“There, there,” he said in the same singsong voice she used with him when he fell over.Tears stung her eyes.
“Mommy’s all right, honey.”She gave him a big smile and crouched down next to him.He handed her a seashell.“That’s a gorgeous one,” she said.“Can you find two more to make three?”
He scanned the shallow waters, his playful splashing reminding her of what was important.
Love.Unbreakable bonds.Friendship.Family.
She wanted that for her son.And dammit, she wanted it for herself too.
Aloneatthebungalow,Dan sat at the little bistro table, stewing over what Libby had told him.
He’d always love Isabella…
He’d said that?Had he meant it?He’d been so cut up about their breakup, so exhausted from the long journey and being hounded by the press for weeks on end, but yeah, he’d been yearning for Isabella then.He’d wanted to go back to the time when they’d been happy together.When they’d planned out their future.
But had it really beentheirfuture, or just his?
Like him, Isabella had said she wanted children eventually, but she’d wanted to live in Los Angeles, or New York, or somewhere other than England more, especially while her career took off.Dan had always thought that was her mother’s influence, always pushing Isabella to have bigger, better things.He’d known that living at his home in Somerset wasn’t the upper echelons of glam celebrity life, but it was his home, and he’d always believed Isabella had loved it as much as he did.
But maybe not.
Maybe he’d been so focused on recreating his own family life—like his sisters had done—that he hadn’t noticed he’d lost track of what she wanted.
Now, Dan replayed the day Isabella had told him about Hunter, when she’d looked so pale that even before she’d begun to speak, he’d asked if she was ill.She’d shaken her head and then burst into tears.“I just don’t love you,” she’d said.Then she’d cried harder as she told him she’d fallen in love with Xavier Hunter.That after his next film, he’d be leaving his wife.He hadn’t been happy for a very long time, and now that they’d found each other, he’d started to live again, and so had she.
“He’s married” had been all Dan could think to say, “and you’re engaged to me!”
“But I’m not happy, and neither is Xav.Why should we live our lives being married to people we’re no longer in love with?That’s not fair to anyone.”
None of it was fair.
But it was real, and it had happened.Every day of the week, people fell in and out of love.
At least Isabella had been honest with him.
At least she hadn’t gone through with the wedding, saying her vows to his face, lying to him and everyone else.That would have been worse.A lot worse.
The rejection had stung, but now with some clarity, and especially now that he’d met Libby, Dan recalled how kind and nice Isabella could be.She must love Hunter a lot, because she’d never be so callous as to have a casual affair just for the sake of sex.
He only hoped that her and Hunter’s love was strong enough to ride the storm that was heading their way if rumors were escalating.He’d found nothing online about them, and he hadn’t heard from Isabella since yesterday, either.But at least he’d done his bit to warn her.The rest was up to her now, and he had other, bigger things on his mind.
Like how he was going to sort things out with Libby.
Because despite how she kept pushing him away—and despite how cross she’d made him—they weren’t over yet.
Watching her and Karim leave just now had been tough.He’d wanted to chase after them but hadn’t trusted himself to not say something else he’d regret.Saying they didn’t really know each other had been bad enough.Did Libby know he hadn’t meant it?Their immediate connection went deep into his bones.Was that how Libby felt too about him?He might not know everything about her life, but he knew enough to want to know more.And he definitely knew she made him happy.
And Karim too.
Together, they’d made him enjoy life again.
They’d made him stronger.
Dan drummed his fingers on the bistro table.Once, he’d daydreamed about eating meals out here with Isabella on their honeymoon, but now those images had faded like wallpaper in the background.Other, brighter daydreams filled his vision instead.Possibilities.Chances.Choices.
Do what makes you happy…
So, he got his phone and held it up to his face.No shields, no distractions.Just him and the screen.He pressed record.
