Page 5 of Grateful Hearts

The airport was busy, packed with holiday travelers lugging suitcases and carting kids to their gates, but Chantel maneuvered around them with practiced ease, determined not to miss her flight. Her pulse quickened as she saw the gate in the distance, but just as she approached, she noticed something that made her heart sink.

The gate agent was on the phone, looking annoyed, while a group of passengers stood huddled around the counter. Secondslater, the gate agent hung up the phone and announced, “It looks like flight two-two-six to Knoxville is going to be delayed, folks. We’re not sure for how long, but with the storms moving across the country, cancellations aren’t out of the question. Stay close by, and we’ll keep you updated.”

Chantel’s heart sank as she heard the last part of the announcement.Canceled?She glanced out the large windows at the blanket of gray that stretched across the horizon. A storm was sweeping across the country, snow piling up in the Midwest, and cold fronts gripping the southern states. She hadn’t expected it to reach this far east so soon, but the weather didn’t care about her plans.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Chantel checked the flight board. Her flight was already showing a one-hour delay.Great, just great.All she wanted was to get away from Boston and the tangled mess that was her life. The idea of being stuck in Baltimore, still too close to Mario’s reach, filled her with unease. Even though she had managed to get out of Boston unscathed, Baltimore wasn’t far enough. Mario knew people everywhere. He had contacts, influence, and a way of finding out things he had no business knowing.

Chantel shook her head, trying to shake off the lingering fear. She was now free, and that is what mattered. And honestly, she should be glad she found out about Mario’s cheating now instead of after she married him. The thought made her stomach churn. Three years of her life, three years of love and loyalty, and it had all been a lie. But it’s better now than later.

Now, all she had to focus on was getting away—decompressing, resetting, and figuring out what her next steps were.

She glanced around the crowded terminal, looking for an empty seat, but they were all taken by stranded passengers just like her.Maybe I should book a room or see if there’s a rentalcar available.The thought of driving through a snowstorm didn’t exactly thrill her, but she wasn’t ruling anything out. Anything to keep moving. She didn’t want to sit idle. If she encountered bad weather, she could always pull off and find a hotel.

As she walked through the terminal, her thoughts drifted back to the engagement ring that had once sat on her finger, a ring that now felt like a distant memory. Her eyes automatically lowered to her bare finger, the skin where the ring used to be oddly pale.

How did it all fall apart so fast?she thought bitterly. She still couldn’t believe Mario had betrayed her like that. Everything had felt so perfect. Or maybe that was just the lie she had been telling herself for years. Had there been signs that she didn’t notice?

Lost in her thoughts, she barely noticed the crowd of people moving through the terminal until it was too late.

“Oof!” Chantel stumbled forward as she collided with someone solid, her balance thrown off. Before she could react, the unmistakable warmth of coffee splashed across her sweater.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry!” came a deep, apologetic voice.

Chantel gasped, stepping back to assess the damage. Hot coffee dripped from her sweater, the dark stain spreading rapidly across the cream-colored fabric.

She looked up, ready to say something—anything—but the words were stuck somewhere in her throat.

Standing in front of her was quite possibly the most stunning man she’d ever seen in her life.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his deep voice tinged with panic as he frantically fumbled for napkins.

Chantel blinked, trying to force her brain to process his words, but all she could do was stare. He was tall. If she had to guess, he stood above six feet. He had broad shoulders thatfilled out his dark green Henley in a way that should probably be illegal. The fabric clung to his chest and midsection, hinting at lean, defined muscle. His dark jeans fit perfectly, snug over his thighs like jeans on men weremeantto fit.

Her gaze wandered lower, out of sheer curiosity, of course, but before she could get a good look atthe rest of him, she felt her cheeks flush.Focus, Chantel. Coffee. Sweater. Disaster.

But then she looked back up at his face.

Even though he was clearly mortified, with his lips pressed into a worried line and his brows furrowed, he was unfairly good-looking. His chiseled jaw sported just the right amount of scruff, and his dirty blonde hair was slightly messy, like he’d run his fingers through it one too many times.

And his eyes were something you don’t see often. They were light gray and were staring right at her, filled with genuine concern.

“I…I’m so sorry,” he stammered, holding out a handful of napkins he must have snatched from a nearby counter.

Chantel opened her mouth to say something, but her brain refused to cooperate.

Instead, she blurted out, “Uh...it’s fine. Totally fine.” She winced internally.Smooth, Chantel. Real smooth.

The man gave her a sheepish smile, his relief evident as he handed her the napkins. “I feel terrible. I wasn’t looking where I was going, and—”

“It’s okay, really,” she said quickly, waving him off while patting the front of her sweater. She glanced down and grimaced. There was now a very obvious brown stain blooming across the front of it.

“Let me buy you a new sweater or something,” he said, his words rushing together.

Chantel glanced up at him, and for a brief moment, her brain screamed at her to say yes. It wasn’t every day that a tall, ridiculously attractive man practically begged to buy her a shirt.

But then reality hit. What in the hell was she thinking?

Just yesterday, she found her fiancé in bed with another woman, and here she was, drooling over a stranger who spilled coffee on her.

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