Jilted (9 page)

Chapter Seven

The only thing that stopped Ashley from showing any kind of reaction was his years of training in court. Like a skilled poker player, he’d learned to school his expression so no one would know what he was thinking, and in this moment his mind was racing a thousand miles per hour. What the fuck was Skylar doing here, and with his friend no less?

It wasn’t hard to see that Jeremy must have done quite well for himself, judging from the tuxedo that looked like a custom job instead of something off the rack. Ashley remembered that right before they’d graduated from college that Jeremy had been accepted to one of the top medical schools in the country, which meant he’d probably fulfilled his dream as a surgeon. It stood to reason that he was doing quite well financially. So apparently not much had changed with Skylar since they’d parted. He wondered how many other wealthy patrons she’d had before finally getting her claws into Jeremy.

As much as he fought against it, he found his gaze straying in her direction. His breath caught in his throat as he got a proper look at her. She was just as beautiful as he remembered, maybe even more so. Though Skylar didn’t look as if she’d aged a day even though he knew she was now 30, there were subtle differences. She’d filled out a little more, particularly in the hips and breast area. Gone were the long unruly curls that she once wore in a big puff on top of her head. Her hair was cropped close to her scalp in tight ringlets that crowned her scalp. Her short hairdo accentuated the natural beauty of her face. It made her cheekbones look sharper and her eyes bigger and her full lips even more welcoming.

Her dress hugged her curves so lovingly, one couldn’t help but imagine what was underneath it, and a slit that revealed a generous amount of her sexy brown leg was enough to make any heterosexual male’s pulse race with desire. There was no denying that Skylar Brown was still a very breath-taking woman and from the looks of it, she knew it. Too bad she was a gold digging, faithless slut. Jeremy was too nice a guy to be caught up in her web, and it was then that he decided to make sure Skylar didn’t do to his friend what she’d done to him.

Ashley grinded his teeth when Skylar wrapped her hands around Jeremy’s arm and huddled closer to him as if she needed protection. By the time he was done with her, he’d make sure that she would crawl back into the hole that she’d come from.

“Hey, man. You okay?” Jeremy waved his hand in Ashley’s face making him realize that’d he’d blanked out.

Ashley shook his head to free it from its temporary haze. He plastered a smile on his face, hoping that his friend wouldn’t notice the strain. “Sorry, I was just admiring your lovely date. Pardon my rudeness.”

Skylar stiffened at Jeremy’s side and looked down at her feet.

Jeremy grinned. “She’s beautiful, isn’t she? And she’s all mine so don’t get any ideas.”

Ashley smirked. “I wouldn’t dream of it. So how have you been?”

“Great. I didn’t realize you’d be here tonight. I had to put in an appearance because the Board of Directors wanted some of the department heads of the hospital to show up.”

“Oh? So you’re already heading a hospital department? That’s pretty impressive. You were interested in neurosurgery last we spoke.”

Jeremy nodded. “Yes. That’s my field of expertise. When I graduated from med school I did my residency in California and then went to Switzerland to do a Fellowship where I learned some cutting edge techniques. I’ve been back on the East Coast for about four years now.”

“And doing well, I see.”

“And you? How’s it going for you? Did you decide to work at your family’s law firm like you’d planned?”

“I have in fact, and made partner.”

“Good for you, man. Oh, pardon my rudeness but let me introduce you to my lovely date. The two of you have something in common. You’re both lawyers,” Jeremy continued to talk, not seeming to notice the tension emanating between Ashley and Skylar.

Ashley was forced to return his attention to Skylar who now seemed to be shaking. Good. He hoped that bitch was scared. She was probably worried he’d tell Jeremy exactly what kind of woman she was. He held out his hand to her and she slowly placed her hand in his. The second they touched however, a jolt of electricity coursed through him. The same magic that made his heart pound. What the hell was wrong with him? These unwanted feelings of the past weren’t welcome. Judging from the wide-eyed stare of confusion Skylar shot his way, she must have felt it too. Ashley tightened his grip around her hand, squeezing it to a point where her lips parted into a soft gasp. He wanted to make sure she knew he didn’t give a damn about her anymore. “Charmed. It’s nice meeting you, Skylar.” He kept his tone as even as possible.

