CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
LILA
“Hey, babe. Let’s head up to our room. You’re mine tonight,” Leon says, slowly wrapping his fingers around my wrist, right where my watch is still buzzing.
“What?” The world rushes back in.
Kage is still standing there, beautiful and brutal, looking straight through me like I’m nothing. I tilt my head up to meet Leon’s gaze, trying to understand what he’s doing.
“Oh, right,” I say quickly, pasting on a big fake smile. “I forgot that’s where we were headed before we came to play.”
Aster clocks the lie instantly but doesn’t call me on it. She just smiles like she’s in on the game. “Oh yeah, you told me you were staying the night when we were on the dance floor,” she says, being the best friend she can be.
Leon pulls a gold key from his pocket and dangles it between us. “I even got the ultra-thin condoms,” he says, shooting Kage a pointed look.
I press a hand to his chest. “Oh, we don’t have to use those. I have an IUD.”
That line wasn’t for Leon. It was for the man behind me. I feel Kage exhale. The sound is sharp, heavy, and strained.
Good. He shattered my heart without flinching. Now he can choke on the pieces.
“Should I come pick you up in the morning?” Aster asks with a soft smile.
Leon cuts in smoothly, his arm slipping around my waist. “I’ve got her. I’ll make sure she gets home safe. ”
I don’t dare look at Kage. I keep my eyes locked on Leon, holding onto him like he’s my anchor, the only thing keeping me from drowning in the hurricane Kage left behind. I slide my arm around him in return, leaning into his warmth.
“Well… goodnight, everybody,” I purr, tossing the words over my shoulder. “Don’t wait up for us. Oh, Aster, do you have my overnight bag and the lingerie I gave you?” I’m pulling this out of thin air, twisting the knife deeper, directly at the asshole who started this.
I hope it hurts. But knowing him? It probably doesn’t. I bet if you cut him open, he doesn’t bleed.
“I gave it to Leon’s assistant,” she says smoothly. “He took it upstairs.”
“Thanks, pookie.” I blow her a kiss, still in full performance mode in front of the truth-or-dare crowd.
Please don’t see right through me.
Leon leans down and kisses me, sealing the moment. I close my eyes and let it happen, willing to play along just enough to make the lie believable and get out of here. When I pull away, I add, “Beck. Clint.” A beat. “Kage… I guess I’ll see you all bright and early Monday.”
His name still sounds too pretty for someone so heartless. Kage looks up at me. His eyes are dark, unreadable, but there’s something behind them. Something that almost looks like pain.
Hurt? Regret? Shame? I doubt it.
Still linked with Leon, we turn and walk away, step by step, arm in arm. And this time, I don’t look back, because for once, he’s the one left standing there. Not me.
My heart slows, and I feel my watch stop vibrating. It feels like a brick has been lifted from my chest, and I can finally breathe.
Leon hits the elevator button, still holding on to me.He doesn’t say a word. The silence lingers as I try to process what just happened. We step in, and the doors shut.He lowers his arm from my waist in silence.
I look at him, and his eyes look sad.“Thank you for doing that, but…. Why?”
He still looks down at the ground. “Why what?”
“Why did you do that for me?” I say in a whisper.
“Because I had them when I lived in London.”
“Had what?” I ask, trying to understand.
“Panic attacks.” My breath hitches.
“How did you know?”
He looks up at me with sincerity in his eyes. “Because I see you for you.”He takes my hand, grabbing it in a firm yet soft way.An unexpected tear slips down my cheek, and he gently wipes it away.
Leon is kind. He’s grounded. He understands my panic attacks and still wants me, even after witnessing everything that just happened between me and Kage.
But honestly, he deserves someone better than me.
Someone whose heart isn’t torn in two. Because no matter how hard I try, my feelings aren’t all in for him.
And he deserves more than the fractured pieces I have left to give.
The elevator dings and opens onto the fourth floor, and he steps out, leading the way.
Wow. This place feels endless, like something out of the Titanic.
Everything is white and cream: the walls, the trim, even the ceiling. Every surface gleams with gold accents, framing the space like jewelry, impossibly elegant. Large mirrors hang between every door, catching the chandelier light and stretching the hallway until it feels endless.
Then, in the center of it all, I see a statue .
A woman stands nude, draped in a flowing sheet.
Her body is both curved and strong, yet soft all at once.
Across from her, a man kneels, just as bare, just as breathtaking.
He looks up at her like she’s the only thing that has ever mattered.
The only thing that has ever existed. But she isn’t looking at him.
She doesn’t see it. He is in love with her, and she doesn’t even know.
It’s carved into his face. Real. Raw. Undeniable.
It’s breathtaking. And honestly? It’s nothing less than what I thought it would look like.
God, what it would be like for someone to look at me that way. To be someone’s whole being. To bewitch them in a way they can’t understand.Ugh. I’m such a hopeless romantic. But whoever created this? They were, too.
The thick, rich carpet muffles our footsteps. It’s patterned with pale gold that shimmers as we move. Above us, crystal chandeliers drip from the ceiling, casting a warm golden glow that dances across the walls.
Am I Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman ?
I giggle out loud. I can’t believe this is real. I gently tug Leon’s hand, bringing us to a stop. “Leon, we played it off. You really don’t have to give me a room. I can sneak out the back door…”
He cuts me off. “I had this room key for you before you even got here.”
His beautiful milk-chocolate eyes soften, and my heart skips a beat. “You did?”
“Yes. I was hoping you’d want to stay with me tonight…” His eyes drop to the floor. “But now I know the truth.”
“What do you mean?”
He glances toward the statue in the center of the hallway. “The way that man looks at the woman… It’s how you look at Kage. ”
Me?
“No, no. You’ve got it all wrong. We hate each other. I could never—” I can’t finish the sentence. Saying it out loud would be a lie.
For a moment, we’re both quiet. Then Leon reaches for me, his fingers gently lifting my chin, coaxing me to meet his eyes.
“I may not be him,” he says, voice low, British accent sounding sinfully smooth, “but you can pretend I am because you’re the one I want. The one I think about. So maybe… maybe we can help each other forget the people who don’t want us back.”
“I… I don’t want to hurt you,” I whisper.
He smiles, soft and sure. “If I get even one second with you, even if your mind’s somewhere else… I’ll take it. I’ll be grateful for every moment.”
He steps closer. His hand rises, slow and intentional as his fingers brush against my cheek. The warmth of his touch sinks into my skin, melting through the cold I didn’t even realize I was carrying. It’s grounding. Tender. Almost like a promise.
This doesn’t feel like a casual hookup. It feels like more. Or maybe we’re both just reaching for warmth in this cruel world because I am broken. Heart-split. Humiliated. Emotionally gutted. And honestly? I want to feel something that doesn’t destroy me.
To be touched. Wanted. Seen. And maybe Leon wants the same. Because at the end of the day, we’re all just human. Craving connection. Meaning. A reason to keep going.
Besides, what’s a body count of two compared to Kage’s five hundred twenty-one? He’s probably halfway through a threesome right now, forgetting I ever existed. So, screw it . Tonight, I choose escape .
I close the distance. I kiss Leon. Not for love. Not for revenge. Just the ache. The need. Two lost souls, colliding in time, just trying to feel something real.