Page 58 of Hard Luck (Blackstone House)

“We’ve gone from zero to one hundred in ten days. The sex is great, but we barely know each other.”

Dice took a seat and ordered French toast with a cappuccino. Great. An audience.

“We could change that.” Cole gripped my hand harder. “Come to San Gallicano with me.”

Uh, what?

“My house is on the beach, and the Wi-Fi is surprisingly good,” he continued. “You could work remotely for a few weeks, right?”

This got worse and worse. Unfortunately, I’d mentioned the “girls’ trip to Cancun” I went on last year; otherwise, I could have pretended I didn’t have a passport.

“I’m not sure…”

“You don’t have to come out on the boat. Just chill on the terrace and enjoy a free vacation. The weather’s great at this time of year—hot, but not as hot as Vegas.”

“Isn’t it hurricane season?”

“Barely, and San Galli is right on the edge of the hurricane belt.”

Service was fast in the Sunrise Diner. The place was busy, both with customers coming in to eat and deliveries going out. Sin employed half a dozen delivery drivers, most of them ex-cons who needed a leg up. Deana slid plates piled high with food in front of us and then poured our coffee.

“Enjoy your meal,” she said.

That was a forlorn hope.

“I have tight deadlines at the moment,” I told Cole. “Four projects, and I don’t just have to write the obituary; I also need to research the deceased’s life and speak with their friends and relatives. That isn’t something I can do on an airplane.”

“So why don’t you fly out later? Stay for a week or two?”

“I’ll think about it, okay?”

I forked fries into my mouth, but today, they tasted of nothing, even when I covered them in ketchup. Cole didn’t even start eating.

“I know you’ve been hurt in the past, but I promise I’m not that guy.”

“You don’t know I’ve been hurt in the past. I never told you that.”

He held my gaze, and there was such sadness in his. “You didn’t have to.”

What was wrong with my eyes? They’d gone all prickly, anddammit, I hadn’t cried since the day Dawson found Ruby’s body in her bedroom at Blackstone House. Even then, I’d wept in the first-floor bathroom where no one could see me.

Fuck.

I scrambled out of the booth, grabbing my crutches on the way. “I just need to… Give me a minute.”

As I passed Dice, I caught her eye and mouthed, “Watch Cole.” She gave me the slightest nod in return.

In the bathroom, I locked myself into a stall, closed the toilet lid, and sat down. How had this turned into such a tangled mess? Tears flowed, and I tore off a handful of toilet roll to blot them. At least I was wearing waterproof mascara.

My phone buzzed.

Dice

You okay?

Me

What do you think?

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