Once he loosened his grip, she quickly yanked her hand away.

“Likewise,” she murmured before turning to Jeremy. “Uh, you know what I have to run to the ladies room really quick. I’ll be back and that should give you guys a chance to catch up on old times.”

Jeremy smiled down at Skylar with an indulgent look on his face. It was clear for anyone to see he was smitten with her. Jeremy bent over and kissed her on the forehead. “Okay, babe. But don’t be too long. I want everyone to see I got the best looking date on my arm.”

Skylar smiled. “Thanks.”

It seemed as if she couldn’t get away fast enough. Ashley followed her departure until she disappeared from sight. That little exchange between Skylar and Jeremy made his blood boil. He flexed his jaw muscle, pissed that she had the nerve to show up at an event he was attending. Granted she probably wouldn’t have known that he was attending for sure, but anyone who could look it up was probably aware that his law firm was heavily involved in this particular charity. He wondered if it was simply a coincidence that she’d come tonight on the arm of an old college friend. He hadn’t heard from her in five years but maybe in her little greedy head she thought enough time had passed for him to forget what she’d done. If that was the case, she had another thing coming.

He turned back to face his friend. “So how long have you two been seeing each other?”

“We’ve known each other for a few months and have gone out on casual outings, although I’ve wanted more for a long time. Honestly tonight is our first serious date.”

“Interesting. How did you meet?”

“We met at a bar. She was having drinks with a friend of hers and I had decided to go to happy hour with a few of the other doctors from my job. We ended up talking for hours. She’s really an amazing woman. But don’t get any ideas.” Jeremy chuckled. “I seem to remember you were quite the ladies’ man back in school, but this one’s mine and I’m not letting you work your charms on her.”

Though Jeremy had said the statement with good humor, his underlying tone told Ashley that he was dead serious.

“I wouldn’t dream of it. It was great seeing you again, Jeremy; maybe the two of us can go out for drinks and catch up sometime.”

“That would be nice.” Ashley reached into his breast pocket and pulled out his business card holder. “Here’s my card. Give me a call and we can set something up.”

“Oh, Dr. Sullivan, there you are. I was wondering when you’d arrive. I have some donors that I’d like for you to meet.” A short balding man approached them and inserted himself into the conversation.

Jeremy shot him an apologetic look. “Sorry, this is Mr. Givens; he’s on the Board of Directors at my hospital. I promise I’ll be in touch. Oh, and if you see Skylar, please tell her, I’ll be inside the ballroom.”

Mr. Givens nodded in Ashley’s direction, barely sparing him a glance before practically dragging Jeremy away.

Ashley remained in the spot several minutes after Jeremy departed. He clenched and unclenched his fists at his side as he thought about Skylar being here under the same roof as him and his curious reaction to her. She’d looked on at him like a deer caught in headlights, probably scared out of her wits that he would expose her. It briefly occurred to him that she might have learned her lesson and changed, but he seriously doubted it. Women like her never change. And he knew just how to prove it.

Skylar sat on the edge of the toilet seat gasping for air. The last time she’d hyperventilated like this was during her near breakdown five years ago when she’d become overwhelmed with depression and despair. Seeing Ashley again after all this time had sent her into panic mode. He looked almost exactly the same since she’d last seen him, tux and all. The only slight difference was that his dark brown hair was now liberally sprinkled with silver strands that gave him a distinguished appearance. She didn’t want to be attracted to him and she never thought seeing him again would be such a big deal. After all, she saw his face every day when she looked at her sons.

But apparently it wasn’t the same. He’d stared at her as if she was some kind of specimen in a petri dish. The ironic twist of him being an old friend of Jeremy’s was the icing on the cake. She feared he’d find out about the children and somehow make them pay for what he considered to be her crimes. She had no illusions that he’d actually want anything to do with them; after all, he’d made it quite clear what he thought of her.

