Page 106 of The Bad Boy Prince in Love

Chapter 57: Confused Hallie

After Hallie got homethat night, she saw her phone light up with a text from Luke:

*Sorry that was super awkward!I swear I didn’t know Frances cared that much about me.Now you think I’m an even bigger jerk.*

She ignored it for the moment, a confusing storm of thoughts swirling through her mind.Less than a minute later, another text came in from him again:

*Can we talk about this please?*

She texted back a simple ‘ok let’s talk tomorrow’ and left it at that.Seeing that teary-eyed woman made her wonder how many more of them were out there, pining for this man who had already forgotten about them.

Was she going to become one of them?

She sighed when she thought of how beautiful he was.Her heart was on the brink of falling for him deeply, and if she did, there would be no return.

Pretty soon after she came in to work, Luke knocked on her office door.

“It’s the guy who makes grown women cry,” Hallie greeted him, knowing a bit of teasing would put him at ease.

“Yeah, it’s me,” he agreed.“So you’re not mad at me?”

Hallie had thought about this the night before.She couldn’t really be mad at him since she already knew his ways.This was just more proof that his lifestyle was indeed hurtful to people, something she had long suspected.

“I don’t know,” she said with a sigh.“It doesn’t make a difference what I think anyway.I’m not here to judge you.”

“About that woman,” Luke said, sitting down on the edge of the desk, “I dated her before I even met you.”

“As if that makes any difference,” Hallie said.“You certainly dated your fair share of women after you met me.”

“But you must know none of that was serious.”

“How can I believe you?”

“You decide,” he said, shrugging.“You know me pretty well by now.It’s like the world conspires to let you see me as I really am.Maybe you’re the only person who can handle the truth of who I am and still stand to be around me.Have you ever thought there might be a reason for that?”

“Yeah, the reason is a pretty cynical one,” she replied, fiddling with a pen.“I needed you to help convince my family that I’m reliable.And now I can’t seem to get rid of you.”

“Maybe that was just the way fate had in store for us to meet,” he suggested with a cunning smile, “but the real reason is that we’re supposed to fall desperately in love with each other!”

Hallie just stared at him incredulously.He always said what women wanted to hear.She couldn’t lull herself into the comforting idea that she was any different from his other victims.

“You still don’t believe me, do you?”he said, as he caught her studying his handsome face, trying to figure out if he meant anything he said.

“I don’t know,” she said honestly.“Sometimes I think it’sbecauseyou’re impossible to keep that I’m interested in you.But seeing poor Frances made me a little more cautious.”

“Oh, you’re never going to be like her!And don’t worry about this job,” he added.“It’s still yours, no matter what happens between us.”

Hallie twisted the pen in her hand.“You’re just saying that now.What if things go terribly wrong and we can’t stand the sight of each other?”

“You could still work for the company.I won’t besmirch your office with my foul presence if you no longer wish to look upon my face.I mean it, you’re doing great stuff for us!”

“Ha ha, thanks.I just don’t know, Luke.”

“Okay, you know where to find me if you change your mind.”He hopped off the desk and made a reluctant exit, casting one last smoldering look at her.

It was going to be impossible to focus on work after this!