“Sorry.” The teenage couple laughs as they replace the curtain and rush away. With the moment ruined, we force our attention back to the remaining two photos. The rest of the evening is less eventful but revealing.
I’m almost sad when it’s time to say goodbye and I return her home. “Tonight was fun, but getting in deeper would be a mistake. I have a lot going on right now. It wouldn’t be fair to either of us.” She’s a queen holding court—beautiful, regal, and trying so hard to be aloof.
“You worried about protecting my feelings? That’s sweet. I think I can handle it though.”
“Let’s just leave tonight where it belongs … in the past.”
Gripping the door frame, I lean in, meeting her steady gaze. I see the heat burning there for me. I can slow it down, but I have no intention of stopping it.
“What are you so afraid of?”
Her eyes soften. “Everything, which is exactly why I’m going to say goodnight,” she whispers.
“Good night, Xia,” I say as I step back and she closes the door. I feel like I’m leaving her in a tower of solitude. The woman I’d spent the evening with disappeared before my eyes. She slipped through my fingers like sand. I’ll bide my time. I’m a patient man. A good hunter is well acquainted with waiting.
Chapter Three
Xia
“Xi, come into the office. I want to talk to you.”
My spine stiffens. Closing my eyes, I swear under my breath. The last thing I need right now is to be in an enclosed space with my father.
“Is it that important, Dad? I had a really long day.”
“Yes, it is.”
I exhale and turn to follow him away from the kitchen full of buffers and distractions. I’ve avoided being alone with him since he introduced Shayne. My anger is a living creature that grows in size and intensity daily. How he can be so brilliant and so dense at the same time, I’ll never understand. My mother refers to the syndrome as being so smart you’re stupid.
After closing the door behind us, he sinks into the seat behind the small oak desk. I lean against the wall.
“What do you need?”
“How’s Shayne working out?”
I want to roll my eyes. Everything revolves around Ellis and Casp right now. It’s a Merry-Go-Round I’m ready to jump off. This toxic circle is crushing my spirit and stealing away all the good things that make me who I am. Stepping back, I can see that now.
“Haven’t the boys told you all about him?”
“Of course, but I want to hear it from you. You spent the majority of time with him and they’re being pulled in so many different directions right now, he’s the last of their worries.”
“Poor babies,” I say sarcastically.
“Is that supposed to be funny?” My father’s brow furrows and his thick eyebrows turn into one fuzzy caterpillar. I’m skating on thin ice, and for once I’m hoping I fall through. I’ve tiptoed and bowed down enough. He’s not Chef Richard here. He’s a dad who’s missed the mark one too many times.
“No, Dad. It isn’t.” I swallow the sharp words I want to let fly like poison-tipped darts.
“I know you’re overworked right now. All I need is maybe ten minutes, and I’ll let you be on your way.”
“You have no clue how exhausted I truly am,” I whisper, unable to hold back the swell of words I’ve kept at bay for too long. Anger flickers inside of me like a candle in the wind.
“I know I’m asking a lot of you right now, but once we have Smoke II up and running, we’ll be able to have Shayne take over a good portion of your responsibilities, and we’ll hire more help for him to train.”
I scoff. “Do you really think that’s my problem? That I’ve logged too many hours and I’m approaching burn out?”
“Isn’t it?” His eyebrows arch.
I snap. “No,” I all but scream.