Page 13 of Before Dawn

I stared at him. “How much?”

“About forty million dollars,” he admitted with a laugh. “But it’s a long-term investment. I can restructure the flight rotations, make sure I’m home more often. Everybody wins.”

“You think Mara’s just going to forget about everything once you hand her an airline?”

He shrugged, that same smug grin tugging at his lips. “It’s a start. Besides, this airline’s been on my radar for a while now. The timing just lines up.”

“When do you plan to tell her this?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He gave me a sheepish smile. “Once the deal is finalized. You know, save her the stress.”

I stared at him, incredulous. “Yeah, because nothing says stress-free like dropping‘Angel, I bought an airline’into casual conversation.”

He laughed, the tension easing from his shoulders. “You think she’ll be mad?”

“Mara’s unpredictable,” I smirked. “But if you play your cards right, it might just be the thing that saves your ass.”

“I like your optimism.”

I shook my head. “Only you would try to solve a marriage problem with a business acquisition.”

He raised his glass. “They should name an award after me if this works.”

He tapped his glass thoughtfully, then shifted the conversation. “How was Friday night with Dillon?”

I hesitated, then admitted, “I met someone.” My voice wavered between excitement and hesitation, but the grin pulling at my lips gave me away.

“You meet people all the time. What’s different now?” His tone was casual, but his raised brow told me he was already suspicious.

I leaned back, my gaze drifting. Copper curls. A quiet confidence. Unparalleled beauty. The way she looked at me like she saw right through the bullshit.

“I sat with her for about an hour. We talked, and…” I exhaled, shaking my head slightly. “I haven’t stopped thinking about her since.”

His eyes widened, curiosity flickering through his usual stoic demeanor. “What’s her name? What does she look like? Did you get her number?”

The words tumbled out before I could stop them. “She’s got this hair—fire and gold mixed together, like you can’t look away. And her beauty…” I shook my head, a soft laugh escaping. “Man, she’s breathtaking. I could listen to her talk for hours.”

His expression turned pointed. “What’s her name?”

I winced, scratching the back of my neck. “I don’t know.”

He blinked. “Youdon’tknow?”

“I don’t know,” I repeated, sharper now. “We started talking, got caught up, and before I knew it, we were interrupted.”

Silence stretched between us before he asked, “Does she live in the city?”

“I don’t know that either,” I admitted. “I saw her at the airport three weeks ago, then again last weekend.”

He stared at me like I’d lost my mind. “Three weeks ago? And you ran into her again? That’s gotta be divine intervention.”

“Maybe it is,” I murmured, the thought oddly comforting.

“If she’s in New York, there’s a ninety-nine percent chance you’ll see her again.”

I clung to that number like a promise, even as doubt pressed in.

He let the silence linger, a smirk tugging at his lips. “Alright, lover boy, we’ll call this fate. Now, I need a driver for Mara.”

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