Page 89 of A Sudden Romance

Pleasant View wasn’t booming with skyscrapers. But the housing market was in demand, and it had plenty of room to build more homes. Not industrial, but residential homes could keep her in business if she settled in her hometown should he want that.

Her heart ached. Tears heated the corner of her eyes. The pills might have worn off. How she longed to talk to Mom. Her voice was always comforting, and she knew the right words to soothe her.

The day after Iris had left Colorado, Mom called to see if Iris had landed safely. When Mom talked about Sabastian’s show, Iris told her they had a falling out. She didn’t tell Mom details, but Mom promised that what God meant to be would work out at the right time.

Once or twice a week, Mom called to check on her, and Iris asked about Sabastian each time. Hearing he wasn’t the same and barely had dinner with her parents since she left, saddened Iris, but it also gave her hope he was thinking about her like she was thinking about him.

As the night dragged on, she drifted in and out of sleep to use the bathroom and change.

The blinds glinted a sliver of light, so she checked the digital clock at six twenty. Hmm, already morning. Good thing Clover had cleared her schedule. The stomach pain had subsided, but her head still throbbed.

She had no strength to drag herself to the kitchen for medicine, so she flopped to the side, forcing herself to rest. She must have drifted off since the smart speaker startled her awake.

“Ms. Stone, you have a visitor.”

Light streamed through the blinds, and she blinked against the brightness. Her head hurt when she rolled onto her side. She squinted at the nightstand clock. Already after one? She’d more than slept in.

It couldn’t be her family. Maxima sent Iris’s family straight up. It wasn’t the house cleaner, either. She didn’t come on Saturdays.

“A visitor?” Iris finally managed to say as she rubbed her groggy eyes.

“Sabastian... Diakos?”

What? She broke into a cold sweat as she struggled out of the bed. Ouch! Her head throbbed. “Send him up.”

Sitting on the rug, she ran a hand through her hair to appear presentable ASAP. He was here of all the days he could’ve come?

She gripped the edge of the bed to stand up, then groaned. She was in her pajamas. Feeling as if she’d been hit by a bus, she at least needed to brush her teeth.

She ignored the pounding in her head as she brushed her teeth. Washing her hands was a slow process even as she tried to hurry.

As she staggered back to her room, light streamed around the blinds, but walking to pull them up wasn’t a task she could manage.

Sabastian would be standing at the door forever if she even tried to change out of her matching pajama pants and top. So she staggered back to bed and pulled the covers to her chin. Although an old building, it was one of her first purchases and made her recognize the potential in run-down buildings. Turning it around and adding extra units helped her invest in more properties like this. The neighborhood had changed for the better, and the property had gone way up, increasing her income stream.

On her phone, she unlocked the door with the app, then typed: Come in. It would display on the screen at the entrance.

“Hello!” His deep voice reverberated through the house. Occupying the building’s top floor, her two bedrooms, living room, and kitchen were all on the same level.

“I’m in here.”

Footsteps clomped through the house as he called again. “Iris?”

Concern and sadness roughened his voice, making her heart ache all over. “Here.”

Her voice was so weak.

Soon, her door swung open, and she lifted her head. The living room light spilled into her bedroom. She could only see Sabastian’s face and head with his dark hair. A tulip bouquet, an elephant stuffed animal, and yellow balloons blocked the rest of him in the doorway.

“Can I... come in?”

Just hearing his voice felt so familiar and right. She could scarcely breathe as she responded.

“Sure.” She turned to the side as he set the flowers, stuffie, and balloons on her dresser. Dressed in a blue shirt tucked into navy chinos, he rushed to her bed and knelt on the rug.

“Oh, my dear Iris.” His voice wavered, and a deep frown squeezed his forehead as he reached for her hand and wove his fingers with hers. A rush of warmth ran through her. His eyes were hollow as if he hadn’t slept in days. Was he crying?

She pressed her lips together, her chest rising and falling as she tried to rein in her tears.

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