two doors down, his posture relaxed, one hand raking through his sun-lightened hair as he locked up for the evening. The last glow of the sunset cast a golden edge along his jawline.
And then—he glanced up.
For the briefest moment, their eyes met.
Not in passing. Not in polite acknowledg- ment. Something in his gaze lingered—curious, unreadable. And just like that, Kat felt the faintest pull in her chest, a flicker of some- thing unsettlingly familiar. Then, the car picked up speed, the moment slipped away as quickly as it had appeared.
Kat turned forward, shaking it off.
You don’t actually know either of these men. She had met them both only once. Both had been kind, intriguing in their own way. But charm could be deceiving.
“You look lovely tonight,” he said, his voice low and smooth. He took her hand, steady- ing her as she slid into the plush leather seat. “ How kind of you to say,” she replied, her tone polite, measured. The scent of his cologne—something expen- sive, subtly spiced—drifted toward her as he rounded the front of the car, slipping into the driver’s seat. With a turn of the key, the engine purred to life, and the Mercedes rolled forward. Just as they eased away from her trailer, movement in her periphery caught her at- tention.
Brian had been charming too.
Her fingers tightened on the edge of her clutch. Brian. Who had spent two decades keeping her in the shadows. Who had given her just enough to stay hooked, hopeful, while he built a life with someone else. And yet, even now, the texts still came. "Please, Kat. Just talk to me." She exhaled sharply, pushing the thought away. It turned out Anna Maria Oyster Bar was just outside the park, a short drive east on
Ethan.
He was stepping out of his own trailer just
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