Page 48 of The Forbidden Billionaire
It’s a long time, though, before I finally fall asleep.
*
On Monday morning, I’m sitting in the lobby when the elevator doors open and Aurelia comes out.
“Morning, ma’am,” I say, getting to my feet. We’re both wearing our gym clothes, and I nod as she gestures toward the doors, and I follow her over there.
I’ve spent the weekend doing my best to put her out of my mind. I’ve run so many miles, I could have got all the way to Dunedin if I’d gone in a straight line. Now, I feel a little calmer, and ready for her standard teasing as I take her through some self-defense moves.
To my surprise, though, her usual ready smile is absent this morning as I walk her through a few exercises. I hadn’t intended to even mention her date, but as the session wears on, I start feeling concerned about how quiet she is.
I show her a palm-heel strike and an elbow strike, then pause so we can both have a few swigs of water from our bottles.
“You okay?” I ask eventually, clipping the top back on mine.
She nods. “I’m fine.”
I put the bottle down and watch her take her place. I should stay professional. I’m not her therapist, and I’m not her confidante. If she wants to talk about her feelings she has plenty of friends and family.
But I like her, and she looks sad, unhappy even. Her well-being is important to me.
“You don’t look fine,” I say softly. “Has something happened?”
She brushes down her yoga pants, not answering.
“Aurelia?”
She shrugs.
It might not be anything to do with her date, but I don’t know where else to start. “How did your date go?”
She looks up at me, and her eyes are blazing, full of resentment. “Badly,” she snaps. “Happy now?”
My eyebrows rise. “No, of course not.” My stomach flips. “What happened?”
She glares at me mutely, then folds her arms and looks away, out of the window.
“Stacy told me you went back to Ivan’s place.” I go cold. “He didn’t… hurt you?”
She gives a short laugh, then breathes in deeply and blows out a long, long breath. “No. Nothing like that. We made out for a bit. But… I couldn’t go through with it.” Her gaze flicks up to mine, then drops again.
I feel a flare of joy, and then I’m immediately disgusted with myself. “I’m so sorry,” I make myself say. “Do you want to talk about it?”
She just sighs. She looks so tiny and vulnerable standing there, although I know she’s stronger than she seems. But emotionally, I’m convinced she is fragile. I’m beginning to think Dominic had more of an effect on her than I realized at first.
“I froze,” she says.
I open my mouth to say something, but no words come out.
She looks up at me, and her eyes shine with unshed tears, even though her jaw is firmly set. “I wanted to. He was nice. Kind, you know? Gentle. Unthreatening.”
He was the opposite to Dominic. That’s what she’s saying.
“I just… couldn’t, when it came to it.” Her whole body is tense, her shoulders hunched.
I wonder whether Ivan got angry when she called it a day. Some men would be. “What did he say?”
“He was lovely. Gave me a hug. Said I could stay if I wanted and just cuddle up. But I wanted to get out of there. I called an Uber and waited on the pavement for it. It was dark by then, and a couple of guys passed me and started talking to me.” Her words come tumbling out. “I… I thought about calling you, but it was late, and I knew I mustn’t. And I wondered when I became so scared to be on my own.” She presses her fingers to her mouth.
