Chapter 7

The next morning, Sophie sent a string of messages.

Heard Jason caused a scene outside your place last night?

He's been failing his medical checks.

The airline terminated his contract.

Word is he's locked himself in his apartment and won't see anyone.

I mean... what did he expect?

I read each message and didn't reply.

I just opened my contacts and quietly deleted everything connected to Jason.

Some people. Some things.

They belong in the past. That's where they should stay.

A new message from Sophie popped in.

A voice note.

"Okay but — where are things with you and Daniel?!"

That completely broke whatever calm I'd had.

I shut off the voice note and pushed my phone across the desk.

I took stock of my own heart, honestly.

Daniel was... genuinely good. That much was clear.

Attractive in a low-key, unhurried way. Gracious without making anyone feel small.

And every time he'd crossed paths with my mess of a past, he'd handled it without a flicker of irritation.

Six years of baggage like mine — who wouldn't have opinions about that?

I wasn't sure what he thought of me.

But he never seemed bothered. He'd hand me Oreo without preamble whenever he got busy. The few days Daniel was out at the countryside inn, Oreo had simply moved in with me.

The day I went to drop Oreo back at The Ashford Bistro, I ran into a familiar face.

Natalie Sterling was tucked into a corner booth with a man — the co-pilot who used to trail behind Jason everywhere.

I caught their conversation without meaning to.

"Can you stop talking about that lunatic," the man was saying.

Then he smirked. "Calloway's grounded indefinitely. You going to go comfort him?"

Natalie let out a cold laugh.

"Comfort him? I blocked him the day the notice came in. I don't need that kind of bad luck near me."

The co-pilot laughed under his breath.

"Didn't you two used to be close? He even had you pinned at the top of his messages."

"That pin was a bet. He lost, so I got the top spot for a week." She swirled her glass. "I spent six months making him hand-ground coffee. Ironed his uniform shirts every morning before my own shifts. And for what? He was hiding a girlfriend the entire time."

"God, I was such an idiot. Though honestly, his girlfriend was more of an idiot for putting up with it."

"Anyway — when you make captain next month, let's finally use that leave. Iceland? Northern lights? I've already got the whole itinerary mapped out. You won't have to think about a thing."

Their voices dropped into something low and private.

I stood there and felt, of all things, the absurdity of it.

The charm Jason had been so proud of — it was a punchline to the people around him.

The woman he'd convinced himself he had wrapped around his finger was curled up in someone else's booth, laughing about his downfall.

All those six years of feeling like I was barely tolerated — and this was what was on the other side.

Then two warm hands came up and covered my ears from behind.

"If you don't like what you're hearing, don't listen."

"Has Oreo had enough exercise today? You're going to turn him into a little balloon."

"Park?"

My back was against a broad, steady chest.

It turned out that every place you'd fallen through could be caught.