He regretted not skipping this gala and spending the rest of the night making love to her. Hoping that he could talk her into returning back to the suite with him, Chase reached over and took her hand in his, giving it a small squeeze as he pulled her closer so that he could whisper, “I want you,” in her ear.
“You already have me,” she promised him with a teasing smile that had his hand tightening around hers even as her words tempted him into wanting something more, something impossible, but something that he wanted more than anything.
“Then come back upstairs with me,” he whispered, more than willing to pretend that he could have her even if it was only for one night.
“You’re not getting out of this,” Sloane said with a teasing smile as she turned around in his arms and leaned up so that she could kiss his chin.
“Why are you so mean to me, Pookie?” Chase asked softly as he reached up to cup her face only to groan when she stepped out of his reach when the elevator doors slid open.
“Because you love it,” she said with a wink as she walked away.
Sighing heavily, he pushed away from the wall only to bite back a pained groan when the muscles in his back tightened, warning him not to overdo it tonight and reminding him that he’d forgotten to take a muscle relaxer.
Shit!
He reached out and slapped his hand over the elevator doors, stopping them from closing as he stood there, tempted to say the hell with it and worry about it later, but he knew that if he didn’t take a pill now that his muscles would lock up.
“Are you okay?” Sloane asked, the teasing smile gone as she reached up and cupped his jaw in her hand.
“I need to run back upstairs. I forgot something,” Chase said, forcing a reassuring smile, knowing better than to admit that his back was acting up.
He didn’t want her worrying about him tonight.
“Do you want me to come with you?” Sloane asked, already moving to join him.
“No, I’ll only be a few minutes,” he promised her, leaning down to kiss her forehead before he released his hold on the elevator door and stepped back. “I’ll be back before you know it.”
“Fine,” she said with a heartfelt sigh and a pout that had him chuckling as he watched her turn around only to smile when she spotted Teddy slowly making his way toward her on his crutches, instantly forgetting him as she focused on the little boy that she had a soft spot for.
She was so good with him, Chase thought, leaning back against the elevator wall as he watched the doors close. Sloane was so damn kind, patient, sweet, and her job was slowly killing her. She hated her job and he couldn’t blame her.
One thing was clear, he couldn’t let her go back. She deserved better than to have her heart broken. He owed her that much. He would try to convince her to find something else and see if he could convince her to take one of those courses that she’d been debating taking and if that didn’t work…
He’d convince her to take the job that Ryan and Grey had offered her. It would make it harder to walk away from her, but he wanted her to be happy. He’d figure it out when the time came, Chase told himself as the elevator opened and he made his way back to their room.
Within minutes, he took his pill, called down to the front desk to make sure that everything was all set for later, and headed back downstairs. Once the elevator doors opened, he stepped out into the lobby and–
“Can I talk to you for a minute?” Thomas, who had fucking balls, asked, not that he should really be all that surprised that the asshole came tonight since most of the guys from the station had purchased tickets to help support Shadow House. He’d assumed the asshole would realize that coming here was a bad fucking idea.
“No,” Chase said, stepping past him and headed toward the small path that would take him past the ship and into the large atrium built in the middle of the hotel.
“Chase, look, I just want to talk to you,” his best friend since the academy said as he caught up with him.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Chase said, making his way down the long winding path toward the soft sounds of an orchestra playing only to stop just past the rock overpass next to the baby alligators when Thomas said, “I’m sorry,” because he couldn’t have heard him correctly.
“You’re sorry?” Chase asked, shaking his head in disbelief as he slowly turned around to face the man that had taken everything from him. “That’s really fucking great.”
“Look, I don’t expect you to forgive me. I just wanted to tell you how sorry I was with the way that everything happened,” Thomas said with a helpless shrug.
“What are you sorry for, hmm? That I woke up from a fucking coma to find out that you’d been fucking my fiancée or having to deal with the fact that I might never walk again without my best friend by my fucking side telling me that everything was going to be okay? Which one are you sorry for, Thomas?” Chase bit out between clenched teeth as a middle-aged couple quickly made their way past them.
“Everything,” Thomas said hollowly.
Shaking his head in disgust, Chase said, “God, I hope she was worth it.”
“I wasn’t trying to hurt you, Chase. I was–”
“I fucking loved her!” Chase shouted, cutting him off because he didn’t want to hear his fucking excuses.
“I did, too,” came the quiet response that took him by surprise.
“Oh, you’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Chase said with a humorless chuckle as he shook his head in disgust.
“I never meant for any of this to happen,” Thomas said, sighing heavily.
“No? Then explain why you waited until I was in a fucking coma to make your move?” Chase snapped.
“I didn’t,” Thomas said hollowly as Chase stood there digesting his words and when he did…
“You’re fucking unbelievable,” Chase murmured, having heard more than enough for one night and turned around to head into the ballroom when Thomas’s next words stopped him.
“Do you still love her?”
“Not even a little fucking bit,” Chase said coldly as he glanced over his shoulder to find his ex-best friend watching him.
“You love her, don’t you?” Thomas asked only to add, “Sloane,” when Chase just stood there.
Shaking his head, Chase said, “No,” and walked away, in no fucking mood to explain why falling in love with Sloane was the last thing he wanted to do.
Chapter 38
“Are you okay?” Tristan asked as Sloane joined him by the bar set up along the far side of the ballroom.
“I’m fine,” she lied, somehow managing a smile as she struggled to hold it together.
He didn’t love her.
“You don’t look fine,” Tristan said, taking a sip of his beer as he glanced around them, taking in the crowded ballroom while Sloane stood there, feeling like her heart was breaking in two.
He didn’t love her, but the problem was that she loved him.
More than anything.
She wanted to spend her life with him and…and…he said no. She’d been worried that he was overdoing it without his cane and went to make sure that he was okay and…