Page 58 of Discretion

I pressed the heels of my hands into my eyes. Was thattruly what she thought? That I was so self-absorbed that I cared how high the bidding went for an evening with me?Jesus.

Apparently, I had some work to do when it came to my image with Halle. Yes, I’d played to the crowd when I’d been onstage. But fuck me, did she really believe that was who I was? It stung…to think she didn’t know me as well as I thought she did.

And then it dawned on me. Her irritation. Her…digs.

I pushed, grinning as I took a step forward. “You’re jealous.”

“Jealous?” she scoffed. “No.” But her chest flushed with color, and victory thrummed through my veins.She was, wasn’t she?

I found myself wanting to push her. Break her. Until she spilled open and admitted the truth—she wanted me. Just like I wanted her.

“You were jealous,” I pushed.

Her cheeks pinkened—anger or desire, I couldn’t be quite sure. Her chest was heaving, her tits nearly spilling over the top of her gown.Jesus.I knew I shouldn’t look, but I also couldn’t look away.

“Enough.” She briefly dropped her head to her chest. “Enough. I can’t keep doing this with you. First Dimitri and now Wyatt? You have to stop, Jasper.Please.”

Her voice cracked on the last word, and it was the “please” that nearly broke me.

She was right. God, she was right.

I was doing the exact opposite of what I’d promised—to myself, to Halle. And I’d been trying, damn it. For weeks now, I’d been doing my best to treat her just like I would any other employee.

“I’m sorry.” I ran a hand over my head as I took a step back. “You’re right.” I wasn’t being fair. I wasn’t respectingher boundaries. But it was damn near impossible when I knew we belonged together. I just needed her to see that too.

“I should go.” She hesitated a moment then sighed, her shoulders dropping as some of the fight went out of her.

She turned and reached for the door handle. But when she pushed down on it, nothing happened. She cursed under her breath then tried again, jerking on the handle a few times.

“Need some help?” I offered, only slightly amused by her predicament. The other part was hurt that she couldn’t seem to get away from me fast enough yet again.

She tried one more time before stepping aside with a heavy sigh. I pushed on the handle, only to discover it was locked. I tried a second time, thinking it must be some mistake. But it wasn’t. And the handle didn’t budge.

I held up my phone to the security panel, hoping my room key would unlock it. Nothing happened. The sensor stayed red. The lock remained engaged.

I squeezed my eyes shut briefly. “The door’s locked.”

She stepped forward, nudging me aside. “It can’t be.” She jiggled the handle, but nothing happened. She kept trying anyway, as if by sheer force of will, she would be able to free us.

I checked my phone. No service.Shit.

“Fine,” she huffed, blowing some of her hair out of her face. “We’ll just…”

“Call someone?” I held up my phone and shook my head. “I don’t have any reception. The walls must be too thick.”

She removed her phone from a pocket hidden in the folds of her dress, her movements frantic. She peered down at her screen and cringed. “Okay, so, we’ll just bang on the door until someone hears us.”

I leaned back against the concrete wall and crossed my arms over my chest. “Good luck with that.”

“You’re not even going to try? We can’t just…sit here and do nothing.”

“The music’s too loud for anyone to hear us. All it will do is wear us out.” I surveyed up and down the stairwell. “I’ll try the other doors.” There had to be ten floors.Fuck me.

“Okay,” Halle said. “I’ll stay here and see if I can do anything about the lock.”

I removed my jacket and draped it over the railing. And then I started my descent. I tried the first door with no success; I had a feeling they’d all be locked.

“Any luck?” Halle called down to me, her voice echoing off the concrete.