Love Lost, Hope Found

The Regency Hotel's lobby gleamed with polished marble and crystal chandeliers, but I barely noticed as I paced back and forth, checking my watch for the fifth time in twenty minutes. Three hours early—I knew it was excessive, but I couldn't help myself. After six months apart, I needed everything to be perfect for Maverick's homecoming.

"Miss Patterson, would you like another glass of water?" The concierge approached with a sympathetic smile. "You've been here since noon."

I smoothed down the emerald silk dress Maverick had once said brought out the gold flecks in my eyes. "Thank you, James. And could you please make sure the Dom P�rignon is chilling? Maverick prefers it with one ice cube."

My fingers instinctively reached for the small pendant necklace at my throat—my mother's final gift before she passed. The cool metal against my skin usually calmed me, but today nothing could settle the butterflies in my stomach.

"The conference room is arranged exactly as you requested," James assured me. "The contracts are on the mahogany table, with fresh pens beside them."

I nodded, rehearsing once more what I would say when I finally saw him. Should I embrace him first? Or let him speak? Would he be tired from the flight? Six months was so long—had he changed?

My phone buzzed. No messages. I'd sent Maverick three texts this morning, each met with brief, distracted responses. Business was demanding, I understood that. But tonight would make it all worthwhile.

"Miss Patterson?" James's voice pulled me from my thoughts. "Mr. Dixon has arrived."

My heart leapt as I turned toward the entrance, a smile spreading across my face. But it froze there, halfway formed, as I saw him.

Maverick stood in the doorway, his tall frame silhouetted against the afternoon light. But he wasn't alone. A woman with sleek blonde hair hung on his arm, her body pressed intimately against his side as she laughed at something he whispered in her ear.

I stood frozen, my fingers still clutching my mother's pendant. This wasn't right. This wasn't how I'd imagined our reunion.

"Grace!" Maverick finally spotted me, his surprise evident. But there was something else in his expression—was it guilt? Or annoyance?

I forced my legs to move, crossing the lobby with trembling hands extended toward him. "Maverick, welcome home."

He accepted my embrace with stiff arms, patting my back twice before stepping away. The woman beside him smirked, her perfectly manicured hand possessively sliding back around his bicep.

"Grace, this is Sasha Simmons," Maverick said, his tone casual. "My invaluable business partner from the Singapore expansion."

Sasha extended a limp hand toward me, her smile not reaching her eyes. "So you're Grace. Maverick's mentioned you."

I took her hand automatically, searching Maverick's face for explanation. "I've prepared dinner for us in the private dining room. We should discuss the contracts—they need your signature before the quarterly meeting."

"Now?" Maverick frowned, glancing at his watch. "Grace, I'm exhausted from the flight. Can't this wait?"