was in serious trouble—

Her
phone vibrated, making her jump.

Noah.
The ringtone pierced through her consciousness and her heart stopped. He must
have tracked down the session he’d done with
Fused Realms
because her
ringtone for his number was now the five-second piece of the jam. When exactly
had he tracked it down? And when had he put it in her phone—?

She
cursed when the phone went silent. A second later it flashed to life again.

Forcing
herself to remain calm, she answered it, despite her pulse beginning to race.
“You know, you can’t keep summoning me to your presence like I’m your personal
lapdog.”

“I
wouldn’t have to summon you if you answered your phone like a normal person,”
he gritted.

“I
was doing what normal people do at one a.m. Sleeping.”

“And
you sleep with your phone turned off?”

“When
I don’t want to be disturbed, yes.”

 
She didn’t want to admit that she’d had
her headphones on with the music turned high to drown out her thoughts. The lie
she’d told Noah just to get away from him on Monday had eaten at her until
she’d been a whisker away from calling him to confess why she couldn’t be with
him.

Well,
now he knew.

Her
palms dampened at his silence. Was he going to say something, or was he going
to let her twist in the wind?

“I…I
was going to call you back,” she ventured.

“Yeah?
When?” he demanded.

“After
my meeting this morning.”

“You
didn’t think what I had to say was important enough to schedule me in before
your meetings?”

She
bit her lip. “I’m meeting with retailers from across the country. I couldn’t
afford to have you—”

“Fuck
with your head? Or fuck you sore once we’d dispensed of this bullshit?”

Her
pulse skipped so hard her hands shook. “It’s not bullshit.”

“I
beg to differ. You decided
how I feel
without waiting to hear my side of
things. What’s that if not fucking bullshit?” His voice was growing colder, a
sign that he was getting angrier with her. “I made the mistake of forgetting
what you told me in Switzerland. I remember now, Leia. I know you can’t have
kids. Isn’t that what this is all about? You bowing out of this relationship
because you think that
affects
how I feel about you?”

“Doesn’t
it?” She held her breath.

“You
get your answer to that face to face. Not over the phone.”

She
exhaled. “Noah…”

“Are
you interested in having a conversation?”

She
closed her eyes and laid her head back against the seat. Bargaining furiously
with herself that this would be the last time, that she wouldn’t let Noah sway
her
no matter what
, she answered, “Yes.” She’d hear him out and explain
to him why they were better off without each other. And this time, when she
walked away, she would stay away.

But
maybe she could walk away with another reminder of how incredible Noah could
make her feel?

“Good.”

Opening
her eyes, she noticed her driver had pulled up in front of her office. She had
six of the major retailers from all over the country flying in for a meeting
about stocking La
Carezza’s
latest lingerie in their
stores. She needed her head in the game, not dreaming of Noah’s belt.
Or his hand.
Or his tongue.
Or,
please God, his cock.

“…
did
you hear what I said?” he growled in her ear.

“Umm…sorry
no. I spaced out for a minute,” she confessed.

“I
said we’ll talk tonight,” he repeated. “My place. Come straight up when you get
there. The code is 77493. Repeat it.” She recited it. “Six-thirty on the
button, Leia. Don’t be late.” He hung up.

She
squeezed her eyes shut again as weakness engulfed her. Whatever happened
tonight, she knew she was going to fuck Noah again. For the last time, she
assured herself.

But
she was going to fuck him.

Hard
.

***

“That
went well, don’t you think?”

Leia
gathered the papers in front of her, placed them in the crook of her arm, and glanced
at Warren. “Yes.
Far better than I expected, although the rep
from Saks was a little too snooty for my liking.
I had to bite my tongue
several times not to snap his head off when he kept asking me how old I was.”

A
rare smile crossed Warren’s face as he stopped before her. Impeccably dressed
as always, he adjusted his silver monogrammed cufflinks. Leia tried not to read
anything into the fact that he was blocking her way to the door of the
conference room.

Her
meeting had gone on for an hour longer than she’d anticipated. With her
schedule now crammed together tighter than she wanted, she’d be lucky to get
out of the office by six to make it to Noah’s place in time.

Would
her lateness mean punishment? A feverish shudder of anticipation raked through
her. She tightened her grip on the folder to keep her shaking under control.

“Yes,
I noticed,”
Warren
said. “But you held your own
admirably. You sent them all away with the firm impression that your
intelligence far eclipses your age when it comes to business savvy. I’m proud
of you, my dear.” He reached up and traced his hand down her cheek, another
caress in a growing number that he’d been initiating for the last few days.

