Page 98 of Tormented Billionaire Romance Series

I held up my hands as if to surrender. “See? Case and point.”

“But I would have come back immediately.”

“Is that supposed to mean something?”

He scoffed and turned, licking his lips as he glanced around. “Listen, can we go get some coffee and talk? I feel like we're just about to make a scene.”

“Why not make a scene? Half the town knows about our personal business.”

“Yeah, but we don't need to alert the authorities.”

“It would be nice to have an unbiased third party. I feel like I can't trust you.”

He frowned suddenly. “The feeling is mutual, Clara.”

I sank.

We were just hurting each other. Our argument didn't even serve a purpose. It was just a hurtful back-and-forth without any end in sight. I sighed as I flipped my hair back away from my face, grasping one strand to play with it.

“Do you have a ride?” I asked. “Or do you need to ride with me?”

“If you'll allow me to ride with you, that would be great.”

“Alright, let's head out.”

I followed the line of people heading for the front of the airport. If I had just walked faster, I could have avoided the whole arguing mess, but then again, I wouldn't have seen Levon.

And part of me was happy to see him.

My heartstrings tugged as if a surgeon were attempting to slit the threads. I held my hand over my heart to quell the rising panic in my chest. I hadn't argued with Levon in years. It felt like we were retracing our steps to our previous relationship. He had left, I was heartbroken, and then we argued about it.

That was pretty typical for us.

He caught up to my pace and I listened to his professional shoes clack against the tile. His rolling bag hummed behind us as we approached the automatic doors and stepped out into the sun-stained sidewalk. He followed me to my car. I popped open the trunk and he slung his bags inside, shutting it before climbing into the passenger's seat.

I sat quietly while he got settled. Once we were both strapped in, I started the car and drove us to the nearest coffee shop. It was the one downtown that I loved—the same one where Jen worked. I parked in the parking lot and sat quietly again, wondering what was to come of this conversation.

“Are you okay?” he whispered. “I can leave if you want.”

“No, I think it's important that we talk. We seem to have lost each other somewhere in the past week.”

“Yeah, I'll say.”

I shot him a hard look.

He raised his hands. “Hey, I come in peace.”

“That's not how it seemed in the airport.”

“You came at me, too, Clara.”

I sank in my seat. “Yeah, I guess I did.”

“Apology accepted.”

I rolled my eyes as I stepped out of my car. We walked into the cafe and I ordered my usual before he ordered his.

I smiled when he was done. “Still hooked to those cappuccinos, huh?”

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