Page 46 of Happily Never After

“I know. Even that asshole, Toots,” Gloria said with a knowing look.

Claire chuckled. “Listen, I know it’s not a permanent solution. When I get back from California?—”

Gloria waved a hand. “Stop. You’ve done more than enough. We’ll be fine for another six months. And Sam and I are going to brainstorm. You reminded us that Tender Hearts is worth it. We’re not going to give up.”

“I’m so glad to hear that.” Claire waved as Gloria left.

Luke rubbed her shoulder. “Do you feel better?”

“Honestly? Not really.” She climbed into the car. If everything didn’t work out perfectly, she would never have the funds to support Tender Hearts. In six months, they could be right back to square one.

“You did something amazing,” he said as they pulled out onto the highway. “You saved twelve dogs, seven cats, and a bird.”

“Thank you.” She squeezed his hand and pulled out her phone. She desperately needed a shower and a stiff drink. In just three days, they would be in California staring down the barrel of the biggest proposal of her entire career. It was going to be flawless. It had to be.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

To Do:

- Grocery list for CA

- Does Winston count as a carry-on?

- Ship binders

A rough tongueon her elbow roused Claire from sleep. Sunlight streamed through the window, and a disgruntled corgi stared back at her. Rosie whined and nudged her. Apparently she had decided it was time for breakfast.

Claire sat up in bed. The dresser Luke had moved in front of the bedroom door was still there, and none of the bedroom windows were cracked. Aha! She hadn’t sleepwalked despite the mountain of stress. Who needed medication now, Dr. Goulding?

Out of habit, she picked up her phone. There was an excellent chance half a dozen emails from Brad would litter her inbox.

Her stomach dropped.

“That’s weird.”

“Huh?” Luke grunted, head under a pillow. Rosie leapt onto the bed and licked his earlobe.

“I have all these voicemails. I thought maybe Brad was trying to get in contact, but none of these are from him. There’s one from my landlord for the warehouse. He hasn’t called me in years.”

He couldn’t care less what she did as long as she kept the rent checks coming. She jumped out of bed and stood, playing the one from the landlord on speaker.

“Miss Hartley, this is Mr. Dressler, your landlord. We need you to come down to the warehouse as soon as you can. There’s been a fire.”

The phone slipped from Claire’s fingers. Her knees went weak, and she crashed to the floor. Luke grabbed her arm and spoke to her, but everything was muffled like she was underwater. The edges of her vision went spotty and dark.

“Breathe, Claire. Just breathe.” Luke knelt next to her on the carpet. Rosie jumped and licked at her face. Winston whined from his bed in the corner.

She grabbed Luke’s hand and stared, hard, into his eyes. “What. The fuck. Did they do?”

“It’s gone. Everything’s gone.”Claire knelt in the ashes of the warehouse. The acrid stench of melted plastic and charred wood invaded her nostrils. Steam rose from the soggy piles of ash. Despite the West Haven Fire Department’s best efforts, the fire had burned so hot and so long that Happily Ever After’s headquarters had been taken down to the studs. Several policemen and firemen were investigating the electrical box at the far end of the lot. Luke, Sawyer, and Kyle were with them.

Her heart thumped uncomfortably fast and hard. Tears were on the verge of spilling out, but she wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction. This wasn’t a fluke electrical fire. She would bet her last dollar an ESA henchman was hightailing it out of West Haven, cackling over a gas can.

Nicole squeezed her hand. “It’s just things, Claire.”

An easy thing to say for someone whose life was amazing and perfectly on track.

“It wasn’t just things. It was everything we had built.” Claire rose to her feet and tugged on the corner of a sharp piece of metal. The Eiffel Tower she and Mindy had made for a client’s escape room proposal the previous year fell to the concrete floor with a clatter.

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