A Debt Owed(44)

“But is it worth it?” I ask.

There’s a pause before he answers. “Not one of those fuckers who died would ever give as much to charity as I did. I’ve taken their wealth and turned it into more wealth, then hand it over to those who deserve it. I’d say I’m doing the right thing, yeah.”

He thinks he is … but I can tell his soul is burning away like a candle losing its wax, and without fuel, that flame is going to die out.

I shake my head. “You’re ruining yourself, Easton.”

His nostrils twitch. “I’m done with this conversation.”

Right … Of course, he is. When it gets too hot under his feet, he avoids the questions once again. It’s like he doesn’t even want to face the person he’s become.

“Did you sleep well?” he asks, grabbing a cinnamon roll and his coffee, totally glazing over the topic.

But there’s no point trying to make him talk about who he is. If he refuses to speak, it won’t get me anywhere, and the more I ask, the more annoyed he gets. So I have no choice but to go with the flow and let him lead.

I sigh out loud. “Yes … you?” I ask, cocking my head as I tug the plate filled with pancakes closer to me and cut into them.

“Fabulous,” he muses, a lopsided grin appearing on his face.

Of course, he did. He was snuggling me, which is what he wanted all along; to pretend we’re one happily married couple. But I won’t fall for it.

“You weren’t in my bed this morning.” My bluntness almost made him spit out his coffee. “Care to explain?”

“I don’t have to explain anything to you,” he replies, putting down his cup. “But I’ll indulge you. I had important business to attend to. That was all.”

“Right.” I take a bite of my pancakes. Their deliciousness almost throws me off, but I force myself to swallow. “But that doesn’t explain why you were in my bed in the first place.”

He stuffs his mouth full of the cinnamon roll, and there’s a pause while he chews and swallows. “You were crying in your sleep last night.”

I raise a brow. “So you came to console me?” What a peculiar thing to do for a man like him. Maybe I misjudged him … or he has ulterior motives. Whatever the case, he must’ve felt something for him to lie next to me in the middle of the night and fall asleep.

Still, he refuses to even look at me as he’s chomping away at his breakfast, sipping his coffee between bites like nothing’s going on. He’s hiding behind his food, and I don’t like it one bit.

“Tell me,” I say, slamming my fork down.

This catches his attention. “I didn’t know you cared so much about what I feel for you.”

The way he hones in on me with those piercing eyes makes me weak. If I wasn’t sitting right now, my legs would tremble underneath me. And I hate it. I hate that he makes me feel this way with just one look.

“I just want to know if there’s something human inside you after all,” I quip.

“Of course. But you don’t want to see it,” he retorts.

We stare each other down. “I don’t believe it. And I don’t believe for a second that business was the reason you left.”

He takes an apple and cuts it into small pieces. “You wanna know what I believe? I believe you’re upset I left you alone in your bed.”

“Nonsense,” I hiss, gobbling down my pancakes.

He smirks while chewing on a piece of apple. “Then why do you care so much?”

“Because you’ve never slept a night in my bed,” I reply. “And I think it was an accident.” He snorts, but I continue. “I don’t think you ever intended to stay, and that you were shocked to find yourself lying in my bed when you woke up this morning. So you fled.”

I grab a banana and lean back in my chair while peeling it. His eyes follow the banana as it goes into my mouth, and I take the opportunity to push it down as far as I can manage and then take a bite. I marvel at the slight twinge of pain on his face.

Yes, I went there, and I don’t regret it one bit. For once, he’s on the defense. Good.

“So … what business did you have to attend to that was so urgent?” I say with a mocking voice while still pretending this banana is a dick. “Were you trying to trick someone else into getting a loan from you so you could force them to give you their loved ones too?”

He swallows, visibly agitated at the sight of me savagely eating this banana. Or maybe he’s just angry I was easily able to pinpoint where the problem lies.

“As I said before, it’s none of your business.” He sighs out loud. “But if you must know, I do more than give money to bastards who don’t deserve it. I also give money to people who truly need it. I love charities.”

Oh, I remember him saying that once, but I don’t, for one second, believe he cares.

“Why couldn’t you just have loaned my father the money without demanding such an egregious favor in return?” I ask. “You could’ve made do with the money back plus interest.”

He grabs a peach and leans back just like me. “Because you and your father needed to be taught a lesson.” He brings the peach to his mouth and starts sucking on it. Hard.

And for some reason, it makes my pussy clench.