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For an hour, he scrolled throughto hear froht, he hadn’t expected an answer But that didn’t stop the bitterness of disappoint up his throat

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

“Hoas your weekend?”

Hope glanced up froive Skyler a fake smile There was no reason for Hope’s disappointment and foul htfully arrived with gifts, coffee, and a pastry box bearing a nanize

“After a lot of internal debate andof teeth, I ith cupcakes,” Skyler declared “I figured if the trip icked aweso hnut” She walked in and placed the treasure on Hope’s desk “How did I do?”

“You’re a savior”

“Does this o ith McHottie?” Skyler removed both coffees from their holder, then flipped up the top of the bakery box Ooey-gooey sweetness wafted on the air, fresh with the proet her sorrows Hope hadn’t eaten all day Sunday, and now she was ravenous

She picked up two napkins—one to use as a plate, the other to wrap around the tallest, thickest devil’s food cupcake topped with sothat she didn’t think it could stand up on its own Recognizing that it would eo and took an enormous bite

Deep inside, the sugar rush hit her, firing all the neural pleasure centers She , she’d arrived back in Houston during a torrential downpour Even after a hot shower, she’d been unable to sleep Her phone had been in her hand when Rafe’s text arrived

She’d fought the temptation to answer Instead, she’d blocked his number

Sunday had dawned gray and dreary, ripe with hu down her bedroomhad matched her mood

Around noon, she’d forced herself from bed After a cup of coffee, she’d checked her phone There was a one well After that, Hope had morosely wandered her apartment

Being so aloneas if a part of her heart had been ripped out, she’d forced herself to dress and leave the house She’d dragged herself through the grocery store and h bleary eyes Then she’d spent the afternoon on the couch, binge-watching television and shutting out the world