Page 21 of From West, With Regret

I set my beer on the table and immediately make my way down the stairs, telling myself to move slowly, to take my time. She’s here, and I don’t want to startle her. She’s clearly deep in thought, in her own world.

But like a moth drawn to a flame, I’m drawn to her faster than my feet can carry me. When I reach the bottom of the stairs, my pace slows, but my heart doesn’t, and I swallow thenerves inside me. Shoving my hands inside the pockets of my slacks, I curl my fingers tightly around her drawing, clinging to it like a life raft.

London’s long, dark blue dress clings to her skin while the backside floats freely in the water under her. The wet fabric highlights every full curve of her body. Heat expands in my lower belly noticing her perked nipples pointing directly at the starless New York sky. London’s eyes crack open, and she keeps her gaze on the dark blanket above us, not noticing me standing just a few feet away from her.

Her mouth pulls into a ghost of a smile, and I doubt anyone farther than where I’m standing can see it. But I don’t miss it. I can’t. Not when the two dimples appear in her cheeks. Dimples impossible to forget.

I remember the sound of her laughter at thirteen, when I’d pointed them out to her at the kitchen table. When I’d reached out and touched her for the first time. She’d giggled, wrapped her hand around mine, and refused to let go for the rest of dinner.

I clear my throat and inhale a deep breath, glancing back up at the party, forcing the memory down.

No one seems to notice London here alone, floating in the pool.

No one except me. She’s all I notice.

“Find one yet?”

London doesn’t react to me interrupting her star gazing the way I expect her to.

Her chest stills, but she doesn’t move from her position in the water, keeping her arms spread out and her legs like an angel’s. She’s fucking breathtaking, and I study her profile, forcing myself to breathe.

After rolling her head to the side, it takes her precisely three seconds to recognize me.

That’s when she finally moves. She sits up as her feet sink beneath the clear blue water, and she pushes her hair away from her face, nervously glancing toward the party on the upper level. Her gray eyes swing back to me as a drop of water falls from her bottom lip. “Find what?”

I smile. I can’t help it. I can’t believe she’s in front of me again. She’s here, and not because we’re both putting on a show for others like we were at my brother’s funeral.

We’re two ordinary people now.

“A star,” I say.

Flicking her eyes upwards, she laughs under her breath. “No, I didn’t.”

“Impossible here in the city,” I tell her, inching closer to the edge of the pool.

“Not much different from Boston, really.”

“Right.” I nod, swallowing my nerves. Over the years, I’ve thought of what I would say to her, but now I’m coming up empty. Just looking at her is enough, but I don’t want to let this moment slip away.

“Do you come to these often?” I ask, nodding toward the party upstairs.

“No.” She scoffs, shaking her head. She looks down at her hands skimming over the surface of the water. My gaze falls on her birthmark. “My sister and her friend’s helped organize it. I just came along for the ride.”

My eyebrows shoot up. “Sister?”

The corners of her mouth curl. I can tell this is a bright spot in her life, and the feeling it gives me seeing it on her face lights a part of me that’s been lying dormant since I was fifteen.

“Selene Walker is my sister. She’s friends with Julianna Capuleti, the one running the auction.”

“You know Julianna?” I ask.

Wow. This truly is a small fucking world.

London nods, leaning back slightly in the water. Her face glows from the under lighting. “So,” she says with a teasing glint to her eye. “Do you come to these often?”

I frown and shake my head. “No. I just came along for the ride.” My mouth pulls to a grin, and my stomach flutters. “I’m friends with her brother.”

She giggles lightly, but her smile falls fast. “Oh.” She drags her bottom lip under her teeth.

---