Page 22 of Price of Paradise

“Whatever.” Gunner rolled his eyes, then grabbed his keys off the table by the door. "Later."

"If you need to be bailed out, I got your back!”

Gunner heard Jake’s words just before slamming the door in his face. Mae wouldn’t slip away so easily. He loved her. More than he thought possible. He would tell her He’d lay it all out. Raw and unfiltered. If she still wanted nothing to do with him, then he’d respect her decision and let her go. It’d damn well kill him, but he’d do it. All he wanted was her happiness.

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“Vacation is over and life moves on.” Mae kept telling herself that, but it didn’t matter. She still thought of Gunner. Their time together had been heavenly. But it was over. She knew darn well that Gunner would realize he didn’t want a relationship with her. As soon as he had time to think it through, without lust clouding his judgment. After all, how many times had she seen him in a long-term relationship since she’d known him? Zero. He dated women, but he never committed. He never let it get serious. She should know, she’d witnessed it more than once. A woman showing up at the office demanding to see him. Gunner forced to let the woman down gently. Did she want to be one of those clingy women who got the ‘I’ll call you’ spiel? Nada. Better to walk away while she still had a little dignity.

Still, the man had gotten under her skin. And why not?He was smart, hot as hell, and knew his way around a woman’s body. He’d been gentle yet demanding. He’d coaxed so many orgasms from her that she was still buzzing days later. Mae had made a valiant attempt to take her mind off Gunner Price. She’d groomed her cat Mittens to the point the little furball had scampered off to her bed in the laundry room. Hiding. She’d reorganized her linen closet. Done a decent purge on her overflowing dresser. Her floors had never been so clean, for crying out loud. But it was all futile. Household chores wouldn’t get Gunner out of her head. Why? Because she loved him. Damn it.

Sending him the text had been a huge step towards saving her sanity. Space would give them both time to think straight. Still, what was going on in Gunner’s head? Was he relieved by the idea of not having to face her Monday morning or was he angry that she was cowering in a corner? For all she knew he already had another woman in his bed. Her stomach clenched at the idea. Forgetting about their weekend in Miami and looking for a new job wasn’t going to change anything. She was still going to want him. Still going to ache for him. He’d gotten under her skin, slipped beneath the radar. She only had herself to blame though. She didn’t have to say yes to the irritating man when he’d shown up at her hotel.

When her doorbell rang, Mae yelped. She’d been so immersed in her misery and never expected a visitor. She dashed across the room and peeked through the peephole, then sucked in a breath.Gunner?She glanced down at her stained black leggings and oversized pink, cotton shirt. Her hair was a pile of tangles on top of her head, and she hadn’t slept properly for days, leaving her with dark circles that would make a raccoon proud.Please, just kill me now.

“Damn it, Mae, I know you’re in there.”

Gunner’s deep voice had the power to send her rightback to Miami. To when he’d turned her into a mass of wants and needs. He was too sexy for his own good. How is it fair for a man to sound so sinful, so enthralling?

“I’m busy,” she shouted back.

“I don’t care if you’re entertaining the president! Open the door.”

Anger overrode her good sense. “Don’t make me call the cops!”

Silence stretched out for so long that Mae thought Gunner had left. Then, in a quieter tone, he asked, “Is that really want you want, baby girl?”

Yelling she could ignore, but that teasing baritone made her heart skip several beats. Putty in the man’s hand. That’s what she was. Mae chewed her lower lip, at war with herself. She knew what she should do, keep the door locked and wait for him to give up and leave. Her soul seemed to crave him though. Her damned fickle heart was leaping with joy at the idea of seeing him. In the end, there wasn’t a choice.

She sighed, then gripped the deadbolt and gave it a vicious turn. The instant she opened the door, Gunner pushed his way inside, then kicked it shut behind him. Mae took a soul-saving step backward, the dangerous gleam in his icy-blue eyes turning her blood to molten lava. His nostrils flared and his gaze went on a journey down her body, sexual awareness in his icy-blue eyes and the sensual tilt of his lips were reminders of how easily he could turn her into a begging wanton. He wore a black short-sleeved t-shirt and faded jeans. When had she ever seen him in something so casual? Never. The dressed-up version of Gunner was hot, but the relaxed look on him was downright delicious. Mae’s mouth watered.

“You aren’t quitting. No damn way.” He moved closer, his steps slow, purposeful. “Besides, I’ve already decided to make you a partner in the business.”

Partner? She shook her head to clear the fog. “It isn’t up to you.” Mae swallowed the lump in her throat and moved around the chair. Putting furniture between them seemed like a smart idea. “And I didn’t say I was quitting, just taking some time off.”

“Time off is the same thing as quitting. You want distance. You don’t want to face me,” he growled, crossing his arms over his chest. “I tried to give you space, Mae, time to think. About us.”

“And I appreciate that.”

He pointedly glanced at the chair and quirked a brow. “Why are you so far away? Afraid that if you let me touch you, you’ll realize the truth?”

Afraid of her inability to keep her hands off him, yeah. “What truth?” she hedged, stalling for time.

“That we belong together. That you care about me.”

She stuck her nose in the air and kept her position. “You have it all figured out, huh?”

A muscle in his jaw jumped. “No, but I do know you. Better than you think.”

Her face heated at the reminder of just how much he did know her. Intimately. “We shared a steamy weekend and now it’s over.”

His face softened a fraction. “It is, but we don’t have to be, baby girl. We have something special. I know we do. I feel it.”

“You want a relationship with me?” He started to answer, but Mae held a hand up to stop him. “Think it through, because I’m not the type to hand over my heart to a man who cannot offer the same thing in return.”

Gunner moved closer, and it took every ounce of willpower Mae possessed to keep from running. Once he was within inches, Mae inhaled, taking in his masculine scent. God, she missed him. It wasn’t fair that he smelled so good, looked sodelicious, while she resembled something out of a horror movie. It seemed to emphasize how far out of her own league she’d ventured.

“You think I’m not capable of love, that I could never give you forever,” He touched her cheek and Mae very nearly leaned into him. She held firm, but barely. “So help me I didn’t either. I thought I was happy with the business. Happy to date when I wanted, whom I wanted. Not being tied down. Devoting my life to my company.”

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