Page 25 of Damaged Billionaire Daddy
Kandis waited a moment, and I could see the wheels turning in her head before she let out a breath. “Don’t mistake what I say as some kind of forgiveness for what you’re doing and what you plan to do. Because if there’s one thing you should believe, it’s that I will take you down without a second thought, Richie.”
For some reason, maybe because she didn’t say my name often, whenever she did, it sent chills down my spine. I liked the way that it rolled off of her tongue and the almost forbidden way she said it.
“You’re wasting time.”
She swallowed. “I’m sorry for what happened to you. Nobody, despite how much of a jackass that they may be, deserves that.”
She reminded me of everyone else when they found out that I’d been cheated on and left at the altar by a woman who preferred the company of my best friend. Everyone said the same thing over and over again.
It’s not your fault.
She’s going to realize what a mistake she’s made and come crawling back.
You’re clearly the better option.
She’ll regret it.
I would’ve picked you.
What’s wrong with her?
But at the end of the day, even though I knew that they were just trying to make me feel better, it didn’t change the simple truth. She’d left me and had no plans of coming back. And still hadn’t.
“I don’t need you to apologize to me.”
“I was just…
“I don’t care,” I snapped, my eyes full of fire while I stared at her. “It happened months ago.”
“That doesn’t mean that it still doesn’t hurt.”
What was the worst part of Kandis’s words? Maybe that she was right. Even though it’d been months, it did still frustrate me, but I didn’t miss nor love Kayla anymore. Nor did I sit up all night and think about the things that I could’ve changed to make her stay with me.
For whatever reason, I wasn’t enough. At the end of the day, that was the only thing that mattered.
“I don’t need pity from anyone, especially you.” I smiled evilly.
That seemed to rub Kandis the wrong way, as she narrowed her eyes at me. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Your grandfather said that you came running down here because of a guy,” I commented with a quick shrug of my shoulders. If she wanted to talk about failed relationships then I was all for it, but I was not the only one with a bad track record. “And considering you were only too eager to give your virginity to me, I’m guessing that means that he must have really done something to hurt you.”
Maybe that’s all I was trying to do, hurt Kandis. Or maybe use her as a surrogate for hurting Kayla.
It would be a lie to say that she’s not the most interesting woman that I’ve ever met, despite how much she might get under my skin. But that didn’t change the fact that we couldn’t be together for more than a handful of minutes before it turned into something like this, tense and argumentative,with both of us fighting to come out on top. Two competitive people would never be good for anything apart from sharing each other’s beds.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her little hands balling into fists, whether because she was thinking about her ex or because of the fact that I’d just thrown it in her face, I wasn’t sure. “If there’s anyone that can relate to you, it’s me. Yes, I ran away. Fucking sue me. I walked in on my boyfriend and best friend in my bed together, so trust me when I say that I understand how it feels.”
“I never asked you to relate to me.”
“You didn’t have to.”
I snorted. “You are so fucking predictable.” The more that I thought about it, the more that it started to make sense in my head. “You’re just like every other woman, aren’t you?”
My words took her by surprise, and she frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“I’m not giving you what you want, so you’re trying other tactics.” I shook my head. “I’ve got to be honest. You’re good, and I never would have thought.”
“Would have thought what?” She looked confused, but I’d bet that’s a part of this little game that she’s playing.
