Constance was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
How was he supposed to work with her and not acknowledge the feelings he had for her? It was impossible.
James still sat at the table in his living room, staring forlornly at the table setting. He’d been like that for thirty minutes and couldn’t recall a single time in his life when he’d felt this upset—not even when he’d ended things with Brielle.
That was one realization he would have been excited to figure out, except now he was once again alone.
He itched to swipe his arms across the table to fling everything on the floor and listen to the shatter of the dishes against the tile. But he didn’t have the energy to do so.
It wasn’t until Constance had severed their relationship that he’d finally come to the understanding that she was the reason he’d been so happy lately. She was what he looked forward to every single day.
James placed his elbows on the table and rested his head in his hands. Already he was trying to figure out how to go about ending their contract. He wouldn’t make her pay back the tuition he’d supplemented. And if she wanted to continue working for him, he’d accept that. He could be professional.
Something pounded on the door and his head whipped around to stare in that direction. It couldn’t be. Constance wouldn’t come back, would she?
A glimmer of hope flooded his chest and he rose to his feet. Then again, he might be hallucinating things. The way she’d left things had felt so final.
Another knock.
James jumped and surged forward. He crossed the floor faster than he ever had. Without looking through the spy hole, he turned the knob and jerked the door open only to be nearly brought to his knees by the last person he’d expected to see.
Brielle stood in front of him, her arms folded and one foot out to the side as she put all her weight on the other. She glowered at him, eyes flashing with a venom he had only glimpsed a handful of times in his life.
His jaw tightened and he nearly shut the door in her face. Instead, he gestured for her to enter.
She pushed past him like she had several times before.
When he had the door shut and was leaning against it, she spun around. If it was possible, she looked even angrier. Sparks shot from her eyes as she strode toward him. “What did you do?”
His head reared back. “Me? You’re going to have to elaborate.”
“Don’t play games with me. I know you did something.”
“Me?” James repeated. “I didn’t do anything to her. No, that’s not right. I told her I loved her. That’s what I did. And Constance opted to break up with me. I guess I overestimated how much she cares for me.”
The steam he could almost see rising off Brielle’s shoulders dissipated and her mouth fell open. “What?”
“Yeah. It didn’t make much sense when you barged in here like I’m the bad guy. She was obviously done toying with me and was ready to send me off to pasture.” He didn’t even care how bitter he sounded at this point. He’d tried to win the heart of two Callahan daughters and each one ended in disaster.
Brielle blinked. “You love her?”
“Of course I love her. Why do you think I’ve been willing to date her for so long in spite of her refusing to ask her father if she can cut in line for betrothal?” He let out a derisive laugh. “Ironic, isn’t it? I loved you when you were second in line. Now it’s Constance. I can’t seem to catch a break.” He moved toward the table and gathered his plate and the one Constance had been using. Might as well start cleaning up the evidence of his botched evening. He knew the Callahans too well to think that Constance would change her mind. There was no point in chasing after her and demanding that she give them a chance.
“There’s a difference,” she murmured.
He stilled, not turning to face her. “What are you talking about?”
She didn’t respond right away. The silence stretched long enough that he wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d slipped out the door. When she finally spoke up, she said the one thing he hadn’t expected. “I wasn’t in love with you, James.”
He nearly dropped the dishes in his hands. Before that happened, he placed them back on the table, then turned to face her. “You weren’t?”
Brielle shook her head.
“Why—” He raked a hand through his hair and searched through the memories of his time with her. He couldn’t recall once when Brielle had said she loved him. A vague memory tickled the back of his mind—something about the word being used too frequently and losing its effectiveness. He’d just assumed that she did love him and would say it when she was ready. James shook his head. “Why would you stay with me for so long?”
Brielle shrugged, looking away. “I don’t know. We were having fun. You were sweet and were fun to spend time with. I guess I thought maybe one day…” She let out a heavy sigh. “It doesn’t matter. But I never felt what I think Constance probably feels for you.”
He snorted. “If she cares about me so much, then why would she break up with me? It doesn’t make any sense.”