Blown Away (18 page)

“Do you think
that’s why you’ve never found the right person?”

“I think that’s
part of the reason.” He looked at his hands. “I’ve… uh… had
feelings for someone for a long time. She’s just a friend, at least
that’s how she sees me.” He smiled. “We dated in high school. I
always thought we’d get married someday, but it didn’t work out
that way.” His expression darkened. “She met someone else.”

“I’m sorry to
hear that.” Ava knew setting him up with someone else if he still
had feelings for his ex would be a bad idea. He seemed to want to
move on though, and if she could help him do that, she would.

“Yeah, I was
pretty upset about it at the time, but I loved her and wanted her
to be happy, ya know?”

“You said the
two of you are still friends?” Ava definitely had to find out the
status of that relationship before she considered setting him up
with one of her clients.

“Just friends.
She told me, in no uncertain terms, it can never be more than
that.”

Ava saw that
pained him. That saddened her, but it made her more motivated to
help Eli find someone who would love and appreciate him, since that
woman clearly did not. Forcing a smile, Ava said, “Well, let’s see
if we can help you find someone to help you forget all about
her.”

Brent was circulating,
talking to people and trying to pretend all was right in his world,
but he couldn’t stop thinking about Ava. She’d said she needed time
to think, but he was afraid if he gave her that, she would talk
herself into believing he still had feelings for Jasmine.

Speak of the
devil… What the hell was she doing there? “Excuse me,” he said to
the group of men he’d been talking to.

She was just
entering the ballroom alone when he approached her. “What are you
doing here?” he demanded.

“I didn’t feel
good about where we left things today.” She lifted a shoulder.
“There were still a few tickets available, so I bought one.”

“How did you
know I would be here?”

She rolled her
eyes. “You’re not exactly low profile, Brent. Social media told me
everything I needed to know with a few keystrokes.” She scanned the
crowd. “Is Ava here?”

“No, she’s
pissed at me, thanks to you.”

“I’m sorry
about that. I didn’t mean to cause trouble for you.”

He wasn’t sure
he believed that, but it wasn’t Jasmine’s fault. If he’d told Ava
about his engagement when she asked, she wouldn’t have reason to
trust his integrity. “You didn’t. I caused trouble for myself.”

She smiled.
“You always were good at that.”

“I’m not
interested in taking a stroll down memory lane with you,
Jasmine.”

“Brent.”

He looked up to
see his mother and stepfather. Great. Just what he needed. “I don’t
have the energy to argue with you tonight. If you’re smart, you’ll
keep your distance.”

His mother
looked hurt, but his stepfather appeared ready for a fight. “Listen
to me,” he said, pointing in Brent’s face. “You sanctimonious sack
of-”

Brent grabbed
his wrist. “Get out of my face, old man. I’m in no mood.”

“Let’s go,
Martin,” Claudia said, gripping her husband’s arm. “I don’t want to
cause a scene.”

“Wow, that was
awkward,” Jasmine said as they walked away. “I see you still
haven’t made peace with your mother.”

She was the
only woman, aside from Ava, who understood how his mother’s
betrayal had affected him. “I doubt I ever will.”

Couples were
congregating on the dance floor, and Jasmine inclined her head.
“They’re playing our song.” She smiled when he frowned. “Come on,
Brent. One dance, for old time’s sake.”

He didn’t want
to dance. He didn’t even want to be there, but since he was stuck
until after dinner, he may as well indulge her. She was right; one
dance wouldn’t kill him. “Fine, let’s go.” He allowed her to slip
her arm through his as he led her to the dance floor.

Brent didn’t
expect to feel anything while holding Jasmine again, and he wasn’t
disappointed. If not for Ava, he may have been tempted by his ex’s
obvious attempts to lure him back, but what he’d felt for Jasmine
years ago didn’t begin to compare to how he felt for Ava. “So, you
decided to finish your degree when you moved out to L.A.,” he said,
deciding small talk would be his best recourse for getting through
the dance.

Photographers
stood on the periphery of the crowd snapping pictures, and Brent
groaned when a flashbulb went off. What had he been thinking,
agreeing to dance with Jasmine? If Ava thought he’d asked Jasmine
to accompany him to the event when she declined, she’d try to
convict him.

