Page 138 of King of Envy

There’s a work emergency in New York. I had to leave immediately, but I didn’t want to wake you. My team will drive you back on Monday. Until then, enjoy your time with your family. I’ll see you back in the city. P.S. I’ll make it up to you. I promise.

I stared at the bold, blocky letters, my emotions swinging from pleasure to dismay and back again.

It was the weekend. What kind of emergency required the CEO to race back immediately? Then again, Markovic Holdings was a multibillion-dollar company with thousands of employees. A number of things could go wrong at any time. I didn’t think Vuk was lying; logically, it made sense.

Emotionally, however, I experienced another pang of disappointment. Insecurity scuttled through my veins. We’d slept together for the first time only for him to leave in the middle of the night. I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye.

Yeah, that didn’t feel great. At all.

But…he’d left a note. A lengthy one, by his standards. Its contents might sound stiff to someone who didn’t know him, but if he wasn’t sincere, he would’ve disappeared with three words maximum—or, most likely, no note at all.

I’ll make it up to you. I promise.

A fresh wave of warmth washed away my insecurities. I trusted Vuk. He wasn’t the type to play games. If he said he had an emergency, he had an emergency.

I tucked the note into my handbag. After I washed up and made myself presentable, I wandered downstairs. My father was reading the Sunday paper while my mother puttered around the kitchen.

“Good morning,” I said. “How was the Kennedy Center?”

“Oh, it was wonderful. We should really go there more often.” My mother’s eyes twinkled. “How was your day with Vuk?”

“Good.” I fought a blush and avoided her eyes. I swear she could read my mind sometimes.

“Here. Sit.” She gestured at the table. “We saved some breakfast for you. You don’t want it to get cold.”

She didn’t have to ask twice. I was famished.

I sat across from my father and dug into a plate of eggs, hold the bacon. Despite the fashion industry’s exacting and oftentimes toxic weight standards, I refused to starve myself. I worked out five times a week and usually ate a healthy, well-balanced diet, but after yesterday’s binge with Vuk, I had to be careful about not overdoing my indulgences.

I asked my parents more questions about the Kennedy Center before my father set his paper aside.

He regarded me with an assessing look. “So,” he said. “Vuk’s gone.”

“He had to go back to New York. Work emergency.” I took a sip of my mother’s signature shai blend (not to be mistaken with chai). It was like comfort in a mug. “I missed this.” I sighed. “Thanks, Mom.”

She smiled. “I’ll pack a few extra bags for you to bring home.”

“Yes, I know,” my father said, bringing the conversation back to Vuk’s absence. “He left us a note.”

My heart skipped with pleasant surprise. Of course he had. He was so damn thoughtful when he wanted to be.

“A very nice one,” my mother interjected.

“Yes, yes.” My father waved his hand in the air. “He’s an interesting man. He seems very…dedicated to you, Ayana.”

I shifted beneath his shrewd gaze. “Well, he’s a good person.”

“I’m sure he is. If it weren’t for him, who knows what might’ve happened at the church?”

“Abel, please. She just woke up.” My mother cut him off with a warning stare. “Let’s save the interrogation for later.”

“Or never,” I added. “We could save the interrogation for never.”

“I’m not interrogating her. I’ve asked one rhetorical question,” my father grumbled, but his face softened. “I just want what’s best for you, Ayaniye. I’m not saying Vuk is a bad person or has malicious intentions. I like him, but he’s not the only man in the picture.” He cast a pointed glance at my left hand—mybareleft hand. My breath hitched.Shit. I’d forgotten to put my ring back on before I came downstairs. “He saved your life. Strong…feelings are normal. But feelings are malleable; integrity isn’t. We do not entangle ourselves in new ties before the old ones are broken.”

The eggs churned in my stomach. I pushed my plate aside, my throat too thick to swallow any more food.

Last night with Vuk had seemed natural. Inevitable. It hadn’t been a lurid one-night stand we jumped into because we couldn’t control our hormones; it’d been the culmination of months of increasing intimacy, both physical and emotional.

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