Skylar hiked up her dress and put her head between her knees to calm herself down. She inhaled and exhaled with slow deep breaths until she felt better. She was thankful these bathroom stalls were the type that looked like miniature rooms that had a wall separating each toilet that one couldn’t look over or under. And the thick oak door was designed to block out sound. The last thing she wanted was a concerned person tapping on the door to see if she was all right.

What would she tell Jeremy? She’d never shared the fact that she’d nearly gotten married before. He had asked about the triplets’ father but she’d only disclosed that things didn’t work out between them. He hadn’t pressed, and Skylar had seen no reason to volunteer any more information. If she could figure out how to get through this evening without mishap then she would figure something out.

Once she got herself under control, she stood up and opened the door to her stall and nearly let out a scream when she saw Ashley leaning against the sink, his arms folded. Skylar looked around her to see there were no other women in the bathroom. She could feel her breathing get ragged once again, and the panic attack she’d just fought off was on the verge of coming back.

“Surprise.” Ashley smirked, pushing away from the sink and moving closer to Skylar. She attempted to go around him but he grabbed her by the wrist. “Going somewhere?”

“Take your hand off me.” She attempted to yank out of his hold but he refused to release her.

“Not until we’ve cleared a few things up.”

She had to tilt her head to glare at him. Skylar had forgotten how tall he was. “There’s nothing the two of us need to clear up. The last time we spoke you made it pretty clear that you wanted nothing more to do with me so let’s keep it that way. Why is the bathroom empty anyway?”

“I locked the door. I didn’t want there to be any interruptions when I tell you exactly what you need to hear.”

“There’s absolutely nothing you can say that I want to hear so I suggest you let go of my arm before I scream blue murder.”

Again that arrogant smirk crossed his lips and she’d never wanted to smack any one more in her life. “If you scream, I’m sure someone would come running but do you want to explain to your date why you’re locked in the bathroom with another man?”

“But you—”

He wagged his finger with a gleam of amusement twinkling in the depth of his green gaze. “Uh uh. It doesn’t matter how it happened; only what it looks like.”

“You pig. Just say what you want to get off your chest and let me be on my way.”

“Okay. I want you to leave Jeremy alone.”

Skylar had no idea what Ashley had wanted to tell her but it certainly hadn’t been this. After he basically tore her world apart and left her to pick up the pieces with three kids and few options to support herself, he had the nerve to stare her in the face and dictate to her to stop seeing Jeremy. “You’re kidding me, right?”

“I don’t joke when it comes to the people I care about and Jeremy and I used to be quite close. He’s too good a guy to be caught up with someone like you. Leave him alone or I will tell him what you did.”

“What I did? You’re still on that kick? Those pictures were fakes and the more I think about it you probably doctored them as an excuse to getting out of marrying me. Well if you thought that after you dumped me I was supposed to hide in a hole for the rest of my life and never date again then that’s your problem. I’ll date who I please.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I don’t give a fuck if you date someone on your level. But Jeremy is off limits. He doesn’t deserve the likes of you. What would you think would happen to his career if it got out that he’s dating someone with such a loose reputation? Pictures have a way of getting leaked.”

Skylar froze. “You wouldn’t.”

Ashley cocked his head to the side, and smiled. It was a predatory grin of one that had trapped its prey in a corner with no chance of escape. “You should know by now that I don’t bluff. How did finding a job at the more prestigious law firms work out for you?”

She began to tremble. Skylar had suspected that he’d somehow had her blackballed but she had no confirmation until this moment. “You told me to leave you alone and I did. But it seems you had to have your pound of flesh anyway.”

“Oh, but I had every intention of letting you disappear from my life but you couldn’t leave well enough alone could you?”

“You’re speaking in riddles, Ashley, which I have no time for. Fuck you and your threats. You don’t get to tell me what to do with my life.”

He narrowed his gaze and tightened his grip on her arm. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Again, Skylar tried to pull away from him. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Let go you’re hurting me.”

“Maybe I like hurting you.”