Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22483 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22483 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
“So, you live here?”
She nodded.
“When did you move here?”
Holly looked down at her hands. “The day after graduation.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
She glanced up at him and rolled her eyes. “Would it have changed anything?”
He thought for a moment and then shook his head. “Probably not.”
“A clean break was the way to go,” she said with a sigh. Holly looked back out the window and then frowned. “We aren’t moving. We haven’t even pulled away from the gate yet.”
Christian leaned over her to verify. “Odd.” He sat back in his seat and thought about what to say next. He was about to spill his guts when the flight attendant came on over the intercom to let everyone know their flight was a bit late because of some bad weather. There was a collective groan from everyone on the aircraft.
“Great,” Holly muttered.
“I’m sure it’s nothing.” He turned his phone on and then went to the weather app. “Fuck.”
“What’s wrong?”
“It looks like the snow flurries in New York have turned into a full-blown blizzard.”
“Are you serious? Holly looked at his phone and watched the video of the weather report. “Crap. I wonder how long they’re going to keep us on the plane. I bet you’re wishing you were in first class now.”
Christian closed the app and set his phone down. “Actually, I’m right where I want to be.”
It was clear his words caught her off guard. She opened her mouth to say something, but quickly closed it. He held her gaze and wished like hell she had never left his life.
“I’ve missed the hell out of you, Holly.”
She smiled softly and shook her head.
“What is it?”
“Nothing,” she told him. “So, not married anymore?” Holly changed the subject on him.
“Nope. About two years in, I decided she wasn’t the one for me. We tried counseling, but my heart wasn’t in it. I didn’t love her like I should. The divorce was finalized during my third year of law school.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You’ve already said that, but something tells me you’re not.”
She shrugged. “The teenager in me is extremely happy. The adult in me . . .” Holly trailed off. “What kind of law do you practice?”
Ah, finally, she wanted to know something about him. “White-collar crime,” he told her.
“So, you get rich criminals off?”
“Nonviolent, and yes. I try to, at least.”
“Where do you live?”
“New York City.”
“What were you doing in Miami?”
“I had to visit a client. He lives here for the winter, and we needed to prepare for his trial.”
“What’s he charged with?”
Christian knew he shouldn’t divulge the details of the case, but he wanted to keep the conversation with Holly going. With a quick glance around, he lowered his voice before answering. “Tax evasion,” he said. “And before you ask, yes, he absolutely did it, and he’ll face jail time for it.”
“So, you’re not that good at your job?”
Christian shrugged and then laughed. “Sometimes even the best can’t get the guilty off. His wife—well, now ex-wife—is on audio, telling her friends on how he cheated the system.”
“Damn.”
“Yeah,” Christian sighed. “You’d think that would scare him off from marriage, but it didn’t. He married his mistress hours after his divorce was final.”
“His former wife totally played him.”
“I agree.” He laughed.
The intercom crackled, and they paid attention. “Ladies and gentlemen, we’re going to deplane due to time constraints. Please make sure you have all of your belongings, as you’ll board another plane when it’s safe to travel.”
“Well, shit,” Christian said. He stood and grabbed his things and then offered to carry Holly’s as well. She gave him her hand, and he helped her slide out of her seat and into the aisle. She stood in front of him, with her back almost pressed to his chest. He couldn’t tell if the energy moving through his body was because they held hands for a few seconds or if it was because she was right in front of him. It took everything Christian had within him not to place his hand on her hip. He desperately wanted to touch her, but he held back.
They moved forward and exited the plane. The carry ons that had been stowed by the door were slowly being brought out. “Do you have luggage here?” he asked, not remembering if he saw her with a suitcase earlier.
“No, it’s in checked baggage, which means they’ll unload it and forget to put it on the correct flight, which then means I won’t have it when I get off the plane later.”
She wasn’t wrong.
They made their way back through the gate and he went right to the monitor to see where their new gate would be. When it didn’t change right away, he looked for Holly. He thought she would stand next to him, but she went and sat back down. Didn’t she care about her flight? Christian walked over and sat down next to her.