Edward’s pov“I love you. I love only you. Can’t you hear that?” The admission choked me. “If I hurt you, I’m sorry… but this isn’t me doing it. She’s pushing herself into our lives. She’s trying to wedge herself between us.”Eloise blinked, her lashes wet but didn’t look like she was holding tears back.I searched her face, desperate, and my gaze fell on her lips. Fuck it… I couldn’t stop myself. The distance between us disappeared in one rough second, and then I kissed her.It wasn’t gentle and neither was it cautious.It was hard, and it was demanding, and she pushed against me at first while I kept wishing she’d pull me closer instead.My whole body caught fire as she leaned into me and we stayed there for a while, the tension between us rising to higher grounds.It didn’t take long before she broke off and we stared at each other with our chests heaving and we were breathless.“Why?” I choked out. “Why are you breaking me?”It was as if killing me would be a mercy.“Please, just
Charlottes pov“I’ve been called worse,” he said flippantly. “Now, come on, Charlotte. I don’t believe for an instant that you’re the type to call it a night after any party.”He wasn’t wrong. God, he wasn’t wrong. I bit my lip, hating that he could already read me.“Fine,” I said finally. A little too quickly. “Where?”He said the name as I smiled. An expecting few hotels that the super rich went to.“I’ll be there.”“And I’ll be waiting,” he said before hanging up.I could only smile to myself as I stretched my arms and decided to go for this.Edward wasn’t here to stop me. I was not going to sit at home and do nothing. I needed to be out there having fun.I went to the room and had my bath as I slipped on a black dress, low back and sharp at the waist that would leave him wanting more of what he couldn’t have, my whole body hummed with adrenaline. I touched up my lipstick, spritzed my favorite perfume along the length of my neck, and just stared at myself in the mirror for a minute
Edward’s povVoices clamored, shouted questions fired all together."Edward, what happened in there?""Did you really get into it with Oscar Monroe?"“Who’s the lady with ya?”“Are you hurt?”I shielded my face with my bloody hand as I rushed through the people.My lip was split, swollen. My hand was bleeding… There was no fucking way I could pretend nothing happened.Charlotte stepped beside me as well, her head ducked and hands raised in front of her face to block the light.“Edward…”“Move,” I snapped, pushing her down the walkway.The car was right there. A black Mercedes, long and sleek and with windows you couldn’t see through. The driver got out and opened the back door for me on the other side of a half a dozen shouting paparazzi.I ducked my head, pushed through, my other hand clamping down on Charlotte’s shoulder in a vice to keep her moving. “Don’t stop, just don’t stop.”I got in and shut the door after me. It went mute right away; the sound of muffled shouting and flashin
Charlottes povBefore I could say anything, Oscar chuckled. “Jesus Christ, Edward. You’re still the bloody same. Still, the little insecure kid is relying on his snazzy suit and tie.”Edward swung around, irritation burning bright across his face. “I wasn’t speaking to you, Oscar.”“Why should I bother?” Oscar shrugged, “You think you can show up and accuse me of doing something? That’s the thing about you, Edward… you act like everyone belongs to you. Newsflash… people don’t.”“I’m not listening to that rubbish.”I snapped. “Stop it, both of you. This isn’t about…”But neither of them was listening.Edward jabbed a finger at him. “You’ve always been the same. Walking into rooms like you own them. Thinking every woman wants you. You’re just a leech.”Oscar laughed. “Better a parasite than a coward. At least I don’t hide behind excuses. You…” he turned his head toward me, his voice dropping lower, sharper, “you don’t see it yet, Charlotte. He’s not angry because you’re talking to me. H
Charlottes povI didn’t like what I had just seen. Edward, his jaw clenched, his eyes hard, and the man, Oscar by name, a person of whom I had heard nothing except in whispered rumor… flinging words like broken glass. Not the customary kind of remarks which men of wealth exchange between themselves. No, these words struck.They were meant to strike.And who the hell was this Oscar anyway to talk to Edward like that? He was cocky. Something about him struck me and as much as I hated him I felt attracted to him somehow.Edward stepped back and left as I joined him at the party away from Oscar.I tugged at Edward’s sleeve, a clumsy mistake on my part but it got his attention, and said, “Who is he?”He barely glanced my way. “Oscar and I… We have a complicated history.”Complicated? That’s it? Like that came anywhere close to justifying the poison in his voice.I wanted to push, demand he tell me more but the look in his eyes told me I needed to settle back. He wouldn’t give more now. Pos
Edward’s povWe’d barely walked out of the car before the flashes started. Cameras, photographers screaming our names, Charlotte practically dragging me around like I was her pet while we got out of the car. Her hand locked around my arm, smiling so hard it had to hurt while I blinked against the glare.“Smile,” she muttered through clenched teeth. “You look like you’re being tortured.”"Maybe I am," I muttered, but I forced a smile anyway.Inside the venue, the place was sick with money. Chandeliers that cost more than most houses, champagne glasses glittering on trays, politicians shaking hands as if it were a contest of who could look mightier. The air felt rich too, thick with perfume and money.Charlotte loved it there. She had me by the hand, dragging me from group to group, introducing herself before I could say anything myself. “This is Edward,” she said to a tall man with an expensive-looking watch. “We’re dating.”He smiled at me as I had done business with him in the past.