Page 46 of Power

“Yes,jaan?”

I paused for way too long. “Never mind.”

He hesitated before speaking, as if considering how best to respond. “Me too.”

He knew exactly what I wanted to say.

Chapter XXV

Amelia

The rest of my vacation passed by quickly. Mom and I decided to play tourists in the Seattle rain and do some sightseeing. It was so much fun getting to experience my hometown this way with my mother. We took goofy photos at the Space Needle and boughtpirozhkisat Pike Place Market.

Now, it was time for me to head back to New York, and my heart felt heavy leaving her again.

“Mom, I’m going to miss you so much,” I said as I hugged her goodbye outside the security line at the airport.

“Sweetie, you have no idea how much I’ll miss you,” she replied through her tears, squeezing me tight.

I pulled back so I could look at her face one last time. “I hate the idea of leaving you here.”

“I’ll be fine. I will come visit as soon as I get some time off from work.” She rubbed my shoulders reassuringly.

“I would love that, Mommy.”

“You take care of yourself. I know I don’t need to worry about my good girl too much.”

“One day, we’ll live together again so we can be close together,” I promised.

“You’re a young, vibrant lady. Why would you want to live with an old bag like me?”

“Because I love you,” I said, squeezing her tighter.

“I love you, too. But you need to enjoy your twenties. You need to experience life on your own. It’s all part of growing up. I will always be with you, no matter where you are,” she said, pointing to my heart.

I started crying again as I held her one last time before heading into the line.

•••

It was a long flight. I kept tearing up for the first half hour, before eventually falling asleep. I slept the rest of the way until we reached the gate. I looked like a hot mess in my over-sized NASA sweatshirt, jeggings, and sneakers.

I grabbed my roller bag from the overhead compartment and deboarded the plane. I didn’t have any check-in luggage, so I walked past the carousels as I went through baggage claim.

It was dark outside already, so I decided to stop and pull out my phone to check on my Uber before exiting the airport. My driver was close, so I headed through the doors to wait on the curb until the car arrived.

I noticed a black Ferrari parked by the curb with a familiar man leaning against the passenger-side door with his hands in his pockets.

Shyam came to pick me up at the airport?He hadn’t let me leave in the first place without having my flight itinerary, but he hadn’t mentioned anything about coming to get me.

I stood there with my mouth agape and my eyes wide with shock.

He was so sexy in those dark jeans and a black t-shirt. He looked like he hadn’t shaved for the day, and all the stubble only made him look more rugged and handsome.

The corners of his mouth lifted into a grin when he saw me, and I was a goner.

I forgot about my bag and threw myself into his arms. He held me as people bustled past us to find their rides. It was so noisy but, in that moment, I couldn’t hear anything except for the sound of his heart beating inside of his chest as I pressed into him. I savored his warmth and smell—leather and tobacco.

He pressed a kiss to the top of my head before I broke our embrace. “How long were you waiting here for?”

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