Page 52 of A Lone Star Love Affair
“Mr. Logic,” she said, fighting back tears. “No, Tony. I already know. You won’t change. You can’t change. If you’d had any intention of changing, you would have proposed marriage instead of asking me to move in with you. I’m going to dress and I want to go home. You can send the limo to deposit me at home and you don’t even have to ride along.”
“To hell with this,” he said. He pulled her into his embrace, kissing her passionately. She was stiff, unresponsive, but his mouth worked magic and in seconds she kissed him in return.
Her heart pounded and she held him tightly, kissing him, wanting to kiss him into agreement with her, hoping he would never forget her. She loved him and she let it show through her kisses and responses.
He groaned, wanting her, making love furiously, hungrily, while she returned it as passionately, her hands roaming over him.
She leaned back to frame his face with her hands. “I love you, Tony. It might not be marriage with me, but someday, you’ll wed someone. You’re going to miss the most wonderful part of life while you’re out chasing money. You’re capable of so much.” She kissed him long, slowly, passionately.
He held her tightly, wrapping his arms around her, bending over her to kiss her as if it were the last kiss he could ever have from any woman. “Damn, I want you, Isabelle.”
“And I want your love. There is a difference, Tony.” She slipped free and hurried to gather her clothes and leave the room, determined to find a shower away from Tony’s seductive kisses.
Tears stung her eyes because it was over between them. She could feel that to her toes and she had seen the look in his dark eyes—anger, hurt, refusal. She hoped he wouldn’t accompany her on the ride home. It was over between them and the sooner the break came, the better off they both would be.
She showered, letting her tears flow freely, wiping her eyes as she dried and hung up the towel. She dressed swiftly, rebraiding her hair and dreading confronting him to ask for a ride home.
When she found him, he was in the library. He had dressed in charcoal trousers and his white dress shirt.
“You don’t have to come along.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” he said, smiling at her as if nothing had happened between them. “I brought you here and I’ll see you home.” He draped his arm across her shoulders.
They rode home in silence and at her door, he pulled her to him for a brief kiss.
“Would it matter if I had told you that I’m in love with you?” he asked.
“Now we won’t know, will we? You didn’t say you were and you’re still not,” she replied.
“I know I’m going to miss you like hell,” he said, grinding out the words. He kissed her one long, passionate last time and then turned to hurry back to his limo.
“Goodbye, Tony,” she whispered, knowing she had lost him now, but that had been her intention. She hurried inside, locking the door and running to her bedroom. She flung herself across the bed to cry. She wanted Tony, wanted to be part of his life, wanted his lovemaking, his laughter, his drive. Instead, she had told him goodbye and he was out of her life.
The weekend was silent and miserable. She exercised twice as long as usual and tried to do work she had brought home from the office, but her concentration was poor.
Monday morning, she cried silently as she moved through the condo, hunting for clothes to wear to work, knowing she should pick her best to give the image of confidence.
She made it in to work twenty minutes early and headed straight to her office, hoping she would see very few people the whole day. Tony was out of her life and she should start getting ready for it.
How easy that should be, but that wasn’t the case.
The day seemed three times longer than normal, the hours dragging, her mind wandering from business.
The worst moments were the meetings, the times she would pass Tony somewhere, the meetings when he was included. The next day was worse and she decided the pain was not worth the promotion, the pay, the move up in her career. Feeling as if she would never be able to concentrate, she called Vernon Irwin to see if his offer for a job with his company was still valid.
The following Monday morning, the sixth of March, she tendered her resignation, putting a letter in a manila envelope and leaving it for Tony’s secretary before he arrived at work.
At nine his secretary called to make an appointment for a meeting with Tony.
Isabelle dreaded the meeting, yet it had to happen. She was losing sleep, wondering whether she would look as much a wreck as Sydney Ryder had.
At three, she headed to Tony’s office. The moment she stepped inside, her heart thudded when she looked into his eyes.
Ten
He came around his desk and motioned toward an empty leather chair. “Have a seat.”
He held her resignation letter in his hand. “I read this, Isabelle. I’m disappointed. Whatever there is—was—between us, I hoped we could keep our personal lives separate from work. I made you a fantastic offer, gave you a promotion, which has enabled you to secure an offer like this from Irwin.”
