Worth the Scandal (Worth It 1)

Alex couldn’t be deterred.

“Tessa.” Reaching out, he touched her, placed his hand atop her forearm. His skin sizzled upon contact and she hissed, jerking her arm away from him before he could curl his fingers about her slender bones and keep her close. “I need to talk to you.”

“There’s absolutely nothing more we could say to each other. You made your opinions more than clear. Now if you could please leave, I would greatly appreciate it.”

“Always the polite one, aren’t you, kitten?” he murmured, unable to help himself, unable to stop the endearment from dropping from his lips.

She slapped the glass countertop with both hands so hard he wondered if the sharp edge left marks on her palms. “You have no right to call me that.”

The claws were out most definitely. God, it felt so good to be in her presence, to see her, drink her in. Her hair was longer than the last time he saw her, glossy and thick with waves. Her breasts were a sight to behold, their generous size emphasized by the clingy knit of her elegant pale pink sweater set and he wondered if she’d somehow gotten bigger.

He frowned. She’d subtly changed, but he couldn’t put his finger on how.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “That’s all I wanted to say. I’m just—I’m sorry for how I treated you. It was uncalled for.”

“Fine.” She crossed her arms in front of her, plumping her breasts up even more. “I accept your apology.”

Pausing, he didn’t know what else to say, what else to do. Asking how she was seemed too benign, too thoughtless. Of course, his previous interactions with her had been completely thoughtless so what was the difference?

Never before had a woman left him feeling so damned unsure before. And such a little slip of a woman too. He was ten years older than her and vastly more experienced. Yet she had him shifting on his feet like a naughty little boy about to receive his punishment.

“Can we catch up maybe?”

Slowly she shook her head, her eyes full of sadness. So much sadness, it almost equaled his own. “I don’t think that would be wise, Alex.”

Christ. Hearing her sweet voice say his name nearly unmanned him. Right there in the middle of a store full of bras and panties and silk and lace, he wanted to fall to his knees and beg for her forgiveness. Plead with her that she give him another chance.

But she was like a statue, unmoving, watching him with a sort of distance in her expression he’d never seen before.

Fuck. He’d ruined it. All of his chances were gone and no begging on his part was ever going to change that.

“I understand,” he said quietly though really he didn’t. He just knew it sounded good. “I wish you well, Tessa.”

“Thank you.” Her voice broke, and she cleared her throat. “Goodbye, Alex.”

And just like that, she dismissed him. Much like he’d dismissed her a year ago.

It hurt. Cut like the sharpest knife down to the bone. With a curt nod he turned and slowly walked out of the store, wondering where the French woman had gone. Wondering more where Tessa might live.

What did she do in the evenings? Did she have friends or worse—did she have a man in her life?

The idea of his Tessa in the arms of another man threatened to slay him dead where he stood.

Pulling his cell from his front pocket, he dialed the store manager at Worthwhile. “Something’s come up. I can’t attend the dinner tonight after all so don’t wait for me.” He paused and listened to her chatter on about statistics and sales numbers, but he didn’t hear her. None of it registered. All he could think about was Tessa. “Go ahead and charge it to the Worth account. Have everyone order whatever they want.” He rattled off the name of the restaurant where he’d taken Tessa, knowing they’d be impressed with the ambiance and menu. He already had an account with them, which made it easier.

Ending the call, he rounded the corner of the brick building and stood there in the growing darkness. The store hours posted by the door said Mon Amour closed at seven. He glanced at his watch and noted it was almost six-thirty.

He would wait. It could take no more than an hour for them to prep and close the shop and then she would emerge, done for the night. He would follow her back to her home. Perhaps he would corner her and demand that she talk to him, that she listen to him and perhaps even given him another chance.

Though he didn’t deserve it, he would do whatever it took to get her to listen to him. To let him explain his faults, his absolute stupidity in not believing in her, in not trusting her. If she was receptive, he would even confess his love for her.

