We leave later in the evening, taking the plane back to New York. Rachel’s brother Dylan is waiting at her apartment and she’s excited about seeing him, but I just hate that our weekend is over.
Soon I’ll be in San Francisco, more time I’ll be spending away from her. “Will you change your mind about coming to San Francisco for the opening of the new hotel?”
She smiles at my hopeful expression. “Of course I’ll come.”
That’s a relief considering how she reacted to the invitation before.
“I’ll leave town sometime this week, but I want to see you every day before I leave.”
Her eyes dance. “Every day?”
“Is that too much?”
She gives me a teasing grin. “I’ll consider it.”
I chuckle. “Let’s have dinner tomorrow. When you’re not working, I want you to be with me.”
“Yes, boss.”
She makes me laugh without even trying to be funny. I want to take her home with me and never let her go, because everything about her is just perfect. Perfect for me.
And I want to be perfect for her.
At her apartment, I follow her upstairs, hesitant to say goodbye. I don’t want to barge into her reunion with her brother, so I drag myself away.
My apartment feels empty without her, and not just my apartment, my life. When I consider my life before and after her, the difference is like night and day.
Does she feel even close to the same?
It’s just sex, Landon. We’re still practically strangers.
For her, maybe, but not for me. I feel like I’ve always needed her in my life, and it scares me, because I don’t know that she needs me even nearly as much.
She wants me. She’s attracted to me.
But does she need me?
I push the thoughts away and have an early night. I’m having breakfast alone the next morning when I get a call from Alex.
Early-morning calls from lawyers are never good news.
“I’ve been on the phone with Claude regarding an incident at the hotel,” he tells me, proving the aphorism right. “A druggie tried to break in and set fire to furniture.”
What the fuck? “Why?”
There’s a silence. “According to Claude, he seemed really out of it. I’m not sure he knows.”
I tap my fingers on the table. “You think someone put him up to it?”
“Someone like Evans Sinclair?”
“It’s possible.”
Alex sighs. “Have you spoken to Ava recently?”
Not since Geneva. “No, I haven’t.”
“Maybe find out what she knows. If he’s behind this, we might need to let the authorities handle him.”