“I love y?—”
She cuts me off, kissing me again just as the front door opens.
“Halliday?” The man’s eyes widen behind his glasses as Hallie shoots back from me.
“Dad!” She pulls him into a hug before he can react. He sinks into it, patting her back.
“I thought I heard someone at the door. Your flight got in early?”
“We had a tailwind,” she replies just as a woman with short silvery-blonde hair joins her father at the door.
“Sweetheart!”
The woman pulls Hallie into an embrace, and I hang back, watching as they fuss over her and tell her how much they’ve missed her.
“Mum, Dad, I want you to meet Sterling.” She moves back to my side and wraps her hands around my bicep. “Sterling, this is my mum and dad, Julie and Garth.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Burton.” I extend a hand which they both shake as they look between the two of us, their eyes full of questions.
“You’re her client from New York?”
“He was, Mum,” Hallie answers. “I’ve got a lot to tell you.”
Her father stares at me in silence as her mother masks her shock more effectively.
“Of course you do. And we can’t wait to hear it all, right, Garth?”
Her father says nothing.
“Now, come in.” Her mother opens the door wide.
I nod politely at her father. But his gaze is firmly planted on Hallie’s hand that she’s wrapped inside mine, tugging me over the threshold.
“Garth!” her mother snaps.
He finally moves, shutting the door behind us with a deep thud.
Fifteen minutes later, we’re sitting in the front room with a tray of tea and biscuits on a small coffee table in front of us. Garth gave me a tour of the garden, showing me his new chainsaw that he said can cut through bone like it’s butter, while Hallie helped her mom get the tea ready.
Everyone has been too polite to talk about why we’re really here.
“So, you live in New York?” Garth asks me, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.
“I do. It’s where I was born. My family’s from there.”
He nods and takes in my suit.
“What do you do?”
“My family runs a jewelry firm. We’re known for our diamonds. I’ve taken a step back from the day-to-day running now though. I own a chain of piano lounges.”
“They’re amazing,” Hallie gushes. “People go there to relax. It’s like another world stepping inside.”
I smile as her face glows. She understands Seasons and why it’s so important to me. Hearing her talk about it with such passion only makes me love her more.
“And you hired our daughter to find you a partner?” Garth asks.
“No, Sterling’s daughter, Sinclair, hired me,” Hallie tells him.
