Page 307 of The Heart You Kept

His eyes hold mine.

“You don’t get to tell me what I do.” I turn my back and start walking.

“Alora,” he growls.

I turn like the devil himself and am now well aware that we have an audience, every yacht’s staff is now out on deck listening. “What?” I fume as I fight to keep my voice down.

“I want you to come inside,” he says softly. “Leave us, Marcel.”

“Yes, sir.”

Marcel disappears up the boardwalk and he comes to me. “You said you wouldn’t leave when the chips are down. You promised,” he says softly.

“Yeah, well.” My eyes well with tears. “You promised to be faithful.”

“I was, I swear to you. Come inside and we can talk about it.”

“I just want to go home,” I whisper.

His face falls. “Doe, don’t cry,” he whispers as he takes me into his arms. “I swear on my life I didn’t touch her.” I pull out of his grip and step back from him. “I love you, there’s no way I would risk that,” he whispers as he reaches for me again. “Come inside.”

I look back to the yacht to see all of the staff there waiting and watching. I’m officially the town fucking idiot. What do they see when I’m not here?

“I just want to go home tonight,” I say.

“We need to talk about this.”

“Tomorrow.”

His eyes search mine. “I want to come with you.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t want you to,” I snap, annoyed.

“Nothing can be sorted when we’re apart.”

“I need some distance, Edward.”

“Don’t say that.”

I know he’s not going to let me go unless I’m civil.

“It’s fine. I just want to go home and calm down and have the night to myself and we can go out for lunch tomorrow.”

“I don’t want to be apart from you.”

“It’s one night.”

His eyes search mine. “Is it one night?”

I cross my arms, unsure how to reply.

“Alora, I promise you. I didn’t touch her. She came to me for help. I was working out downstairs and that’s why my shirt was off. She turned up crying and scared because someone had just tried to run her over and I hugged her.”

My eyes hold his. Is he lying?