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full public view , he punished her nonchalance with his tongue , spearing arousal into her body. Angry at her body for liking the kiss, she let out a hiss as he released her.
    “That was uncalled for.” She pushed out of his arms and regained a semblance of composure. Fool , she berated herself, and then rattled off her phone number before running the rest of the way to her building.
    Two hours later, she sat behind her desk at Artistic Expressions going over the recent changes in her life . She’d won her bid on a lark and paid for the building in cash from her inheritance. The art she bought catered to a variety of customers. Being able to sell to any class of society made her dream a reality. Many people appreciated fine art, but couldn’t afford to purchas e on a high end scale.
    The artists she’d commissioned, along with the ones who ha d come to her , agreed wholeheartedly art should be available to anyone who enjoyed the inspiration artists brought to life , regardless of financial status . Supporting her community, her brothers and sisters gave her the fulfillment she thought she needed. Now she questioned her other needs .
    J ust t hen the television flashed and she saw Sloan. Confusion washed through her, followed by clarity. How could he be part of some sick scheme to hurt her further? Her mind spun as her gut clenched in anger over being used, tricked . S he felt tears of humiliation before they filled her eyes . With shaky hands , she picked up her purse and le ft her building as if the devil were on her heels . She walked down the block to where she recognized the conference was being held . Furious with nothing else to lose, she pushed herself past the photographers and reporters and stopped directly in view of him. This new act of cruelty was the last straw.
    “B riar ?” He spoke into the microphone , having the nerve to beam a smile at her.
    “You are worse than the snake behind you. Did you have fun? Did all of you laugh?” She turned her rage on every team member in front of her. Cameras whirred behind her , but she didn’t care . T hose same members of the media killed her heart with their cameras six months previous ly .
    “What are you talking about, Briar ?” Sloan hushed the crowd with a look.
    “ Unbelievable . Y ou can hush an entire audience with one glance , but I’ll be damned if you silence me. Am I supposed to be the pity of my home town again? Is there no escaping the scandal that ripped me apart? Do you all find humor in tearing me down further? This is surreal. ” Oh he played blind ignorance well. He had to know. After all , as the new owner of her ex’s baseball team , he should know all the players’ public pitfalls .
    “Would someone, anyone , care t o clue me in to what she’s ranting about?” His eyes turned obsidian black, the way his jaw ticked as he spoke sent a ripple of unease through her. This wasn’t a man to mess with. But h e sealed his fate by taking advantage of her.
    “I repeat, would someone tell me what is going on here?” He gripped the podium. Vehemence laced his voice when he repeated his question.
    No one in th e press bothered to make the first move.
    Pathetically, only Westly had the nerve to step forward. “She’s my ex and s he’s bitter , so don’t listen to her. We didn’t last. I met and married someone else . It’s not my fault she can’t get over me and move on with her life .”
    “Someone besides this idiotic prick care to enlighten me?” He snarled at Westly.
    A local reporter decided to fill Sloan in on what led to this scene. “ Mr. Jonston scandalized the public when he cut Ms. Thompson off without a dime … while they lived together . We received word from a reliable source that he closed all accounts and married another woman right under her nose . When the pictures came out, the unveiled bride wasn’t Ms. Thompson . They’d been together since high school . He used to play up their re lationship to us so the story