Strict (Part Seven) by Hannah Ford

Author:Hannah Ford [Ford, Hannah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-02-12T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter 4

CHLOE

“Can I help you with anything else, miss?”

“No, thank you,” I say, reaching into my purse and pulling out a ten-dollar bill. I hand it to the concierge. It’s a small price to pay for him taking my bags upstairs for me, and for staying in this room, which must cost hundreds of dollars a night.

True to her word, Stacy has booked me a room at the Clemente Park, a fancy hotel overlooking Central Park. My room has sweeping views of the park, a king-sized bed with soft-looking sheets, and a mini bar filled with Belgium chocolates and tiny bottles of liquor encased in gold wrappers.

An hour after I arrive at the hotel, I’m stepping out of the shower – which has a steam function that leaves my skin feeling soft and my body invigorated -- and wrapping myself in one of the hotel robes, when my phone rings.

Gage.

It’s his office number, and I’m tempted to send it to voicemail. I may have a place to sleep tonight, a fancy hotel room, and an interview at a top VC firm tomorrow, but there’s still an ache in my heart.

I want to talk to him.

I don’t want to talk to him.

I want to see him.

I want to pretend he never existed.

Finally, I answer the phone, mostly because as with almost all things with Gage, I’m afraid of what he’ll do if I don’t.

“Were you going to tell me you were leaving?” he demands by way of greeting, his voice deep and dark. So deep and dark it seems to slip over my skin and turn my lower belly into molten liquid.

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because I thought you would make me stay.”

“What are you doing at the Clemente?”

“How do you know I’m at the Clemente?” I glance around, half-expecting to see him lurking in the shadows. When there’s no sign of him, I look up and scan the ceiling, looking for cameras.

“There’s a tracker on your phone.”

“Of course there is.” I close my eyes tight. Even when I’m trying to get away from him, I can’t.

“I answered your question. Now answer mine. What are you doing at the Clemente?”

“That’s none of your business.” I lay back down on the bed, resting my head on the fluffy pillow behind me. Suddenly, I’m exhausted. I’m tempted to just close my eyes and go right to sleep. And why shouldn’t I? It’s not like there’s anything I have to do today. And some rest would do me good.

“Come to my office.”

“Gage.”

“I need to talk to you.”

For a second, that same old flash of hope flares inside of me, that maybe he means it, that maybe this is the time he’s going to let me in, to tell me about his past, that we’ll be a real couple with Netflix nights and takeout Chinese food from some random place down the street.

I’d even settle for, like, going to Broadway shoes and dinners at fancy restaurants. I mean, baby steps here.

But fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, three times, four times…No.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.