Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 115308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 577(@200wpm)___ 461(@250wpm)___ 384(@300wpm)
“We’re not together anymore so, yes, I took them down.”
His handsome cheeks turned ruddy. “And are we not together anymore because I asked for space to figure things out or are we not together anymore because you were fucking the Caley United goalkeeper behind my back?”
Rage unlike anything I’d experienced in a long time flushed hotly through me. It made my voice low, my tone seething as I responded, “No. I did not cheat on you. Baird and I were just friends. At least on my side of things. But after you emotionally cheated on me and we broke up, he told me he had feelings for me.”
Will’s jaw clenched before he hissed back, “We hadn’t broken up. You blocked me!”
Was he insane? There went my vow not to engage with him.
“I blocked you because we broke up! We broke up the moment you asked me to wait around while you decided which of your girlfriends you thought deserved you.”
Will strode toward me, his expression so uncharacteristically aggressive I tensed but refused to step back. “Therefore, you decide to get engaged weeks later to another man? And to do it publicly. What? To humiliate me?”
Oh my goodness. How had I not realized how self-involved this prick was? “No. Becky put me forward for the campaign without my permission, and if I didn’t do it, I’d lose my job. The engagement was never supposed to be this public.”
“Oh, that’s right. Blame a colleague. Blame everyone but yourself.”
All the months I’d complained about Becky he’d never taken my side in it.
Not like Baird.
I realized that while there were a million ugly things I wanted to spew at this man, he wasn’t worth it. He wasn’t worth the energy.
“Get out, Will. I don’t know what your purpose in coming here was, but get out.”
Instead, Will crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not leaving until we talk about this. For once, we’re going to argue, Maia, instead of you sweeping it under the rug or you appeasing me.”
Well, at least he had a modicum of insight and perception.
“The problem is, Will, I don’t care to anymore. I don’t want to argue with you. Leave.”
“No. I want to argue because I don’t think this is done between us.”
“Oh, you’re leaving,” a deep, familiar voice announced before he appeared, striding into my living room.
My whole body relaxed at the sight of Baird and something dark and wrathful flashed in his eyes when he noted my relief.
He stopped at my side, his arm pressing into mine. “You heard her. Get the fuck out.”
Will tilted his chin in defiance. “What kind of man swoops in to steal another man’s fiancée?”
“The kind who wants her more than you do. Also, she wasn’t your fiancée anymore. Now get the fuck out.”
“You have no idea what I want. You’re an ill-educated athlete who can barely string a sentence together. Do you really think you can give her what she needs?”
“How dare—”
Baird cut off my indignant reaction by squeezing my arm. I glanced up to find him wearing a peculiar expression as he stared Will down. His mouth was curled like he was almost smiling, but his usually warm, dark eyes glinted like hard obsidian.
“You know what your problem is, mate … you thought so highly of your fucking self that you believed a woman like Maia would actually wait around for you.”
Will had the decency to flinch.
“Now you’re in the midst of a reality check. Maia MacLeod is top tier. There is no getting better than My. She’s kind, she’s smart, she’s funny, she gives a shit about people, she’s driven without being a ruthless dick about it, and somehow, unbelievably, she’s all these things when she doesn’t have to be because she’s a smoke show, and the world’s a superficial dumpster fire that puts more stock in that than what lies beneath. But Maia is all that and more because she’s beautiful down to her fucking soul. And you …”
I watched in stunned silence, my heart pounding in my ears as Baird dragged his gaze disdainfully up Will’s body until he met his eyes.
“You were punching way above your weight when she said yes to you. You’re such an arrogant prick, you didn’t think so. You’d convinced yourself it was the other way around. But now you know that as soon as she was free of your bullshit, there were thousands of guys lined up who would give their left nut for a chance at her. And I’m actually smarter than you because I wasted no time. I’ve wanted her from the moment I met her, and I was biding my time until she realized you didn’t deserve her. Here you are, now that you know you were punching above your weight, and you’re what? Trying to shame and gaslight her into taking you back?”