Irrefutable (The Apprehensive Duet Book 2) by Kimberly Bracco

me he was in love with me.”
    “I could’ve told you that,” Alex chuckles. “Did you honestly not see it?”
    “No. I didn’t,” I snap at him. “Why would I think that? I’ve never given him any reason to think this was anything more than the arrangement we agreed upon.”
    “Quinn,” Alex says, setting his drink down on the glass table in front of us. “You’re a very easy person to love once you let someone in. You and Jordan had this bond that no one else knew about. You spent a lot of time together. You told each other your secrets and fears. You planned a life and a wedding together. How could you not think he might fall in love with you?”
    “I’m so easy to love, huh? How’d loving me work out for you?” I bite out before I can think.
    Fuck!
    “I’m sorry, that was really a fucked up thing to say,” I apologize immediately. “I’m just having a hard time wrapping my brain around this. How’d this happen? I never gave him the impression this was anything more.”
    “Sometimes things just progress from one thing to another. There’s no explanation for them. But I’m pretty sure if he knew the whole truth about your dad, things might have been less misconstrued.”
    Jordan’s words start to taunt me again as Alex makes his point. “He told me I’m just like my father. That I manipulated and used him.”
    Alex’s eyes drill holes into mine as he speaks, “You know that isn’t true.”
    “Isn’t it though?” I scoff.
    “No, it’s not,” Alex says firmly.
    “I did exactly what he said I did.” The tears begin streaming down my face and again I feel the realization of being just like the one person I hate the most. “I didn’t tell him because I knew there was a chance he wouldn’t want to get involved. Reputation is everything in finance. With my dad, you never know what could happen. So instead of risking him backing out, I didn’t tell him. I manipulated the situation to benefit myself.”
    Alex moves his seat and sits down right next me. He tips my chin up and wipes away some of the wetness on my cheek with his thumb. “Did you intentionally set out to hurt Jordan?”
    “Of course not,” I shake my head. “But I did.”
    Alex pulls my head into his chest and wraps his strong arms around me, cradling my body against his. “That’s why you aren’t anything like your father. You didn’t do anything specifically to hurt Jordan. He knew you were using him, just like he was using you. But you weren’t malicious. Your father sets out to destroy anyone in his way and doesn’t bat an eyelash. I’m sure Jordan was just angry and said something stupid. We all do it. Give him time to cool down and cut him some slack. He’s hurt. He’s in love with you and you just told him you can’t marry him. I can understand how he feels. Just give him some space.”
    As if I wasn’t feeling shitty enough, Alex had to remind me I’ve hurt him too. It’s a full-blown pity party as my next thought leaves my mouth. “Maybe I’m just a black cloud. Every man that I let get close to me gets hurt.”
    “I think it’s time you start thinking about letting someone help you navigate through all the bad in your life,” Alex suggests, as he rubs his hand up and down my back. “I’ll always be happy to listen to you, and I’m glad you called tonight, but I’m no therapist. You’ve got so much on your plate. So much stress. You have a lot of unresolved issues in your life, Quinn.”
    “I don’t know,” I sigh into his t-shirt. “Sitting around talking about my feelings to a complete stranger has never been my thing. I can barely manage telling people I trust how I feel.”
    “It’s never too late to try and better yourself, Quinn. You’ve made much more progress than you give yourself credit for. All by yourself. Imagine what you could do with some guidance from a professional. You’ve seen it help people. Just think about it, okay?”
    Alex’s words make some sense. I’ve come