I smile to myself as I continue the movement when he takes his left hand off the handle and straightens slightly, resting his arm against my knee, and I feel the butterflies in my stomach take flight.
If someone had told me a week ago that I’d be riding on the back of a motorcycle with a man that I had been matched with, I would’ve said they were crazy. I never expected to feel this way this fast, but Levi has made everything so easy, so natural. I knew I was being slightly irresponsible with it all, leaving my heart wide open for him when I was keeping my own secrets as if nothing would happen. It was like I was a high school girl in love.
But this freedom, this feeling, was something I wanted to grab with both hands and never let go. Levi has made me feel more in the week that we’ve been together than I’ve felt in ages. I’ve felt heard, wanted, and admired. I’ve felt like my feelings were being cared for. I was comfortable and laughing and happy—genuinely happy—for the first time in a long time.
However, despite all of that, I still find myself hesitating, fighting the urge I feel to go all in. Because even though all those things, all those feelings, were what I wanted, it still has only been a week—and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, a lot can change in a short amount of time. Who knows what tomorrow or the next day will bring? Who is to say that this feeling will last? No matter how much I may want to succumb to this, may want to throw caution to the wind and fully enjoy myself for the first time in years, I can’t—I have to protect my heart at all costs.
And yet, part of me feels like this was inevitable, us coming together. That it wouldn’t have mattered what was going on in my life, he would’ve walked into it and turned my world upside down. So, who am I to fight that?
Maybe I’m starting to believe in fate, after all.
CHAPTER TWELVE
A THURSDAY IN JUNE
I’m sitting at my desk, finishing up an email, when my eyes catch on the fresh bouquet resting on my desk. This week, Levi sent me lilies, stating he was going to buy me every type of flower he could think of until I found a favorite.
These past three weeks have flown by but have been some of the best of my life. At least in the aspect of dating, of course. Levi has made me four home-cooked meals and taken me out for karaoke. We even got lucky when Claire got invited to a friend’s house after school one day so we could try a new restaurant in the city.
He stopped by the office almost every day. Whether it be to drop off a coffee from my favorite shop on his way in, bringing me lunch when I was elbow deep in matches, or simply walking me to my car at the end of the day. It was a pleasant change of pace.
However, lying to him was getting more and more difficult. I was running out of excuses why I couldn’t spend more time with him that didn’t involve telling him about Claire. Truthfully, it wasn’t just the fear of him no longer wanting to be with me, not wanting to add a child into his life, but was also a concern of me being pushed to introduce them if he was okay with it.
I’m nowhere near ready for Claire to meet him, and I’m nervous that he’ll want that sooner than I’m prepared for. I still haven’t talked to her about her father, so the last thing I want to do is introduce a whole other complication to her life.
And the worst part is, every time I talk to Blue, I realize just how insane I sound. One moment I want to tell him and the next I don’t. That I want to do what’s best for me for once and then worry about everyone and everything else the next. I can’t make up my mind, unable to stick to my guns like I so desperately wish I could.
I’m pulled out of my thoughts by the sound of my phone vibrating on my desk. Putting a pause on my email response to one of our clients, I reach for it. My eyebrows furrow as I stare at an unknown number before deciding to answer.
“This is Marlowe Reyes,” I greet, leaning back in my chair.
“Good afternoon, Marlowe,” a male voice says. “This is Jerry. I hope now is a good time.”
I sit up straighter, shaking my head as if he can see me. “Now is fine. What’s going on?”
“I just wanted to call and inform you of the status of the investigation,” he tells me, and I can practically feel the lump forming in my throat. “We finished our initial investigation, but we are now at a standstill. Next step would be looking at the cars themselves, but that has presented a challenge.”
“I still don’t understand,” I say, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Why can’t you just watch the traffic cam footage? That’ll clearly tell you what happened.”
I’m met with silence for a moment, causing my brows to furrow as I prepare myself for bad news. “Unfortunately, it appears as if the traffic cam footage from that night has been lost.”
“How is that possible?” I grind my teeth together to try to keep my voice down, aware that there are other people around me.
“I’m afraid I don’t have an answer for you,” he replies, and I can hear his frustration. “But I promise you, Marlowe, I will continue to do everything I can here to get justice for your father and sister.”
“Thank you,” I mumble, closing my eyes as I lean back in my chair.
Jerry hums before saying, “I’ll call you when I have more. Have a good day.”
Hanging up the phone, I get little time to myself to mull over the information I have just been given as I see Kirstin striding towards me from the entrance. I sigh, running a hand down my face before I spin in my chair so I can watch her approach.
“Did you see today’s paper?” She asks once she’s only a couple feet away. I shake my head as she extends it in my direction. “Check out the front page.”
Glancing down, my eyes widen at the headline staring at me in big bold letters.
Levi Wright, CEO of Wright Enterprises and New York’s Most Eligible Bachelor, off the market?
Below the headline is a photo of Levi and I when we had visited some restaurant earlier in the week. You can’t see my face, but he has his arm around my shoulders and the way he’s looking down at me as I talk to the bartender would have any woman swooning if they were in my spot.
