Page 33

‘Yeah, I’ll give it a shot. Thanks, man,’ I sighed, grasping comfort from his wisdom. ‘Enough of my bawlin’. Say hi to Sofia for me.’

‘Will do. Talk later.’

I ended the call, set the phone face down on the flat balustrade.

Taking a slow pull of my beer, I leaned my elbows against the ledge and stared out at the infinite blue horizon.

As a small breeze swept over me, my thoughts lingered on Ana.

Did she ever yearn for me as I did her?

Probably not, given that she and Massimo were still married.

The thought lanced me with pain.

She was meant to be my wife, not his.

I caught the sounds of Christine cleaning up in the kitchen after dinner, then she called out as she wandered onto the terrace.

‘Hey, Deacon, why don’t you head out, get a drink in town, and I’ll keep an eye on Raff. You need a night out, have some fun, don’t be a fuddy-duddy on holiday.’

She had a point.

I swiveled to her, an eyebrow arched.

‘Think I should?’

Raff answered from inside the house.

‘Dad, please go and do dad things and stop sulking around every evening. Christine and I will be fine.’

His cadence was a semi-bored, preteen drawl, one I couldn’t argue with.

I was in Spain, on my freakin’ vacation.

Raff didn’t require me by his side 24/7 or to look after him while I paid Christina to be his carer too.

I deserved to enjoy some time on my own as a single, grown-ass man.

With a sigh, I gave in.

‘Sounds like a good idea.’

An hour later, showered and dressed in slacks, a sleek black tee, an overcoat, and dress shoes, I said my goodbyes to Raff and hailed an Uber.

‘Don’t sleep too late.’

‘Hey, I’m on holiday,’ he groused, standing up from the couch to hug me.

With my arms still around him, I narrowed my eyes at Christina. ‘Don’t let him sweet-talk you into a midnight bedtime.’

‘I’ve got you. Stay out all night if you feel like it,’ she said, winking.

I shook my head and huffed. ‘Unlikely, Christine; my party days are over.’

With a chin lift to the pair, I headed out and stepped into the driveway where the Uber was already idling.

I slid into the back seat and sank into the leather as we headed toward Málaga, its headlights cutting through the dark roads.