Page 105 of Darn Knit All

Theo glanced over his shoulder at the clock on the bedside table.

“Twenty-seven days, eighteen hours, and thirty-nine minutes,” he agreed.

I sucked in a deep breath, twirling the ring on my finger. “Text me?”

“I will.”

He leaned over, kissing me one final time. “Enjoy it, Mai. You’ve earned it.”

“And you.” I waggled my finger in his face. “Go find your passion.”

With a parting, lingering glance, I opened the door and left.

It only took until the taxi left the hotel driveway for my courage to flee.

“What am I doing?” I asked, feeling my anxiety rise.

“Going to the airport?” Bruce said from his spot in the front. He glanced back at me, his eyebrow raised. “Are you hung over or something?”

I shook my head, turning away to stare out the window of the taxi, fighting for breath.

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I tugged it out, welcoming the distraction.

Theo

By now you’ll have started panicking. Don’t. You’re brave, Mai. You’re a lion, a tiger, a fucking bear. You are a warrior and a worrier—and both serve you well. But don’t let the worrier win when courage should triumph

I closed my eyes, centering myself.

I could do this.

I can do this.

I am doing this.

By the time we reached the airport I felt—if not less anxious at least a manageable level of anxiety.

“Oh,” I heard behind me as I stepped from the taxi. “It’s you.”

I glanced up to see Celeste exiting a limo, a coffee cup in hand.

“Celeste, hey.” I gestured at the airport. “Are you going to Milan as well?”

“Of course. This is my show, I’ll be there for the first week of filming before handing it over to my assistant director.”

“Ah.” I accepted my suitcase from Bruce and followed her into the terminal. “Did you want to get a muffin or something?”

She scoffed. “With my frequent flyer miles? I’m off to a lounge.”

I tried not to smile at Bruce’s disappointed expression. “Of course.”

She glanced at me as we walked. “I hear your boyfriend is flying home today. A pity, he’s quite good on TV.”

I huffed out a laugh. “Yeah, he’s definitely the more entertaining of the two of us.”

“I’ve never seen one person fuck up so badly—and yet you saved his ass time and time again. I lost a decent chunk betting you’d be out by the second round. It’ll make for great ratings.” We reached the terminal, slipping through security quickly.

“We’re this way,” Bruce said, pointing toward the gate. “Celeste is on a later flight.”

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