“I only need ten minutes of your time.”
“You’ve already wasted enough.” I scoffed. “We don’t owe each other anything, remember?”
“I’ll settle for just two minutes.” His voice was soft. “Please.”
“No.” I held firm. “But, since you were so ‘generous’ on the day we first met, I’ll repay that favor. You have thirty seconds before I call security.”
“I’m not joking with you, Chloe.”
“You must be.” I narrowed my eyes. “Tick tock…”
“I’ve been doing some thinking.” His eyes locked on mine. “I haven’t gotten a good night’s sleep since you left me.”
“Since you pushed me away.” I corrected him.
“Yes, since then…I also feel like I was a bit harsh.”
A bit?
“I was also thinking that if you let me explain things, I could?—”
I slammed the door in his face.
His thirty seconds were up.
I rushed back over to my suitcase and sat on it. I zipped it tight and tossed all my toiletries into a duffel bag.
Making sure I had my laptop charger, I checked all the drawers and cubbies one last time.
Twenty minutes later, when I reopened the door, Dante was long gone.
THE AGENT
CHLOE
Marie
Gahhh! Stuck in traffic!
You can go inside our new place without me.
You sure? I can wait.
It’s looking like a two-hour jam.
Go ahead. Just be ready to help me pump up our air mattresses whenever I finally get there.
Deal.
Istepped off the elevator and rolled my suitcase next to the stack of others we’d left in the hallway.
Walking over to our new door, I slid the key into the lock and pushed the door open to our new lives.
As I hit the lights, my jaw dropped to the floor.
Warm amber lighting glowed beneath the kitchen cabinets, soft jazz drifted through hidden speakers, and the entire condo smelled faintly like vanilla and fresh linen.
For one stupid second, I actually wondered if I’d walked into the wrong life.
