Page 119 of Loving the CEO

I kissed Mom goodbye when she dropped me off at the ferry terminal. I knew we’d be okay. Looking at their clock, I noticed I only had a few minutes to catch the next one. Dinner wasn’t for another two hours, but I wanted to help Debbie get things together and tell her all of the news. She had such a calming way of looking at things. No wonder we were besties.

I was surprised that she’d offered to cook, actually. She typically loved going out for dinner in the Quarter or buying takeout.

But my friend wanted to take care of me, and I wasn't going to say no. She was the hostess, after all.

As I boarded, I realized the ferry was chock-full, but I finally found a seat. I kept looking up and down the river as we crossed it.

At one time, I’d toyed with the idea of moving here. The pace of the city slowed down considerably on this side of the river.

I put Debbie's address into my phone to check the route again. I hadn’t been here on my own too many times. Usually, we came together, and I never paid attention to the surroundings if I didn’t have to. It was twenty minutes on foot.

Perfect!

I enjoyed the pleasant evening air, and I still needed to cool off a bit. It had been impossible to calm down in the car even though Mom didn’t press the issue. But the silence between us was like a weight on my shoulders.

I listened to the birds chirping and watched as the sun started setting. Algiers had its own character, and it was charming me. I'd always loved Debbie's determination. She went out of her way to fulfill her goals. A few years ago, she'd been determined to buy a house on her own.

"I'm so tired of paying rent and lining someone else's pocket," she complained.

But buying a house on a single income wasn't a small feat—I should know that. She'd been super clever. Algiers was quite a bit cheaper, and she'd bought an old house and slowly restored it. It had two bedrooms and only one bath, but that didn't matter. It was very cozy. She'd renovated most of it with her brother, and they'd done an amazing job.

When I stepped inside the house, I was surprised to smell jasmine incense in the air. It was my go-to when I wanted to wind down, but Debbie wasn't one to do such things. I wondered if she was doing it for my benefit, figuring my afternoon with Mom would have been stressful.

The kitchen was right next to the entrance, and it didn’t look as if she’d cooked or prepped anything. Maybe she’d changed her mind, and we’d go out to eat instead. That was more than fine by me.

"Debbie?" I asked loudly, but she didn’t answer.

Once I stepped toward the living room, I noticed candles on the floor.

Wait a second. One, two, three... that’s a lot of candles. How romantic!

A shadow moved in front of me.

"Debbie, what—"

I took a step back, smiling. Debbie wasn't here, but my amazing man was standing proudly before me.

"Am I dreaming?" The air smelled like jasmine, and I was surrounded by candles. It did feel like a dream.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Tory

"No, you're not.”

“When did you arrive? How did you know when I was going to be home?"

He smirked, coming over to me.

The candles were arranged in a pattern, but I didn't have time to see what it was. I only had eyes for Leo.

"I conspired with Debbie, of course."

"I did think it was odd that she wanted to cook for me."

"I needed her to lure you home."

"And why is that?" I said, swallowing hard.

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