Page 53 of Ruined Promises

“Ineed to run to the office to take care of a few things. Stay, sleep—I’ll be back in a bit.” Ben presses his lips against mine, not even caring about my morning breath.

His finger drags the silk sheet down, exposing my naked body. “And don’t worry about getting dressed either. One last thing I need to take off before I slide my cock back inside you.”

He presses a quick kiss to my forehead and heads out of the bedroom, closing the door gently behind him. I stretch my arms overhead and roll over to his side of the bed. I pull his pillow to my chest, inhaling his clean soap scent.

Might as well listen to the boss man. I close my eyes and allow myself to succumb to the feeling of contentment. I’m finally putting the pieces of my life back together.

I’m not sure how long I sleep for when I quickly jolt awake with the slamming of the bedroom door against the wall. I shoot up, and the sheet falls, exposing the top of my bare breasts. I am met with eyes I used to get lost in and are now filled with so much hatred.

Dominic Jennings.

“What are you doing here?” I shout, clutching to the sheet to my chest, but the damage is already done. The smirk on his face tells me that he saw my naked body. I try to cover as much as possible with the sheet, but I feel vulnerable.

“Why am I not surprised to find you in your boyfriend’s bed while he isnowherein sight. You don’t think I didn’t check, did you?”Dominic slowly walks in and drags his hand along the top of the dresser. It lands on the framed photo from the boudoir shoot, where I was wearing Ben’s dress shirt, which is open, exposing my breasts but the nipples still covered. It’s my favorite shot from the entire session. Ben called it beauty in art, but the way Dominic is staring at it, licking his lips, makes me feel so dirty—almost as if it were porn.

“Shame you never did anything like that for me. Maybe I wouldn’t have gone elsewhere had you done that.” He huffs, setting the frame back where it was before he takes a seat in the chair in the corner of the room. The same chair I rode Ben on last night. If this situation weren’t already awkward as fuck, I would almost laugh that he is sitting in Ben’s and my dried combined arousal. I know he is not blamingmefor his indiscretions. That is one hundred percent on him. There was a time when we first broke up that made me blame myself, but I quickly realized I was never in the wrong.

I feel uncomfortable the way he’s staring at me. What is he even doing here?

“So it’s true. You’re friends with Asher?”

He shrugs, crossing his right leg over the left, reclining back as if this were his own house. I look over to the nightstand, where I typically keep my phone, only to find it gone.Shit, that’s right, I left it charging in the kitchen.

“‘Friends’ is such a loose term. How about we call him a pawn in my plan.”

“What does that mean? And what the hell are you even doing here?” I don’t bother holding back the anger in my voice.

“So many questions, Lexi. You always were one for details. Too bad you couldn’t spot the details of my extracurricular actives, if you know what I mean.”

“I think you should leave.” I hold the sheet tighter to my chest as I try to hurry off the bed without showing any more skin.

“Oh, sweetheart, I think it should beyouleaving. I was invited. Asher told me to meet him here before we go to a party being thrown in Manhattan. He gave me the code to the house and everything. It’s a shame that the boy is so gullible. To think I would give two shits about him.” There is only one person Dominic cares about—himself.

“Ben will be back any minute, and he’ll kick you out.”

“Will he, though?” He tilts his head to the side, running his hand over his jaw in thought. “Yeah, I don’t know that he will when he learns of your previous indiscretions.”

“What,” I gasp.

“How you had your eyes set on the boss’s son on the first day of the job only to work your way up the food chain. Once you had the role you wanted, I was tossed to the side.”

“That’s not true, and you know it. You pursued me, you fucking asshole!”

“Ben will see you as nothing but a pathetic gold digger who he fucked in the bathroom of a nightclub. Someone willing to do anything or shall I say anyone to advance her career.”

I shake my head. Ben would never believe that. “Wait, how do you know how Ben and I met?”

“It was rather easy, really. Asher is quite the talker after a few drinks—I just had to ask the right questions.” He adjusts in his seat. “See, I had it all planned out. I was angry when my father told me that he was selling the company instead of passing it down to me, so I sat back quietly while it took place and did my research on the new owner. I found out that he had a younger brother, who had quite the reputation for partying. I figured I could befriend Asher, get Asher in a compromising position, maybe a sex tape or something. Ben is very protective of his brother, so he would do anything he could to stop it, which is where I could convince him to sell the company over to me.”

Sell the company over? He’s a lawyer—what the hell does he want with a media company?

He claps his hands together. “ButthenI hit the motherfucking jackpot. Asher invited a few female companions and me over the weekend his brother happened to be away with his new girlfriend, and I saw the photo on the fridge from New Year’s Eve, and it was almost too easy. Getting the company no longer interested me. Why go after Ben, when I could go after you?

“Me? What did I ever do to you? You were the one who cheated on me! You. Cheated. On. Me.” Did he forget that rather important detail of our lives?

“Tsk, tsk, Alexis Nicole Baker.” I hate his vile use of my full name. “And here I thought you were smarter than that.”

“It’s your own fault your father didn’t leave you the company. He wanted out—he wanted to live his life in retirement. You chose law, not marketing.”

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