Hard to Forgive (Hard to Love Book 3)

by L. M. Reid

  “What if I am?” he replies.

  “Then it looks like we aren’t going to be able to avoid each other after all,” I spit out. “I’m the hotel manager.”

  “You’re kidding me, right? Did Griffin put you up to this?” Cooper asks. He’s raking his hand through his hair trying to process the information.

  “What the hell does Griff have to do with this?” I ask confused by his question.

  “Wonderful, you two have met,” Mitchell says as he joins us. His eyes bounce between us before settling on me. “What’s wrong? Mia? Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  Compose yourself Mia. This is business. Not personal. The situation is what it is. Miserable, that’s what it is. Regardless, I don’t have a choice. Work is work. I have to keep my personal feelings out of it.

  I silently count to ten before I speak hoping that the screaming I feel like doing subsides. Calm, Mia. Speak calmly. “Actually, Mitchell, Cooper and I, we’re…”

  We’re what? If you ask him, we weren’t ever anything. Why bother letting him know that I considered him anything beyond a schoolmate? He doesn’t deserve any more than that. Not after how he broke my heart and certainly not after how he treated me at Lust.

  “We both went to Dayton University,” I say.

  Mitchell claps his hands together. “That’s wonderful. Look at you two, getting along already. I knew this partnership would be amazing.”

  Getting along? Oh Mitchell, if you only knew the expletives running through my head in regard to your little pal over here. It starts with F and ends with U.

  “Agreed,” I lie happily.

  Cooper, he still hasn’t spoken or taken his jaw off the floor, for that matter. Good. Let it simmer a while longer, Coop. It isn’t going to change anything. For the foreseeable future – you and I are a team. A fucked-up team, but a team, nonetheless.

  “Cooper and I were talking yesterday and he’s a little…” Mitchell begins, but Cooper suddenly finds his voice and cuts him off.

  “I’m fine. I have it all worked out,” Cooper tells Mitchell. He’s full of shit. Whatever it is, he’s lying. I can see him biting the inside of his cheek. It’s his tell, he does it every time. I bet he doesn’t think I remember that. Oh, Coop. I remember everything.

  Mitchell’s phone rings. He quickly reaches for it as he walks away.

  “What the hell are you trying to pull?” Cooper asks in a hushed but angry tone.

  “Excuse me?”

  “You come back to town, take a job where my restaurant is going… for what? What is it you’re hoping to accomplish?”

  “You are so full of yourself if you think my taking this job has anything to do with you. If anything, you’re the reason I almost didn’t take it,” I bite back. “The last thing I ever wanted to do was lay eyes on you again.”

  Confusion flashes across his face. It’s gone almost as soon as it appeared and is replaced with the same irritation that was there before. “Feeling’s mutual,” he barks out.

  Mitchell glances back at us and our clearly hostile exchange. Grabbing Cooper by the arm I tug him further out of Mitchell’s range of hearing.

  “Enough. Whatever our history is, we need to put it to the side. Whether we like it or not, we are stuck working together and I am not going to let you, or your attitude cause any problems. I worked too hard for this to let you screw it up.”

  “No problem. You probably won’t stick around anyway. You have a habit of – leaving.”

  Oh, he did not just throw that in my face. Here? Now? “I am more than happy to do this, but not here. Not in front of Mitchell. Whatever your problem is, suck it up and stick to business.”

  Before he can respond or infuriate me any further, I walk away. His hand grips my arm tightly, stopping me in my tracks. I look back at him my eyes void of any emotion I might feel for him except contempt. We stare at each other, our eyes locked, skin touching. No words are being spoken, but volumes are being said.

  Mitchell speaks. “Ready to go look at the space and brainstorm?”

  “This isn’t over,” he says letting go of my arm.

  Throwing a glare in Cooper’s direction, I plaster a smile on my face and walk toward Mitchell looping my arm through his. “Let’s. I haven’t been in the restaurant space yet. I’m eager to see it.”

  “It’s going to be amazing, right Cooper?” Mitchell says leading the way.

