He held up a hand and chuckled. “Sorry, miss.” The man reeked of cologne and his girth was busting out of his blue pinstriped suit. A pudgy hand ran over his sleek black hair to smooth it down.
Faith slid a glance over at Alec, but he was deep in conversation and didn’t see her. Her stomach flopped and twisted, but she forced a smile. “That’s okay. You just startled me. Are you here for the signing later?”
He laughed without mirth. “I’m Alec’s agent.”
Her smile slipped a fraction at the condescending tone. She swore Alec had said that he’d fired his agent, but Faith kept that to herself. Maybe she was wrong. “Good turnout.”
“Winston draws a crowd, that’s for sure.” His dark brown gaze raked over her chest before traveling back to her eyes. “And who are you, exactly? Your accent is southern.” He made it sound like being from the south was distasteful.
The guy made her skin crawl. “I’m a friend of Alec’s.”
“A friend, eh?”
Before he could say any more, Alec sidled up beside her and wrapped his arm around her waist. “I see you’ve met Henry, my former agent.”
When Alec stressed “former,” Henry’s eyes narrowed. “You find another agent yet, Winston? Although I suppose that would mean you’d need to actually write another book.”
Alec stiffened beside her, and Faith had the overwhelming urge to defend him. Weren’t agents, even former ones, supposed to be supportive?
She lifted her chin. “He’s already more than halfway through the next book. He’ll be finished in under two months.”
Henry darted his gaze between them. “And how would you know that, miss? He doesn’t let just anyone read his manuscripts.”
“I never said I read it. But I have seen him working on it.”
Henry’s brows rose. “Have you?” He looked at Alec. “You let your newest plaything near your material? You’ve never let your toys anywhere near your apartment. What gives?”
Alec growled low in his throat. “Watch yourself.”
Henry took no heed of Alec’s warning. In fact, he looked at Faith as if trying to dissect her and find the missing element. “Not like you to bring a date to these functions. She doesn’t look like your usual.”
Alec took a step forward, but Faith gripped his arm and he got himself in check.
“I told you, I’m a friend,” she said.
Henry snorted. “Sure, sweetheart.” He waved his hand to dismiss her. “You’re all friendly until you learn he won’t commit. Then you run for the next wallet. Ain’t that right, Winston?”
The arm around her waist tightened further. “Enough, Henry. She’s different, not that it’s any of your business anymore. Leave her be.”
Faith watched the interaction, her unease growing. Alec’s agent was probably throwing barbs as a response to Alec letting him go. Between the books and movies, Alec had no doubt made the man a pretty penny. Losing that solid income would raise anyone’s hackles. There was no sense in feeding into his bitterness.
Slowly, she ran her hand under Alec’s open suit coat and rubbed a circle over the tense muscles coiling in his back. “Let’s go grab a bite to eat before your reading, shall we?”
Henry didn’t take the brush-off. “Different? How different can she really be with your fiancée still around? Odd threesome that would make.”
Alec went so still Faith thought he would snap. Panic rose in her chest. She’d never seen him angry, not like this. Irritated, perhaps. There was no way for her to gauge how he’d respond to this latest jab, or how he typically behaved when angry. His previous engagement was already a sore spot. Why did Henry feel the need to pick at that scab?
She struggled to diffuse the situation. “I think you mean ex-fiancée, Mr . . . ?”
“Swift. The last name is Swift.” His gaze narrowed before he harrumphed. “Ex? Is that the line he fed you?” He barked out a laugh. “I assure you, he’ll never leave her.”
The room froze. Or seemed to. Maybe it was just her.
As the words sank in, her gaze flew to Alec’s. His wince was confirmation enough of the accusation. Alec stepped forward, apology in his eyes, but at the same moment his editor crossed the room to intervene. Words were exchanged.
Faith barely noticed what happened in the next few moments. Voices blended together. Air trapped in her lungs. Her temples throbbed. She took several steps backward until she bumped into a waiter.
“Sorry, ma’am. Are you all right?”
She looked at the group of men in front of her, deep in a heated discussion, and then at the champagne in her hand, only half gone.
He’ll never leave her . . .
No. No, she wasn’t all right.
She placed a hand on her forehead to stop the spinning. What was she doing here? With Alec? A man who had so obviously lied to her. Had lied for several weeks. He’d told her the engagement was over. Had been for several years by the sound of it. Where was this woman if they were still together? Did she not care if Alec saw other women?
Oh, God. What if they had one of those relationships? An open one where they could sleep with other people?
Faith’s mouth dried to dust. Dear Lord, could she have been any more naive?
Stupid, stupid.
With a shaking hand, she set her champagne flute on the waiter’s tray and made the long, long walk to the door. Only a few people stopped their conversations to stare at her obvious haste. Most continued on as if nothing had transpired, as if she hadn’t just been betrayed in the worst imaginable way.
chapter
seventeen
Alec panicked and cursed when he caught Faith’s retreating form out of the corner of his eye. “Mark, take care of this. I need to deal with something. I want him gone when I get back.”
Trusting his editor to handle his former agent, Alec strode toward the door. He should’ve told Faith the whole story sooner. What must be going through her mind right now? And to hear the truth like that, in such a cold, calculating way . . .
Part of the truth.
Fuck. He was an asshole. Part of him knew he never should’ve brought her here, into this world that he didn’t even want to live in sometimes. But the more time he spent with Faith, the more she pushed the darkness away. She made him want things, to be something he couldn’t. Yet he’d plowed forward and hadn’t even had the balls to inform her of what she was getting tangled in.
He pushed through the lobby doors and stepped outside, alarm seizing his gut when he didn’t see her right away. He scanned the sidewalk, across the busy street. Sweet Faith, alone in this city. The things that could go wrong.
Wait. There.
She stood at the corner of the building, arms wrapped around herself and shivering as if it weren’t eighty degrees. He hesitated, then walked over to her.
Her teary gaze lifted to his and away. “Go back inside, Alec.”
He tried to take her arms but she wrenched away. “Faith. I’m sorry. I need to explain, I know . . .”
“Explain,” she said in a hollow voice. “What more is there to say? You lied to me.”
Panic morphed into desperation. “I should’ve told you everything sooner. I’m sorry.”
She stepped away from him as if he’d slapped her. “Sorry just doesn’t seem to cut it, Alec.” She rubbed her forehead with a shaking hand. “I’m such an idiot.”
“No,” he growled, stepping closer. “I’m the idiot.”
A cab pulled up to the curb and she stepped forward. No way. No way in hell was she going anywhere alone in this city. Not even in the posh Upper West Side.
“Faith, wait.” He rushed over and told the doorman to have his driver pull around, then hurried back. “My car will take you back to my apartment. Here.” He fumbled in his pocket for his keys and took her hand. Forcing her fingers to unclench, he slapped them into her palm. “Go back to my place and wait for me. I can’t leave just yet, but I’ll get out of this as soon as I can. We’ll talk.”