The Vargas Cartel Trilogy (Vargas Cartel #1-3)(65)

A therapist was hired.

My parents moved all my belongings into Evan’s house.

Even my dress—an ivorysilk crepe dress with a blouson silhouette—was ordered and delivered to Evan’s townhome by my mom. It didn’t look like something I’d pick, but then again, neither was my life. Not anymore. I’d lost control of everything.

“It’s bad luck not to take a drink,” Evan whispered next to my ear.

Not making eye contact with him, I lifted the glass to my lips as my eyes scanned the room, but I didn’t take a sip. I didn’t know why. It was childish, but I considered it my final symbolic rebellion before I entered a loveless marriage. One I didn’t want. One I wouldn’t want no matter how many days passed.

Suddenly, time froze. My muscles tensed the minute I saw him, Ryker Vargas. Just whispering his name inside the relative safety of my mind caused my heart to knock savagely against my breastbone. For a fraction of a second, I thought I was hallucinating, that my brain was playing vindictive tricks on me. My vision tunneled until all I could see was him, standing across the room—a wicked smile dancing at the corners of his lips, an island all to himself, sucking the energy out of the room. Our eyes locked and nobody existed except the two of us.

I swayed on my feet, and I realized I hadn’t taken a breath in over thirty seconds. The shock of seeing him had sucked every last molecule of air from my lungs. Numb, the champagne glass slipped from my hand, and the bubbly liquid splashed on my legs and the top of my nude-colored heels.

“Are you okay?” Evan whispered next to my ear as he wrapped his arm around my shoulder. His mouth swept across the corner of my lips and my stomach churned with acid.

I tugged at the suddenly too tight collar of my dress. “I don’t feel good. I need to sit down for a minute,” I said absently, my eyes anchored to Ryker’s in a silent battle. He looked exactly as I remembered, only better.

A black suit hugged his muscular body, barely containing his broad shoulders. Rough stubble shadowed the rugged angles of his golden skin, and my fingers itched to trace the strong line of his jaw. His gray eyes were hooded, a knowing smirk on his face. With his legs crossed at his ankles, he relaxed against the wall in a way most people would mistake for languid elegance. I knew better. He was a predator ready to attack. Conquer. Take what he wanted.

With his hand on my lower back, Evan guided me out of the room. I followed his cues for a few steps, then I froze mid-stride. “No. You stay here and talk with everyone. Both of us can’t leave the party. I’ll slip to your dad’s study and sit down for a few minutes.”

“No. I’m not leaving you.” He squeezed my arm. His fingers were like daggers digging into my skin. On some level, he probably thought I’d disappear if he didn’t keep me close. Maybe I would.

I twisted out of his grasp, and my legs moved rapidly, eating up the distance between the study and me. I didn’t know if I was running to or from Ryker, but I needed space. “I’ll be back in twenty minutes. Maybe less. Nobody will notice.”

“Hattie, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

My stomach somersaulted. He was right. Being alone wasn’t a good idea, but neither was having a full-blown panic attack in the middle of our engagement party. I painted an overly bright smile on my face, and the corners of my lips protested their disuse. I couldn’t remember the last time I had smiled. Really smiled from joy or anything that made me happy.

I pushed open one of the heavy double doors to his dad’s study. The hinge creaked. “I’ll be fine. If I’m not back in twenty minutes, you can come and get me.” I waved my hand in the direction of the camel-colored loveseat near the bay window. “I’ll be right there.”

He scrubbed his hand down the side of his face, and then kissed my forehead. “Okay.”

He turned around, and I watched until he disappeared around the corner. Then, I closed the door. When I heard the slow click of the door latch, my body sagged. Too many conflicting thoughts stumbled through my mind.

Why was Ryker here?

Did anyone know who he was?

Did he come back for me? My heart rate spiked at the thought.

Less than five minutes later, the door cracked open.

“Evan, it hasn’t been twenty minutes,” I said without turning around.

“Hattie?”

My lungs contracted, and I rotated on my heel.

“Ryker,” I said, my voice barely a whisper as I backpedaled. “What are you doing here?”

His gray eyes glittered in the dim light as he stalked to me. Blood thundered through my veins, echoing in my ears. Every inch of my skin tingled with awareness. My nipples pebbled in anticipation of his touch.

Oh shit. This was not good. I shook my head from side to side. My lips wobbled. I couldn’t let him touch me. If he did, I’d crumble like Humpty Dumpty. My razor-thin hold on sanity would vanish, and nothing could put me back together again.

“I wanted to see you.” His velvet voice rolled over me like a caress.

“No.” I folded my arms across my body like a shield, burrowing my fingernails into the flesh of my arms, striving to ground myself in reality. “You have to go. We agreed. You shouldn’t be here.”

“We didn’t agree on anything.” With a faint smile on his face, he reached out his hand casually. Too casually. My heart pleaded with me to grab his hand, launch myself at him, and never let go. But I didn’t. Nothing good would come of this. We couldn’t be together.