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“I can’t tell her because she’s gone,” I said, fury building within me to imagine the scene, knowing how mortified Erin would’ve been. She’d been so insistent that I promise not to tell anyone about her situation, so to have everyone find out was her worst nightmare. It started to make more sense why she’d left without seeing me. She was too upset to face me, and Cathy could be a real bitch when the mood took her.

Natalie’s lip wobbled. “What do you mean she’s gone?”

“She left town with her sister. Looks like she won’t be coming back.”

“But…not because of Cathy, right?”

Ah, hell, Natalie was a sweet girl, and she obviously felt guilty. Perhaps this would teach her to keep her mouth shut about other people’s business in future. “No, she had other things going on, but Cathy doing that to her in her place of work can’t have helped.”

I walked away from her, still worked up thinking of the hurt Erin must’ve felt. I just wanted to find her and soothe her, tell her she had nothing to be embarrassed about and that Cathy was a bitch and… Well, it was all pointless because she was gone, and I had no way to track her down. I’d already tried finding her online, but other than an old Facebook account that hadn’t been active in over a year, she was a ghost.

It was Friday evening when I finally got some answers. Derek and I were headed to the gym for our usual workout when I heard a commotion over by reception. When we went to investigate, I saw Graham harassing one of the receptionists.

“Just tell me her forwarding address, and I’ll leave,” he demanded.

“Sir, security is on their way, so if you don’t leave now—”

“What’s going on?” I asked, Derek at my back.

Graham turned, his face twisted in a nasty scowl. “You! Tell me where they went, or I’ll—”

“Or you’ll do nothing,” Derek interjected. “Get the fuck out of here before I drag you out myself.”

Graham ignored the threat. “I’m not going anywhere until you tell me where Sloane and that little bitch went.”

My face hardened, eyes narrowing to slits. “Call her that again and see what happens.”

Derek, who now knew the entire story of Erin and me, quickly put together what was going on. “Is this the scumbag boyfriend?”

“The one and only.”

“What did you just call me?”

“You heard him. You’re a scumbag and a creep, and Erin and her sister are well rid of you,” I said, realising he was about to swing for me. I ducked just in time to avoid the punch, and seconds later, Mr Parsons was there, alongside another member of the hotel security team. They grabbed Graham, put his arms in a lock and began frogmarching him out of the building. He struggled, spat and swore the entire time, but they eventually got him out.

“Bloody hell, you weren’t joking about that guy,” Derek said after we checked in with the receptionist to see if she was okay. She seemed a little shaken, but she reassured us she was fine.

“Yeah, weirdly I’m relieved, though. I had no idea if they’d gone with him or on their own, but now it’s making way more sense. They must’ve left so suddenly to get away from him.”

“That’s probably why Erin never mentioned where she was going too,” Derek said. “She knew the sister’s boyfriend would come looking for information on where they went.”

“I think so,” I said, a strange relief filling me. Even though I still missed her, it was good to know that Erin and her sister had gone somewhere Graham wouldn’t find them, that they could live their lives without him putting a rift between them again.

“You really liked her, didn’t you,” Derek observed. He knew me too well not to notice I’d been down the last couple of days.

“I did, but I’m glad she’s safe. That’s enough for me.”

Derek arched an eyebrow. “Is it?”

“It has to be. I have no way of finding her, and she obviously doesn’t want to be found, so what other choice do I have?”

“I guess it’s a good thing you didn’t know her long enough to get attached,” he said, and I nodded, even though it wasn’t true. I had gotten attached, and I’d missed her every day since she’d been gone. I just hoped it got easier with time.

Wherever she was, I told myself she was happy, thriving and safe. It was the only way to move on. I thought that maybe she’d get back in touch once the coast was clear and Graham was no longer looking for them. But then the days turned to weeks, the weeks to months, and I still never heard from Erin. My life went on, and the memory of her faded, but whenever she popped into my mind, I imagined her happy and living well somewhere better. The bond between her and her sister restored, stronger for the hurdles they’d faced. Some part of me still hoped our paths would cross one day, and long years later, that hope came to fruition.

When it did, I never imagined that she’d be going by a different name, her appearance completely changed from the girl I once knew, and that I wouldn’t remember her at all.