Page 47 of Mile High Baby

I smiled. See? I had so much to be grateful for. I stood and picked up my wine glass. "Thank you again. I’m going to head down to my office now.” I picked up the bottle of wine too. There was no sense in letting it go to waste.

She frowned. "Not working, I hope. It's late.”

“I just have a few things to deal with.”

She tsked. "When you decided not to follow your father's footsteps, I was glad because it meant you could have a life, but you work as much as he does.”

"I enjoy my work.” That wasn’t a lie. I realized that all this business with my father and distraction from Alex had in some ways pulled my attention away from my ambitions. Yes, I’d been working, but danger and Alex had been hanging around the fringe of my focus. I needed to stop that, at least where Alex was concerned.

“Hopefully, all this terrible business with your father will end and you can resume your travel."

"Let's hope." But I wasn't going to hold my breath. I understood this problem with Pitney wasn’t going away anytime soon.

When I got to my office, I carried my wine bottle and glass to the window seat. I didn't bother turning the light on. The moon was bright, giving the room just enough light.

I had no intention of working. Instead, I sat and wallowed in the difficulty of my current situation.

Wanting fresh air, I opened the window. Maybe I should have stayed on the terrace.

I’d been sitting for a while when the door creaked open and Alex entered. I wanted to jump up and punch him for bringing so much frustration into my life. Here he was, after all the things said on the roof and all we'd done, and now he was going to chastise me for opening the window like I was a child.

But he didn’t say anything. I realized that the way he was looking at me was different from his usual irritation. That was when I panicked. Something happened to my father. That had to be why he was here.

I rushed to him, needing to know what happened. He said nothing was wrong, but there had to be based on his demeanor.

"I can't stop.”

What was he talking about? "Stop what?"

"I can't stop thinking of you. Of wanting you."

My heart beat against my ribs in a mix of excitement and warning. “You also can’t stop regretting or feeling repulsed by me.” For once, the warning beat out desire and I started to pull away.

But he took my hands in his. "Henry is like a brother to me."

"That would make me your niece, so yeah, I see how gross that would be.” I tugged my hands away.

He flinched at my niece comment. Then he sighed. "He'd see it as a betrayal. Hell, he'd see it as inappropriate. He’d think I was a sick bastard. I defiled his daughter."

I laughed humorlessly. “No you didn't. Lance Dawson did that."

He let out an exasperated breath. "Do you really not understand?"

I glared at him. "I understand that you’re hot for your friend’s daughter and when dick wins over your conscience, you regret it.”

He gave me a helpless stare.

“Do you really not understand what that's like for me? I let you touch me and then you act repulsed. It’s humiliating.”

His expression was stricken. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, yeah, you keep saying that. Maybe you should go back to hiding and treating me like Henry's spoiled brat."

"Is that what you want?"

I laughed derisively. "Since when has what I wanted factored into this?”

He scowled. "I never touched you without your consent. "