Page 64 of Not the Puck Bunny

Could I let that happen to the team? One thing that was sure, I felt really insignificant right now. I had some thinking to do. I had to put my team and the woman I loved first, before myself.

Even if it meant ripping my heart out of my own chest and stomping it into the ice.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Andi

This morning'smeeting with the team's manager and the CFO went well. They were both men. Both receptive to my presence here, as far as I could tell.

At any rate, they hadn't been rude or condescending. That was a good sign. They were dedicated to the team, that was what mattered. That would be the glue that held us altogether.

I pushed in earbuds and put on the latest album from Jack Clutterbuck, my favorite pop singer, before opening my email and checking for anything important.

After deleting several requests from Nigerian princes to send me large sums of money, I moved on to actual email. None of which was too urgent. Imoved them into folders and sat at my desk, grooving quietly to the music.

A hint of movement in the doorway caught my eye, stopping me mid-groove.

A giant teddy bear appeared, held up by male hands.

A slow smile crept onto my face. I remembered Cam suggesting he win one for me at the pier before we went on the rollercoaster instead. He must have decided I needed one anyway.

I pulled out my earbuds and tossed them onto the desk. Smiling, my heart racing, I rose and stepped towards the teddy bear.

“He's adorable.”

“Of course he is.” The voice behind the bear made me freeze. A moment later, the plush animal was lowered, revealing a familiar, but not so welcome, face.

“Xander.” I should have noticed his sleeves. He wore an expensive suit, not a sweatshirt. I hadn't looked past the large brown teddy. I'd seen what I wanted to see, not what was really there.

Although, I should have anticipated my ex-boyfriend turning up unannounced like this. Just when life was going well, he appeared to remind me of past screw-ups.

“What are you doing here?”

His hair was slightly longer, but his chin was perfectly smooth as always. His eyes, brown with a hint of green, always held a hint of superiority. Like whatever I knew, he knew just that bit more. It was always there, but I hadn't noticed it until now.

“Andi, you look lovely.” He placed the teddy on the couch and moved to kiss my cheek before I could step away. “I thought it was time we talked.”

I retreated back a couple of feet. “I don't know what we have to talk about.”

Now that he wasn't hidden behind a teddy bear, I could see the perfectly tailored navy suit, crisp white shirt and perfectly knotted silk tie. He was a couple of inches shorter than Cam, with a more slender build.

He was undeniably handsome, but to look at him now, I couldn't remember why I was attracted to him.

He gave a short laugh. “Of course we do. I'm sure you've had a lot of time to think during our break.”

I frowned at him. “Break? You left. Without saying a single word about it to me. One day you were there and the next you weren’t.” I gestured from one side of me, to the other. “What was there tothink about? You made your feelings abundantly clear.”

He stepped towards me. “Evidently, I should have come sooner. Although, I would have thought you'd reach out to me.”

“Why would I have done that?” I stood my ground. I wasn't going to let him intimidate me.

“You must have understood why I did it.” He seemed genuinely confused.

“Because you didn't want to be with me anymore.” I raised my left shoulder and dropped it. “Why else would you leave without a word?”

“I wanted you to realize what we had. What life apart would be like,” he said. “Now you've experienced it, it's time to end our break. Before you do something you might regret.”

Was that what this was about? He'd seen the photos of me and Cam and came crawling back now he realized someone else wanted me.

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