you know why your mother said it only has one side?”
Bailey shook her head, incapable of speech.
“Because it belongs to one soul—our soul. Do you have any idea how unusual this piece is? It’s as rare as soul mates. Yet here we are.” Dropping the coin, he gripped her chin, forcing her to hold his gaze. Bailey thought her heart couldn’t break any more than it already was, but she was wrong. Lucien’s broken expression shattered what was left. “You’re right,” he said as his hand fell away from her face. “I should’ve done my job and gone my way.” Bailey’s chest hurt. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get his words to make sense. “I’m sorry for being too weak to stay away from you. It won’t happen again.”
Everything inside Bailey cried out in protest as Lucien tensed to move away. She snagged his shirt with both hands and held tight. A look of shock crossed Lucien’s features as she hauled him closer. “You still don’t get it.” Even to herself, she sounded furious. “It’s the leaving I can’t withstand.” She drew him even closer. Going up on her toes, Bailey went nose to nose with Lucien. “Stop fucking leaving me,” she growled, enunciating each word. As she said the words, Bailey realized how true they were. She was angry about his secrets, but it didn’t change how much she loved him. Even if he had a secret wife somewhere, keeping him away. At least then she’d know it wasn’t her. If he left her again with no answers, the gnawing fear at the back of her mind would eat her whole. The fear that he was all in her mind. The stricken look on his face made her heart sink.
“I don’t have a choice in the matter, Bailey. I’m not allowed to stay here.”
Bailey wanted to scream and stamp her feet. Anything. She needed the truth. “Why?”
For the first time, Lucien must have understood her desperation, because his entire demeanor changed. She knew then, they were truly over. As if she weighed nothing, he pulled out of her hold and took a step back. “Because you’re right, Bailey. When we’re apart, I don’t exist.”
No . Her heart screamed a denial so loudly she wasn’t sure if she’d done so aloud. He took another step back. Bailey’s shock kept her glued in place. She couldn’t find the strength to stop him. Ten minutes after he left, she was still staring at the place where he’d been, attempting to make sense of it all. It couldn’t be happening again. Bailey couldn’t withstand losing her mind twice. There had to proof of him somewhere. Every second they’d spent together ran through her mind. Where had they been together? Had he spoken to anyone she knew? Derringer, maybe? No. Not a single instance came to mind. Other than tonight, they’d been alone.
Casting a nervous look around, Bailey searched the faces of the club’s patrons for any sign she’d been standing there arguing with herself. Everyone else was occupied with their own thing. A surveillance camera hanging in the corner caught her eye. There was no way she could finagle seeing their footage, but Masked Image had security cameras inside. Bailey’s feet were moving toward the door before any real plan of action took hold. Mortification tried creeping in. What if Joe scanned the feed occasionally? Bailey shrugged off the idea. If there was anything to see, she’d be so damn grateful she wouldn’t care if her boss got a show. Anything beat being crazy. Anything at all.
She didn’t experience one iota of guilt using her key to sneak into the shop on her day off. This was an emergency. Leaving the lights off, she threw the lock behind her and moved to Joe’s office. Everything was digital and stored on Joe’s computer. She’d been working there for long enough, she’d simply forgotten the cameras existed. They were there in case there was an issue with a customer, something that didn’t happen often.
Bailey pushed past the effects of alcohol, searching her brain for the
Bailey shook her head, incapable of speech.
“Because it belongs to one soul—our soul. Do you have any idea how unusual this piece is? It’s as rare as soul mates. Yet here we are.” Dropping the coin, he gripped her chin, forcing her to hold his gaze. Bailey thought her heart couldn’t break any more than it already was, but she was wrong. Lucien’s broken expression shattered what was left. “You’re right,” he said as his hand fell away from her face. “I should’ve done my job and gone my way.” Bailey’s chest hurt. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get his words to make sense. “I’m sorry for being too weak to stay away from you. It won’t happen again.”
Everything inside Bailey cried out in protest as Lucien tensed to move away. She snagged his shirt with both hands and held tight. A look of shock crossed Lucien’s features as she hauled him closer. “You still don’t get it.” Even to herself, she sounded furious. “It’s the leaving I can’t withstand.” She drew him even closer. Going up on her toes, Bailey went nose to nose with Lucien. “Stop fucking leaving me,” she growled, enunciating each word. As she said the words, Bailey realized how true they were. She was angry about his secrets, but it didn’t change how much she loved him. Even if he had a secret wife somewhere, keeping him away. At least then she’d know it wasn’t her. If he left her again with no answers, the gnawing fear at the back of her mind would eat her whole. The fear that he was all in her mind. The stricken look on his face made her heart sink.
“I don’t have a choice in the matter, Bailey. I’m not allowed to stay here.”
Bailey wanted to scream and stamp her feet. Anything. She needed the truth. “Why?”
For the first time, Lucien must have understood her desperation, because his entire demeanor changed. She knew then, they were truly over. As if she weighed nothing, he pulled out of her hold and took a step back. “Because you’re right, Bailey. When we’re apart, I don’t exist.”
No . Her heart screamed a denial so loudly she wasn’t sure if she’d done so aloud. He took another step back. Bailey’s shock kept her glued in place. She couldn’t find the strength to stop him. Ten minutes after he left, she was still staring at the place where he’d been, attempting to make sense of it all. It couldn’t be happening again. Bailey couldn’t withstand losing her mind twice. There had to proof of him somewhere. Every second they’d spent together ran through her mind. Where had they been together? Had he spoken to anyone she knew? Derringer, maybe? No. Not a single instance came to mind. Other than tonight, they’d been alone.
Casting a nervous look around, Bailey searched the faces of the club’s patrons for any sign she’d been standing there arguing with herself. Everyone else was occupied with their own thing. A surveillance camera hanging in the corner caught her eye. There was no way she could finagle seeing their footage, but Masked Image had security cameras inside. Bailey’s feet were moving toward the door before any real plan of action took hold. Mortification tried creeping in. What if Joe scanned the feed occasionally? Bailey shrugged off the idea. If there was anything to see, she’d be so damn grateful she wouldn’t care if her boss got a show. Anything beat being crazy. Anything at all.
She didn’t experience one iota of guilt using her key to sneak into the shop on her day off. This was an emergency. Leaving the lights off, she threw the lock behind her and moved to Joe’s office. Everything was digital and stored on Joe’s computer. She’d been working there for long enough, she’d simply forgotten the cameras existed. They were there in case there was an issue with a customer, something that didn’t happen often.
Bailey pushed past the effects of alcohol, searching her brain for the
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