  “Yep.” The single word is the only answer he gives. It certainly speaks to the amount of uncertainty he has. Whatever it is Mitchell was about to say that Cooper so quickly denied, it still clearly an issue.

  Cooper is going to have to put his stupid male pride aside and tell me what the hell is going on because if he fucks this up…. I just might kill him.

  13

  Cooper

  I follow Mitchell and Mia into the kitchen space, my mind still trying to come to terms with the fact that not only is Mia back in town but that we are working in the same space. Sure, the hotel is big and yeah, I spend a lot of time in the kitchen, but I would be kidding myself to think that we aren’t going to cross paths. A lot.

  “The contractor needs to know where you want everything so he can have the electrical run and make any necessary modifications,” Mia says as she glances around the room. Her tone is one hundred percent business. The hardened glances she’s throwing my way, however, are not. Those are a thousand percent personal. Yet somehow, she manages to keep her shit together.

  Seriously, how is she even speaking?

  Why does she have to look so fucking gorgeous while doing it?

  As much as I hate to admit it though, she’s right. We are going to have to put our issues aside and work together. That means I need to quit looking at her ass in that skirt and start focusing on the task at hand.

  I pull the scaled down blueprint out of my bag and hand it to her. “The kitchen set-up isn’t an issue. I have that ready to go.”

  “Excellent. I’ll get this to Wyatt right away,” she says with a nod of her head. “I’m sure he’ll want to schedule a time to meet with you.”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem. Beginning today, Cooper will be on premises frequently. In fact, he’ll be in the empty office next to yours,” Mitchell says.

  What did I do to deserve this? Why is Mia being thrown in my face like this? I feel like I’m being punished. I also feel a little sadistic because at least part of me likes the fact that she’s around. At least one part in particular does.

  If I hadn’t been staring at her so intently, I might have missed the shock that rolled over her at Mitchell’s statement. Without missing a beat though, she continued on, spit balling ideas that I should be listening to, ticking things off her imaginary checklist. Mia was a force of nature back in college. Now, she’s a force to be reckoned with. So much still the same girl I used to know all while being so incredibly different at the same time. She’s not a girl, she’s a woman. She’s not flighty, she’s put together. There’s a look in her eye though. It tells me one thing about her hasn’t changed. Underneath all that, she is still a little wild. The girl who wanted to push the limits and my buttons is still there. I wish it didn’t turn me on, but damn if it doesn’t make me want her more than I already do.

  Physically. It’s just a physical attraction, one that I can’t seem to combat no matter how hard I try. That’s all it is. That’s all that it ever was.

  “Wonderful,” Mia replies. Mitchell might not be able to pick up on the sarcasm, but I sure as hell can. Her voice is dripping with it.

  “Cooper was looking for a little help with the details, you know flatware, décor, things a Chef doesn’t typically worry about,” Mitchell says. “I told him that you would be more than happy to assist.”

  Instantly, I regret having told Mitchell about my concerns that now feel more like shortcomings. The last thing I want is Mia thinking that I can’t handle it, that I need her.

  “I would love to,” she says. “But…”
<
br />   But? She’s really going to refuse to help me? After she just toted how we need to remain professional?

  “I think it would be much better if he worked with the interior designer. I can schedule a meeting with her for you tomorrow.”

  “Perfect,” Mitchell says as he claps his hands together.

  “I have some things to tend to. I’ll see you later,” Mia says skating past me and hurrying out of the space.

  “She’s great, isn’t she?” Mitchell asks as he watches her with admiration.

  I begin to wonder if he knows the depths of her greatness or if his comment is simply in response to her work ethic. It’s none of my business and completely wrong of me to even ask. I’m curious though. I know Mia; I know the affect she has on people, especially men. While the look on Mitchell’s face might just be in appreciation of the package, it’s not a far stretch to assume that it’s something more.

  “Yeah, just great,” I say. Mitchell can’t sense the sarcasm laces my voice and I’m grateful.

  “Feeling better?” Mitchell asks.

