Page 49 of Black Tie Billionaire
Eighteen
Gideon entered the numbers into the spreadsheet, then several seconds later swore under his breath and deleted them.Dammit. He’d been doing a repeat of this same thing for hours now.
Hours, hell. His fingers fisted on top of the keyboard. Days.
His concentration had been shot for five nights and six days. Since the five nights and six days ago when Shay got out of hiscar. When she’d announced she loved him, then walked away without looking back. As an image of her leaving him, spine ramrod straight, glide elegant and proud, wavered in his head, he squeezed his eyes shut. Bowing his head, he didn’t will the mental picture away. No, he conjured it up over and over, punishing himself with the memory of the pain and soul-deep sadness that had darkened her eyes,of the words that had driven daggers into his chest.
Of the resolve and strength radiating from her that let him know if he didn’t say something,dosomething to prevent her from exiting the car, he would never see her again. Never inhale her rain-and-roses scent. Never hear her husky voice. Never have her body pressed to his, fitting like a missing puzzle piece.
But he’d done nothing.
That grab at her wrist had been weak, and they’d both known it.
“Damn you, Shay,” he whispered harshly. “Damn you.”
Like he’d told her that night, he hadn’t asked for her love. Didn’t want it. He’d earned a PhD in how faithless love was. People threw that word around to abuse, betray and abandon others. Madison had claimed to love him. Trevor had vowed the same to his sister.
Lovedeceived, used and...died. It left pain and disillusionment and loss behind. It changed people for the worse, not the better. Intuition had warned him that if he allowed Shay in, if he risked opening to her, when she left—because experience had taught him the leaving was inevitable—the wreckage would be much worse than the damage Madison had inflicted. Shay would level him.
He refused to beplayed for the fool byloveagain. Ever.
With that “ever” ricocheting off his skull, he turned back to his computer screen and the report he’d been trying to finish for the past two hours.
His desk phone buzzed. “Mr. Knight, there’s a Mr. Trevor Neal here to see you. He doesn’t have an appointment—”
“Send him in,” Gideon snapped.
What the hell was Trevor doing here? Scratch that.He didn’t give a damn.
For the first two days after dropping Shay off, Gideon had tried to drown her out with alcohol. When that had failed, work had been his next attempt to erase her from his mind. Apparently, that wasn’t succeeding, either. While meeting with Trevor was most likely a terrible idea, he was also spoiling for a fight. A grim smile stretched across his mouth. For the firsttime in days—six days and five nights, to be exact—he looked forward to something.
Seconds later, his office door opened, and the man he’d resented for thirteen years and actively hated since he’d harmed Olivia stalked inside. Harsh lines etched his forehead and bracketed his mouth, and his eyes, so like his sister’s, blazed with anger. His hands curled into fists at his sides. Seemed likeGideon wasn’t the only one looking for a fight.
His smile widened.
“Good afternoon, Trevor. I’d say it was nice to see you again, but we both know that would be bullshit. So we’ll skip the pleasantries and get to what are you doing here.” Gideon leaned back in his desk chair and templed his fingers beneath his chin.
“You son of a bitch,” Trevor snarled.
“Well, that didn’t takelong,” Gideon drawled with a sigh, his voice heavy with mock disappointment. Rising, he flattened his palms on the top of his desk. “What the fuck do you want?”
“Where’s my sister?” Trevor demanded. “I checked with Bridgette. She’s no longer staying there. So where is she?”
“I don’t know,” Gideon replied calmly. Though inside, alarm clanged in his head, his chest. As far as he’d known,she’d still been with her best friend.Was she okay? Was she safe?The questions barraged him, but he forced his focus back to the man across from him. “Why do you care? You let her leave the only home she ever knew because she wouldn’t bend to your demands. Are you suddenly having an attack of conscience?”
Doubtful, since the man didn’t have one.
“Not that it’s any of your business, butI need to speak to her. Last time we spoke, she made some...irrational accusations and threats. We need to clear this up. As afamily,” he sneered.
Gideon arched an eyebrow. “Threats?” Pride and admiration warmed him. “There’s an interesting turn of events.”
“You would find it funny.” Trevor scowled. “She wasn’t like this before. I’m thinking it’s the company she’s been keeping.”
“Thank you.” Gideon dipped his head in acknowledgment. “And just for the record, your sister has always been strong. You were just too busy playing lord of the manor to recognize it. If you had, maybe you would’ve used her brilliance for the advantage of yourfamilycompany instead of sticking her in some bullshit position. Then she might not have had to go form her own business, but could’ve helpedyours grow.”
“You know nothing about Shay,” Trevor growled, shifting forward as if ready to leap over the desk. “Don’t pretend that yourrelationship,” he spat the word, “was real. She told me the truth about your blackmailing her into pretending you two were a couple. She also informed me about the file of lies you have on me.”
Shock reverberated through him. When she’d claimed she wouldn’tgo one more day living a lie, had she been referring to confessing to her brother about their arrangement?
