Chapter 26
CHAPTER 26
CALEB
H er eyes darken. Maybe my little firecracker isn’t as immune to me as she likes to pretend. It’s not surprising, just the memory of our night together in New York leaves me as hard as a rock, often at the most inopportune times.
“Why? Why are you doing this?” she asks, her back straightening.
“Doing what?” I ask innocently, taking a sip of my wine.
“You know very well what.”
When I shrug, she sits back, crossing her arms over her chest. “I don’t get it. You’re free, Cal. Your company is free. No ties, no more responsibility. Everything I own went up in smoke. You can walk away.”
Her voice catches on the last part, and I’m forced to school my features. This is not a time for sparring. This is her life. She drops her gaze for a split second but forces it back to mine. “No alternative dance studio. No dance studio, period. You can return to Sunny Down’s original design.”
I sit back and steeple my fingers, staring at her .
“Is that what you think?”
I’m not sure if I should take offence. I asked her to trust me, but trust is a strange thing. Something I’ve learned over the years. I’ve not done anything to cause her to distrust me, or at least I don’t think I have, but have I really done anything to prove she can? However much I feel it’s not true. We hardly know one another, although I intend to rectify that. Having her here is step one.
“I’m not free, April. There’s still you and those kids you help. A community that relies on what you offer their children, their young people. You told me you’ve given them a purpose, somewhere to go. Kept them off the streets. As I said before, I develop communities. I don’t want all your hard work to go to waste. The fire has destroyed the building, but all it means is we will need to rebuild it. Nothing changes.”
She stares at me as if weighing up my words, looking for a lie.
In some ways, the fire has solved my problem with the board. Delays are now inevitable; their argument no longer carries any weight. I really do have a blank canvas on which to work.
April shakes her head, dropping it back and staring at the ceiling. “It’s over,” she says almost too quietly for me to hear.
“What’s over?”
“There’s nothing left for me here. I can’t help you or them anymore.”
When her eyes finally meet mine, I can’t miss the sheen of tears. A sense of panic crushes my chest.
What does she mean?
I incline my head. Leaning forward, I take the hand she has placed on the table and bring her focus back to me.
“Has everything I’ve been saying to you over the past few weeks gone in one ear and out of the other?” I ask. “Because I distinctly remember saying they do matter. That I want to ensure they have a place in the new development. You, April, are part of that. You are helping to bridge the gap. They trust you to be their spokesperson.”
She stares at me for a moment before shaking her head.
“Have you failed to notice my home is gone, my business is gone? My foothold in their community has just gone up in flames. The only thing I have to my name is my handbag, some second-hand clothes the ladies in the charity shop put together for me, and an old stuffed teddy bear. My life is in tatters, Cal. You’re delusional if you think I can help.”
This time, I don’t suppress my smile. “Maybe I am. I’ve been called worse. As for homeless, that’s easily rectified. You can stay here—it’s not like there isn’t plenty of room. I’ll employ you as a consultant. You can work with my team as a go-between.”
“You’re crazy. I can’t stay here—with you,” she says.
“Give me one good reason why not?”
“You don’t know me.” The jut of her jaw lets me know she’s serious.
“Not entirely accurate. I know you very well.” I watch as colour spreads up her neck.
She stares at me like I really have lost my mind.
“We don’t even like one another.”
It’s my turn to frown.
“That’s not true. I certainly like you.”
Her cheeks darken further.
I think back to my dream. I know who I was dreaming about. The woman in front of me is tying me up in knots.
April is quiet for a moment.
“I still don’t get it,” she says.
“Get what? ”
“Why do you think I can help you? Why do you want me to? I’ve done nothing but cause issues. The protests, the flash mob.”
I smile. The issues she’s raised have helped, not hindered, the process. It usually takes us months to get to the heart of a community and have them trust us. April has opened the door.
“You’re their mouthpiece. You know how they work, who’s who.”
“I’m just a dance teacher.”
April throws her hands in the air in frustration.
