From home, ninety percent of the time, and when I have to go in, she’s with my mom, who adores her, I want to snap back. I bite my tongue and smile at Chloe, wiping the tears from her cheeks.
“Mama will be back soon. I love you so much, Chloe. FaceTime me with her, okay, Christian?” I say it with energy injected into my voice, so she hopefully won’t pick up on how much I despise her father.
“We will,” he says. “You met my girlfriend, Anastasia?”
“Yes.”
Anastasia walks up to Christian and coos at Chloe. And then she turns and picks up a tall glass containing something bright red and takes a long swig.
“Want some watermelon?” she asks Chloe and moves toward me to get to the table and somehow manages to spillher huge candy-red drink down the front of my white blouse and gray pencil skirt.
I yelp. It’s cold and my clothes are dripping wet. I smell like Hawaiian Punch and vodka.
“Oops, sorry,” Anastasia says, not sounding sorry at all, and Christian has the audacity to laugh.
“I guess that’s one way to lighten you up,” Christian tells me. “Go get her something else to wear, Anastasia.”
Both Anastasia and I gape at him, but she rushes off. The few clothes I brought for this trip have sand from the beach, so they don’t sound much more appealing than what I’m wearing now. She brings out clothes, and I swallow my pride as I go into the house and change.
Ugh. I’d never wear anything showing so much skin, but I’m just flying home. I can handle a few hours and then pull my coat out of my suitcase to cover up when I land.
Christian’s inside with Chloe when I step out of the bathroom.
“Probably best to just go quickly,” he says.
I nod. For once, we’re in agreement.
“Call me if you need anything,” I say. “I can come back sooner than two weeks. I just have to get home for a few meetings this week.”
“We won’t need you,” he says.
I nod again, stiff like a robot, and blow Chloe a kiss.
Tears are running down my cheeks as I leave my baby there, and I hear her crying as I walk to the rental car.
The airport is a madhouse. I don’t like flying and always get so nervous before a flight, so even though I should eat something, I don’t. I’m too upset after leaving Chloeanyway. Maybe I’ll buy one of those boxed meals on the flight.
About an hour into the flight, I feel strange and get up to use the bathroom. I must move too fast because I see spots, and then everything goes dark.
I think I must be dreaming because there’s a soft “Are you okay?” just as I’m registering something underneath me and then look up to see the most perfect face. A face I noticed in the airport.
“What—?” I croak.
Inside, I’m screaming,What’s happening? Am I on a lap? How did I get here?
“I think you passed out,” Perfect Guy with Perfect Hair says in his perfect, sexy voice.
I am not well. I must have hit my head or something. I swore off men after Christian and have had no trouble sticking to that plan. It hasn’t been the slightest hardship because I haven’t had even a flicker of interest in anyone.
But I hadn’t seen this guy yet.
Except…I do remember seeing him at the airport and being arrested by his face. But I was too distraught about Chloe to pay much attention to him.
His hair is dark and shorter on the sides, wavy and flopping over his forehead on the top. His eyes are a beautiful hazel, but what’s most arresting about them is the way they’re lit up. His eyes smile, and I cannot look away.
I feel a draft up my legs, and that gets me moving. I don’t even know what I say out loud next, because with the guy’s hands steadying me, my brain is blitzing. It only gets worse when he helps me into the seat next to him.
My head falls back on the headrest, and I count to ten. When I look down, I gasp at how much of my legs are showing. Like, all of them. I’d completely forgotten I was wearingAnastasia’s mini…if it can even be called that. It barely covers my ass.
