Layla “A ball?” I stared down at the cream cardstock invitation, the curling gold script declaring that I, Layla Bennett, had been invited to a goddamned ball. How cool would this have been, if I was seven? “You should go.” Aldo hovered in the doorway to the guesthouse kitchen, arms crossed and a
The floor was almost entirely filled with guests dressed to make my new attire feel shabby. I lingered along the fringes of the room, tongue-tied, overwhelmed, and outclassed. How long was I supposed to stay here? Maybe I could walk around, nod and smile, and be on my way? “You look beautiful.” Al
Layla I found solace out on the rear balcony, in a quiet corner of the night. Free of Marco’s smile and Aldo’s steadfast presence, I felt suddenly shaky, my chest too tight. The champagne in my fingers did little to calm me. The cool air caressed my skin, a welcome reprieve from the suffocating te
I knew what it was to be driven by ambition. I knew what it was to work hard, every day, trying to fill the emptiness in your chest. Only to wonder if you’d be hollow forever. I knew what it was to get the things you wanted, to grow and achieve and prosper, and still lie away in bed at night. That
Aldo The light and music of the ball faded behind us as we strolled from the manor. Our footsteps crunched lightly against the flagstones, and the cool night air kissed my cheeks in a welcome respite from the stifling perfumes and colognes and potpourris of the ballroom. A gentle wind wove its fi
“You’d really do that?” she asked, and my chest clenched tighter at the sound of hope in her voice. “Yeah,” I murmured. “I would.” For a long moment, she said nothing. Just studied my face, like maybe she was searching out lies. But this night had been only truths. Relieving ones. Painful ones.
Layla The hospital’s signature fluorescent lights hummed in my ears as I completed my final round before my dinner break. It was late—far too late for dinner for anyone but a healthcare worker—and most of the staff had gone home. The quiet hours gave me time to think. I wasn’t sure if that was a
Dammit! It wasn’t a shortcut; it was a dead end. My heart plummeted. “No.” The footsteps grew louder, slowing as my follower approached. I turned around, that brick wall to my back, to face the hooded stalker. My hands clenched into fists at my sides. Weeks of self-defense training wouldn’t go to
Maybe that’s what made the next words tumble from my lips. “Have we met before?” Ethan’s dark brow furrowed, and his words came out softly. “Why do you ask?” “You just …” I chewed my lower lip, trying to find the right words. “You remind me of someone.” “Do I?” The lines of Ethan’s face smoothed
Layla I’d barely stepped back inside the front doors of the hospital before I was returned to the demanding pace of medical life—hadn’t even made it back to my office. “Incoming! Stab victim, male, mid-thirties!” a nurse called, her voice sharp with urgency. In no time at all, I was gloved and ma
Dammit! It wasn’t a shortcut; it was a dead end. My heart plummeted. “No.” The footsteps grew louder, slowing as my follower approached. I turned around, that brick wall to my back, to face the hooded stalker. My hands clenched into fists at my sides. Weeks of self-defense training wouldn’t go to
Layla The hospital’s signature fluorescent lights hummed in my ears as I completed my final round before my dinner break. It was late—far too late for dinner for anyone but a healthcare worker—and most of the staff had gone home. The quiet hours gave me time to think. I wasn’t sure if that was a
“You’d really do that?” she asked, and my chest clenched tighter at the sound of hope in her voice. “Yeah,” I murmured. “I would.” For a long moment, she said nothing. Just studied my face, like maybe she was searching out lies. But this night had been only truths. Relieving ones. Painful ones.
Aldo The light and music of the ball faded behind us as we strolled from the manor. Our footsteps crunched lightly against the flagstones, and the cool night air kissed my cheeks in a welcome respite from the stifling perfumes and colognes and potpourris of the ballroom. A gentle wind wove its fi
I knew what it was to be driven by ambition. I knew what it was to work hard, every day, trying to fill the emptiness in your chest. Only to wonder if you’d be hollow forever. I knew what it was to get the things you wanted, to grow and achieve and prosper, and still lie away in bed at night. That
Layla I found solace out on the rear balcony, in a quiet corner of the night. Free of Marco’s smile and Aldo’s steadfast presence, I felt suddenly shaky, my chest too tight. The champagne in my fingers did little to calm me. The cool air caressed my skin, a welcome reprieve from the suffocating te
The floor was almost entirely filled with guests dressed to make my new attire feel shabby. I lingered along the fringes of the room, tongue-tied, overwhelmed, and outclassed. How long was I supposed to stay here? Maybe I could walk around, nod and smile, and be on my way? “You look beautiful.” Al