by Linda Verji
Just one last time, the words echoed in her mind as she took the elevator up. I just want to see him one last time before I leave.
She got off the elevator and headed to her desk. Most people when quitting their job would’ve had a box to stuff their things into, but as Sin stared at her desk, she realized that nothing there was hers. It was sad, wasn’t it? Subconsciously she’d always known she was leaving and thus never bothered to personalize her space.
Nothing here was hers. Not her desk. Not the job. And certainly not Worth.
She drew in a long breath before knocking on his door.
“Yeah!” he called from the inside.
When she entered the office, she found him at his desk. As usual, he looked like he’d just walked off a GQ magazine. Sleek, sexy and delicious.
When he saw her, he raised one dark eyebrow. “You’re late.”
She wanted to say something, make up an excuse about why she was late, but now that she was in front of him, her lips seemed glued together. All she could do was stare at him and tattoo his features into her mind so she wouldn’t forget him, so she would always remember him.
“What happened?” Worth prodded. “Why are you late?”
She didn’t answer. Just stared at him. Was this really the last time she was seeing him? Her heart constricted painfully at that thought. She’d seduced many men, married some of them, but none had ever touched her heart. In fact she’d firmly believed that she was incapable of falling for any man. She knew them all too well to fall for their bullshit. Yet here he was; the only man who’d ever managed to melt the icy wall protecting her heart.
How had he done it? Life was funny, wasn’t it? He was the only man that she’d truly loved yet he was also the only man she shouldn’t have fallen for. No, life wasn’t funny. It was cruel! Too cruel.
“Sin!” Worth cut into her thoughts. His brow was furrowed in concern as he watched her. “Are you okay? Did something happen to you?”
She finally spoke. “I’m leaving.”
“What?” Confusion flashed over his features.
“I’m leaving.” Despite the sudden tightness in her throat, she clarified, “I’m quitting the company.”
CHAPTER 20
Worth blinked, then blinked again. Maybe he’d heard wrong. He shook his head to clear his hearing. “What?”
“I’m quitting the company,” Sin repeated.
Immeasurable shock shot through Worth. Had he not been sitting, his knees would’ve buckled underneath him. His heart began pounding then, almost as if it was trying to jump out of his chest.
He took a deep breath to ease the sudden tightness in his chest before asking, “Why?”
“Personal reasons.” Though her tone was even and her expression unreadable, there was something pulsing underneath those words. Something that told him she wasn’t as calm as she was pretending.
Struggling to keep his tone as even as hers, he asked, “What personal reasons?”
“They’re called personal reasons,” she said, “which means I don’t have to tell you.”
Worth didn’t know how to respond to that answer. He didn’t how to respond to this situation. In all his imaginings of how their end would come, he’d never thought that she’d just leave. If worse comes to worse, he was supposed to kick her out. She couldn’t leave. No, not yet. How could she when she hadn’t even seduced him yet? She was supposed to try to get him to marry her.
She wasn’t supposed to leave.
His mind reeled with confusion and shock. When she’d refused any further physical contact, he’d assumed that this was just another one of her games to keep him aching for her. But even after it’d worked, she’d still refused him. Still, he’d thought that he had time; time to convince her to let him hold her again. But now – she was leaving? No, he couldn’t let that happen.
“No!” He shot up from his seat. In four strides, he’d crossed the room and was in front of her. “No. You’re not leaving.”
She immediately backed away until her back was against the door. “I don’t think it’s your choice to make.”
She was right of course. But it didn’t matter.
He took one step closer to her until they were so close he could feel her body heat. Her eyes widened at their proximity. Suddenly Worth was glad for the presence of the door behind her because now she couldn’t back away from him. She couldn’t leave.
“What do you need me to do so you can stay?” He cupped her shoulder and repeated, “What do you need me to do so you can stay?”
“Nothing,” she said as her gaze lowered to his hand on her shoulder. When her eyes came back up to meet his, there was an unexpected sadness in there. “There’s nothing you can do to make me stay.”
“Just tell me what you want, Sin.” He was fully aware that he sounded like a pathetic idiot begging for crumbs of her attention, yet he couldn’t stop himself. “To date? A relationship? Marriage?”
“I don’t want anything from you. I-I-” Her breath caught in her throat and her eyes watered as if she was going to cry. She lowered her eyes. “I – I just wanted to say goodbye.”
Her sadness only further added to his confusion. It looked real enough, but with Sin you never knew. However, if it was real, then it meant that she didn’t want to leave. But if she didn’t want to leave then why wasn’t she jumping at any of his offers? For crying out loud he’d even put marriage on the table.
Worth blew out a loud breath and swept his fingers through his hair in frustration. “Stop playing games with me and just tell me what you want.”
“Like I said I don’t want anything.” She pushed his hand off her shoulder then shoved him away to create space. Turning to open the door, she said, “Goodbye Worth. It was great working for you.”
“No.” He closed his arm around her waist and turned her so they were facing each other again. “What about us?”
“There was never an us, remember?” She forcefully shoved him away again but as she did so a tear trickled down her cheek. “I have to go.”
