Page 24 of Bad Boy for Hire
Prescott, his mouth turned down into a disgruntled frown, tried to fold her left hand into his, but Sarina was determined. She shot out her arm in May’s direction. “Is this not the most massive diamond you’ve ever seen?”
Xavier glanced at May, who still wore her polite smile.
“I could barely fit through the doorway of our new house after he proposed—the ring is that huge.” Sarina emitted a delicate snort. “What we will do with seven thousand square feet, I’ll never know.”
“Sarina.” Prescott didn’t follow that up with anything else.
Sarina reached up and literally booped his nose before saying, “I’m so blessed. None of this is me complaining.”
Definitely not complaining. Bragging, on the other hand…
“Congratulations,” Xavier said since May hadn’t said anything yet. He wasn’t sure what was going through her head.
Prescott looked like he wanted the earth beneath his feet to swallow him—or Sarina—whole. “We moved in two months ago.”
“That was the day we got engaged!” Sarina added with a fairy-princess bounce. What an odd match these two were. “It’s happening fast. The wedding is next summer. Are you going to come?”
“We should go in,” Prescott interrupted before Sarina said more. Though Xavier didn’t know what more she could say, unless she announced that they’d won the lottery and purchased a football team. “May. Xavier.”
“See ya in there,” Xavier said. Prescott and Sarina scuttled up the runner like crabs dodging an incoming tide. Once they were out of earshot, Xavier turned to May. “You okay?”
She blew out a breath. “That was a lot.”
“Agree.”
“The Prescott I knew didn’t want to get married. Or move in together.”
“And now he has a bride and a mansion.”
“No one told me.” She shook her head. “It shouldn’t matter.”
“Yeah, but it does. It’s hard when the person you thought would be your future finds a future with someone else. Doesn’t matter who dumped who. That shit stings.”
“Thanks for not making me feel crazy.” She offered a grateful smile that filled him with pride.
“You’re not crazy. Just human.”
Their eyes held for a prolonged moment that made him want to kiss her. He was also aware of how many people were surrounding them. He had zero qualms about taking her in his arms, but today wasn’t about him. He was here to help her navigate treacherous ex territory, so he’d take his cues from her.
She hugged his arm with both of hers, looking up at him with such trust and admiration, he knew he’d made the right call.
“I used to think I wanted the house, the wedding, all of it. But now… I don’t know.”
Xavier’s heart ached hearing that. Even though he agreed. He’d slammed the door on long-term commitments after Tracie cheated on him. It felt easier—safer, if he were being honest—to go back to keeping things casual with women. He was willing to have a good time for a little while, but he preferred to walk away unscathed. That version of him was familiar. Comfortable.
But for May, it didn’t seem like a choice of comfort. It felt like loss. Like the marriage, the house, the kids, and the family dog were things she continued to desire in the quiet chambers of her heart. Which was tragic, because she was a good person who should have everything she wanted in life.
“You might still want that. Just not with him.”
She hummed in consideration while low-key panic jolted his ribcage.
He didn’t want to give her the wrong idea. He had given up emotional intimacy cold turkey, like a smoker who’d been up to three packs a day. Xavier was slotted comfortably into bachelor life. Sure, he lamented being alone, but that was why God made hobbies. He wasn’t completely sure he had the capacity to trust again, which had less to do with May than it did with his own fucked-up past. And she didn’t need a project. She didn’t need to fix his warped sense of commitment. She deserved some peace after the hell she’d been through.
There. Now that he’d justified that half to death…
“Hey, can I grab you a glass of wine?”
“That would be appreciated. I spotted Prescott’s older sister. I’m going to say hi.” She pointed out the tall woman with long, dark hair in loose curls. “That’s the one and only Paisley Stanton-James.”
