Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 77016 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77016 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Skye is far from perfect. She’s headstrong, stubborn, and impulsive.
She’s also intelligent, beautiful, and creative.
And though she’s not perfect…
I’ve come to realize that she’s perfect for me.
Ending my relationship with her was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. I don’t regret it, of course. It was necessary at the time. But I’m thrilled that we’ve worked it out.
Skye knocks softly and then enters. “Hey.”
“I’m almost finished,” I say.
“Great. I’m going to go see Tessa. She should be home by now. Her mom’s going to stay at her place for a while, but I want to see her before we leave.”
I nod. “Be back in two hours. That’ll give us enough time to get to the airport.”
“I will.” She grabs her phone. “Just going to catch an Uber.”
“No need. A car’s waiting downstairs for you.”
“Is Christopher back?”
“No. I ordered a car today in case we needed one, and it turns out we do. I’d go with you, but I need to finish up this document.”
“It’s okay. I understand. I don’t want to overwhelm her.”
“You think I’d overwhelm her?”
“Braden, you overwhelm everyone.”
The left side of my mouth twitches slightly. I’m trying not to smile.
Skye laughs. “You try so hard to be stoic all the time. Why? Let yourself go, Braden!”
“You sound like Tessa,” I say.
“Yes, I do. And she has a point. Let it out! Let yourself laugh! For God’s sake, I’m right, and you know it. You do overwhelm everyone. It’s who you are. Love yourself for who you are. Let it out!”
This time I allow a smile to form. “Oh, Skye,” I say. “You don’t want me to let it out.”
“Of course I do. Be happy!”
“I am happy. You know that. I’m happier than I’ve ever been with you.”
“That’s not what I mean, though I’m really glad about that. What I mean is that life sucks sometimes. We’ve had a few rough times. But we’re back together. Tessa’s going to be okay. Life is good, Braden. Enjoy it.”
“You really want me to let myself go?”
“Yes. I really do.”
“Are you sure? Because I’m not sure you know what you’re asking for.”
Skye has no idea how dark I can actually go. I keep myself in check—as much for myself as for her. Because the darkness I crave isn’t good for either of us. When I’ve allowed myself to go there, there’s always a small part of me that never returns.
“Maybe I don’t know what I’m asking for,” she tells me. “Most of what you’ve shown me has been new to me. But I love you, Braden, and I’m willing to go wherever you want.”
I gaze at her. “We’ll see about that when we get to New York.”
“I’ll be back,” she says.
“Give Tessa and her folks my best.”
“I will. Thanks for being there with me last night.”
“Skye, where else on earth would I be other than with the woman I love?”
She smiles at me and turns to leave my office.
Once she’s out of the penthouse, I call Donald Banks, my jeweler here in Boston.
“Mr. Black,” he says into the phone. “How may I help you today?”
“I’d like a private showing in fifteen minutes, if you can manage it.”
“Of course. For you, anything. May I ask what you’d like to see?”
“Engagement rings.” I clear my throat. “Diamond engagement rings.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Later, on the plane, Skye turns to me. “I think I had a breakthrough today.”
I lift my eyebrows. “Another one?”
She nods. “When I was at Tessa’s.”
“I’m glad she’s doing well.”
“Me too. She remembers everything—no retrograde amnesia—and she’s adamant that she didn’t take any drugs. She asked me if I truly thought Garrett had drugged her.”
I grit my teeth. So much I want to say, but I can’t. Not yet. Not without concrete evidence.
“And what did you say?”
“I told her I didn’t know. But then I got to thinking. The night I went clubbing with them, and it was Betsy’s first date with Peter, she seemed to get friendly with him really quickly. I mean, more quickly than I’d have thought she would.”
“How well do you know Betsy?”
“Not well, I guess. But I thought I had a pretty good feel for who she is.”
“And she doesn’t seem the clingy type?”
“No. At least not with someone she just met. And then there’s Tessa. She was so distraught over Garrett leaving last night. That’s not her. She’s usually a ‘whatever’ kind of girl, you know?”
I nod and take a sip of the Wild Turkey in front of me.
“So then Tess admitted that she wasn’t herself the last couple times with Garrett. When he started calling her after she caught him with that other woman, she told him to fuck off. It wasn’t until he showed up at our yoga class that she considered giving him another chance. I think somewhere in her subconscious she knew something wasn’t right. That’s why she wanted me to go to dinner with the two of them. She said she didn’t trust herself not to sleep with him. That’s so not Tessa. She has no problem saying no to a guy, and she also has no problem saying yes when she wants to. So something wasn’t right.”