  Nope, worse actually. “Yeah, everything is good. Looking forward to meeting with the interior designer. That should help a lot.”

  Mitchell glances down at his phone and then back up at me. “Glad to hear it. I have to run, but I’ll be in touch. If you need anything, just let Mia know or get ahold of me.”

  He rushes off before I can respond.

  Awestruck, I stand in the space, my hands resting on the counter I try to come to terms with what just transpired. My restaurant, my dream come true – Mia is right in the thick of it. I’m going to be working in the same building as her, seeing her day in and day out.

  Maybe her leaving really had been a blessing. It forced me to move on, to forget about her and what she did. Though, if you ask the guys, I never forgot. I never really moved on. They would be right. I would deny it until the day I die, but Mia, she still owns a piece of me. Even to this day.

  The question is now, what do I do about her being back? How do I handle this? Her being in the same city – that was one thing. Working in the same building? I have no idea how to manage that.

  Griffin’s laughter through the phone irritates the hell out of me. I better than anyone get the irony of this. There I was telling her we would have no problem avoiding each other and now here we are working in the same building.

  “What the hell do I do, Griff?” Calling Griffin probably wasn’t the smartest move I could have made, but I need advice.

  “Talk to her Coop. Try to hash things out,” he suggests.

  “Hash things out? Like what?”

  “Oh, I don’t know. Tell her how pissed you were to see her with Duke. How her leaving without so much as a word hurt you. Tell her how you feel, man.”

  Absolutely not.

  “Maybe I should just cut my losses. I’m not cut out for this shit anyway.” I sound like a fucking child whining because shits too hard.

  “That’s not true, Coop. You’re amazing at what you do. You deserve this opportunity.” If that’s true, then why amidst my dream coming true, so is my worst nightmare? “I’m not suggesting you fall in love with her, or even fuck her for that matter, though….”

  “Not happening. Look, don’t touch, remember?” I say throwing his own rule in his face.

  “Great rule. Even better when you break it,” he says referring to his relationship with Chloe.

  The difference between the two is that Griffin, he was open to the idea of love. I, on the other hand, think it’s a bullshit emotion that does nothing but cause more pain. I’m not interested in it. I never have been. I never will be. Not even for Mia.

  “All I’m saying is that maybe if you talk to her, you can come to an understanding. At least call a truce, something. Anything to make this easier for both of you to navigate through,” Griffin tells me.

  As much as I hate to admit that he’s right, he is. We have to find a way to work together – peacefully.

  After hanging up the phone, I make my way into the hotel to find Mia. Asking one of the employees which office is hers, I make my way back to her door which is slightly ajar. I can hear voices inside but tap my hand against the door anyway.

  “Come in,” she says.

  Pushing the door further open, I lean my shoulder against the door frame. Her gaze is on the guy sitting on the edge of her desk. She’s smiling at him, until she sees me. Only then do her eyes turn to ice and her smile tightens.

  “Is there something I can do for you?” she asks.

  “We need to talk,” I say flatly.

  “Wyatt, this is Cooper, the Chef,” she makes the introduction. Nothing in her voice indicates anything more than me being just that – the chef. There’s no familiarity, no semblance of the fact that there is more between us than this hotel. It sounds as if we just met rather than how we know each other extremely intimately.

  Wyatt moves away from her desk and extends his hand to me. “It’s nice to meet you, Cooper. I’m the head contractor. Mia just gave me the plans for the kitchen. If you’ve got a minute, we can walk over and…”

  “I need to talk to Mia,” I say bluntly.

  “Okay. Maybe tomorrow then,” Wyatt says. He turns back to Mia. “We still good for dinner tonight?”

  She nods and smiles broadly at him and fuck if it doesn’t infuriate me. “Looking forward to it.”

  He winks at her before heading out the door. He fucking winks. Who the hell does that shit? I’ve gotten plenty of women and I’ve never winked at them. It’s ridiculous but based on the look on her face it’s working.

  “Are you going on a date with him?” I ask. I know how it sounds and I don’t care.

  “That’s none of your business. What did you want to talk about?”