Although
the backhanded compliment irritated her and the caress made her feel uneasy, she
didn’t react to either. But neither did she welcome it. The suspicion that
Warren felt something for her beyond their former ward/guardian relationship
had grown into a solid fact she couldn’t hide from.
A fact
that would need addressing sooner rather than later.

Aside
from the times when she couldn’t read him properly, he’d been there for at her
lowest moments and seen her through the worst time of her life.

But…

Remembering
Noah’s allegations, she stared back at him, trying to see beneath the unruffled
exterior Warren always presented. But it was as if she was looking into a
bottomless lake at midnight. She turned her head from his cool fingers. His
hand dropped, but he didn’t step away from her. Instead he joined her as she
headed for the door.

Entering
the elevator, he pressed the button for the floor above, where both their
offices were located. “Are you all set for Saturday?”

She
frowned for a moment, and then remembered. “Yes. My gowns arrived this morning.
I’m not sure I went with the right couturier though. I might have to resort to
Plan B.”

“I’m
having a tuxedo fitting this afternoon. I can pick something up from Oscar de
la
Renta’s
collection, if you wish?”

The
thought of Warren picking out a dress for her to wear sent a heavy bolt of discomfort
down her spine. Smiling to take the sting out of her words, she replied, “No
need. I have my favorite designer on speed dial. I wanted to try something
different this time.” She laughed. “Goes to show that different doesn’t always
mean better.”

He
didn’t return her smile as they exited the elevator and headed down the
corridor. “Not always. But a calculated leap of faith can reap rewards.”

“Isn’t
that a contradiction in terms? How can a leap of faith be
calc
—?”

She
stopped as her secretary, Celia, emerged from her office with a flustered look.
“I’m sorry, Miss Michaels. I just returned from the copier room and she was
here. Reception let her up without letting me know…”

About
to ask her what she was talking about, Leia looked past Celia and froze.

Ashley
was poised in the doorway to Leia’s office.

Her
choice of ensemble today was just as impeccable as every single time Leia had
seen her. Despite the Miami heat, she managed to look cool and composed, with a
Hermès
scarf around her neck and her straight black
hair tied in a chic bun at her nape. For a hysterical second, Leia thought how
perfect Ashley and Warren were for each other.

“It’s
okay, Celia. I’ll deal with this.”

Celia
nodded and darted back into her office. Leia caught the wary look Warren sent
the other woman before he glanced at her. “Would you like me to stay, my dear?”

Ashley’s
brows rose at the endearment. Leia bristled and shook her head. She would have
to talk to Warren about that. The possessiveness in those two words was
beginning to grate.

“No,
thanks. I’ll see you later.”

He
nodded and left.

Turning,
Leia brushed past Ashley and her cloud of Chanel No.19 and entered her office,
very much aware that the other woman was following closely behind.

Leia
reached her desk and resisted tossing her folder across it. Showing Bitch Face
that she was rattled wasn’t an option. Why the hell was she here? Had Noah sent
her?

“How
the hell did you get up here without an appointment?” she asked in what she
hoped was a disinterested voice.

Ashley
smiled faintly and dropped her cream Balenciaga purse, which matched her
stylish dress, on the chair facing Leia’s desk. “We haven’t been acquainted
long enough for you to find out for yourself, so I’ll let you in on a secret. I
always get what I want. Always.” The last word was wrapped in steel and spat
with venom.

Leia
resisted the urge to unsheathe her own claws and remained in front of her desk,
her arms crossed. “I don’t have time to entertain your whimsical illusions. So
spit it out. What the hell do you want? I have a business to run here.”

Ashley
looked around the office and nodded. “I was quite impressed to find out that
you’re involved in all this. It was probably why Noah was taken with you too,
for a while. I ran a very successful art gallery in New York when I met Noah.”
She smiled. “Isn’t it adorable that he likes ambitious women?
But only to a point though.
I found that out the hard
way—”

“Are
you approaching anywhere near a point here, or shall I build a fire so we can
braid each other’s hair and exchange boy stories?” She faintly recalled
Warren’s view on sarcasm and sent the thought the middle finger. Sarcasm at the
right time, such as times like these, when her heart was being pulverized, was
hugely bolstering.

“We
got the results of the DNA test back today.”

Leia’s
heart took a dive at
the
we
and
plummeted at the rest. Keeping her expression blank, she studied Ashley’s smug
smile, already knowing but dreading the answer before the question left her
lips. “Why would I be interested in that?”