Coldhearted King (Empty Kingdom, #1)

by L.M. Dalgleish

This time my lip curls. “I don’t know what sort of people you spend time with, Mr. King, but that sounds like a you problem. I’m telling you the truth. I didn’t know who you were the night we met. If I had, I absolutely would never have . . . done what I did.”

The only problem is, once I got the answer out of her and she was standing there staring up at me, cheeks flushed, eyes sparking with anger, my own had evaporated, replaced by something different but just as heated.

“Well, lucky me to be one of the many, then.” She pivots as if she’s about to leave. “More memorable than most,”

“That night we spent together might not have meant anything to you, but . . . it did to me. I was happy that you were the one I had my first time with. I thought I was lucky to have been with someone who made it so good for me. And then . . . then we met again and you accused me of trying to use you, and you ruined it all. You made me regret something that I’d held close to my heart.”

The truth is, I didn’t have a good reason for giving her my personal card to use, except that the idea of her wearing a dress I bought for her, even if she’s not aware of it, appeals a little too much.

He drags me into an alcove and spins me around, pressing my back against the wall and bracing his hands on either side of my shoulders. “You have something you want to tell me.” The grit in his voice has tendrils of need tightening into a hot knot inside me.

I’m about to claim an urgent meeting I’d forgotten about, but Delilah speaks up again. “I may not have grown up in a mansion”—she gestures toward the house behind us—“but my mom showed up for me every single time I needed her. As far as I’m concerned, that means more than anything money can buy.”

I turn out my light and stare up at the dark ceiling, wishing I could take back my words. But a few minutes later, my phone beeps again. I pick it up and read the message with a smile so big I feel it spreading over my face. I miss you too.

My fingers move over the screen as I pull up our message history, then scroll back to the one where she told me she missed me. I almost hadn’t replied, but the thought of leaving her hanging after she put herself out there like that had sent a stab of pain through me. Not that I would have said it back if it wasn’t true. The problem is, it’s too fucking true.

I almost told her I loved her this morning, but the words lodged themselves in my throat. I never, never believed I would want to make that declaration to someone. That I was so close to letting it slip free shook me.

“Delilah, I . . .” he says, his voice rasping. “Get out, Cole. I don’t want you in my home anymore. I don’t want you in my life. You want us to be over? Then we’re over. So get the hell away from me.”

“I’m not playing anyone, and if you think I have any interest in being a part of this world, you couldn’t be more wrong. I want nothing to do with any of you.” My eyes meet Cole’s again, even as I continue to address Jessica. “You’re all miserable people living miserable lives, where the only joy you seem to have is playing games with other people’s emotions. You’re welcome to each other. I’d rather live a real life with real people and real love than dirty myself with whatever it is that passes for relationships in your world.”

“Well, let me make it easy for you,” I say, not recognizing my own voice. “I’m going to walk back into that ballroom. I’m going to listen to the award ceremony. I’m not going to talk to you or Jessica or Tate. I won’t even look in your direction. Then, as soon as it’s over, I’m going to walk out of here and forget about you, and you’re going to do the same, Cole. Because whatever I thought we had was a lie and a joke, and I have no intention of dwelling on it. When I finally meet the man I will love for the rest of my life, you will be a distant memory. Now get out of my way.”

“You’re as cold as fucking ice, aren’t you?” She laughs. “And you’re exactly the same. She was in love with you, and you broke her heart because your business and your money mean more to you than she ever would. So don’t stand there and judge me.” The truth of her words cuts deep and my jaw clenches.

Sharing my feelings with a stranger is normally the last thing I would do, but now’s not the time to hold back. “I don’t have a fiancée, and I definitely don’t have everything I need. Because I need Delilah. I need her, and without her, everything else is meaningless.”

“Now I believe love is there if you look for it, regardless of who you are, and if you’re lucky enough to find it, you hold on to it with everything you have. I think the only people who don’t deserve love are those who refuse to believe in it, even when it’s right there in front of them.” A slow smile breaks across her face. “Well then,” she says, softly. “Delilah never did do things by half.”

He ducks his head so he can meet my gaze with unwavering eyes. “There’ll be an us in my heart forever, Delilah. Even if there isn’t in yours anymore. I’m not leaving until I’ve done everything in my power to convince you that you’ll never have to give anyone else a second chance again. I’ll be the last chance you’ll ever need to take.”

I stare at him, then shake my head, sadness welling up in my chest. “No. It’s not, Cole. I don’t need your money or what it can buy me. A relationship isn’t supposed to be transactional that way. It’s about being with someone because you can’t imagine not being with them. It’s about sharing your heart and soul with someone, knowing they see you for who you really are—that they understand you in a way no one else can.”

“I’ll do better next time.” “Next time?” I say weakly. “I thought you’d have to go back to New York soon.” “I don’t need New York. I need you.”

“Mom,” I whisper, hope warring with pain in my chest. “He hurt me so badly.” She wraps her arms around me. “I know, sweetheart. I know he did. And I know I’ve spent your life telling you to be cautious with men—with giving them your body and your heart—because I didn’t want you to go through the same pain I did with your dad. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want you to experience great love, and you’ll never know if Cole could be that for you if you don’t take a chance. From what you’ve told me, he didn’t have much love growing up, so maybe he doesn’t know how to express that part of himself. But he’s trying, Delilah. It might take him some practice, and it might take you to show him the way, but I can’t think of anyone better to show him how to love with his whole heart than you.”

“I had the impression you didn’t believe in love.” “I didn’t believe in much of anything until I met you,” I admit. “You showed me what love looks like, how it feels. There’s no going back now.”

“Delilah, I will never let you go again. It’s not an option for me. Before you, my life was empty—I was empty—and I didn’t even know it. I can’t go back to that. I won’t. And I’m not just saying that because I need you to forgive me and love me again. I mean it. I will always mean it. I won’t let anything come between us. Not money, not my company, nothing. You are the most important thing to me. You’ve changed everything, and I can’t imagine going back to the way I was before, thinking wealth and power were enough to make me happy. It’s you, Delilah. You’re what makes me happy.”

He gives her the smile I love to see. One filled with the easy affection that has grown between them over the eight months Cole and I have officially been together. It warms my heart to see him receive the type of maternal care he never received growing up. To be short, she mothers him and the big, bad billionaire that he is eats it up.

“Delilah,” he says as my heart flings itself against my rib cage. “I love you in a way I didn’t know was even possible. From the moment you sat down next to me in that bar, you’ve made me feel things I’ve never felt before. Every time I think I can’t love you more, you prove me wrong. Being with you makes me want to be a better man. The kind of man who can be a good husband and”—he takes a deep breath, his grip on the ring box tightening—“a good father.”

“I want to spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you.” Cole’s voice becomes deeper, rougher. “I need to know I can make every one of your days happy. So please, kitten, marry me. Be my wife and let me show you just how incredible our lives can be together.” His brows lower, his eyes glittering with intensity. “And don’t forget what you promised.”