She took a step forward and stopped. “Will you be back?”
Something heavy settled in his chest as he looked down at her. His glance shifted to the other man, who watched him like a hawk. “No, I don’t think so.”
Her brows drew tight. “I…”
He waited for her to ask him to stay, to say anything that might prove she needed him. But then she nodded and stepped back.
“Have a safe flight home.”
He tried to smile but only managed a quick turn at the corners of his mouth. “Thanks.”
The flight home was one made in solitude. Everything in Texas felt too big after living in a tight little town like Jasper Falls.
Tara’s lawyers had come up with a doozy of a response to his attorney’s last offer, and he sighed, reading the long list of demands. Depleted and done, he called Clayton. “Do it. Give her whatever she wants. I just want to be done with this.”
“Gage, we can renegotiate. There’re still options.”
“No. I don’t care anymore. She can have it all, the houses, the cars, whatever she needs. But my company remains mine.”
Clayton sighed. “We’ll get you an ironclad prenup for the next one.”
He laughed, the sound cold and brittle. “There isn’t going to be a next one. I’m better off alone.”
The news came the following afternoon. Tara had finally signed. She was getting everything plus alimony. He’d be paying for his mistakes for the next ten years.
He stopped off at Clayton’s office in Houston and signed the final agreement.
“What about the property in Jasper Falls? Any headway?”
“It fell through.”
“You’re kidding.” Clayton gathered up the divorce papers and closed them in a file. “Want me to put some pressure on the bank?”
“No. It’s a done deal. The town wasn’t right anyway.”
“So, what’s next?”
Gage stretched and massaged the bridge of his nose. He seemed to have a steady headache anymore. “I’m thinking a long vacation with lots of booze.”
His attorney chuckled. “Nothing like a good old divorce-moon.”
Gage frowned. “Is that a thing?”
“It’s a new millennium. Everything’s a thing. People take a shit and there’s a party for it.”
God, he felt old.
He had his secretary reserve a bungalow for him at a private island, a small place with crystal blue water and endless horizons, accessible only by private plane. He packed only the essentials and boarded the jet that evening.
“Good evening, Mr. King,” the flight attendant greeted.
“Good evening, Bridget.”
He settled in the back, wondering what good a jet was, when he always flew alone. So much of his image was made up to impress an audience that didn’t exist.
When he arrived at the island, he was greeted by the on-site concierge and escorted to the villas, just beyond the jungle landscape that acted as a privacy curtain from the outside world.
“We have a wake-up call scheduled for you tomorrow at eight and a visit from the masseuse at nine, followed by a guided snorkeling tour of the kaleidoscopic reef at noon.”
“Perfect.” He wished he could stir the slightest enthusiasm for the excursions ahead, but it all seemed wasted without someone to share them with.
As soon as he was alone, he collapsed on the pristine white bed and stared out the open wall at the night sky. “What am I doing here?”
Chapter 12
“You’re what?”
“I’m going to Texas,” Perrin said as she threw random items into the suitcase she insisted Maggie bring over for her to borrow.
“For how long?”
“As long as it takes.”
“What takes? Perrin, what exactly is the plan here?”
“The plan is, I have no plan.” She held up a pair of heels and sneakers. “Casual or fancy?”
“Both.”
She tossed them into the luggage. “What’s the weather like in Texas? All I ever hear about is rain and floods.”
Maggie shrugged. “I assume it’s warmer.”
She opened her closet and grabbed a handful of capris and shoved them in the suitcase. “I’m so sorry to stick you with everything on such short notice, but I need to do this.”
“It’s fine. At least we have the new waitress.”
Perrin hesitated. The new waitress was on her fifth day and last chance. The girl seemed capable of messing up the simplest order. “Maybe I should stay.”
“No, no,” Maggie insisted, refolding the clothes and packing them in a much more organized fashion. “You have to do this. It’s good to take risks, and you need closure.”
She swallowed, her stomach churning with uncertainty and doubt. “What if he doesn’t want to see me? What if he’s reconciled with his wife or started dating someone else?”
“What if he’s as in love with you as you are with him?”
Perrin froze. “I’m not…in love.”
“Seriously, Perrin, be a little self-aware. Look at what you’re doing.”
She glanced at the overflowing suitcase. “I’m being crazy.”
“Spontaneous.”
“I’m not thinking clearly.”
“You’re being bold.”
“I don’t know what’s going to happen!” she cried.
“Perrin, breathe. You’ll be fine. Not knowing is what makes life exciting.”