Page 38 of Unbalanced

Emily nods but doesn’t meet my eyes.

“I mean it, Emily.”

“I know.”

“Then why won’t you look at me?”

When she doesn’t respond, I reach out and wrap my fingers around her bicep. Emily winces and almost drops the whiskey on the ground. Snagging the bottle with my other hand, I look into her pain-filled eyes and quickly release the pressure. Shit…the gazebo. Rob grabbed her…just like I am now.

“I’m sorry,” I say, setting the bottle aside and look at her wrist. She has a distinct bruise circling her fair skin.

Maybe it’s a good thing my brother is dead, because I would’ve been tempted to kill him myself.

Bruises, fresh and old, line her right arm as I gently push up her sleeve. My eyes snap to hers. Emily’s cheeks burn red, and she looks away.

“Did my brother do all of this?”

She doesn’t respond.

“Emily, tell me.”

“I think it’s best if you just let this go,” she says.

“No, not until you tell me.”

“Alden, your brother is dead. You have no familial obligation to concern yourself with anything to do with me. Please just let it drop.”

Something very dangerous comes out of me when she is near. I’ve never responded to a woman like this before, and I refuse to let her dismiss me. I tip her chin up and stare into her dusky, emotion-filled eyes.

“I’m not here because my brother is dead. I’m here because of you, and I only ever do what I want.”

My thumb runs over her bottom lip, while I battle with right and wrong like she has me in some undetectable chokehold.

Technically, the obstacles standing in my way have been cleared, and yet, this is tactless. My brother’s body is barely cold, but the pull…

Emily sucks in a deep breath and steps back, breaking the connection. The world comes crashing back and almost staggers me. My heart races out of control, and Emily grips the counter like she’s fighting the same urges. Her heated stare confirms it.

I need to go and put distance between us, but my feet don’t move.

“The coffee is getting cold,” she says, handing me my cup.

Our fingers brush when I take the mug, but she doesn’t linger. Emily grabs hers and walks past me into the living room.

My life has been dedicated to always being in control, perfectly balanced. Without doing anything, Emily has tipped the scales dangerously too far in one direction. As hard as I try, I can’t seem to turn away. I barely know her. Of course I found her beautiful when we met, but I’ve easily kept myself in check until now.

I stare into the coffee and then at my coat by the door before my eyes land on Emily. She is curled up at one end of her couch, and with no clear understanding of why, I follow her.

CHAPTER TWELVE

EMILY

Space. I need to put some space between me and Alden. Every time I’m near him, I make a fool of myself.

Alden stands partway between my kitchen and the front door. He clearly wants to leave. I half expect him to turn around, cancel the contract, and demand no further contact.

But he doesn’t. Instead, he sits down at the other end of the couch and takes a sip of his coffee.

He looks totally out of place here. Alden belongs in a lavish mansion, surrounded by expensive things, not sitting on my second-hand couch in a shoebox apartment, sipping cheap instant brew coffee.