“Yeah, reality
hit hard once I got out there.” She smiled. “I was just another
pretty face, nothing special.”

He did his best
to change direction so his back was facing photographers, but they
just followed suit. “I gotta get the hell out of here.”

“Brent, wait,”
Jasmine said, grabbing his arm. “Can you drive me home? I took a
taxi here, and I’d really like to talk.”

The damage was
already done. “Why not? The evening couldn’t get much worse.”

“Gee,
thanks.”

He didn’t
bother to respond. If she was looking for a man to stroke her ego,
she’d have to look elsewhere. “Come on.” He pulled his cell phone
out of his pocket and dialed his brother’s number. “Keith, you need
to get over here. I can’t do this tonight.” He sighed. “I don’t
give a goddamn where you are. Get your ass over here and accept
this award on behalf of Armstrong. I’m leaving. Now.” He didn’t
wait for a response before slipping the phone back in his
pocket.

“How is Keith?”
Jasmine asked, struggling to catch up with his long strides.

“Fine.” He
wasn’t in the mood to chat. Perhaps if she realized that, she’d opt
for an impersonal taxi driver instead.

Brent intended
to make one stop after he dropped Jasmine off, and even if he had
to bribe the security guard posted in Ava’s lobby, he wasn’t
leaving until they worked things out. Brent’s driver opened the
door for them, and Brent waited for her to get settled inside
before following her.

She looked
around the luxurious interior. “Wow, you really have made all your
dreams come true, haven’t you?”

“Not all of
them.”

“What does that
mean?”

He saw the
hopeful look in her eye and knew it was time to quash her
expectations. “When Ava agrees to be my wife, then I’ll have
everything I want.”

“So it’s
serious?”

“Obviously.” It
would be months, maybe years, before Ava felt ready to take that
step, especially in light of recent events, but he wanted Jasmine
to know who his heart belonged to.

“She must be
pretty special to have earned your trust.”

“Ava would
never betray me.” He didn’t know how he could say that with
absolute certainty, but he would bet everything he owned on it.

“I’m glad
you’re happy, Brent.” She placed her hand on his knee. “I mean
that. I didn’t come to see you because I was hoping to reconnect. I
gave up on that fantasy a long time ago. I just wanted to tell you
how sorry I am for the way things went down between us.” When he
looked out the window instead of responding, she asked, “Do you
think you’ll ever forgive me?”

“I let it go a
long time ago.”

“Really? Are
you sure you haven’t been shutting people out because you didn’t
want to risk getting hurt again?” she asked.

He thought
about where he’d been before Ava came back into his life. Putting
up walls was exactly what he’d been doing. “I thought I made myself
clear earlier.” He gave her a look that usually made his employees
cower. “I don’t want to rehash our relationship. I don’t want to
discuss the reasons it didn’t work, aside from the obvious. It’s
dead and buried. I’d like it to stay that way.”

“You were
always so cold,” she said quietly. “I don’t know if you even
realized it.”

“You’re blaming
me for this?”

“I’m not
blaming you. I’m telling you what was wrong in our relationship so
you won’t make the same mistake with Ava.”

He laughed, but
it was completely devoid of humor. “Don’t do me any favors. I don’t
need you, of all people, to point out my faults.”

“Who better
than me?” she asked. She obviously knew him too well to be
intimidated. “I know why you’re every woman’s worst nightmare.
Wouldn’t you like to know so you can be the man Ava needs you to
be?”

He stared at
her, trying to decipher her angle. “Why would you want to help
me?”

“I owe you.”
Jasmine leaned back against the leather seat, crossing her
legs.

She was wearing
a red couture gown that highlighted her dark features to
perfection, yet Brent felt nothing, not even a mild stirring of
attraction. “Go on, I’m listening.”

“In the
beginning, I wanted to believe you were jealous and possessive
because you couldn’t stand the thought of losing me. As time went
on, I realized you just couldn’t stand the thought of losing.
Period. It had nothing to do with me.” She was right, but Brent
didn’t see the point in concurring. “I did anything I could to get
you to notice me, to be as interested in me as you were in your
business.”

