It felt as though all the air had been sucked from the room, leaving none for her to breathe. Her brain tried to make sense of the words coming out of Fisher’s mouth, then rearrange them so they meant something different. Anything besides their actual meaning. She didn’t want to believe him, because it would mean she’d been suckered into believing an elaborate lie. An unnecessary one, at that. Had he known so little about her that he thought she needed fancy dinners and expensive gifts to be happy? Those things meant nothing to her.

Jack paying Fisher to break their engagement…surely such a horrible thing couldn’t possibly be true. While her mother had always characterized Jack as a controlling man—someone who thought his influence was required in every situation—this transcended anything she could have imagined.

“I was on the verge of bankruptcy. You know what that would mean for my career. It felt like I had no other choice. I’m so sorry.”

It all made sense now. The abruptness of their breakup. Fisher’s constant stress. His need to work around the clock. And yet, she felt more anger over Jack’s betrayal than any of that. He’d gone behind her back and rearranged her life without consulting her once.

She turned to her father, but he averted his eyes, confirming Fisher’s story. “Seriously, Dad?” Disbelief colored her tone.

“It’s complicated.”

“I’ll try to keep up.”

Jack released a long, weary sigh. “This heart attack didn’t come as a surprise. My doctor had been telling me to slow down. That I was at risk. It was a wake-up call.” He gestured toward Fisher. “I wanted to make sure you would be taken care of if something happened. I couldn’t let you marry someone like him.”

A hysterical sound sprang from her throat. “Oh, really? Did you have someone else in mind?” As soon as the question left her mouth, the answer flattened her like a falling piano. The last week passed through her mind in a series of flashbacks. Jack asking Daniel to drive her home that first day. Jack recommending she try Quincy’s Pub on a night Daniel conveniently was present. Jack’s insistence that she attend the Mets game with Daniel. Jack texting them both to come to the hospital, then sending them out together to get his breakfast.

He’d been matchmaking. She’d been…match-made. All this week, she’d felt like she was finally coming into her own. Making decisions for herself. Doing what felt right, not simply what people expected of her. Instead, she’d been manipulated. By someone she trusted. Pain and embarrassment soured her stomach.

Daniel looked at her with growing concern. “Story?”

“Did you know?” she croaked out.

His eyebrows drew together. “Know what?”

She glanced at Jack, but his gaze was locked on Daniel. “He’s been pushing us together this entire time. I can’t believe I didn’t see it. I can’t believe you didn’t see it.”

“No,” Daniel said, shaking his head briskly. “He told me to stay away from you. He told me to keep my hands off of y—” He dropped heavily into a chair and covered his face with his hands. “Oh, holy shit.”

“About time, Danny,” Jack commented drily. “I thought your time with me had been completely wasted. We covered reverse psychology on day one.”

“Reverse…” Story trailed off, the full scope of the situation hitting her. Her stomach rolled as though she might be sick. Her horrified gaze sought Daniel’s, but he merely looked stunned by what he’d learned. “This whole thing between us…it was just you wanting something you couldn’t have.”

His entire body jerked, disbelief blanketing his features. “No. No.” He shot to his feet and cradled her face in his hands. “I was done the second I saw you. Done. How we got here is just details.”

Fisher spoke behind her, his voice vibrating with intensity. “We’re both just victims here, Story. I made a huge mistake and I’m taking responsibility for it. I’m giving Jack back the money. We can work through this together.”

Daniel’s spoke through clenched teeth. “Stop talking to her.”

I need to get out of this room. Away from the three men in her life, or she would suffocate. Feelings of betrayal, disillusionment, and pain whirled inside her until she felt numb inside. She blinded herself to anything besides getting out of the hospital room and to the elevator, having no idea where she would go once she got outside. Just somewhere she didn’t have to look at any of them.

She’d almost made it to the door when Daniel’s hand banded around her elbow. In a voice ringing with emotion, he spoke low enough that only she could hear. “Don’t walk away from me. You know what’s between us is real. You know.”

Even now, Story wanted to throw herself into his arms and draw on his strength. Instead, she yanked her arm away and kept walking, vaguely aware of Fisher following behind her. “Right now, I’m not sure I know anything…or anyone.”

Chapter Twenty

Daniel felt the knife twist in his gut as Story and her ex-fiancé disappeared into the elevator that would take her farther away from him. Somehow, in the last ten minutes he’d fallen from the highest high to the dark pit he currently resided in and he still wasn’t quite sure how it happened. She’d been on the verge of telling Jack about them. He still couldn’t quite believe it. With a smile on her face, she’d stood next to him as though she couldn’t be more proud to reintroduce him to her father. This time as her boyfriend.

For that brief moment, he’d been the luckiest man on the planet. He’d thought, hell, if she believed he was good enough for her, maybe he’d start to believe it after a while. I’ll learn how to make her happy. How to be a boyfriend. How to handle the fact that he’d fallen in love.

He couldn’t deny it any longer. Now that he knew what it felt like to watch her walk away, he knew for sure. God, he wished he’d realized it before now. Wished he’d told her. In his entire life, he’d never uttered those words to anyone else, and now they threatened to burst from his chest. If he’d told her how he felt, maybe she wouldn’t be doubting him now.

Swallowing his desire to sprint down the stairs after her, he went back into the room to face Jack alone. The older man sat propped up in the bed, staring out the window of his room.

Daniel fell into a chair by the door and leaned forward, hands clasped between his knees. They were silent for long moments while Daniel gathered his thoughts. “You must not have very much confidence in me,” he finally said. “Telling me to stay away from your daughter, all the while knowing I couldn’t. Knowing I would fail.”

Jack turned to him, surprise evident on his face. “You still haven’t grasped the point, have you? I have every confidence in you. You didn’t fail.”

“I’ve about had it with mind games for the day. Just be clear.”

“Very well, spoilsport.” Daniel sent him an exasperated look that he ignored. “What I said before earlier is true. I wanted Story happy and secure in case I knocked off early.”

He snorted. “And that involved blackmailing her doctor fiancé to break their engagement, then sending her my way. Who, as you put it, has a f**ked-up track record with women?”