Page 41 of Chasing his Ex

He shakes his head as he glares me. “And you let him buy you off,” he hisses.

I nod as tears silently creep down my cheek, knowing this is finally going to end us forever.

I nod and there are no more words from Finn. He turns and walks back to his car.

Now it’s over for good—I know for certain.

I’ll never stop him from being a father, but I have to stop my heart from yearning for him.

Chapter 20

Ava

I haven’t seen Finn, apart from the couple of occasions I have arrived home before he left, but that was not too bad. He made quick excuses and left more or less the moment I arrived.

It’s easier to not see him, and careful planning makes that easier over the past two weeks. It works well with Emmy, and I’m happy he’s being part of her life. He’s good for her.

I press for the elevator and wait. I have a client meeting in two hours that I have to get prepared for, so I’m coming returning early from my lunch.

I push myself into the car when it descends to the ground floor, squeezing in with too many others.

That’s when I see Finn. He’s staring at me and me at him, and I shift my body and turn away first. Not that it stops the air in the elevator from disappearing at a frightening speed. My stomach aches from seeing him. As always, it’s like a hard, elastic band, tightening across my midriff.

I want the elevator to race to my floor, but at the same time I want it to stop and for us to talk this through.

Finn glances at the buttons on the pad, watching as the numbers light up and go dark. Eventually, it stops at floor nineteen. Nobody gets out.

My heart rate spikes at that. It could only have been Finn that didn’t make the move. The elevator slows, floor twenty-four. The doors open and the last man in the elevator leaves the car.

Finn turns and looks at me. His gaze starts at my eyes and then pours down my body, lingering over my breasts, my waist, my thighs. When he reaches my ankles, his gaze starts back up, moving even slower. His Adam’s apple bobs with a hard swallow, and his expression oozes with lust and sin.

I chew nervously on my lower lip.

“I think you must have missed your floor,” I say. The elevator rises, and he moves one foot in front of the other, changes his mind and hits the red button on the elevator.

It comes roaring to a stop.

“What the hell are you doing?” I yell.

“It ends now. This little game we are playing. I hurt you. You hurt me. We are both going to end up hurting Emmy,” he says. “She needs me in her life.”

I nod. “She is in your life.”

“I need more.” His eyes are wide with surprise.

“We have an arrangement.” I sigh and raise one shoulder. “Think about what would work for you and I’ll do the same. But if you’re talking about sleepovers, no. Not yet.”

“I’m disappointed.”

I shake my head.

“I’m disappointed in myself,” he says, ignoring me. “That I didn’t put up more of a fight for you, for us.”

“I took your father’s money. I get it.”

“I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about when we were at university.” He hesitates as he stares at me. “But if I had, Emmy might not be here, and she is something I’m not disappointed about.”

The intensity between us has never left, but it grows thicker at that moment. “Now I’m only disappointed we aren’t prepared to give her a proper family.”

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