Page 120 of Love or Leave

Willow whispered something to Max that made him pull her protectively into his arms.

"Two… One…"

Ethan's blue eyes smiled at her like she was his universe.

"Happy New Year!"

Natalie leaned in and kissed her husband.

The new year had begun. And with Ethan by her side, and surrounded by her friends and family, she knew she could take on whatever lay ahead.

Authors Note: You gotta know by now that I can't resist a bonus scene! Here's one from Brin's POV. She's getting her own story in a spin-off series. Enjoy!

Brin had spotted David Hartley the second she walked into the country club—he was impossible to miss. All incredibly wealthy men were. And she was no stranger to incredibly wealthy men.

She'd seen enough bespoke tuxedos that cost more than her yearly net profit at the café and smelled enough custom colognesdesigned by the best noses in Paris to spot the billionaire—trillionaire?—in the crowd.

There was a time when a high net worth and a three-thousand-dollar haircut impressed her.

Not anymore.

She'd spent the entire evening avoiding him, staying close to her boyfriend and pretending there wasn't a Hartley among them. Perhaps she was being a bit paranoid, but she never knew who to trust.

As the hours passed, and after the ceremony, dinner, dancing, and midnight countdown were done, she’d settled her anxious thoughts and let her guard down.

That had been a big mistake.

"Brinley."

She jerked away from the dessert table and toward the smooth, cultured voice beside her. A normal person would probably welcome his presence. But she wasn't normal.

She popped a mini gold-flecked chocolate chip cookie into her mouth and chewed with a fake smile. "That's me," she said with a smile.

Hartley raised an eyebrow, but only for a second. It was enough to worry her, though. Did he know?

"I was looking forward to stealing a moment of your time."

Okay. He definitely knew.

"Stealing?" she said with a humourless laugh, her entire body shifting to defense. "Interesting choice of words."

He had the decency to pale. "I didn't mean anything by it."

She rolled her eyes and blinked away from him, slowly turning her eyes over her shoulder to check the room. The last thing she needed was to raise suspicion.

"No one's watching us," he said. "No one who would connect the dots, at least."

She relaxed, but only marginally. Instead of saying anything, she popped another cookie and looked at him expectantly.

Get on with it.

"Do you speak with your sisters often?"

She huffed out a breath as the last bit of hope she had faded away. He knew she wasn't “Brin.”

"I'll take your silence as a yes," he said, glancing around the room.

He knew who she was, so he should know better than to try to speak with her. She wasn't supposed to discuss her past with anyone. Court orders.

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