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I drop my glass on the sand, turning to him. “Thanks man.”
“You’re welcome.”
“You know…you’ve gotten more wise with age.”
Carl laughs. “It’s not age. It’s definitely the Scotch.”
I grab my shirt from the deck chair and put it on. I wave to Carl and trudge away from the beach. Pulling out my phone, I call my chauffeur.
“Hey. Ready the car. We’re going to the airport.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Kaylee
My car pulls into the driveway of my house, and I turn off the ignition. Finally, it’s the end of another hectic day. The past few weeks after the Andrews & Sons PR event has gone exactly how I had expected. I’ve held meetings with some company executives in attendance, and they want me to cater for their upcoming events. This would have been good news, but right now, it’s not. I turned down the grant from Andrews & Sons, I turned down Ian's offer to help me financially for the thousandth time, and now I don’t have enough money to cover new equipment and extra help. The events are getting closer by the day, and I haven’t found a solution yet.
It’ll be bad for my brand if I end up disappointing these companies; turning down the gig would have the same effect. It won’t be fair to ask my parents for help now because they’re preparing for a second honeymoon. I can’t be the one to ruin their plans. Even Dylan is getting engaged soon. The ring he bought for Jessie is ginormous, and it probably cost a lot. To be fair, they all asked to pitch in before, but I was too proud to let them. Now it’s too late.
I push open the door, stepping out of the car and walking to the front door. Dropping the car key on a nearby shelve, I sink on the couch adjacent to the TV. I don’t even take off my shoes. As crazy as my problems with the shop are, they’re not the ones keeping me up at night. It’s Ian. We haven’t spoken since our argument at the PR event.
Well…it wasn’t just an argument. You explicitly told him that you never wanted to see him again.
He deserved every single thing I said to him. He lied to me and used me. His betrayal is similar to that of my ex-husband, but there’s a slight difference. I haven’t seen him for weeks, and I miss him. My heart aches whenever I think about us. He is the only one who truly knows me. He makes me feel seen in a way no other man ever had. I contemplated calling him countless times, but I never got past the first four digits of his number.
Maye I should give him a chance to explain himself? At least, so we can both get clarity.
I shift on the couch, pulling out my phone from my side pocket. I dial his number, my thumb hovering over the call button. There’s a knock on the door, and I sit up.
“What the hell?” I turn to glance at my watch. It’s past nine. I’m not expecting anyone. Not this late at least.
“Dylan.” I sigh, dropping my phone on the couch and rising to my feet. He has been really nervous about how to propose to Jessie, and we have been running lines together. He’s the only one who can be outside my house by this time. Muttering curses under my breath, I walk over to the door, pulling it open.
“You know, Dylan, there’s this thing called invasion of—” I stop abruptly the door opens fully. Dylan is not the one standing on my porch.
“Ian?” I breathe.
His lips curl up into a soft smile. “Hey, Lee-Lee.”
My insides do a thousand summersaults as I gawk at him. He’s wearing a plain black top under a black leather Jacket. Both his hands are tucked inside the side pocket of his blue jeans. Every bone in my body wants to jump on him and never let go, but I fight off the urge.
“What’re you doing here, Ian?”
The smile falters from his lips and he sighs.
“Look, Lee-Lee, I fucked up. I hurt you; I know that. That’s why I’m here to say I’m sorry.”
“I don’t know, Ian. I think it’s too late for apologies.”
“Please, Kaylee, just listen to me.”
“There’s nothing you can say, Ian, that will make up for how much you hurt me.” I start to close the door, but he stops me.
“How about this, Kaylee. I love you.”
I freeze. The words hit my like a bucket of cold water on my face and for a minute, I’m speechless. Ian sighs, running his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry if this comes as a shock to you, but it’s the truth. I’ve felt this way for so long, and the more I tried to fight it, the stronger it got.”
He pauses, looking out into the dark street. “After you told me to leave, I did, because I thought that getting far away from you will make my feelings for you disappear, but it didn’t.” He scoffs, shaking his head. “I spent the past few weeks weeks in different countries and cities, but the only thing I had in my mind was you.” He steps forward. “It was you, Kaylee.”
He takes my hands in his and my gaze turns down. My head is spinning, and I don’t know how to process this overload of information.
