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“I’m going to miss you.”
I closed my eyes on a sigh as I stared out across the Manhattan skyline. Robert stood somewhere on the other side of his enormous penthouse, watching me. He’d been doing a lot of that over the last ten days. After he told me that he wasn’t going on our planned holiday vacation and I’d have to spend the next two weeks on a private island without him.
He thought I was upset.
And I was.
Just … not at him.
I was mad that I wasn’t upset. I should have been. We’d been dating long enough that I should have felt something when he told me he couldn’t get the time off work. I should have felt something at all about him even. But I didn’t.
Robert Dawson was classic Upper East Side good looks with tailored suits, a European haircut, and a boarding school pedigree. He hosted Gatsby-level parties, and he was in love with me. Like so in love with me. All of that combined should have been enough for me to fall in love with him too … right?
“Whit,” Robert said. He stepped up to the window and leaned against the glass. He had on a navy-blue pin-striped suit and a furrow formed between his brows. “Talk to me.”
“What is there to say?”
“You’re mad that I’m not going.”
“No,” I whispered.
He sighed. “I did try to get the time off.”
“It’s fine.”
“You’ve been off since I told you. It’s not fine.”
I shrugged and searched for my classic Whitley bravado. To all of my friends, I was the bubbly, flirtatious pixie, who always had a comeback and a wild dating story. But right now, I felt resigned to another relationship that wasn’t working out. One that I’d thought might actually happen.
Robert grabbed my arm and spun me to look at him. There was fire in his eyes now. He held in everything he felt so succinctly that I rarely ever saw fire from him. It was a nice change.
“You can talk to me.”
“I know.”
“Is this because all of our friends are coupled up? You can hang out with Gavin and—”
“No,” I said sharply. I didn’t want to talk about Gavin King. “No, it’s not that.”
Robert slid his hands into his suit pockets. “Then, what? Because I’ve apologized a thousand times for this. I don’t know how much more groveling you want from me. I’ve been perfectly accommodating with everything you’ve wanted out of this relationship. Relationships aren’t normal for you, but it’s been a learning curve for me too. So, if you have something to say, just spit it out.”
I finally met his gaze and arched an eyebrow. Well, that was new and different. Robert had always been a nice guy. I hadn’t expected him to push me here.
If he wanted the truth, then I owed him the truth. "
We should break up.”
His jaw set as he froze to stone. “What?”
“I don’t want to do this anymore.”
He pushed away from the window. He didn’t plead with me. I’d definitely thought that he would beg. Instead, he looked ready to rip his apartment apart. He picked up a glass and threw it against the wall. I jumped as it shattered into a million pieces. ...
