Page 24 of King

King: If you saw something today, let me explain. Just… don’t shut me out.

Her chest tightened.

He knew.

Of course, he did.

King wasn’t stupid. He had probably put the pieces together the second she left. But even though his messages sounded sincere, she still couldn’t bring herself to reply.

Not yet.

Instead, she set her phone back on the nightstand, turning onto her side and curling into a small ball, clutching her bunny close.

She tried to tell herself it didn’t matter. That she shouldn’t bethisupset over a man she barelyknew.

But it did matter because she had developed feelings for King in the short time they’d known each other.

And now her heart hurt more than she’d ever expected.

Ella kept her focus on her computer screen, fingers typing aimlessly as she tried to push past the strange, unsettled feeling lingering from the night before. She had struggled to sleep, her mind replaying the image of King and that woman over and over again. Even after the girls at book club had insisted there was nothing to worry about, doubt still gnawed at her.

A knock on her office door made her glance up. Before she could respond, the door opened, and her breath caught as she rose from her seat.

King.

Dressed in his firehouse uniform, he filled the small space effortlessly, his broad frame making the office seem even smaller than it already was, which was basically a closet. His expression was unreadable, but his sharp eyes were locked on her with determination.

“Morning, Ella,” he greeted, his voice low and steady.

She forced a smile. “Morning.”

He studied her for a moment, then stepped inside and shut the door behind him. The click of the latch sent a ripple of tension through her.

“King—”

“Sit,” he instructed, motioning to her chair before sinking into the one across from her.

Ella hesitated. She wanted to brush past this, to pretend it hadn’t affected her, but King wasn’t going to let that happen.

So, she did as she was told.

He leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “I know why you left yesterday.”

She swallowed hard, keeping her expression neutral. “I don’t know what you mean.”

He exhaled sharply, shaking his head. “Don’t do that, Little one. Don’t lie. I won’t lie to you, and I expect the same respectfromyou. You saw my ex at the firehouse, and you assumed something that wasn’t true.”

Her stomach tightened. “I didn’t assume anything.”

He arched a brow. “Really? Then why’d you leave without a word? Why’d you ignore my texts?”

Ella’s gaze flickered to the side, shame creeping in. “I was just tired.”

“That’s three, dollface. Three times you’ve lied to me. If you were mine, which one day you will be, you’d have a very sore bottom for doing something like that,” he said sternly.

She shifted in her chair, hugging her arms to her chest while trying to ignore her throbbing clit. “It’s no big deal, King. What you do or who you see isn’t my business.”

“Itisa big deal,” he countered. “Listen to me, baby. That woman? She meansnothingto me. I didn’t even know she was going to show up. We haven’t spoken in over a year, and I have no desire to start now.”

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