“It’s too late. Helen Ridgeway practically accused me from stealing from Seacliffe. And you,” she pointed her finger at him, trying to pretend her hand wasn’t trembling, “said nothing.”
She stood up and started pacing around, her blood pressure rising at the mere thought of it.
“Selena, I came here to say sorry.”
“Well it’s too late. You should have thought of that a week ago,” she snapped.
“Please don’t say that.” He fixed her with his big blue eyes. “You’ll break my heart. And I did think of it a week ago. I just couldn’t find you. I do trust you. Of course I trust you. I just didn’t say it soon enough.”
Her breath caught in her throat and her stomach fluttered. She sagged down onto the sofa. “What do you mean? What do you mean I’ll break your heart?”
He took a deep breath. “I mean I’ve missed you. I’ve missed us. I’ve missed having you wake up next to me in the morning, even though you had your own room. I’ve missed making you breakfast. I’ve even missed your shoes lying all over the floor and the wet towels in the bathroom.” His eyes fixed on hers. “I’ve especially missed your underwear hanging from the light fixtures. But most of all, the house feels empty without you. I hate it.”
She held her breath. Had he really said all that? She straightened on the sofa. “Just because you miss me doesn’t mean we should be together. Too much has happened, Colt. You didn’t take my side against Helen. She still thinks I had something to do with what’s going on at the clinic. I don’t want to be involved in any of that.”
He stood up and moved, sitting on the sofa next to her. “I know. And I’m sorry. Helen Ridgeway is really special to me.” He touched his side, where his scar tissue was. “I have a lot of loyalty to Helen, but it’s all getting to be too much for her and she recognizes that now. She looked at the folder you left her. Now, it’s all in black and white. She can’t ignore what’s happening underneath all our noses.”
“So, what does that mean? She believes me?”
He nodded. “She believes everything. She sat down with the accountant today. You should know that he spoke very highly of your skills and the fact you’d managed to interpret the figures.”
“Oh.” She should be happy. She should be over the moon that she’d been proven right. But somehow it was all rather irrelevant to her. She’d already known her theory would be proved by the facts.
But it didn’t take away the horrible feeling pressing down on her chest.
He continued, “The investigation at the clinic will keep going. We still haven’t found out who is responsible for the leaks. We’ll keep going until we get to the bottom of it.”
She looked up at him. “So, does that mean that you believe me now?” She glanced downward. “Because if it does, you should know, that’s not what I want.” She pressed her hand against her chest. “I needed you to believe in me straightaway. I needed you to say that in your heart you trusted me.” She shook her head. “And that’s not what happened. I know I don’t have the best history, but I thought we had something together.”
“We do. At least I think we do.” His hands were pressed firmly on her shoulders. “You have no idea what you’ve done for my life in the last month. You’ve had the biggest impact ever.” His eyes fixed on hers. “Even bigger than the arrival of the Borg.”
She tried not to let the edges of her mouth turn upward. “Didn’t they have a bad impact?”
He shook his head. “Not if you’re a fan. It was the greatest move in TV sci-fi history.”
Her voice was shaking. “And are you a fan?” It was a roundabout conversation, a way of saying all the things she was too scared to ask out loud.
“I’m your biggest fan. I’m sorry about the stuff at the clinic and with Helen. I want you to know that I believe in you. I will always believe in you. And I will always be here for you.”
Her brain was jumbled. She’d left Seacliffe. She wouldn’t be back. Neither of them knew what the future held.
“I came here today to give you something. Something that could change your life.”
Butterflies erupted in her stomach. What did he mean?
“Look at this.” He handed her a piece of paper.
She took it from him and turned it over, then raised her eyebrows. Bertram and Bain. Her dream employer. With a time and date scribbled on the piece of paper. “What is this?”
“They called the clinic. That’s your date and time for interview.”
Her mouth fell open. “What?” She stood up and started pacing around the room as she scanned the letter. “This is mine?”
He nodded encouragingly as she read his scribbled notes.
Everything else was chased from her mind. The opportunity she’d been waiting for. The chance to turn her life around. “A presentation and a quiz on management accounts beforehand. Wow. What will I wear? I need to start preparing.” Then she saw the date. “Two days! Two days until the interview? That’s crazy. How will I be ready on time?”
“Would you like some help?”
She’d forgotten he was sitting there. Watching her talking to herself and pacing around. She wanted this job. It could be the answer to all her prayers. A salary. The chance to put a deposit down on an apartment. Regular hours again. Working for a company she’d admired for years.
She sagged back down on to the sofa next to Colt. “I’ll never get this. There must have been hundreds of applicants. Just about everyone I know will have applied for this job. The competition will be fierce.”
His hand covered hers. “But they picked you. They short-listed you. That has to mean something. Now, you only need to show them how capable you are.”
“But what about my résumé? It’s hardly impressive in the last few months.”
Colt stood up and held out his hand toward her. “You say that you’ve been advising on accounts as an intermediary for Helen’s House to ensure the funding continues.”
She frowned. “Isn’t that untruthful?”
He placed his hands on her hips. “Why? It’s exactly what you’ve done. If you hadn’t spotted the problems in the accounts, Helen’s House would have suffered. The clinic needs to do well in order to continue funding the house. Who knows what would have happened if you hadn’t come along?”
His words made sense. Even though she’d worked at the clinic to pay off a debt, she didn’t need to tell them that. Colt made it sound much more professional, much more acceptable.
“I want you to be happy.”
“You do? You hardly know me, Colt, we’ve only known each other for a month.”
“That’s long enough.”
“Long enough for what?” Her heart was thudding inside her chest wall.
“Long enough to know that I miss
ed you. I’ve never been interested in sharing my life with someone before. Not until you.”
“So what’s changed?”
He gave her his damn sexy smile that turned her insides to mush. “I fell in love.”
“You did?” She was squeaking again.
“I did. Please come home. Because it doesn’t feel like home anymore without you there. It doesn’t feel like home without your clothes and shoes scattered all over the house.” Heat coursed through her as a myriad of thoughts whirled around her mind.
He ran his hands up and down her sides. “That first night we spent together, the night that you saw my scars and didn’t flinch, didn’t hesitate, I knew, Selena. I knew it was a turning point in my life.” He gave her a smile. “It only took you moving in to make me realize how much.”
Wow. This was the point where she should be shouting with joy. He loved her. And he’d actually said it. But one tiny part of her couldn’t do it. Not yet.
She touched the side of his face. “I’d love to, Colt. But I have to learn to look after myself. I have to stand on my own two feet. I need to be independent. I need to find a job. Earn a salary…and pay off my debts.” She shook her head quickly. “I don’t want you to do that for me. I need to do it for myself.” She hesitated, then looked at him again, her voice breaking. “I don’t have anything to offer you, Colt. I don’t have a house. I don’t have a job. You have everything. You’re the full package: rich, gorgeous, intelligent. You could any woman that you want. Why are you here for me?”
His eyes widened, and he shook his head. “I don’t want any woman, Selena. I just want you. You’re the full package to me, no matter what point you’re at in your life.” He stroked his fingers down her cheek. “You are the only package I’ll ever be interested in. I promise I’ll support you. I won’t interfere in your choices.” He growled in her ear. “You can be as independent as you like. Just as long as it’s in my bedroom. I love you, Selena. Please tell me you’ll stay with me.”
She pulled back a little. The thought of spending every night with Colt was breaking every part of her resolve. Waking up to a spectacular view of the man who made her heart sing could do that to a girl. “Did I tell you that I love you, too?” She placed her hands beneath his ribs. “Every part of you.”