Page 50 of Fearless Sinner

I know I’ll miss Chloe.

My fascination with her turned into something more very quickly. It happened last night the moment her lips touched mine.

She unlocked something inside me that’s been dead for years.

She made me want more. Something more than eighteen and a half minutes, and even more than one night in my bed.

That’s something I’m not sure I can have without losing myself again, the way I did before.

I normally spend Sunday with Seamus or Virgo and Olivia, but today I’m supposed to be meeting the list of potential brides at lunchtime.

I started the day off wrong when my mind went straight to Chloe. I was thinking about her even more by the time the women came around.

I have twenty beautiful women gathered in my living room dressed like they’re here for a pageant.

Seamus is here, too. I invited him so he could see that I’m making the effort. I also needed his clarity of mind. I’m not thinking straight.

I wasn’t thinking properly before Chloe blew into town, and now that I’ve tasted her, my head is all over the place. No matter what I do I just can’t seem to think past her, so as the ladies file into my office to meet with Seamus and I, no one seems suitable.

One by one they come in and we talk for ten to twenty minutes, but not one of them is who I want.

I’m down to the last girl, a schoolteacher and a singer on the side. She comes from a good family who is part of the Italian mafia and an ally with the Creed.

Seamus likes her. I can tell straight away from the questions he asks and the warm way he smiles. He also likes that her family business is investments and hedge funds. That was one benefit he mentioned about Jessica that made sense because it would complement what we already have with our bank.

The girl—I’ve forgotten her name—smiles sweetly at me when she finishes answering my last question, which was about her goals for the next five years.

At least I was listening. She says she wants kids, and her time would be dedicated to taking care of our kids.

I tried to imagine the mental picture of us and what that would look like. I hadn’t thought of kids because this was just going to be a six-month thing for me.

I’m definitely not thinking about them now when I can’t even remember this girl’s name.

She stares back at me expectantly, waiting for me to say something. Seamus looks at me, too, and I realize I zoned out again.

“Thank you. That was great.” I try to sound like I’m really interested.

“Oh. Thank you. Do you have any more questions for me?” She smiles, revealing perfect white teeth I half expect to sparkle like in the movies. All these girls have the same look, like they were groomed to be a bride. There’s not one single flaw I can see. They’re all picture perfect.

“No, that was my last question.”

“When will I hear back from you?”

“By the end of the week.”

“Then I shall look forward to it. I think you and I will be incredible together.”

I give her a thin smile and don’t answer.

“I’ll see you out, dear,” Seamus says, rising.

The two leave my office and I rest my head back against the chair, wishing I could disappear into the soft leather for a day.

Seamus returns a few minutes later with a proud smile and a bounce in his step. “I like her for you. I thought she was perfect.”

No, Uncle, she wasn’t. I said goodbye to the perfect woman last night.

“Yeah. She was nice.” I decide to humor him.

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