“Let me.”
Sully went down on one knee, and I straightened. His finger brushed against my ankles, and flames licked at my groin. I stifled my groan. Of all the men in the world, why did he have to be the one I was attracted to but who seemed hell-bent on keeping me at arm’s length?
“Thank you.” I stepped out of the shoes. He placed them on the shoe rack next to the door.
“What did you mean ‘if you don’t work with us again?’”
I stretched up on my toes, but he still looked down at me. Maybe I shouldn’t have taken the shoes off. They made me appear taller and not like I hadn’t hit my growth spurt yet.
“I assumed you weren’t satisfied with my performance tonight.”
“Why on earth would you think that?”
“Gee, I don’t know.” I tapped my lips with my index finger. “Maybe because you criticized my behavior tonight, accused me of being drunk, and then treated me like I wanted that horrible man’s attention.”
“You didn’t?”
“I didn’t what?”
“Want that horrible man’s attention?”
I scowled at him. “Of course I didn’t. Why would you think I did?”
“You were just standing there, letting him paw you with his big, dirty hands. You let him.”
He sounded like a surly child. Were I to point that out, though, it wouldn’t help the situation.
“You told me to keep a low profile. If I’d decked him or kneed him in the groin like I’d wanted to, I might have foiled whatever plan you had.”
“Oh.”
“Just oh?”
He scraped his fingers through his gorgeous hair. “What else do you want me to say? You were supposed to be my date. How could we convince them if you’re letting someone touch you in the corner? Everyone knows that Sullivan Matthews doesn’t share.”
Heat flooded my cheeks. Did that mean… Had he only acted jealous in front of everyone because that was expected of him? Of course. How stupid could I be to believe he would be jealous of my interaction with other people? He couldn’t have made it any clearer. Sullivan Matthews didn’t share, and if he were interested in me, he would have to accept everyone else’s spoils.
My stomach soured. I turned away from him.
“Where are you going? We still need to discuss what went well tonight and what needed improvement.”
I kept walking, my eyes stinging. “Let me change into something more comfortable, and then we can discuss anything you want.”
“I’m going to make myself some hot cocoa. Do you want one?”
“Yeah.”
The least he could do was make me hot cocoa after making me feel bad about myself.