Page 105 of The Billionaire's Bride

She locks her fingers together in front of her body. "Ah, can I get a glass of water?"

I hesitate and she frowns, "Come on. Surely, even you can extend that much hospitality to me?"

"Not." I growl, "But what-fucking-ever." I head behind the bar, pour a glass of water and hand it to her. Keeping the barrier of the bar between us is cowardly, I know…but it’s best this way. If I stand next to her, I won’t be able to keep my hands to myself.

She drains the water, places the glass back on the counter.

"Well?" I glance at my watch, "Better make it quick. I have a date."

"No, you don’t."

I arch an eyebrow, "And you know that, how?"

"Because you love me."

Shit.I feign a yawn. "There you go, deluding yourself. If I loved you, I wouldn’t have left you."

"It’s because you love me that you left me."

I smirk. "This isn’t one of your sweet romances."

"I only read erotic romances. The ones in which the villain is also the hero."

"Neither of which I am." I place my elbow on the counter. "I don’t play any part in your story, babe."

She pales. "I don’t believe you."

"Better believe it."

"You still love me."

"And you love Edward."

"I love you more."

"And you arrived at that brilliant piece of deduction, how?"

"Sometimes it takes absence and time to put things in perspective. After you left… I missed you. Nothing was the same. I was with Edward but…" she swallows, "all I could think about was you. I realized that you are the one I want. You are the one I need. You are the person I want to be with, Baron."

Something hot stabs at my chest. I fold my fingers into fists, glare at her as she shuffles her feet.

"Edward and I are no longer together." She lowers her chin and folds her fingers together in front of her. "It's been a month since we decided to break up."

"A month?"

She nods. "I wanted to give myself enough time to make sure that I knew exactly what I had to do next."

"I know what you need to do next." I jerk my chin toward the door and her gaze widens. "You should leave."

"No."

"You need to get out of here, Ava."

She shakes her head, "I know you're upset Baron—"

"Upset?" I laugh, "That's putting it mildly. You made up your mind; I've made peace with it. I am ready to move on—"

"No, you're not."