“I won’t
apologize for being driven. It’s who I’ve always been. If you
didn’t think you could live with that, you shouldn’t have agreed to
marry me.”

“Do you
remember how you proposed?”

He hadn’t
thought about that night in years. “Sure.”

“It was New
Year’s Eve, and you were drunk.” She clenched her designer evening
bag. “I was disappointed you hadn’t proposed at Christmas. When I
asked you why, you said, ‘You wanna get married, we’ll get
married.’” She shook her head. “And I was so desperate to hear
those words, I accepted that pathetic excuse for a proposal.”

He’d never been
much for grand romantic gestures, but he knew when he proposed to
Ava, he’d be down on one knee, declaring his love with a big
diamond in his hand. She deserved nothing less. “I’m sorry if you
felt short-changed.”

“I should have
realized I deserved a man who would love me with his whole heart.
You weren’t capable of that.”

He should have
been insulted, but she was right. “If you knew that, why’d you stay
with me?”

“I was a fool.”
She covered her eyes with her hand. “I’m embarrassed to admit this,
but I thought I could change you.”

Brent crossed
his ankle over his knee as he regarded her. “Why are you telling me
this now?”

“I saw
something in your eyes when you looked at Ava today. Something I’d
always hoped to see when you looked at me.”

“What?”

“Love… and
fear.”

He swallowed,
forcing himself to ask, “Fear?”

“You’re
terrified of losing her, aren’t you?”

“Yes.” He never
thought he’d confide in Jasmine again, but there they were, making
peace after what he considered the ultimate betrayal. Maybe he was
capable of forgiveness.

“You will lose
her if you treat her the way you treated me. She’s nothing like me.
She doesn’t need you the way I did.”

Those words
felt like a dagger through his heart. “You don’t even know Ava. How
would you know whether she needs me?”

“She didn’t
hesitate to walk away today. If that had been me, I would have
stayed just to keep an eye on you and your ex. I was so afraid of
another woman luring you away. Ava’s more secure than I was.”

He was grateful
they were stopping in front of the address she’d given his driver.
He didn’t want to hear any more. “You don’t know what you’re
talking about. She left because she was angry with me for lying to
her about us. She needed time to think.”

“She needed
time to decide whether you’re worth the trouble.” Jasmine
unfastened her seatbelt. “Tell me, has she decided?” Brent refused
to dignify that with a response. “I didn’t think so.” She slid
across the seat as the chauffeur rounded the car. “Was she the girl
you told me about? The Ava you knew back in college?”

He’d forgotten
he shared that story with Jasmine. “Yes.”

“I thought so.”
She touched his hand. “People rarely get a second chance at
happiness, especially with their first love. Don’t squander yours
by letting your past ruin your chance at a future with her. Ava’s
nothing like me or your mother, am I right?”

Brent hadn’t
even noticed the similarities between Jasmine and his mother until
she pointed it out. “No, she’s not.”

“She’s the
first woman who’s really tested you?”

“I guess she
is.”

“Whether you
pass or fail that test is up to you, my friend. Good luck.”

Brent reached
for her hand before the driver could help her out of the car.
“Thanks, Jamie.”

She wrinkled
her nose at her old name. “If you really want to thank me, you can
let me build that dream home of yours.” She smiled. “That was my
final project, and I’ll have you know my professors gushed over
it.”

“Why did you
want to work on that house?”

“I wanted to
see if I could bring your dream to life.” She laughed. “Judging by
the look on your face when you saw my drawings, I achieved my goal.
The question is whether you’re going to hire me to see it
through.”

“Let me talk to
Ava about it.” He didn’t know how she would feel about him working
so closely with his ex-fiancée on a house they’d once planned to
share. He suspected she would hate it as much as he would hate it
if their situations were reversed. It would kill him, but he’d have
to burn those plans and start all over with a new architect so he
and Ava could bring their shared vision to life.

***

Ava was
approaching the front door of her building when a black Rolls Royce
limousine pulled up. She’d been outside, taking Oreo for a short
walk. Brent stepped out before the driver could open his door. He
looked incredible in a classic black tuxedo.