Before he could ask why she was crying if she was so eager to leave, she opened the door and let herself out of his office. For just a moment, Worth stood looking at the now closed the door. What the hell was going on here? Had she really left? She’d march right back in and say she was joking, right? She’d walk back in and tell him that his offers were too enticing to walk away from, right?
But minutes later, she still wasn’t back.
His instincts took control then, and he jerked the door open. Unfortunately, he’d waited too long. Sin wasn’t at her desk. She’d already left. Panic dancing on his nerves, he strode towards the elevators, praying for her to be there. But she wasn’t. He looked up and noticed that the elevator was now on the second-floor and still going down, which meant she was going down. Worth pressed the down button on the other elevator.
Somewhere deep in his subconscious he knew that he shouldn’t be doing this, that he shouldn’t be following her. After all, she was just a con-artist he was using. Yet he couldn’t stop himself. He repeatedly pressed on the down button until the elevators doors opened.
A minute had never seemed so long. It felt like the elevator took an hour or more to get to the ground floor. Fortunately, the moment he got off he spotted Sin walking past the front desk. His strides widened until he was practically speed-walking. He caught up to her just before she got to the revolving doors and grabbed her upper arm from the back.
“What-” She spun around. Her eyes widened when she saw him. “Worth!”
“Let’s talk.” Still gripping her arm, he turned and started towards the left-side hallway.
“We have nothing to talk about.” Sin tried to shake off his grip, but he kept a tight hold on her. He wasn’t letting her leave.
Though he was fully aware of all the people staring at him and whispering as he dragged her down the hallway, Worth didn’t care. Those curious eyes didn’t matter right now. Not when it felt like the world was
collapsing beneath his feet.
“Worth, wait!” Sin tried to stop him, but he was on a mission. He headed straight for the men’s room, shoved the door open and led her in.
“Hey!” the only man in there protested as he quickly tucked himself into his pants. “What the-”
His words died on his lips the moment his eyes met Worth’s and without another word, he scrambled out of the room. Worth locked the door. Finally, they were alone.
He turned to Sin. “What the hell is going on? Why are you leaving?”
She looked almost afraid of him as she met his eyes. “I told you it’s a personal matter.”
“What personal matter?” Worth folded his arms over his chest. “I’m not letting you go until you tell me.”
Worrying her bottom lip, Sin glanced at the locked door then at him. Worth could tell that she was thinking of a lie to tell him. It was confirmed when she said, “My mother is sick.”
The lie sent hot anger pulsing through him. He gritted between his teeth, “You don’t have a mother.”
“What?” Her eyes widened.
“You don’t have a mother.” He glared at her as he bit out, “Tamsin Jacob.”
From the way Sin stiffened and the way her mouth fell open it was obvious that he’d thoroughly shocked her. He hadn’t planned to reveal how much he knew until later, much later, but his anger and frustration got the better of him. Also, something told him that it was now or never. This was the only card he had to play.
“Yes, I know that Sinclair Johnson isn’t your real name. I know everything about you.” He paused to pull in a breath. “Now tell me the truth; why are you leaving?”
She opened her mouth but no words came out. She swallowed then tried again. “How – how – how do you know?”
“I’ve always known.” He forced a smile. “Did you and Claire think I wouldn’t do my research?”
Sin blinked. “You know about Claire?”
“Like I said I know everything.”
Worth had thought that when he finally revealed just how much he knew all he’d feel was pleasure and victory. However, none of those feelings were part of the medley of emotions wreaking havoc on his psyche right now. All he felt was anger, panic, confusion and fear.
He asked, “So why are you leaving? It can’t be because you’ve finished your job. You’re supposed to seduce me and get me to marry you.”
“I – I-” Her tongue jutted out to sweep over her lower lip in blatant nervousness. “You knew?”
“Yes, I knew.” He forced a sarcastic laugh. “Don’t tell me that you actually thought I was falling for your tricks? That anything about us was real? That I really liked you?”
“No, I didn’t think you liked me. But…” Her words faded into silence.
“But you were planning to make me, weren’t you?” he asked. Denial flashed in her eyes but, knowing that it was fake, he cut her off before she could voice it. “Too bad! There’s no way I’d ever fall for a woman like you. You’re not my type. I tend to go for women without a record.”
Hurt filled her features. That hurt should’ve left him feeling happier but it didn’t. His heart seemed to constrict almost as if something was squeezing it.
Still, he laughed. “Can’t say I didn’t enjoy the game though. I just wanted to see how long it would take me to get between your legs. As it turns out, not too long. You’re much easier than I thought. You’re still a good lay though. Must be all the practice!”
Her sharp gasp echoed in the small room and she took a step back as if he’d actually slapped her. He almost took a step towards her. The tears that brimmed in her eyes tore at him. He wanted to drag her into his arms and tell her that he didn’t actually mean what he was saying. Yet he couldn’t stop himself.
“So why are you leaving?” He gave her a crooked smile. “Did you realize that I was just playing you? Or did your deal with Claire fall through?”
