Page 69 of Never In My Wildest Dreams

I’m such a dumbass.

Why did he always do this? Get swept away in relationships that weren’t real? He’d known all along she was hiding out here. That she had a complicated life.

She’s beenbetrayed.She’s not ready for a relationship.

Neither am I. The moment his feet hit the ground, he’d be on the run. Catching up on clients, negotiating deals, and fixing the situation with Ginty.

He grabbed his phone, focused on the only thing in life he could control: his career.

And you know something? If I go to LA, it’ll be more of the same.

He didn’t know the culture of that agency. It could be worse than Elite.

No, he knew what he had to do. The only path that was right for him.

He tapped on George’s name.

Booker: Yes. I’m in.

George: Let’s go!

That familiar sense of purpose charged through him. He needed to make a game plan.

First up: talk to the other partners. Make sure their mission statement hadn’t diverted from what they’d talked about in law school.

Next: See if Ginty would come with him to a boutique agency.

And finally: quit.

Quietly, he got out of bed, picked his clothes up off the floor, grabbed his travel bag from the bathroom, and got dressed in the living room. His duffel remained on the floor where he’d left it the night before. He sat on the couch to shove his feet into wool socks and then his boots.

He contemplated his departure.Do I wake her up?

The image of her blue eyes blinking open, her smile when she saw him, nearly had him tearing off his clothes and running back to bed.

But no. That wasn’t the right answer for either of them. And it was time to stop pretending.

He had to leave a note, though. Condoms weren’t a hundred percent reliable, and he wasn’t about to bail on her if the unexpected happened. In the kitchen, he found a pen and paper and wrote her a note.

Hellcat,

I’ve got to get to work. I won’t be back here for a while, so feel free to stay. If you need me for anything, here’s my number.

He thought about the way she’d grated the cheese with such concentration. The way she’d laughed so hard she could hardly breathe during their snowball fight. And the way she’d ridden him with total abandon.

Her courageous spirit demanded he say something true.

Best Christmas ever.

Take care,

Booker

Where should I leave it?

They hadn’t cleaned the kitchen, the dining room table was littered with baskets and paper scraps, and the coffee table was covered with fishing line. He needed to put it where she’d see it.

He didn’t have tape, so he left it on the kitchen counter.

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