“Account closure. All funds transferred to A. MacLeod.”
Fuck. The breath left my body in a rush. They’d actually done it. After my defiant rejection of their Swiss “wellness clinic,” they had pushed the big red button. They’d cut me off completely.
I slid down the rough brick wall, my legs giving out as the full weight of my situation crashed down on me. I was hungover. I had likely been drugged and assaulted last night. And now I was completely, utterly broke.
No money. No job. No volunteer work. Nothing.
I was entirely, terrifyingly on my own. And I had no fucking clue what to do next.
CHAPTER TEN
SEAN
The finalityof it all was in the methodical fold of my last shirt. I was surrendering. The car to the airport was due at noon, and in a few short hours, I’d be leaving Glasgow behind. Leaving this whole mess behind.
Leaving her behind.
I’d fucked up. Badly. And now I was running away with my tail between my legs, just as Danny had suggested from the beginning.
“Sean!” Danny’s voice, careful and tentative, came from the doorway of the bedroom. I could practically smell the minty scent of toothpaste he’d used to cover up the last of the whisky from the night before. “Breakfast? My treat. Consider it a farewell to Glasgow.”
“Not hungry,” I said, my voice coming out rougher than intended. I kept my back to him, staring into the open carry-on bag on the bed as if it contained a miracle.
“You know what?” he said after a moment, his tone carefully light. “I’ll bring you back a coffee to go.”
The door clicked shut, leaving me in the sudden, suffocating quiet of the hotel suite. Through the windows, Glasgow hummed with its usual morning energy. People heading to work, life moving forward. Like I hadn’t demolished whatever chance I’d had with the most fascinating woman I’d ever met.
My hands froze on the zipper of the carry-on. Inside, nestled between my laptop charger and a paperback I hadn’t touched, was Beth’s bracelet. A delicate silver Celtic knot that I’d found after our first night together.
I picked it up, the cool metal surprisingly heavy in my palm.Coward.
I’d built a career on helping people face their fears, on taking risks. I’d let the tabloids and a warning from her mother control the narrative instead of controlling it myself. Every piece of advice I’d ever given about resilience and authenticity, I had abandoned.
My phone buzzed on the nightstand, and I almost ignored it, assuming it was Danny asking me about any specific coffee special. I didn’t give a fuck.
When the buzzing continued, I finally picked it up. His name was on the screen, but it was a call, not a text.
“Yeah?” I answered, my gaze fixed on the intricate knot of the bracelet.
“Get your ass down to the corner of Argyle and Queen Street.” His voice was a low, urgent whisper. “There’s a cafe called The Willow. She’s here, Sean.”
My heart stopped. For a full second, the world went silent. “What?”
“I’m watching her through the window right now. She looks... rough, man. But she’s here. Hurry.”
The line went dead. I stood there, phone still pressed to my ear, certain I’d hallucinated it. I shoved the bracelet deep into the pocket of my jeans and grabbed my jacket, not bothering to zip the bag left on the bed. The hotel room door slammed behind me as I bolted, my heart hammering against my ribs.
The elevator was taking too long. I hit the stairs, taking them two at a time, my mind racing. What are the odds? Maybe it was fate. Or maybe I was about to make an even bigger fool of myself than I already had.
But the alternative of getting on that plane and spending the rest of my life wondering what if—was infinitely worse.
The hotel lobby was a chaotic rush of tourists and luggage. I weaved through them like a man possessed, ignoring the irritated glares. The revolving door spat me out onto the Glasgow sidewalk, and I started running.
Three blocks. In my dress shoes, it might as well have been three miles. I ran anyway, dodging commuters and delivery trucks, my breath tearing at my lungs in the cool morning air. I cut through a small city park, my feet slipping on the dew-wet grass as the manicured lawns blurred past. This was insane. Chasing after a woman who had every reason to hate me.
And there it was. The Willow. A cozy-looking cafe with large windows and a green-painted door. Danny was leaning against a lamppost twenty feet away, pretending to check his phone. He saw me, gave the slightest nod toward the window, and then melted away around the corner.
I followed his gaze. And there she was.
