Chapter 4
Landon
My leg won’t stop bouncing in anticipation.
Just knowing I’m moments away from seeing Anna sets a fire in my veins I can’t put out.
And I know that when she walks through that door, we won’t simply pick up the shattered pieces we left behind.
I’ll have to fight for every inch of her trust again and claw my way back into her guarded heart.
But that doesn’t scare me. My mind is set on earning back every drop of her love, every ounce of her faith.
This time, I’m not letting her go. I learned the hard way that my life means nothing without her.
My fist flexes. I fucking miss her—miss waking to her face, the way her voice sounded when she whispered she loved me, the way her body burned against mine, the way she shivered when I touched her just right, the way I my cock fit perfectly in her hot pussy.
Hell, every bit of it felt damn good—and nothing else has ever come close.
I fucking need those nights again, knowing she was mine in every breath and heartbeat.
I’m done denying myself every inch of her.
When she steps into this house, she’ll feel me in her bones.
I’ll make sure of it. I’ll burn every memory of us deep into her until craving me is all she can think about.
I glance at my Rolex. Thirty minutes to go.
A slow grin pulls at my lips. I wish I’d seen her face when she learnt I was the one who demanded this interview.
Bet she cursed me straight to hell and back.
The thought only makes my grin widen, because even her curses mean I’m in her head, and from there, it’s only a short step to her heart.
The sudden doorbell makes my pulse spikes. She’s here.
Within seconds, I’m on my feet, storming across the room. Hell, I’m about to see her after three long years. I’ve survived on fragments of her—memories that barely kept me alive, but now, with her on the other side of that door, she has me buzzing like a teenager.
I draw in a slow, steady breath and open the door with a confident smile, only for it to freeze on my lips.
My eyes harden as a group of strangers crowd at my doorstep instead of her.
The three men haul camera cases between them, each looking like they’ve spent years in the field—broad shoulders, tanned skin, a faint sheen of sweat on their foreheads.
One’s in a faded black T-shirt and cargo pants with far too many pockets, his baseball cap pulled low over his brow.
The other has on a gray button-up rolled to the elbows, jeans scuffed at the knees, and a camera strap slung diagonally across his chest.
The third man, the one carrying the light stands, is leaner than the others, with wandering eyes that take in everything around him. He’s dressed in loose chinos and a white polo, his sneakers already dusty from unloading the gear.
And the woman standing with them looks to be in her late twenties: sleek dark hair pulled into a low bun, a fitted navy blouse tucked into a pencil skirt, and high red heels. They all give me the same polite, practiced smiles, but I don’t bother smiling back.
Wrong damn faces. None of them even close to the one I’ve been waiting for.
“Good evening, Mr. Hayes,” the woman greets me, clutching a clipboard to her chest.
I narrow my eyes at her. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Yeah, I know the question sounds stupid. They’re obviously the crew for the interview. But when I arranged this, I made it damn clear I wanted Anna. I should have spelled it out that I fucking didn’t want a swarm of strangers breathing down my neck.
I bet this little safety net made Anna feel less anxious, knowing she wouldn’t have to face me alone.
But giving her that comfort isn’t on my list. I can’t break through her walls or get a single word past her with an audience hovering around us.
That’s exactly why I cleared my entire staff for the day.
The woman blinks, clearly thrown by my tone, then recovers with a quick clearing of her throat. “Sir, we’re the crew. We’re here to set up for the interview. You confirmed our arrival for today.”
I let out a sharp breath. “I confirmed a one-on-one interview, not a damn circus in my house.”
She straightens, her grip tightening on her clipboard.
“With due respect, sir, this is standard procedure. Lighting, audio, camera—everything needs to be in place before the interview begins,” she says, glancing nervously at the men behind her.
“We’ll only need about thirty minutes to get everything ready. I promise we won’t get in your way.”
I arch a brow, not the least bit interested in their protocol. “Where the hell is Anna… I mean, your journalist?”
“She’s on the way, Mr. Hayes,” the clipboard woman replies quickly, and I catch the flicker in her eyes, she heard the shift in my voice when I said Anna’s name. “In the meantime, we can begin to set—”
“No need,” I cut in, my tone pure steel.
She blinks again. “Sir?”
