I’d gone after something that wasn’t mine, and all I could envision was the end goal—her in my arms.

So, I had taken.

I had stolen.

I’d cheated.

And now, here she was.

The problem though?

I’d pictured all the obstacles—Tyler and her grief over the breakup.

But I’d never imagined I’d have to deal with the biggest obstacle of all.

Myself.

I snuck out of the apartment while Cara was still in the shower. The breakfast she’d left me on the counter—pancakes, eggs, and bacon—had gone untouched as my new guilty conscience and I headed for work.

I knew what I had to do.

As soon as she came into work, I’d have her make arrangements for her to move her things into a hotel until she could figure out new housing arrangements.

I’d help her as much as I could.

As much as a friend could.

But, for now, that would be all I could offer. All I should offer.

Because, if it weren’t for me and my meddling, she wouldn’t have been in this mess.

She wouldn’t have had to hail a taxi in the middle of the night with swollen red eyes, carrying the pain of a failed relationship, all the way to my door.

And she wouldn’t have had to move on—unless she’d wanted to.

I followed my usual routine into work, going through the motions, as my mind relived the last twenty-four hours over and over.

Grabbing my cup of coffee, I found my way into my dark office and closed the door.

The silence that used to greet me now felt more like a prison sentence.

Powering up my computer, I stared out the large windows, out onto the city.

I thought back to the many hours of my teen years when I’d looked out the very same windows, wondering what the people down below were doing. My father would tell me to stop fooling around and pay attention. This was a place for work. Nothing else, nothing more.

But I knew the truth.

He couldn’t hide his true nature from me.

Like recognized like, and no matter how hard he’d tried to raise Jude in his image, he’d hated the fact that I’d turned out to be just like him.

Cold and manipulative.

I just chose not to hide it.

“You left without saying good-bye?”

I turned to see Cara standing in the doorway. She’d been so quiet stepping in, I hadn’t heard the door open.