The Pool Boy - Nikki Sloane Page 0,6

healthy and fit, and my reward only motivated me to keep going with it.

The air conditioning in my kitchen did little to cool me down as I dropped the mail on the counter with a thud, followed by my purse. I glared at the letter, then sighed and slipped my finger beneath the flap, tearing it open.

The tension slipped from my shoulders as I read the cover letter from my divorce attorney, and then paged through the signed papers that followed.

It was official.

My marriage was dissolved.

My relief was so overwhelming, I gripped the edge of the counter with both hands to keep me upright. One long chapter of my life was finally closed.

I could hear Jenna’s voice in my head, urging me to start a new one. She’d been on me for the last two months to start putting myself out there, but it felt wrong to do that before my marriage was legally over.

There was nothing stopping me now.

Nothing except my crushing fear.

I’d been so oblivious to my relationship falling apart with Clark, how could I trust myself with someone new? I’d buried the sexy red bodysuit deep in my closet because it was too expensive to throw out, but it was stupid. I hadn’t been on a date in nearly two decades. By the time I found someone to wear it for, it probably wouldn’t fit anymore.

I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath, cleansing the thought from my mind. It was a good day today. I was off work in the middle of the afternoon with no obligations. This called for a celebratory margarita. And when I opened my eyes and stared out the window at the backyard, my bright blue pool glistened back at me.

Even better.

I’d have my drink beside the pool and enjoy the fabulous weather while I finished listening to the demos. I had a brand-new peach-colored bikini I’d bought last month on sale in preparation for the summer. Today was the perfect day to wear it.

Once I’d changed and fixed my drink, I stepped out on the covered back patio and surveyed my options. There were chairs gathered around the table beneath an umbrella, or there was a set of lounge chairs next to the deep end of the pool shaded by the nearby pool house.

When Clark and I had moved in years ago, we’d had grand plans to turn it into a guest house, but those never materialized. The small house had electricity and plumbing, including a bathroom inside and an outdoor shower, but the floors were concrete, and the interior walls were just studs.

It meant the building was an oversized storage shed where we kept all the pool supplies and Christmas decorations. For a brief time after Clark had moved out, I’d considered turning it into a studio, but it didn’t make financial sense. Eventually, I would realize the house was too big for me, and if I were going to invest in it, a guest house was more practical.

My flip-flops slapped against the concrete patio as I carried my margarita, my phone, and a towel tucked under my arm toward the loungers. It didn’t take me long to spread out the towel and get situated on it, and then I was sipping my drink and slipping in my earbuds.

It’d been a hard ten months, but my broken heart and wounded pride had slowly healed as I’d settled into my new normal. In fact, other than the holidays, my life hadn’t changed all that much. Clark had begun fading from my life before I’d realized it. Now that it was done, perhaps the most shocking part was just how quickly he’d discarded two decades with me and moved on.

You should do the same, Jenna would tell me.

I adjusted my sunglasses, settled back in the chair, and tapped the ‘play’ icon on the screen of my phone.

I finished listening to the demos around the same time I finished my margarita, and after I fetched a refill, there were emails to be answered. I managed bookings for several of the artists at our agency and did everything from scheduling and negotiating payment, to writing up artists’ preferences and making sure those riders were provided to the events.

As I worked, the shade from the pool house began to recede. It was late enough in the day I hadn’t bothered with sunscreen anywhere other than on my face, so maybe I’d get a little color.

My phone rang, and Ardy’s name flashed on the