Page 43 of Perfect Alpha

And I’m flying to New York City to tell Victory the whole truth as soon as possible.

Chapter 16

Victory

Halloweenisquicklyapproaching,and I’ll be heading home to Montana soon. The problem is that I still don’t have a firefighter costume for Aidan, and there will be toddler fury to face if I don’t find one.

Hannah has reminded me on at least thirty-seven separate occasions.

I’m frantically scouring the racks at a Halloween pop-up store before heading to meet Vince for our first date, which I put offfor the entire summer.

I was busy taking part in conferences and events, meeting with authors, attending continuing education courses, and hosting Hannah, Aidan, and my parents at my place, but it’s not like I couldn’t have squeezed in dinner.

Somehow, he’s still interested in me.

Rather than excitement about hanging out with Vince, my stomach turns at the thought of going out with anyone other than Cade. I’ve dated casually since moving to New York, but I’ve never sealed the deal. I haven’t been able to find anyone who holds my interest.

My soulmate philosophy is that they exist. Luckily, I’m practical enough to realize that the world is a big place. There are plenty of other people out there for you besides the special someone who you would be perfectly content to spend your life beside.

Just like I’ve landed my second choice career and am finding slices of happiness, I need to land my second-choice man, which may or may not be surfer dude Vince.

My heartbeat quickens when I spot a mini firefighter costume that looks like it would be the perfect fit for Aidan. I make a beeline toward it and wrap my hand around the hanger mere seconds before a frazzled-looking woman does the same.

Smiling politely at her, I don’t let go and remove the costume from the rack.

Her hand is still on it.

“Sorry about that,” I say. “Looks like I got the last one.”

She has a toddler with her who is pulling on her leg and demanding to wear the costume. On the bright side, he is the same size as Aidan, so my guess wasn’t too far off.

“My son really wants that costume,” Frazzled Mom tells me, smiling tightly.

With a quick tug, I pull it out of her hand. “So does my nephew. And I grabbed it first.”

“Is he here?” Frazzled Mom demands.

“Well, I’m not sure what that’s got to do with anything,” I reply with a frown. “Here or not, this is the costume he’s going to wear.”

“My sonishere, and he really wants it, so perhaps you can look for another costume?” she suggests, with a caustic smile.

Man, Hannah wasn’t joking about these mothers.

“Perhapsyoucould.” I want to stick my tongue out, but decide not to.

Her toddler screams his head off, and I wince sympathetically while dashing toward the cash register. The mommy business is cutthroat.

I pay the astronomical fee for the branded costume before realizing that I didn’t think ahead. Apparently, I’m going to bring it with me to dinner because I don’t have time to go home. The dating business is a challenge, too.

Vince is waiting outside the cozy Italian restaurant when I arrive, awkwardly carrying the Party Surplus bag and my oversized purse. He immediately wraps me in a hug, but I can’t hug him back with my arms full.

“Whatcha got there?” he asks, giving me a smile that should make my toes curl.

It doesn’t.

“My honorary nephew wanted a firefighter costume,” I explain. “I almost had to fight someone for it, but I snagged it with no bloodshed.”

“Thank God for that,” Vince replies, pretending to wipe his brow. “I’ve been looking forward to seeing you, so I would have been pretty upset if you got into a duel and had to cancel.”

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