Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 128083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 640(@200wpm)___ 512(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128083 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 640(@200wpm)___ 512(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
“Okay. Who are you meeting with?”
“A woman that you don’t know, but I won’t be long. And then I’ll pick you up for dinner.”
“Dinner with Rex, right?”
“Yup.” She could already tell Cyrus was getting attached to Rex by the way he always inquired where he was. She knew it was both because Rex made him feel safe and that he considered him part of their motley, unexpected family unit. It worried her slightly since Rex wouldn’t be there long and Cyrus had already lost enough for one short lifetime.
But she also knew Rex was the kind of man who would check in on Cyrus no matter what happened between them.
Rex. Her lips tipped of their own accord, and a warmth spread through her belly. God, she was in deep.
He’d been a strong and steady presence since the moment she’d shown up at his door.
She loved him. There was no question, no doubt.
And soon, very soon, she was going to have to say goodbye. He would do everything in his power to make sure she and Cyrus were safe, she knew that. But she also understood that he had another life to begin somewhere else. Watching him leave was going to hurt so damn bad.
Maybe this brief reunion had been a gift to both of them from the universe, a greater beyond that knew how right they were, even if their timing never quite meshed.
She pulled into her dad’s driveway twenty minutes later, and she and Cyrus walked to the door. The doorbell chimed inside, and a minute later, Gigi answered. “Cami, Cyrus, I didn’t know to expect you.” But by the way Gigi rushed to hug Cyrus and ruffle his hair and the warm smile she gave Cami, she knew they were welcome. And in that moment, she was more grateful than ever that her dad had found this sweet woman.
“Sorry to just show up like this, but something came up, and I was hoping my dad could watch Cyrus for an hour. I’ll be back as quickly as possible.”
“Oh, no need to rush. Your dad ran to the store and won’t be home for another twenty minutes or so, but I’m happy to hang out with Cyrus. We still have the second half of Forrest Gump to watch. He’d never seen it, can you imagine?”
“A travesty. Thank you for remedying it.” She winked at Cyrus, who smiled back.
Gigi set her hand on Cyrus’s shoulder to usher him inside. “Thank you so much, Gigi. Cyrus, I’ll see you soon. Save your appetite for dinner.”
Cyrus spun around and gave Cami a huge hug, and she sucked in a surprised-but-delighted breath as she embraced him back and ran a hand over his soft hair.
She got back in her car and pulled out of the driveway. As she drove, she dialed Rex but got sent to his voicemail and left a quick message for him to call her back.
She turned the corner out of her father’s neighborhood, toward the one she never thought she’d visit again. Her heart thumped swiftly, nerves fluttering like the wings of the tiny creatures she’d made her life’s work. She had a deep feeling she wasn’t going to like whatever news Seraphina had for her.
Cami turned up the driveway that led to Hollis’s family home. She’d held her breath, hands gripping the steering wheel as she entered this neighborhood. It’d been so difficult, but she’d felt surprised and relieved that it was healing, too, in a way she hadn’t expected. She’d seen her mom and her sister everywhere as she’d traveled down these still-familiar streets, wishing that she’d done it sooner. The vivid memories here were what she’d been so terrified of, but she’d discounted the power of the good ones over the bad.
The Barclay estate was still a gorgeous property, and though Hollis didn’t live here, it was clearly being maintained. The lawn was pristine, the shrubs were nicely trimmed, and when she drove through the open gate, she saw the eye of the security camera turn her way.
Perhaps Seraphina didn’t want Hollis to know about their meeting, but Cami’s visit here was now captured on film, so his fiancée wasn’t taking any measures to keep it secret forever.
She was surprised to see a limo parked in front of the three-car garage, but when the driver turned his head toward her behind the tinted glass as she pulled next to it, it made her feel even better that there was someone else here.
A butterfly fluttered past her windshield as she shifted to park and turned off the ignition. She got out of her car, eyes held to the bright creature, and stood watching it with some amount of wonder. It was an eastern tiger swallowtail, Elle’s favorite, and she stood still as it grew closer and then landed on her shoulder. Tears threatened as she held her breath and then turned to watch it flutter away, down the path toward the back patio.