“Women,” she said. “One woman, specifically. My girlfriend Mya. We’ve been together on and off for over a year and I love her, but my parents would implode if they knew.”
I nodded. “That explains a lot. I kinda already knew thought because it was the only way any woman would turn a nigga like me down.”
“Boy please. My point is,” she looked me in the eye, “you’re not the only one trapped in a storyline you didn’t write. I didn’t ask to be anybody’s corporate wife. You didn’t ask to be the legacy golden boy, yet here we are.”
I couldn’t argue that because she was right. All I cared about was running my businesses and becoming successful off my own shit. I didn’t give a damn about no legacy bullshit or a company being passed down to me.
“You sure you can deal with that?” I asked. “Me going back up there?”
She rolled her eyes. “Niko, you’ve been dealing with it all year. Might as well let the mountains take a turn.”
I snorted. “Fair.”
“And for the record,” she added, “this trip isn’t about me. You’re not my type—at ALL. I’m just trying to make this engagement tolerable for both of us. If going up there gets you straight? Merry Christmas.”
I shook my head, laughing once, low. “You wild.”
“I’m honest.” She stood. “So? You down or not?”
Every sensible part of me said let it go. There was no possible way that she would be there again. A lot can change overtime, and I just didn’t want to admit how I would feel if she wasn’t there but, I was willing to take the chance.
“Yeah,” I said finally. “Book it.”
She exhaled, relieved. “Good. I already reserved the cabin. I just needed you to say yes so I didn’t feel crazy.”
“You booked it BEFORE coming here?”
“Of course.” She shrugged. “You’re a control freak. If I didn’t lock it in first, you’d find a reason to cancel.”
I sighed. “You know me too well.”
“I do. Just not in the way our families want.”
She slipped her heels on, grabbed her purse, then paused at the door.
“One more thing.”
“What.”
“If you see her? Don’t haunt yourself another year. Speak up and tell her how you really feel or let it go,” she said and walked out.
Silence took over the condo, and I welcomed it. I walked to the window, seeing Dallas sparkle like it had something to celebrate, yet I didn’t feel any of it. All I could think about was her being somewhere out there, living… existing… with noidea that I was about to walk right back into the space we once shared.
“Elise,” I whispered her name out loud for the third time since she walked out that cabin room.
Winter Haven was calling me back and I didn’t know if I would get closure, chaos or answers, but I knew one thing for sure… I wasn’t walking away from it or letting it walk away from me.
Chapter 13
Noelle
By the time my flight touched down in Asheville, my nerves were already sitting high in my throat. I had spent the entire plane ride rehearsing calm, deep breaths, quiet thoughts, and the same mantra Bree fed me that morning:You’re going to rest. That’s it. Rest.But the second the airport doors slid open and the cold mountain air wrapped around me, all those thoughts dissolved. The air was sharp enough to slice through my thin jacket, reminding me that this was not Atlanta weather. A Winter Haven driver stood near the curb holding a small sign with my name on it.
“Ms. Sterling?” he called.
“That’s me,” I said, tugging my coat closer. He grabbed my suitcase and guided me toward a black SUV waiting in the pickup lane.
The moment I settled into the back seat, I exhaled, taking in the silence that the busy airport didn’t offer. The SUV eased onto the winding road. Pine trees rose tall on either side; branches dusted with snow. Clouds hung low, the sky pale gray. I tried to relax into it… I wanted to, but my fingers stayed clenched around the strap of my purse like it was the only stable thing left in my life.