I step forward, filling the doorway, making it very clear they’re not coming inside. “I don’t need your stuff. Just leave.”
The younger of the two men finally speaks up, his voice hesitant. “Uh, but sir, we are—”
“Don’t you know how to follow a damn instruction?” I growl. “Or do you want me to make you understand the hard way?”
The woman frowns as if she’s about to argue. “Mr. Hayes, the interview needs to be recorded. We need the camera’s—”
I cross my arms over my chest. “I don’t need you to do that for me. I’ve got my own cameras, and the interview will be recorded and sent exactly where it needs to go. Now pack up your gear and get the hell off my porch.”
Her lips press into a thin, tight line, but she eventually jerks her chin at the men.
Resigned, they gather their equipment and turn away, all of them tossing me polite nods I don’t bother returning.
The second they’re off my porch, I slam the door and walk back into the living room.
I collapse onto the couch and drag a hand over my jaw as the pounding in my chest refuses to ease.
Damn it, Anna, how much longer before you get your ass in here? You better make it soon, or I’ll come and drag you myself.
I lean back, my head resting against the headboard, and my eyes closing as I tilt my face toward the ceiling. And just like that, my mind drags me back to the night I proposed to my beautiful Anna.
“God, we’ve graduated,” Anna laughed, taking a sip of champagne as we sat on my rooftop.
An hour had passed since we’d walked out of the graduation hall and come to my apartment.
I’d changed into my tracks and T-shirt, while Anna swapped her gown for one of my hoodies and those tiny shorts that showed off those endless legs I’d been dying to touch all damn night.
“Yeah… we did,” I said, pulling her close, pressing her back against my chest as my arms lock around her.
I was instantly intoxicated by the scent of her shampoo mixed with the faint sweetness of champagne on her breath.
In that moment, I knew. I felt it down to my bones that there was no way I’d ever get enough of her.
And then, it suddenly hit me: there would never be a better moment than this for what I had in mind.
“Now I get to think about the only future that matters to us,” I murmured against her ear.
She smiled and tilted her head back to look up at me. “And what’s that?”
I reached into my pocket and pulled out the diamond ring I’d been carrying for weeks, waiting for the perfect moment.
I held it out in front of her.
“I want you in my future,” I said, kissing the side of her head. “Every single day of it.”
“Landon…” she breathed, turning to face me fully, her eyes wide as saucers, her lips parting like she wasn’t sure if she could speak.
“Marry me,” I said, no hesitation, no doubt, just the truth I’d been carrying in my chest for far too long.
She blinked, shaking her head like she was trying to process the words. “Landon, we just graduated. We still need to figure out stuff—”
“We will,” I cut in, my voice certain. “But I need you with me when we do that. I don’t want to figure out a damn thing if you’re not beside me.”
“You’re insane,” she whispered, glancing down at the ring before looking back up at me.
“Only about you,” I said without missing a beat.
She let out a soft laugh, and I saw the tears glistening in her eyes. “You’re supposed to think this through.”
“I did,” I murmured, my gaze never leaving hers. “The day I met you.”
She stared at me for a long, breathless moment, and then, slowly, she nodded.
Grinning like a man who’d finally claimed the one prize he’d fought his whole life for, I slid the ring onto her finger, my thumb brushing over her skin.
“You’re mine, Anna,” I murmured, my voice filled with a possessiveness I didn’t bother hiding. “Mine… now and always.”
“Yours, Landon… always yours,” she whispered, her gaze dropping to the ring now gleaming on her finger. Then she closed the small space between us and pressed her lips to mine.
“I want to make love to you,” I whispered against her lips.
“Yes,” she breathed, and that was all I needed.
I scooped her into my arms, carried her to the bed, and laid her down gently.
One by one, I stripped her bare until the only thing she wore was my ring.
The sight of her like that, in my bed, nearly undid me.
Damn, she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
Not taking my eyes off her, I shed my clothes and climbed over her, my hands and lips devotedly worshipping every inch of her—just like a man who knew he’d been handed his entire world and wasn’t about to waste a second of it.
“Don’t ever break my heart,” she whimpered into my ear as we came apart together.
My eyes snap open, and my mind and heart scream in unison. I’d ruined her trust.
But I was going to fix it in the only way that truly counts. By winning her heart back, piece by piece.