Even as Worth spoke, he wondered if he’d regret this moment. After all the cruel things he’d said, no sane woman would stay with him. In the future would he remember this moment and peg it as the moment he’d lost a woman he loved more than he wanted to admit? Would he lie awake in his bed and curse himself for losing her?
“Because you’re a good guy.” Sin’s voice was smaller and softer than he’d ever heard it. “I’m leaving because you’re a good guy.”
“What?” He was momentarily confused by her response. How could she call him a good guy when he was being so cruel to her, when he was deliberately hurting her? “Because I’m a good guy?”
“You didn’t deserve to get dragged into all this.” Sin tried to smile but it immediately fell. “I’m sorry, Worth.”
He didn’t need her sorry. Not when he was feeling like the villain in this latest plot twist in their relationship. He growled. “I don’t need your apologies.”
Her eyes on him, she asked, “So what next? Are you handing me over to the police?”
There should’ve been fear in her eyes as she posed the question, but all he saw was an odd acceptance. It was as if she’d decided that he was a bastard enough to send her to jail. Strangely, that acceptance sent hurt threading through him. He wanted her to expect more from him. He wanted her to hope that he’d save her. But there was no hope in her eyes, just weariness.
“Believe me, I want to send you to jail,” he forced himself to say. “But I can’t, can I? Claire is involved in this whole fiasco, and as much as I can’t stand her, she’s still family. I don’t want you dragging my family down into your dirty, criminal gutter. So yeah, I’ll let you leave.”
Surprise widened Sin’s eyes. “You’ll let me leave?”
“Yup. You’re free to go. Leave! Go far away, and don’t ever come back,” he said even though every cell in his body was pleading with him to say the exact opposite, to beg her to stay. His heart breaking, he added, “But know this, if you ever step in Portland again, there’ll be no more leaving. I’ll make sure you really go in for a long, long time.”
Sin stared at him for a long silent moment then said the words he didn’t want to hear. “Okay! I’ll leave.”
She skirted past him, unlocked the door and left. She really left.
Worth stumbled towards the sink and propped his palms on the marble counter. He took in deep breaths to ease the tightness in his throat as he rubbed the left side of his chest – the spot where his heart was.
She was gone. She was really gone.
*
SIN DIDN’T KNOW how she held in her tears and kept from collapsing until she was on the plane. Everything Worth had said played and replayed in her mind like a broken tape. Every time she recalled his words in that bathroom it felt like she was being stabbed straight in the heart. Yet she knew that she deserved every unkind word he’d spat out at her.
“So he already knew?” Ten, who was seated beside Sin, stared at her in shock. “He knew and he just let you go?”
“Yup.” Sin nodded.
“Why?” Ten asked.
Sin was too hurt and sad to speak so she just shrugged in response, leaving her friend to figure it out for herself.
A moment later, Ten’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Maybe he let you go because he likes you.”
“No.” Sin guffawed but there was no amusement in the sound. “He doesn’t.”
Now that she knew that he was aware of who she really was, everything about their relationship made sense. No wonder he’d treated her so badly from day one. He was playing her all along. He must have enjoyed seeing her falling for him while at the same time being wracked by guilt.
What an idiot she’d been!
Worse, she couldn’t even be angry at him, not when she was the one who’d started this whole thing. In fact, if this was another woman, she’d be applauding Worth for playing her.
“How do you know that he doesn’t like you?” Ten asked. “If he was really mad at you, he would’ve called the cops on-”
“He let me go because of
Claire.” Sin cut her friend off. “He was trying to protect her.”
“What?” Ten made a face. “That snake? Why would he want to protect her?”
“Because she’s family,” Sin said. And I’m just a con-artist.
Worth probably thought that she wasn’t worth protecting. Tears jumped to Sin’s eyes, and she had to turn her face towards the window so her friend wouldn’t notice. Outside clouds and blue skies swam majestically, but she barely noticed them. She was working too hard to keep from bursting into sobs.
Ten snorted. “I bet if he knows what she’s been up to, he won’t think of her as family.”
“Hmm,” Sin offered reluctantly.
“You know what?” Ten suddenly grabbed Sin’s shoulder to turn her. “Maybe we should-” Shock crossed her features when her eyes met Sin’s. “Are you crying?”
“No, I’m not.” Sin swiped her arm across her face to dry the wetness but her eyes decided that this was a good time to start spilling. Before she knew it, tears were running down her cheeks like little rivers.
She bent her head and cupped her face as silent sobs racked her body. Ten meanwhile just rubbed her shoulders. Every time Worth’s face flashed in her mind, a fresh sob racked her body. Sin was annoyed with herself. She wanted to stop crying but she couldn’t. Worse, she couldn’t understand why she was crying. Why was she so sad over a man who’d just thought of her as a play thing?
She should’ve been relieved that both she and Ten had walked away without any charges. Yet all she felt was a deep sadness that left a hollow ache where her heart was. It was really over between her and Worth. She’d never get to see him again.
And the tears just kept coming.
“I’m sorry,” Ten said once Sin quieted down. Her tone was grave as she added, “If it wasn’t for me, you could’ve stayed with him.”