  I fight back the urge to show her exactly why it is my business by kissing her and proving that it’s me she wants, not him. I focus on her question, the insanity of it. What the hell, aside from construction guy Wyatt, would I want to talk to her about? “Seriously? Oh, I don’t know, how about you being back in town? Or the fact that we are going to be working in the same building? I don’t know… all of it.”

  She glances down at her phone. “I don’t have time right now.”

  “You don’t have time? You had time to flirt with construction boy, but you can’t give me ten minutes?”

  “You got it,” she says. She rises from her seat, and heads toward the door. “Excuse me, please?”

  I don’t budge. Not even an inch. “You’re going to have to talk to me at some point.”

  “If it’s not about the restaurant, then no, I don’t.” She takes a step to the left to go around me, but I block her. An exasperated sigh escapes her. “I don’t have time for your bullshit.”

  She moves her hands to shove me, but I capture her wrists and pull her flush against me. Our bodies are touching, heat soaring off them. Eyes are locked and filled with heat. One thing that even I can’t deny is this connection we share. Need and want aren’t a problem when it comes to us. It’s everything else. Even though I know that, even though it’s wrong, my lips move toward her. We both want this; I can tell by the way her pulse quickens under my touch. I might be willing to give in, but she sure as hell isn’t. Not yet anyway. She yanks her wrists from out of my hold, her eyes still on mine.

  “This isn’t over,” I tell her.

  “Like hell it isn’t,” she replies before she turns and disappears down the hallway.

  Everything between us has always been so high voltage. When we were on, we were on. When we were fighting, fuck I would be lying if I said it wasn’t even better.

  As I watch her walk away from me, I can’t help but wonder what the hell it is that she’s so pissed about? I’m the one she cheated on. I’m the one she left.

  “What the hell is your problem?” I call after her.

  Whether she hears me or not, I’m not sure. She sure as hell doesn’t answer me though. She just continues on, leaving me confused
as fuck for a second time.

  14

  Mia

  As I enter the Onyx, I keep my eyes peeled for signs of Cooper or Wyatt. Slowly I make my way through the building being extra cautious so as not to be seen. When I am finally tucked away safely in my office, I rest against the closed door and breathe a sigh of relief. I managed to escape both of them – for now. No doubt that I will have to deal with each of them at some point today. But at least not until I’ve had my coffee hopefully.

  I settle into my chair and take the first sip of coffee. As I do, I can’t help but wonder…What in the ever-loving fuck did I do to deserve this?

  My head is still spinning from seeing Cooper yesterday and the realization that we are going to be stuck working together. I’m still not sure how I managed to get through our meeting with Mitchell without losing it. As quickly as possible, I retreated to my office for a much needed deep breath. I was good – until Cooper walked in. His shoulder leaning against the door, the look on his face that told me he wasn’t through with me yet. Especially once his eyes landed on Wyatt perched on my desk. I would be lying if I said that I didn’t get the teeniest amount of pleasure from watching him squirm when Wyatt confirmed our dinner plans.

  It took everything in me to not act like a child by sticking out my tongue at him. Luckily, I managed to escape unscathed. For now, at least. Eventually this is all going to implode on me, but I am not opposed to it happening later rather than sooner.

  Glancing down at my watch I realize that Cooper should be in full swing with Nina the interior designer by now. I can only imagine what she’s doing, how bad she’s coming onto him. I knew exactly what was going to happen the minute I suggested the two of them work together – Nina is going to get super touchy feely and Cooper is going to hate every minute of it. Call it revenge – because that’s exactly what it is. The man deserves to suffer a little any way that I can make it happen.

  As for Wyatt…

  Well, I just can’t bring myself to face him. I consumed several glasses of wine last night in hopes of just forgetting about Cooper for a moment. But I couldn’t do it. It’s not like we were on a date or anything but still I feel guilty having spent the majority of the evening talking about Cooper. Especially after how perfect Wyatt was. He really is an amazing man. Why can’t he be the one that I want instead of Cooper? Answer: Because Cooper is the only man that I have ever truly wanted.