Page 9 of Let Me Love You

Fuck. Why is he calling me?

Sully says something, but his words don’t penetrate my brain.

Maybe if I ignore him, he’ll leave me alone. My phone stops ringing only to start up again two seconds later. I don’t need another trust fund baby sniffing around me. Paul blew through his so quickly—and before he met me—I’m not sure where he even spent it.

Sully pushes to his feet, pulling my attention back to him. His still-in-shape body is rigid, ready to move if I say the word. “Who is it? Do I need to investigate something?”

I wave him off. “No, it’s okay. It’s just someone I wish would forget I existed.”

He chuckles and sits back down. This time, he turns on the TV and puts on the news. I head into the kitchen and, against my better judgment, hit answer.

I don’t bother with a greeting or niceties. He should know me well enough by now to know I’d rather have a root canal than talk to him. “What do you want?”

“After everything we went through together, this is how you greet me?” Victor’s deep voice rumbles through the speaker.

I clench my jaw when his voice does something funny to my belly. Even back when I first met him, his obnoxious and easy smiles made me question my sanity.

He’s sexy, yes, but he’s full of himself. Calm down.

“My sister never would’ve been in danger if she didn’t almost marry you.”

And I’ll never trust another rich boy again, I tack on inside my head.

The line is silent for a moment. I check my phone, but it shows the call is still in progress, so I press it to my ear again.

There’s a slight rustling sound that I can only assume is a sigh. “You’re right.”

My eyebrows draw together. “Did we just enter an alternate dimension where you say things like you’re right?”

He chuckles in his annoying “I’m always happy” way. It must be easy when you have billions of dollars at your disposal. “What else am I supposed to say?”

“I don’t know.” I click my tongue, letting silence fall on the line. A small flutter inside my chest starts to make me nauseated. A man like Victor Barlowe never gives me flutters. “So, why are you calling me?”

“Well, I’m sitting outside your house right now, but you aren’t answering your door.”

My heart leaps at his words. Stupid, traitorous organ.

“Can you let me in?”

“I’m not home.” I try to keep my voice even, praying the loan sharks aren’t around to find Victor. “What are you doing in Granite Falls? Did you like it so much that you can’t stay away?”

My stomach growls in protest. I press the speaker button before beelining straight to the refrigerator.

“This town is definitely charming in its own way.” Leave it to Victor to make a compliment sound like an insult. “I came to speak to you about something. Can you meet me at Frank’s Restaurant?”

“You and I live in two different realities.” I roll my eyes. “I can’t go somewhere last minute this late. Summer is asleep.”

I swear this man thinks only about himself. But I suppose that’s how all men are. Paul made sure to enlighten me after his death. He was too much of a coward to tell me to my face.

“I can watch her,” Sully says as he enters the kitchen. He raises his hands in front of him when he notices my glare. “Sorry, I was coming to grab a soda and heard you.”

“Who is that?”

Am I imagining things, or did Victor’s voice sharpen?

“No, it’s okay,” I say to Sully. Then I grab some cut pineapple and move out of the way so he can get his drink.

Sully nods once and heads back to the living room.