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“Hold on for a moment.”
He heard her muffled voice and then Doc’s voice.
“He said it’s fine.”
Striker laughed. “He didn’t say anything of the kind.”
“No, he didn’t, but I said it’s fine, so get on the road.”
“Thanks, Fatale.”
“See you soon, Griff.”
Aine had asked him if he was friends with all his past lovers, and the more he thought about it, he realized he wasn’t. His friendship with Merrigan meant the world to him, though, especially when she recognized that tone in his voice that said he really needed to talk.
15
“I wish I could stay, but the Overleaf is my biggest customer,” Stuart told Aine when she took him to the airport Sunday afternoon. He’d gotten a call two hours earlier, saying there was no hot water in the spa. Given Thanksgiving week was one of the biggest of the year, it would cost them thousands in lost revenue if they’d had to close that part of the resort.
“I understand,” Aine told him, trying not to let the relief of his change of plans show. With Penelope and Tara arriving on Tuesday, she’d been stressed about how much time she’d have for them with Stuart in town too.
“I’ll see if I can come back next Saturday. It won’t be for Thanksgiving, but we could spend the weekend together,” he said when they got out of the car and kissed goodbye at the curb.
“I’d like that, Stuart,” she said before getting back in the car.
She watched him walk into the terminal not sure if she was sad or relieved that he didn’t turn back to look at her before he went inside.
Aine rolled her shoulders and took several deep breaths, letting go of the tension she’d felt since he arrived on Friday.
Thankfully, they hadn’t seen Striker on Saturday or this morning.
“Tabon and Striker are meeting with Mercer in Harmony tomorrow,” Ava told her when she got back from the airport.
“Will Quinn be coming here?”
“She will be today. Mercer is going to drop her off in a little while. She mentioned it might be a good time to get in touch with Merrigan.”
“I don’t know, Ava. If I want to stay with Stuart, is it really a good idea for me to dive deeper into Striker’s reasons for ending our relationship?”
Ava turned to get something out of the refrigerator.
“What?” Aine said when she turned back around and didn’t comment.
“I’m trying not to give you unsolicited advice.”
Aine rolled her eyes. “Are we going to do this every time? I asked. Go ahead and tell me what you think.”
“Are you going to stay with Stuart?”
“I don’t know.”
“You didn’t seem to be enjoying yourself.”
“I was on edge all weekend, expecting Striker to show up.”
“Me too.”
“I’ll call her. It won’t seem as weird since she’s married to my father,” offered Quinn after Aine and Ava argued about whether it would be out of left field for one of them to call Merrigan. Before either of them could respond, Quinn had her phone in her hand.
