Page 71 of Booked on You
This is exactly how it should be, I think to myself.
CHAPTER 18
EZRA
The sofa is drenched in golden afternoon sunlight, and I realize I’ve lost track of time. I sit up, setting Scarlett’s book aside, and scrub my hand down my face. I’m halfway finished with it, and I finally understand the warnings I was given by everyone.
The betrayal, mixed with the need to feel love, emotionally wrecks me. Would it have affected me the same if I didn’t know Scarlett?
I exhale.Probably.
Her words aren’t just gripping, they’re relentless. Every page has pulled me in deeper, and I’m fully under her magnetic spell. Heartbreak spills from ink to paper, leaving me raw and unsettled. She wanted to have his children and dreamed of starting a family with him. She forgave him when he chose her last at every opportunity. Scarlett was willing to rearrange her entire life for a man who never loved her.
I stare at the wall for a minute too long, trying to ease this feeling, but it does no good. I don’t pity her, but I’m sad she wasn’t treated right, the way she deserves. Learning about this stings more than I thought possible.
It’snotjealousy that I’m feeling. It’s frustration. I hate knowing this man left her feeling unworthy and unwanted, even years after the fact.
My phone vibrates, breaking my train of thought. Millie’s photo pops up on the screen, and I answer, grateful for the interruption.
“Hey, Aunt Millie.”
“Ezra,” she sings, “I went to the shop to visit you today during my lunch break and heard you took two weeks off.”
I chuckle. “You suggested it last month.”
“You’re right, but I have a feeling it wasn’t my suggestion that changed your mind.” She pauses for a second, giving me enough time to share openly, but I don’t say a word. “So, what have you been up to today? Hanging out with Scarlett?”
“I guess you could say that. I’ve been lost in her book since breakfast.”
“Which one?” she asks.
“My Everything,” I say, glancing at the cover.
Millie sucks air in through her teeth. “And?”
“It’s wrecking me.”
“Told you,” she says. “That girl knows how to reach right into your chest and squeeze.”
“No kidding,” I mutter.
“Now, are you gonna come see me today? I baked you and Scarlett a pecan pie, like I promised,” she says.
I chuckle. “You know I can’t pass up pie.”
She hums thoughtfully. “And it’s still warm.”
“Okay, okay. I’m putting on my shoes. Do you need anything?”
“Nope, just bring yourself. And Scarlett, if you want,” she says.
“She’s under a deadline and isn’t doing anything but working. Can’t disturb her until she finishes it.”
“Oh, she’s working onHer Forever?”
I freeze in place. “Huh?”
“That’s the title for her next book.Her Forever,” Millie says.
