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I wanted to slam the door in his face, but he was quicker, slipping inside before I could react.
“F-Foster, what are you doing here?” I stammered, my heart pounding. “I have an appointment.”
“Your appointment is with me,” he replied smoothly, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Carson Jacobs is my assistant.”
I backed away instinctively, feeling like Little Red Riding Hood facing the Big Bad Wolf. Foster’s gaze raked over me, and he licked his lips, a gesture that sent a shiver down my spine. He closed the door behind him, and I stood my ground, crossing my arms over my chest.
“The floors are all oak hardwood,” I began, my voice shaky as I tried to focus on anything but him. “The ceilings are eighteen feet high, and the chandeliers are crystal.”
“I’m not interested in the finishings, Erika,” Foster said, his voice low and dangerous. “I’m interested in you.”
He was on me in a heartbeat, closing the distance between us with alarming speed. I stumbled back, but he caught me, pulling me into his arms with a strength that left me breathless. I struggled against his grip, but it was futile—he held me tight, his chest solid against my face. The scent of his cologne, the same one that had clung to the card he sent with the roses, filled my lungs, and I fought the urge to gag.
“Let me go,” I demanded, my voice muffled against his shirt. “We’re not together.”
Foster ignored me, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. “What a mistake I made letting you go. I was a fool.”
“We were young, and we were both fools,” I shot back, trying to keep my voice steady. “We had no business being engaged. I wasn’t even out of my teens, and you were twenty-two.”
“You were like a drug to me,” he murmured, his breath warm against my hair. “I wanted you all the time.”
I pushed against him again, and this time he released me. I staggered back, my breath coming in ragged gasps as I bumped into the black granite island. My heart was racing, my skin tingling from the proximity of his body.
“You can’t have me now,” I said, my voice firm despite the tremor running through me. “I’m with someone.”
“Who?” he demanded, his tone sharp.
“You don’t know him.”
He chuckled darkly. “You’d be surprised who I know.”
“It doesn’t matter,” I snapped, frustration and fear mixing into a potent cocktail. “You can’t just come back after nine years and expect me to welcome you with open arms! What’s the matter, haven’t you found enough hearts to twist? I saw you were engaged twice more after you left me. Why didn’t they work out?”
The words were out before I could stop them, and I cursed myself for revealing that I’d kept tabs on him. Foster’s expression shifted, a flicker of something—satisfaction? crossing his face.
“They weren’t you,” he said simply. “I spent the past nine years trying to find someone like you, and you know what I figured out? No one is like you but you.”
“Too bad,” I huffed, trying to put as much distance between us as possible. “You can’t have me. Now, are you interested in the apartment or not?”
“Will you go out on a date with me?” he asked, ignoring the question entirely.
“It’s not possible,” I croaked, moving around the counter to put something solid between us. Foster followed, his hands gentle but insistent as they gripped my arms. His fingers stroked my skin, sending a rush of unwanted warmth through me. I closed my eyes, fighting against the pull he still had on me, trying to remind myself that the man I loved wasn’t standing in front of me.
But it was hard to forget the memories Foster evoked—the passion, the intensity, the way he made me feel like the center of his world. I opened my eyes, meeting his gaze with a determination I wasn’t sure I truly felt.
“Your skin is still so soft.”
My eyes snapped open. “Stop trying to seduce me.”
A wicked smile curled on his lips. “You’re not trying very hard to stop me. It was always so easy to make you come, remember? I loved hearing those sounds you made when you did.”
“Get off me!” I cried, the sudden loudness of my voice startling even myself. Foster released me as if my words had scalded him.
“Christ, you scared me.”
“And you’re scaring me!” I shot back, my voice trembling with a mix of fear and anger. “I don’t like what you’re doing.”
His eyes narrowed. “And what is that, Erika? Professing my undying love to you? Telling you I’m ready to spend the rest of my life with you? Who is he?” he demanded.
