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I wanted to bash him over the head with his precious camera, then I’d slowly strangle him with the strap.

But then she spoke up, loud and clear, in a way the past Olivia couldn’t.

She stood tall and confident, her brow elegantly arched, the perfect amount of haughtiness in her voice.

A different impulse rushed through me then. My dick twitched, quickly forming a half-semi, and if it weren’t for Gracie or Charlene—or whatever their names were—clinging to me like deadweight, I would’ve rushed over, pulled Olivia into my arms, and kiss the daylights out of her.

Give the crowd a show they’d never forget.

“Rex, is it true you’ve once fucked five women at once?” the redhead next to me asks. She’s a top influencer model in the region, one of the reasons I chose her to be part of my distraction tactic today.

“I heard it was ten,” the raven-haired beauty murmurs before blowing kisses to the reporters who are still snapping photos.

“A gentleman never kisses and tells.” I lead them to the center of the room as the orchestra strikes up a tune and we dance.

“Will you show us later?” The redhead slides her hand inside my tux jacket, blatantly feeling me up.

Acid rushes up my esophagus, and my hackles rise. I want to yank her hand out and push her away.

But I don’t. Because this is the plan Elias came up with. This is the perfect distraction, the perfect cover.

The world is watching us, leaving Bree to follow the plan—meet Elias’s contact at the back side entrance.

So, I throw my head back and laugh, drawing more attention to us. Incessant camera flashes blind my eyes, the shutter sounds a riot in my ears, but I pull the ladies closer to me, ignoring the clench of my heart, the way it’s tearing at the pain I saw in Olivia’s face just now before she put her mask on.

She doesn’t know I’m doing this to protect her.

Doubt niggles inside me. This morning, I thought it was best to keep her in the dark.

I was keeping her safe.

But now, I can’t help but wonder if I’ve made a big mistake.

The ladies giggle as I twirl them one by one, dipping them outrageously low toward the floor, making sure to throw in a few flirtatious winks to the reporters and other women in the crowd.

Rex-a-Million is back in service.

The world spins around me, a swirl of rainbow colors washed in gold, but I search for that deep purple, that petite figure poured into silk.

I don’t see her.

She’s gone. She’s finally given up on me.

My lungs heave in ragged breaths, my body almost caving from the sudden liver punch as the revelation hammers into my mind like a freshly handed death sentence for a convict.

This is what you wanted, Rex. It’s for the best. The memories will live forever in your mind.

The healing tattoo itches, reminding me that my Olive is permanently inked to my skin.

Someday, if I’m lucky, if I can be normal again, I’ll find her.

I’ll beg her to take me back.

Cheers erupt in the crowd as I execute a few complicated dance moves, my hips and body working the floor on autopilot.

But I’m not here. Not really.

In my mind, I’m dancing with a certain raven-haired doctor, tornadoes and hurricanes raging around me, but I don’t care.