Her quiet gasp tells me I just did. Fuck me.
“Why not?”
Her voice quavers when she asks the question, and I can’t help but meet her fearful gaze. That pang in my chest goes through me again at the sight. I don’t want her to be scared of me. I know I haven’t been the most stable individual around her, but I’m not a psycho. Running a hand through my unruly hair, I try to think of a way to explain the thoughts bouncing around like pinballs in my head.
Her beauty is distracting though. The glossy deep brown hair she had in a ponytail when I first saw her is down today, waves curling over her shoulders and covering breasts I have no business noticing, but I do. I can’t help it. Even under her Patsy’s t-shirt, I can tell they’re perfect handfuls. The deep purple shirt brings out the brown in her eyes and highlights the pink deepening on her cheeks the longer I stare at her.
It’s just fitted enough to show off her tiny waist and tucked into shorts that hit way too high on her toned thighs. She’s tall, and with those short little shorts, her legs look like they go on forever.
Hailey quickly grows uncomfortable with my scrutiny and crosses her arms over her chest in an attempt to shield herself. It breaks my concentration, and I’m glad my beard covers the heat I can feel rising in my own face.
“Mitchell?”
I have to clear my throat to answer. “Yeah?”
“Why did you leave the other day? One second you were there, but then you were just...gone. Did I do something wrong?”
Her voice sounds unsure, and I know she’s regretting the question as soon as it’s out of her mouth, so I rush to reassure her. “No sweetheart. You didn’t do anything.”
“They...why?”
Lifting my eyes to the ceiling, I wish for an answer to come to me that I can actually tell her. Of course, nothing comes, so I’m left to muddle through on my own. If I tell her the real reason, she’s going to hate me. Hell, I already hate myself for the thoughts I’m having about her. Maybe her hating me would be a good thing.
Fuck it. I’m just going to tell her.
“Because if I’d stayed there alone with you any longer, I would’ve kissed you.”
Her eyes are almost comically wide at my confession. “Would that really be such a bad thing?”
I laugh, though there’s no humor in it. “Yeah sweetheart, that would be a bad thing.” She’s about to ask me why, so I say the words I know are going to end anything this could ever be in the future. “I can’t, under any circumstances, kiss you. I’m married.”
Chapter Six
Hailey
“I’m married.”
His words shatter my poor, barely held together heart. And why? I’ve only talked to this man twice. He shouldn’t be able to bring forth any kind of emotion in me, let alone have me feeling like my heart is breaking all over again. I barely got it put back together after what Seth did to it.
“Married?” The word comes out as a shriek, and he winces. “If you’re married, why would you even think about kissing me? You shouldn’t be thinking about kissing anyone!” My voice just keeps getting louder and louder with each word, but I can’t stop it.
Mitchell takes a step forward, reaching out a hand cautiously like he’s trying to soothe a wounded animal, and I scramble away from him. I don’t stop moving until once again I’m up against the wall and can’t go any further.
He doesn’t stop coming until he’s standing directly in front of me, much like the position we were in yesterday in the alley. His hand comes to rest on the exposed brick beside my head and he leans in, eyes never leaving mine.
“Let me explain.”
I scoff. “There’s nothing you could say that would make any of this better. We shouldn’t even be in this room alone together. God knows what the guys out there think we’re in here doing.” Freezing as another awful thought comes into my head, I gasp. “Oh my God. Is this something you do a lot?”
His eyes narrow on me and his lips turn down into a dark scowl. “Do what exactly? What are you accusing me of?”
“Accusing you of? Oh, that’s rich. You know what I’m asking. Do you often corner women in alleys and closed off rooms while your poor wife sits at home thinking you’re this good, faithful husband?”
The snarl that comes out of his mouth has me shrinking back into the wall. He leans even further forward though, not giving me even an inch of space. Our noses are only a centimeter apart and I can feel his breath on my face when he speaks.
“Wow. Quick to judge, aren’t you? You don’t know anything about my so-called ‘poor wife’ but let me clue you in. She’s not my poor anything. In fact, she’s been making my life miserable for the past two years. Hell, much longer than that if I’m being honest.”
I start to ask him what he means, but the anger sparking out of his dark blue eyes keeps me silent. Thankfully, he continues without my having to ask.
“Tabitha’s family owns a very successful bank. Much like this garage, it’s been passed down from generation to generation and she’s lived a very comfortable life. Unfortunately, even though I own this place free and clear, I can’t keep her in the manner she’s become accustomed to, and she never lets me forget it.”
Oh no.
The sympathy on my face must be clear because he looks even more pissed off when he sees it. “Yeah, Hailey. It’s rough not being able to give your wife all the crap she thinks she needs to have. And when I can’t? She runs crying to Daddy who gladly gives it to her. I tried to put up with it, to just deal, but it kept getting worse and worse. A year ago, I finally told her I was done. I was leaving and wanted a divorce. Know what she said? If I left, she’d disappear with my kids. Obviously, I can’t leave Seattle. This company is all I have and people depend on me. Would she really leave? Probably not. But, how do I take that chance? How do I risk losing my kids?”
He sounds so damn sad, so lost and not able to see she’s manipulating him. Or, maybe he does and just doesn’t know how to stop her. In this moment, I hate his wife. I hate this woman I’ve never seen.
“Mitchell, I’m sure she wouldn’t leave. If her family has owned that bank forever, her whole life is here. If she’s so tied to material things, she’s not going to want to leave and have to start all over. Surely you can see that, right? Call her bluff. I know it’s hard, but a judge isn’t going to just let her take your kids and disappear.” My voice is rising again because I’m so angry for him.
He shrugs. “I don’t want to take the chance. I don’t want to break up my family. Isn’t it better to stay until they turn eighteen instead of only seeing them every other fucking weekend?”
I can tell the emotion is getting to him too. “No, it’s not. All you’re doing is showing them that they should stay somewhere toxic. That they should stay somewhere and be miserable.”
His eyes slam shut, but not before I see the pain in them. I’m about to say screw it and kiss him anyway, even though it makes me a homewrecking bitch, but before I can, the door opens to reveal a tall, svelte blonde who looks pissed.