Page 63 of Roaming Holiday

“Yes, I’m all right.” I clear my throat. “I wanted to, uh—check in. How’s the baby?”

“Your five-year-old nephew is fine.”

Karító. Five? Last I heard, he was less than a year.

“And John?”

“Also fine.”

“Mom?”

“Also fine.”

I squeeze my eyes shut. “Cora…”

“What do you want me to say, Wes? We hadn’t heard from you in years and a couple months ago you bounce back into our lives, but no, not completely, because you’re still so secretive about whatever the hell?—”

“If I could tell you, I would.”

She groans. “What can you tell me?”

“That I’m sorry,” I admit. “That I’m… I’m trying. I really am.”

She sighs. “Look, I just don’t want to get my hopes?—”

My work phone buzzes with an incoming call from an unsaved number. This phone is protected from scammers and all unprogrammed numbers go through a scanning system before connecting. Which means this has to be related to work—to Nina.

“I-I’m getting an incoming call,” I stutter to Cora. “It’s work. I have to go.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“I’m sorry,” I say genuinely before hanging up on my sister to answer the other call. “Hello?”

The caller hesitates. Cold and wild panic washes over me when a timid, familiar voice says, “Wesley? It’s Nina.”

She’s supposed to be sleeping down the hall.

“Where are you?”

“Did I wake you up?” she asks, and I shut my eyes to stop the frustration creeping in. She speaks as if it’s a normal conversation.

I grip the phone tighter. “Nina… where are you?”

“Don’t be mad, but um… I don’t know.”

31

NINA

“Nina.”

I lift my head to see Wesley approaching.

Sebastian twirls me out of the dip, and Philip slowly stops playing music. When I mentioned I love the street music in Antina, Philip began playing his accordion and Sebastian offered his hand in dance. I was reluctant, until I remembered that he doesn’t know who I am. He doesn’t know the weight or trauma I carry, and he wasn’t offering to dance because I’m the princess, but because I’m Nina.

“That was fast!” I exclaim, then look at Sebastian. “That’s my friend.”

I exchange grateful farewells with the three of them before following Wesley into the night. As we turn from them, I notice the disdain in Wesley’s expression toward Sebastian. I quickly usher my bodyguard around.

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