“Don’t do that. Don’t devalue yourself or what your community feels towards you. As for what you know, it’s about being a point of contact,” I say, having more faith in her than she does.
The sound she makes is like a grunt.
“Okay, so I can help with the community, but that doesn’t explain you and why you’re willing to let a stranger move into your home?”
“You’re not exactly a complete stranger,” I say, raising an eyebrow in her direction, watching in delight as more colour floods her cheeks.
“I won’t sleep with you if that’s what this is about,” she says, crossing her arms once again over her chest.
I drop the teasing and school my features.
“Is that what you think? That I brought you here to sleep with you?” A tightness forms in my chest. “You really don’t think very highly of me, do you? What’s so wrong with letting someone help you?” I shake my head. “If you want to go back to the hostel, I can get Mason to drop you off.”
“If I’m honest. I don’t know what to think.” Her gaze locks on mine. “We slept together in New York months ago. I never expected to see you again. Now, here you are. To say the past few weeks have been a whirlwind…” She uncrosses her arms and closes her eyes, rubbing her temples. When she opens them again, she shakes her head. “Cal, look at it from my point of view. You are buying the building I rent. Tonight, you ride in and rescue me like some knight in shining armour and tell me you want nothing from me apart from to be your mouthpiece in the community.” She stops and sighs. “That’s not usually how life works. People always want something in return. Forgive me for being cynical.”
The colour remains in her cheeks, but her lips press together, her gaze ping-pongs, not quite connecting with mine.
“I promise you, that is not my aim.”
“It’s not the first time you’ve taken me back to yours,” she says, raising an eyebrow. “So forgive me for thinking the worst.”
”Believe me, I’d like nothing more than to take you upstairs and strip you naked, bury my cock deep in your pussy. However, that is not why I invited you here.”
She gasps at my words, a dark flush spreading up her neck.
“I’ll be honest with you. Yes, I want you, but I also know now is not the right time. I’ll never lie to you. I’ll never force my attention on you. When I told you, you could trust me, I meant it. I want to help you. That’s why you’re here.”
Samuel returns at that exact moment, his gaze switching between us.
“What did I miss?” he asks.
“Nothing,” April says. “Just Caleb being… Caleb.”
April switches her attention to Samuel, and I smirk. There is clearly no comeback, or at least not one she wants her friend to hear.
“What did Daniel say?” she asks, ignoring our previous conversation .
He shrugs. “He apologised. ”
She gets up and wraps her arms around her friend’s waist, giving him a squeeze before looking up at him.
“You love him,” she says. “You’ll work it out.”
April drops her head against his chest and holds him. Their bond is clear and strong.
When she eventually steps back, her hand comes up and rests against his chest.
“You need to speak to him,” she says.
“But what about you?” he asks.
She turns to me before looking back at him.
“I’m fine. I’ve got Caleb here,” she says. “He’s already a notch on my bedpost, so you don’t need to worry about me going there again. Once was enough.”
“Ouch, man—that’s got to sting.” The mirth in Samuel’s eyes gives away his thoughts.
I hold up my hands in defeat.
“Multiple orgasms in one night are clearly not enough for some people. What can I say?”
April lets out a snort, smacking her forehead with her hand while Samuel chuckles.
“If you’re sure you’re okay. I’ll love you and leave you both. Just try not to kill one another when I’m gone.”
“I’ll get Mason to bring the car around. He can drop you home.”
“It’s no problem. I can get a taxi.”
“This is no problem,” I say. “Mason will be happy to do it. His mother lives near your place, and it’s still early. He was telling me he wants to pop by and see her.”
I send a message to Mason, who replies immediately.
“All sorted. He’ll meet you in the garage, by the car.”
Samuel nods, and I walk him to the elevator. He turns to me as it arrives.
“Look after our girl,” he says, squeezing my shoulder .
“With my life,” I say, knowing I mean it.
He gives me a small smile before looking over my shoulder and grinning.
“Behave,” he says to April.
“Always,” she returns with an expected amount of sass.
This is going to be fun.