Page 41 of A Sinful Gravity

"Luna, where's Laila? I just parked."

Seb. I'd told him yesterday we'd be at this restaurant.

Seb walked over and naturally took my bag. "You okay?"

I shook my head.

He didn't push, just placed his hand on my shoulder and patted gently. The gesture held no intimacy, just a signal: I'm here.

That was Seb. Never intrusive, never overstepping, but always there when I needed him.

He was already looking toward Laila, reaching out with a smile. "Come here, baby."

Laila cheered and ran from Chloe, throwing herself into Seb's arms. "You're finally here!"

Cassian's face went white as paper. He watched Seb with his arm around me, watched Laila nestled in Seb's embrace, the light in his eyes shattering piece by piece like smashed glass.

The air was suffocating. Wind still blew, the river still flowed, but the whole world seemed frozen.

Cassian said nothing. Just looked at Seb, his fists slowly clenching, knuckles white.

I knew he misunderstood. But that was better. No need to explain.

I took Laila's hand and gave Cassian a polite nod before turning away. "We should head back."

At least today, I didn't want any contact with Cassian.

Chapter Ten

Cassian

"Pleasure doing business, Mr. King." The Taylor Group executives rose to say their goodbyes.

"Likewise. I've got some things to wrap up here, so I won't be leaving with you."

I smiled politely. This deal had finally come together smoothly.

After they left, I walked to the edge of the restaurant's courtyard and exhaled deeply.

Truth was, I had no other plans. I just wanted to avoid Megan, the youngest Taylor daughter who'd shown far too much interest at the last celebration dinner. I didn't need that kind of trouble.

The sun was bright today, making me squint. I thought I heard a child's laughter nearby.

No, I hadn't imagined it. A kid was playing in the courtyard.

I pressed my temples. I'd never liked children. You never knew what chaos they'd cause next, what mess they'd make.

"Oh! My ball!" A little girl's voice grew closer. "Mommy!"

I frowned. I was definitely filing a complaint about this place's sloppy management.

The ball rolled to my feet and stopped. The little girl ran up after it.

I picked it up and looked down. Her blonde curls caught the sunlight, her eyes were large and bright, and when she smiled, two dimples appeared.

Something about her eyes struck me as familiar. Before I could process it, a woman's figure entered my vision.

A flash of gold stopped my heart.