Chapter 31

Alistair stared at the text message the private investigator had sent him. According to him, Jane wasn't in Crystal Falls. He'd searched all over and hadn't found her and now he was heading over to the next town, Stormbrooke.

He threw the phone down on his desk loudly, sighing. His office ceiling suddenly became interesting and he stared at it intently while lost in thought.

His mood was sour. The press had released an article about how the Hendricks had led everyone to believe their daughter was getting married and hadn't come through at the end. They hadn't said it to his face but rumors were going around that his business partners were beginning to doubt the authenticity of his words. Thankfully, none had made any move to withdraw from doing business with them.

There was nothing to do but sit and watch. He knew his daughter, knew she cared about the company, knew she hadn't intended for any of this to happen when she'd left but he couldn't help but feel anger at her. She was making a mess of everything.

The Prices' heir was MIA too according to his parents. No wonder they hadn't called. Alistair wondered if this was what was in vogue with the young ones these days, run away when they didn't get what they wanted. One would think they both planned it. In his time, children did as their parents asked. No questions asked. The children of these days were wired to send their parents to an early grave, he was sure.

When he'd been the most desperate, he'd interrogated Grace on Jane's whereabouts. If anyone would know where she was, it was Grace. It would be just right, seeing as Grace had never failed to express her dislike for the wedding. After many hours of questioning her, he'd concluded that she knew nothing. He knew that she, Jane, would eventually show up. Time was all she needed. She was probably waiting for the heat to blow over.

He would be right here when she came home. And he hoped to God for her sake, that he didn't still feel the anger that was coursing through his veins by then.

***

Sebastian couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so…sated. Not even the night he'd engaged in his first wanking session as a teenager or the day he'd signed his first contract as a CEO. That had been a different kind of high. This was…

As he lay on Jane's small but soft body with his head nested in the crook of her neck and the smell of sex pungent in the air, he knew there was nowhere else he'd rather be.

"Kitten," His groan was muffled by the pressing of his mouth against her skin. "I want to do very, very bad things to you."

He felt her laugh, felt his dick harden from the sound. God, he was in trouble.

"What did we just do, pray?"

"Might as well," he said, pushing himself off and plopping down next to her. "To make sure it wasn't a fluke, we should do it a couple more times."

She let him gather her into his arms, holding her to his chest. "I second that."

He noticed her skirt that he'd bunched up her waist was still present. Hell, he'd been so focused on fucking her that he hadn't even bothered to take off her panties. "Why on earth are you always wearing so much clothing? Take those off. I want to see you naked. All of you."

When she pushed away from him, he saw the pink in her cheeks. The woman blushed redder than a tomato. Without leaving the bed, she pulled her skirt and panties down her waist slowly, keeping her eyes on him. He saw the uncertainty there, recognized it as the same look she'd had that first day at the diner. He moved close to her, lifting her head up to look at him with a finger under her chin.

"You have nothing to fear, Kitten. You're beautiful. I'll tell you that every day."

The words flew out of his mouth before he realized how they sounded. Her eyes widened. Every day, like he would be there forever. Surprisingly, he was in no hurry to retract his statement. A part of him had meant it. If the circumstances had been different, he reckoned he would probably have entertained the thought of a forever with Jane. She was the only woman that had made him think of the future.

"Don't make promises you can't keep." She whispered, her lips parting delicately.

He took her lips in his, their tongues dancing a gentle rhythm. When he pulled away, he was torn between emotions. What was it he felt for this woman?

"What if I want to keep them?"

He heard her sharp intake of breath, saw her eyes widen with skepticism. "Sebastian," She murmured.

"Who are you outside Stormbrooke?" He asked her.

She sighed, shaking her head and pulling away from him. "It doesn't matter. Let's not complicate things, Sebastian."

"What if it doesn't have to end here?" he continued, his arms empty with the awareness that he was fighting a lost battle. His parents would never agree to his marriage to anyone who wasn't their choice and he wasn't sure he had the strength to fight them.

"Please Seb—"

He jerked closer to her, holding her face in his hands and forcing her to look him in the eye. "Tell me you don't feel it. Tell me you don't feel this thing between us. Tell me and I swear I won't bring it up again."

She was silent, only staring up at him. He saw that her eyes were watering and her breathing constricted. This was the face he wanted to wake up to every morning. This, she, was the most certain thing he'd ever known.

"I don't feel anything," She finally whispered as a tear ran down her cheek. "It's just sex to me."