Page 98 of The Scarab's Game

Right?

And why didn’t I want him to confirm?

“Let me put it on you,” he said, his voice softer, almost tender. He took the bracelet from the box and used the delicate screwdriver to secure it around my wrist. “Perfect fit.”

I looked up at him, searching his face for any hint of his honest feelings.Wasthis all business? Or was there more? Unfortunately, Emmett was a master at keeping his emotions in check, revealing only what he wanted me to see.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Youare beautiful,” he whispered, before leaning in again.

His lips met mine, soft and warm. The kiss was tender, almost achingly so. His hand ran up my neck, his thumb gently caressing my skin. I melted into him, savoring the sweetness of the moment. There was a depth to this kiss that felt different from everything last night or this morning. It was slower, more deliberate, as if he was trying to convey something he couldn’t put into words.

Maybe it was the lingering doubt about what this all meant, or the fear it might end as quickly as it began. Whatever the reason, I clung to Emmett a little tighter, trying to memorize every sensation.

When we finally parted, I searched his eyes, hoping to find answers to questions I wasn’t even sure how to ask. Did he regret what we’d done? What would come next? Did he feel the way I did?

He took a slow breath, his thumb continuing to stroke my cheek. “I don’t want to spoil this moment, but I need to tell you something.”

My heart stopped.What now?

He just kissed you, so calm down.

“I need you to understand…” He raked his teeth over his bottom lip, brow furrowing. “It was your father.”

What was my father? “What?”

He sighed and cupped my cheeks, his touch firm yet uncertain, as if bracing me for bad news. “When we were fifteen. He saw me kiss you that night and confronted me. Said I wasn’t…”

My heart started again and sank. My father? Considering the horrible things he’d said to me about Emmett, what would he have said to the boy himself?

“It doesn’t matter what he said. I thought you should know I didn’t do it on purpose. I was…” He shook his head. “I was young and didn’t fight for you.”

He’d had to fight so many people when he was younger. But kids. Teens. Not adults. At least, I hadn’t realized it was adults, too. Scarlett hid everything so well.

“Why are you telling me this now?”

Emmett peered over my shoulder, his hands dropping to my scarf. “Rav suspects something’s going on between us. He said some things about back then and…” He let his head roll forward, so I couldn’t see his eyes.

I ran my fingers through his hair and kissed the top of his head. “That was fifteen years ago. It’s in the past.”

He whispered, “I’m not a bad man.”

So many people told him he wasn’t good enough, including my own father. And now Rav? I lifted his face so he had to look at me and truly absorb my next words.

Chapter 35

Emmett

“You deserve to be happy,”Jenn whispered.

Did I?

Iwasn’ta bad man. But Iwasa selfish one.

I’d wanted Jenn for fifteen years, and now that I had her, I wasn’t letting her go. Wasn’t about to trust her safety to anyone, not even a pilot, an airline, and five thousand miles of distance. Not that I could tell anyone, but it was the truth, deep in my soul.

Rav was right about so much. The members of our high-profile team all had histories of relationships that failed because they couldn’t handle the secrecy. Jenn might have been different, but Scarlett would never let her in on what we really did. So he was right—I was letting myself enjoy the moment, but I’d have to hurt her in the end.