Page 34 of Untethered Heart
I’ve gotten familiar with their pictures after my deep dive on Caleb. Henrietta wears a navy blue sheath dress, her silver and white streaked bob is shaped around her face in a way that looks so effortless and at the same time, so intimidating. Hazel is the more approachable of the billionaire sisters. From what I’ve read, Henrietta does the inside work for their mining company, and Hazel is the outside face; she leads all their humanitarian and community engagement endeavours. Hazel’s lilac pantsuit is paired with gold heels, and her rose gold curls are softly pinned at her nape. She’s a picture of feminine grace, and she’s standing proudly next to a hulking tattooed man I also recognise. Caleb’s brother.
My heart pounds in an erratic rhythm as I search the crowd, realising there are way too many Hearts here to be a coincidence.
My eyes almost miss him. For a fraction of a second, they skip over him.
A crimson velvet vest is fitted to his muscular body, a black silk tie tucked in.He’s so good-looking.Seeing him now, I’m hit with the feeling of missing him. In the time that’s passed since the nightclub, since we said our goodbyes, I’ve distracted myself, tried to put him out of my head, but I can’t deny that Imissedhim.
My knees nearly buckle at the tightening of my chest when a body moves, bringing into view a stunning blonde hanging off Caleb’s arm. Tight golden ringlets shape her ethereal face, a beaming smile is directed right up at Caleb, shattering my heart to smithereens when he returns it.
Shit. Telling yourself to get over someone, to move on, is one thing. You can believe it all you want, but there’s nothing like the feeling of your heart clenching in your chest when you see the person you want moving on right before your eyes to humble you.
I squeeze my brother’s arm where it’s held in my vice grip. “Dyl,” I whisper as he continues to lead us into the room. “Who’s the company investing in the distillery?”
My heart’s once thundering beat slows and turns sluggish as realisation seeps in, as if time just stopped, trying to halt the words I know are about to leave my brother’s mouth. Just as we reach the group, the circle opens to let us in. Caleb’s eyes find mine, bulging as they roll over me, and the world stops completely when Dylan confirms, “Heart Assets.”
Chapter nineteen
Five Minutes Earlier
“We’ve heard so much about you, Isabelle. I can’t believe you’ve been in Caleb’s life for so long, and this is the first time we’re meeting you.” My mother keeps giving me the side eye of a delighted matchmaker, and I once again shake my head. This is not the first time I’ve had to explain to her that Isabelle and I are only co-workers and friends. It’s not even the fourth time. She just refuses to believe it.
“I know.” Isabelle smiles politely, her delicate features always turning people to putty in her presence. “OG and I spend so much time together during the week, I’m surprised I even know what to do with myself on weekends.”
“Oh, how sweet, you have nicknames.” Mum elbows Dad, who’s deep in conversation with James Huxley. “Did you hear that, Thomas? They have nicknames.” Before Dad can respond, I butt in, “She calls me that because she thinks I’m old.”
“You are old.” Isabelle laughs up at me, and I smile back.
We’ve always had an easy friendship, and that’s meant more to me lately as I sort through my feelings for Lex.
Last weekend, I drove by her house. I hated myself every second I sat in the dark, on the other side of the street, and when I saw some tall, blond guy sneak out into the night, shoes in hand, I loathed myself even more. Gage found me an hourlater, annihilating the punching bag in his outdoor gym as Tiny watched dutifully from the couch set up there. I confessed to my brother all the ways I felt like I had lost my mind and soul to a woman I barely knew. He told me that maybe my priorities are shifting. Maybe I’m tired of one-night stands and emotionless connections, and now that my business gives me so much fulfilment, life is demanding it in other areas, too.
Confiding in him and Isabelle has given me the clarity to think about what I truly want. I want Lex. She may have moved on, but maybe she’s open to what I want as well. I’ll never know unless I go for it. So, tomorrow I’m sending flowers to her house with my number and putting the ball in her court. I’ve driven past the beauty salon a few times, but I haven’t seen her friend Claire there, and I’m getting impatient.
“Oh, fuck.” A deep rumble emits from Gage as he stands beside me, and I lift my head to see what’s going on.
His eyes are trained ahead, so I follow his line of sight as the crowd parts. It’s like the heavens open up and golden lights beam down on the very thing I’ve been yearning for. My mind can’t comprehend why, of all people, Lex just walked in. My Siren, as if my wishes conjured her here.
My heart races the closer she gets, and I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face at having her near again. But my world falters and crashes around me as I take in her arm latched around that of Dylan Morgan, my new client, as he whispers down into her ear. What the fuck is this? Are they dating? How did they even meet? Fuck, my chest is burning. I bring a hand up to clutch the pain searing through my heart.
“OG, you good?” Isabelle asks.
I try to breathe through the pain, but it’s no use. My mind is trying to slow down and figure out what’s going on while my heart is ticking like a bomb, ready to detonate at any moment.
“I’ve got you, brother,” Gage whispers in my ear, and I force a deep breath into my lungs.
“Dylan!” Isabelle’s animated voice does nothing to pull my attention off Lex, where it’s lived since she walked in.
Her vibrant red hair is pulled up into a ponytail, curled and over her shoulder. The pale blue dress that hugs her beautiful body is cinched at that petite waist I want to lock my hands around. Straps hang off her shoulders, exposing the sun-kissed skin I want to mark with my tongue and teeth. Those kind, grey eyes are ringed in black, with a subtle sparkle of gold over her lids that shimmer as she moves under the lights, making her look every bit the goddess she is. And her lips.Fuck.Her full, biteable lips are painted red, and I just want to fuse my mouth to hers.
Her presence is like a live wire of electricity all around, but to have her skin on mine would be like a defibrillator, injecting life into me when I’m dangerously close to flatlining. She’s crucial to my existence.
“Hi, Isabelle. It’s great to meet you in person,” Dylan says, extending a hand to greet Izzy. “This is my sister, Lex.”
“Lex?” I can hear the question in Isabelle’s words. She’s fixating on the name and my reaction when they walked in. She’s piecing together the likelihood that this Lex and my Lex are one and the same, but I’m focused on something else. He said sister. Lex is Dylan’s sister, not girlfriend. Thank fuck.
Blood starts to pulse around my body again, bringing me back to the joy of seeing her, when Isabelle looks back at me, schooling her panicked expression.
“You live in the city, right? Not down in Killara Bay with Dylan?” asks Isabelle.
