Page 118 of Marrying the Billionaire Single Dad

"Oh, yeah?"

He nods. "This is your chance to put the past behind you, to finally move on with a woman who—"

"Sees this as, as much of an arrangement as I do?"

"It’s a start." He surveys my features, "The attraction between you two is off the charts. It’s definitely the right start for building a marriage."

"Since when have you become an advocate for the old ball and chain?"

"Since I saw you struggle and fail to get over your grief; since I saw you become a shadow of your former self; since I saw you begin to self-sabotage your own career."

"Self-sabotage?" I frown. "What do you mean?"

"You’ve been releasing your worst-ever work since their accident."

"Understandable."

"Is it?" He walks up to stand in front of me. "Or have you been using the grief as an excuse to not create? Maybe you don’t want to give it your best shot. Maybe you can’t stand the thought of being successful."

"Do you know how crazy you sound?" I chuckle.

"Is it though?"

He steps into my space, and I growl, "Back off, man."

"I won’t," he snaps back. "It’s time you stop punishing yourself for what happened."

"So, you keep saying."

"So, you lost something very precious to you—"

"You have no idea," I snarl. "No one… No one should have to bury their own child…."

"I know, I know where you’re coming from."

He lays a hand on my shoulder and I shake it off. "No, you don’t." I step back and begin to pace again, "No one can understand what I am going through."

"Maybe she can."

"Oh?"

"You found something that’s very rare."

"What’s that?"

"A chance at true love."

"Love?" I bark out a laugh, "Didn’t know you believed in that emo shit."

"I don’t," he mutters, "but Jesus, man, when I look at you and how you’re wasting away your life... Hell, if I don’t want it to work for you, if it drags you out of the spiral of self-destruction that you’ve been stuck in—"

"I was fine where I was."

"Were you now?" he raises an eyebrow, "Going off social media, dropping out of sight, and fueling speculation that you were losing your shit. Not to mention, not hanging out with the Seven like you used to."

"I was there for the others when they needed me. I got on the bloody calls with them and held their hands as they found their women."

"The bare minimum," he sneers, "and only because I didn’t give you a choice."