His Forbidden Love (Manhattan Billionaires #2) - Ava Ryan Page 0,66

the tray.

“Very well indeed,” Gilda says, blushing furiously. “And what can I get you?”

Liam glances over at the display case. “Coffee. Cream. What about a Napoleon? Do you serve Napoleons?”

“I’ve got you covered,” she says, winking as she hurries off again.

“This is nice and all,” I say before taking a fortifying sip of coffee. “But I don’t know why we’re here. I need a scotch and soda or ten. Especially with Liam here. Not a freaking waffle.”

“I told you. This is the only time we were all available,” Mia says before taking a hearty bite of her little pastry, generating a shower of flakes on her plate. “So what happened?”

I eyeball Liam warily.

“She’ll tell me everything later anyway,” he says, shrugging.

“Remind me to have a discussion with you later about privacy,” I say, scowling at my sister.

“Yes, yes. Duly noted,” she says, rolling her eyes as she gives me one of those speed it up gestures.

“So… It was her birthday yesterday—” I start.

“Oh my God,” she says, exchanging a startled look with Liam. “Why does everything happen on birthdays? Why can’t anyone have a normal birthday around here?”

That’s right. I forgot that Mia’s relationship with Liam came to a head on our birthday a couple of months ago. I won’t get into it now, but it’s a whole story about how I helped the two of them reconcile and get engaged. I suppose it was my fairy godfather moment.

“This isn’t about you,” I tell her. “This is about me torching my life.”

“Well, what happened?” she asks. “You didn’t forget, did you?”

“No,” I say, reaching into my pocket, retrieving the jewelry box and slamming it onto the table. “And that reminds me. I never even got around to giving her these.”

She lunges for the box and gets it open with a speed that suggests she’s trying to qualify for some Olympic event. Then she gasps when she sees the pair of glittering diamond studs.

“Very nice,” she says, eyeing me with a new appreciation. “I repeat: what happened?”

I try to get my thoughts together, but I find it difficult to explain how things unfolded last night. Even to myself.

“I went over there after we finished up with drinks last night,” I tell Liam, who nods encouragingly. “She wasn’t expecting me. She thought I didn’t know it was her birthday. I gave her some flowers. She got really excited and she, ah, told me she loves me. For the first time.”

Mia breaks into an ecstatic grin. “That’s awesome,” she says as Liam gives me a thumbs-up. “I’m so happy for you.”

“Not so fast,” I say. “I, ah, froze.”

Rarely have I seen a smile disappear so quickly.

“You froze?” she says, a cold front sweeping across her face. “What do you mean, you froze?”

“Here we are,” Gilda says just then, giving me a welcome reprieve as she arrives at the table with Liam’s stuff. “Am I forgetting anything? Everything look okay? Let me know if you need anything else.”

“Will do,” Liam tells her. “Thanks.”

Aunt Gilda smiles and retreats, leaving me to get frostbite from the frigidity of Mia’s glare. But before I can say anything, Liam starts, pulls his phone out of his breast pocket and checks the display.

“Whoops,” he says, getting up and giving my sister a peck on the cheek. A gesture she doesn’t bother to acknowledge because she’s too busy using her flashing eyes to shoot laser strikes directly through my forehead. “Sorry. I need to take this. I’m consulting on a case. Be right back.”

He walks off and goes outside to take the call and pace in front of our window.

“Well?” Mia demands.

“I don’t know,” I say, struggling to understand what happened to me in what should have been the best moment of my life.

I remember the glow in Ally’s luminous eyes as she told me how she feels. Her unmistakable happiness. My responsive disbelief and the way it yielded to an explosion of joy. Then, without warning, the sudden flattening descent of paralysis. Like a trick stone wall dropping on Harrison Ford in an Indiana Jones movie. Worst of all, the way the light went out of her eyes and the knowledge that I killed it.

And for what?

Why did I do that? What happened to me? Before everything went sideways, I felt the happiest and luckiest I’ve ever felt in my life. The sensation was nothing like it was with my ex, even when our relationship was at its most harmonious. This thing with Ally? It’s so much bigger than