Page 153 of Broken Destiny

“Would you have time to talk then?” I asked, holding my breath.

“No,” he snapped back immediately. “I have to meet Tatiana for last-minute confirmations.”

Her name landed between us like a wall.

“How about tomorrow?” I tried again.

“I don’t know,” he said, glancing at the children walking toward him. “I’m quite busy.”

My mouth turned dry and sore.

“What about Friday?” I asked, searching his face. “Ineedto speak with you.”

His eyes snapped back to mine.

“You should have thought about that before asking Harper to come over,” he said under his breath, leaning slightly closer.

The accusation stung.

Before I could respond, Harper’s voice cut through the tension.

“Oh! I forgot,” he said loudly.

I turned toward him.

“Tatiana invited you and me for dinner with Caleb and her on Friday. I was going to mention that to you today.”

Great!I shut my eyes, face-palming myself in my head.Any other surprises waiting for me today?

A few seconds later, I bent and kissed the children.

“Have fun,” I whispered, waving to them.

I stood in the doorway, watching them walk away together—Caleb leading the way, the children bouncing beside him, Geeta following close behind.

My chest ached as the distance between us grew with every step.

I blinked rapidly, refusing to let the tears fall.

Then I felt Harper’s hand rest gently on my shoulder.

“Don’t worry,” he said quietly. “It’ll all work out.”

I drew in a slow breath and closed the door.

I hope it does. I hope I’m not too late.

42

CALEB

Itook the children to the beach.

Before leaving that morning, I had told Tatiana that I had an urgent meeting at the office. The lie had rolled off my tongue, but I didn’t question it. Some truths were harder to explain than deception, and this was one of them.

Once I reached the office, I changed into shorts and a T-shirt, needing the comfort of something that didn’t remind me of boardrooms, expectations, or the wedding looming over my head like a deadline.

As I drove toward the beach, my thoughts circled back to Jiya and Harper and the night of the cocktail party when I had first seen her.