I did realize the same catering company was serving this event as the last time, and it made me grin thinking about that guy… Elliott I think his name was, shouting at everyone in the back. I kept my eyes trained in case I saw Veronica. I wanted one last laugh.
Then, someone got a microphone and announced the artist had just pulled up in front of the gallery. The whole place stirred, and we welcomed her with a round of applause. Except for Felix, who took the chance to wrap a hand around my waist and bite my neck, to which I giggled and tried to hide it as best as I could. I caught his sister watching, and she winked at me.
I couldn’t see Daphne when they announced her arriving, and a throng of people lined up to speak to her. I only caught glimpses of her, red hair, curvy, sexy body in a black leather dress. She was beautiful from what I could see.
And then the crowd finally parted, and it was our turn to say our congratulations.
But instead of the amazing artist herself, all I could see was the man with her.
My man, my King.
I thought my legs were going to give out on the spot, but I forced myself to stand still. I forced myself not to react the way I wanted to, not that I even knew what that was. Would I have ran, or would I have begged him to take me back?
It was so obvious they were together. The way he looked at her with affection, the way his hand lingered on the small of her back.
I hated her, I hated her so much I thought I’d just start crying on the spot.
I felt Felix tense when he noticed him as well, but it was a moment too late. We were already in line to congratulate the artist next.
“Hi, so lovely to meet you,” she purred. She had a hint of a foreign accent, and I took her hand and gave her a robotic smile as she shook it.
I felt King’s eyes on me, and I felt Felix’s hand on my back, his fingers digging into my skin. I wanted to scream.
“You too,” I murmured back.
“This is my partner, Mr. King,” she went on, and my gut twisted when those words left her mouth. I knew I was going to be sick, but I made myself look at him, just one time, one last time.
He was still too handsome for words, still just as painfully dominant as he was in the beginning. And he stared at me like he knew exactly what was going through my head.
“Nice to meet you,” I whispered, and he took my hand in his, and kissed it. His lips lingered on my skin, but I pulled my arm away when I knew we were being stared at. I felt the rage coming off Felix, I knew he was about to make a scene, and it scared me.
“Hello,” King told me in his velvet, deep voice, and I took a step back.
The look in his eyes, the look that spoke of everything that had happened between us, and held a promise of so much more. He wanted me, he still wanted me, I was sure of that now.
I pulled away from him, from them both. I pulled back into the crowd, my eyes still on his.
“I’m sorry, if you’ll excuse me,” I whispered, and then I turned on my heel and walked away as quickly as I could before I did something monumentally stupid.
Once I got to the ladies’ room, I was practically running.
I got into the cubicle and threw up in the toilet. Twice.
I gripped my stomach as I went outside and washed my mouth. I felt sick. So fucking sick.
Poppy was waiting for me in the room, and she looked concerned.
“I’m so sorry about that,” she told me, and I could tell she was clueless about what happened. “It was so stuffy in there. Felix is waiting for you–”
Before she could finish, he burst through the doors of the bathroom.
“We’re leaving,” he said in a cold voice, and for once, I didn’t argue.FortyFelixI had to practically drag her out of there.
Holding her up, it almost felt like she was passing out as I got her to the cab waiting in front of the gallery. My blood was boiling. I wanted to go back in there and beat him the fuck up for daring to show his face in public after what he’d done to my girl, and with another fucking woman, no less.
I got her into the cab, and was about to walk around to the other side of the car when I saw him coming out, his jaw set in a firm line as he made a beeline for us.