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Her expression softens “Look, I’ve never told anyone what I just told you I’ht now I have no plans to do anything anytime soon I just need to take a break Clear my head”

I nod “I can understand that”

She stretches up to kissme a small smile “I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Yeah, okay”

I watch her grab her purse and keys, walk outside and close the door behind her Then I flop down on

So h together It sounds like Gia’s out for blood, and I don’t kno to find a way to stop her

Chapter Eighteen

Gia

“Hey, are you okay?” Ro asks Her forehead is all scrunched up and I can tell she’s worried

I s me if I’m okay?”

She turns around and lowers herself into a patio chair by Maverick’s pool, where I’ottenaround on her crutches and they hardly slow her down anyainst the table next to her chair

“You just seeht of the world on your shoulders these days,” she says “Now that you’re living in Prince Char’s castle, I would think you’d be…happy?”

“We’re not together”

“I know, and Maverick is also way hotter than Prince Charot that dark look about hiuys aren’t together, because the sexual tension around here is thick”

I sigh heavily “We both have a lot to stay focused on”

“I wish I knehat that meant,” Ro says “For you On the outside, you’re a badass boss, but I can tell so you”

I look out at the pool, the sun glinting off the water and tropical flowers blooe urns in each corner of the pool’s stone patio Maverick and I are doing a dance, spending lots of ti the line we both want to blow past so badly I’ movies in his home theater He keeps the freezer stocked with mint chocolate chip ice cream He hasn’t pushed e my dad’s death, but the conversation we had about it still hangs between us