She might not want to listen but he had to do it. Had to get everything off his chest once and for all.

If she didn’t at least give him that, he didn’t know what he would do.

Tessa called her sister as soon as Alex exited the store. Her hands shook, her heart pounded so hard it was all she could hear and she took a deep, gulping breath when her sister answered before she launched into the whole shocking story.

“I had a feeling something like this might happen.” Gina sounded stressed. “Want us to come meet you when you get off work, and we can go home together?”

“God, no. I don’t want him to see Charlotte.” She cast a worried glance out the front window, but he was nowhere to be found. Not that she could see much considering how dark it was. “He wouldn’t leave it alone. He kept saying he wanted to talk to me. He even said he was sorry.”

“You’re not falling for that, are you?”

“Of course not.” She wished she could. It would make life so much easier. But she had to be strong. He would only end up hurting her again and she’d have no one to blame but herself. “I find it hard to believe he’d walk out so easily. He always enjoyed a challenge.”

“You’re going to have to be strong.” Gina paused, letting her words sink in. It was as if she could read Tessa’s thoughts. “For Charlotte, you need to be.”

Tessa closed her eyes and breathed deep. She knew her sister was right. She had to do this, had to protect her daughter. “What if he’s waiting out there? He might want to talk again.”

“Let me grab a taxi and head over there. If he’s outside you can run straight into the car and never have to deal with him.”

“Okay, fine. Call a taxi and be here no later than seven-fifteen. Call me when you get here.”

They hung up and Tessa went into the backroom, thankful business was slow. She couldn’t handle dealing with people now, not with her jittery nerves and her racing heart. Seeing him on the news last evening, she realized there was a very slim chance she’d see him.

He’d somehow found her store and walked right in. As if he’d known she was inside. Had he been looking for her? Had he hired some sort of private investigator and they’d found her?

“Who was that man?” Simone asked as she entered the backroom.

Tessa pressed her lips together before she sighed. “The father of Charlotte.”

“He’s Alexander Worth, isn’t he?”

Tears formed in the corners of Tessa’s eyes, and she dashed them away. “Yes.”

“I thought I recognized him. I spoke to him before I called you over. I had no idea he was Charlotte’s...”

“I used to work for him.” Tessa laughed and shook her head, feeling one hundred thousand times the fool. “We had an affair and then he—he fired me. Accused me of stealing company secrets and told me to get out. He never wanted to see him again.”

“Oh, such a fool.” Simone shook her head. “And you haven’t seen him until just now?”

“Yes.” She nodded, a sob welling up in her throat. She was the one who was a fool. “It was quite the shock.”

“He seems very sad.”

Tessa frowned and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “What do you mean?”

“His demeanor, the way he spoke to me. I saw it in his eyes, heard it in his words. He is a very sad man.”

“He’s a ruthless man who has no problem ruining someone if it gains him what he wants.”

“Oh, dear.” Simone tsked. “You are both hurting so much.”

“Of course, I’m hurting. I was in love with him.” The moment the words left her, she knew she was still in love with him, however stupid that may be. She burst into tears, unable to mask her overwrought emotions any longer.

Simone drew her into her arms and hugged her, smoothing her hands up and down Tessa’s back. “There, there, darling. It will be just fine. Perhaps you should listen to what he has to say, no?”

“No. I can’t Simone. I let him hurt me once. I’d be stupid to let it happen again.”

“He may be looking for your forgiveness.”

“I don’t think I can give it to him.”

“So you’d rather hold a grudge the rest of your days and deny him his daughter?”

Tessa stiffened. Put like that, Simone made her sound like a cruel, cold-hearted bitch. “He doesn’t care about Charlotte.”

“He doesn’t know she exists. There’s a difference. How can he care about his child when he doesn’t know he has one?” Simone gave her a gentle smile. “You have a daughter together. You need to tell him about Charlotte. He deserves to know.”