Sugar Daddy

Stepping away, he watched her leave without saying a word.

Rules were rules.

Rules are made to be broken.

Climbing back into his car, he didn’t look back.

It was a lot easier not to look back, or to think as he went home to his very empty apartment. The Christmas he had planned was totally screwed because his parents couldn’t keep their mouths shut.

Pouring himself a large shot of the strongest whiskey he owned, he paused when he caught sight of a selfie picture he’d taken at Thanksgiving. Elizabeth was curled up against him, his arm wrapped around her, and he was kissing her head. They looked happy, and he realized that he’d fallen for her long ago, even before he stopped paying for her.

Throwing the glass across the room, he watched it shatter, spilling liquid down the wall.

He didn’t lose, not ever, and he wouldn’t lose his shit over this. Elizabeth had made her choice. Even as he thought this, he couldn’t help but recall he never got the chance to call her Lizzie. Such a stupid, trivial thing, and yet it struck a nerve inside him.

Chapter Eleven

In the days that followed, Elizabeth concentrated on her studies, and took several shifts at the coffee house. She didn’t want to think of Daniel, which was impossible to do. Memories of him were everywhere. Her apartment, her work, even walking around campus as he’d taken the time to visit her there. No matter where she looked, he dominated, and it was hard for her to focus on anything else.

She kept her cell phone turned off, and spent a great deal of time at the library. Studying seemed the only thing that gave her a few moments where she didn’t have to think of him all the time.

Love was such a fickle thing.

Actually, she finally understood why people wrote books, made movies, and created poetry. Love really was everything. She’d screwed everything up, and now her heart was breaking.

Being around Daniel, the feelings he evoked took away every single doubt, all the negative, and what she was left with was just love.

Christmas came and went. She stayed in, eating ramen noodles, watching television, and crying because she wasn’t in Daniel’s arms.

Their relationship hadn’t been conventional, not in the real sense, not at all, but she’d fallen for him so easy. She’d fought it. The sweet gesture of the rose to the way he touched her body, she’d basked in that kind of pleasure and attention.

Finally, New Year’s Day was only days away, and with that came extra shifts at the coffee shop.

On New Year’s Eve they were serving special chocolate lattes, with a splash of something extra while also staying open to see in the New Year. The coffee shop hummed with activity from the moment they opened, and Elizabeth didn’t have a second to think as she served one after the other, muffins, sandwiches, coffee, and everything in between.

The excitement was palpable as everyone made plans, resolutions, and looked forward to the future.

Her heartache couldn’t get her to stop her thinking that she’d walked away from the best guy in her life. She didn’t care about the nineteen-year age gap, or that he’d found her on a website designed to help women find sugar daddies.

No, Daniel had broken down her walls, gotten into her heart, and now she knew she’d never be able to love anyone else like the way she loved him.

Not anyone.

Turning her back to place the exact change in the till, she spun around and came face to face with the man she’d fallen in love with.

Daniel stood, as a customer, waiting.

He looked a little unkempt. His hair was not immaculate, and she noticed a stubble several days old.

Did she look similar?

Red puffy eyes.

Completely consumed by sadness.

“What can I get you, sir?” Andrew asked. He was one of the owners of the place, and he always came in around busy times to help with the extra customers.

“To be served by her,” Daniel said.

His voice sounded gruff.

“I’ve got it, Andrew.” She smiled at her boss and stepped closer.

Her hands shook a little, and she clenched them into fists in the hope of not showing how upset seeing him had made her.

She loved this man more than anything else in the world, and now she couldn’t focus, nor could she think.

Elizabeth imagined jumping over the counter and throwing herself at him, covering his face with kisses as she professed her undying love.

Shaking those images out of her mind, she forced a smile to her lips. “What can I get you?”

The queue behind him went out the door, but he didn’t seem in a rush to speak.

“I want you back,” Daniel said.

She didn’t say anything, biting her lip. “I … can’t.” She had to try to fix her broken heart. He didn’t love her, and she couldn’t risk being with a man who really didn’t want her.