Beauty and the Billionaire (Billionaire Boys Club #2)(77)

He chuckled, and for once, there was no pain or sadness in it. “It’s okay, Gretch. I know you’re in love with Buchanan. It was obvious as soon as I saw him with you. You lit up around him in a way I’ve never seen. I’ve had a few weeks to get over you now.”

She smiled over his shoulder, opening her eyes and gazing out into the coffee shop.

Behind them, a scarred man in a long tailored jacket stood in the doorway of the coffee shop, a dozen roses in his hand. He wore sunglasses despite the cloudy weather, as if it might obscure the scars on his face—and he was watching her hug it out with Cooper. Then, he took the glasses off, and she felt sick with dread.

Hunter’s heart was in his eyes, and it was being broken all over again.

The man had shit timing.

“Hunter,” Gretchen gasped, pulling away from Cooper.

Hunter’s mouth tightened. He said nothing, simply turned and walked back out of the coffee shop. As she watched him disappear into the crowd, he tossed the roses into the nearest waste bin.

She felt as thrown away as those roses in that moment. Everything was all messed up again.

Even as she asked herself why she cared, Gretchen pulled out of Cooper’s embrace and dashed out from behind the counter, crossing the coffee shop quickly and bursting through the door.

The streets were busy, but not so busy that she couldn’t pick Hunter’s bulkier form out of the group. That, and his stiff, angry stance and the way people paused when they glanced at his face.

She raced after him. “Hunter!”

He ignored her, his shoulders set.

“Hunter Buchanan.” Gretchen planted her feet, fists clenched. “Turn around, damn it, or I’m going to run straight into all this traffic.”

He slowly turned around, a good twenty feet from her on the bustling sidewalk. He didn’t move forward and his hands were stuffed into his coat pockets. “What do you want?”

She paused at the icy tone of his voice. “You were bringing me flowers?”

“I was not.”

“Really? I suppose you just throw flowers into every garbage can outside of a coffee shop, then?”

When he flushed, she had to hide her grin of delight. Why was it that she loved teasing Hunter so very, very much? She’d fallen back into her comfortable sense of joy with him, forgetting all about that he’d broken her heart.

“I threw them away,” he bit out after a moment.

“I noticed. You shouldn’t have.”

“Why not? It’s clear you’ve moved on. Anything I say will fall on deaf ears.” His jaw clenched furiously.

She folded her arms over her chest. “Were you coming to apologize?”

He gave her a mutinous look.

“Then why does it matter if I’ve moved on? You made it clear you just wanted my body. You think I’m for sale.”

“I was wrong. I should have trusted you.” He looked so tortured that she softened for a moment. Just a moment.

“You should have. You should have believed that you can’t buy my affection.”

“What other choice does a man like me have?”

For a moment, she was dumbfounded. What did he mean, a man like him? Then, she realized he meant his face. Did he truly think he was so very hideous that he’d have to purchase affection? Sure, he was scarred, and the scars weren’t pretty. They distorted the one side of his face, but they couldn’t hide the fact that Hunter had a delicious body and a generous, sensitive soul. She remembered his long fingers caressing the petals of a flower and the way he’d smiled as if it were something new and joyous to him to be happy.

Her heart ached. “You’re not ugly, Hunter. Not to me.”

“You’ll have to forgive me if I don’t believe that,” he said in a cold voice. “I’ve had a lifetime of being reassured that I’m only wanted for my fortune.”

“Well, if you don’t believe that, then I guess you don’t have much faith in me,” Gretchen said, her voice light. “And that hurts me that you think I’m that shallow and mercenary.”

For a moment, he looked stricken. “I didn’t mean—”

“Didn’t you? You’re saying I’m an awful person who will only f**k a man if he’s got a fat wallet.” People on the street were starting to stare at them, but she ignored them. If Hunter could stand out here in the middle of New York City having a frank conversation with her, then she certainly could, too. “How do you think that makes me feel?”

He scowled. “Not bad enough, it seems. I see you’ve already moved on to your friend.”

Fury pushed through her and she stomped her way toward him. “Ugh! Will you just listen to yourself for a moment? You’re so convinced that you’re some sort of hideous beast that you think that someone can’t possibly see the true you inside. Yeah, well I saw the true you, buddy.”

Hunter said nothing, but he didn’t pull away. He simply watched her.

She was close enough to touch him now, and she stabbed a finger at his chest. “I saw a man who isolates himself because he’s worried about making other people uncomfortable. I saw a man who doesn’t leave his house very often, but makes sure that the staff is well paid. I saw a man who works all day tirelessly and tends to roses because he enjoys their beauty. I saw a man who expects perfection in himself but is okay with others treating him like dirt. I see a man who shuts out the world because he’s so afraid of getting hurt again. And you tell me I’m the one with the problem? How about you look in the mirror?”