Value Me: Part III by Nia Arthurs

Author:Nia Arthurs [Arthurs, Nia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-12-29T18:30:00+00:00

TWENTY-THREE

PATRICK

Liz doesn’t take me to her office. I get shoved into a storage closet like I’m a freaking dirty secret.

It’s a sizable closet. I’ll give her that. Enough room for Liz to pace back and forth like a general on the cusps of a great battle.

The silence is tense.

I watch Liz intently. She’s so damn attractive that it messes with my head. Supple, dark skin that glows even in the darkness. A fancy dress. White. Long-sleeved. A woven belt tied at her waist. High heels that she never wore before she divorced me.

Even her hairstyle is different. The curls are big and voluminous, framing her oval-shaped face in attractive coils.

When we were married, she didn’t take this much care of herself. It makes me wonder if we’d still be together if she’d put in a little effort. Made it a little easier to come home.

She’s your mirror, Patrick. What were you showing her that she reflected back to you?

I wave Doc’s voice away. I don’t need him butting in with his principles about wives and mirrors. I’m not in his garage. I’m in reality. And, in reality, the Liz in front of me looks both fierce and gorgeous. This woman would have kept my attention.

Liz tucks one of her curls out of her face. A bright light almost blinds me when she lifts her hand. It’s the giant diamond stuck to her finger. Bancroft must want everyone to know he put a ring on it—even the people up in space.

My eyes snap to hers. “Nice ring.”

Her gaze lowers to it and she stiffens.

“A little gaudy but…”

“Gaudy?”

“Didn’t you prefer simple, classy jewelry?”

She stops in her tracks and gives me a blistering stare. “It’s bigger and better than what you gave me, so that makes it gaudy?”

I bristle. “Don’t pick a fight, Liz. I’m not here for that.”

“You’re the one making underhanded comments, Patrick.”

I scoff. Hard. This isn’t how I wanted our reunion to go, but seeing that ring is ticking me off. If Bancroft hadn’t swooped in and stolen my wife away from me, maybe Liz and I would have been able to work things out. The what if’s are playing on a track in my mind. It’s frustrating because I’m over her. Or I thought I was. But now that she’s standing right in front of me…

She’s sexy. She’s a hustler. And she used to be mine. Now she’s going to marry some other guy. I don’t know why that bothers me so much.

“I’m surprised Bancroft actually proposed. I thought a rich clown like that would want to keep you hidden.”

“You don’t know a thing about Johnny, so keep his name out of your dirty mouth.” Her nostrils flare.

That furious expression reminds me of the fights we used to have when we were married. Sometimes, those shouting matches would end with me storming out of the house. Other times, they’d end with me hauling off her clothes and drilling her into the kitchen counter as she gasped my name.

Her voice snaps me out of the fantasy.

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