‘You’re wrong. I’m on my way home to jolly old England. I may never see him again. It makes no difference to me.’ To Samantha’s horror, her voice broke on that last phrase. She rushed to make her point before she came unhinged. ‘You may not want to hear this, but it’s not your place to negotiate with Roman’s employer or otherwise use your influence to make him return to a life that he’s rejected.’
‘Are you a relationship expert?’
‘I’ve yet to have a successful relationship,’ Samantha admitted without shame. ‘But I have loving, caring friendships. You’d like to be his friend, right? You’re going about it all wrong.’
‘You’re a smart girl, Samantha,’ Tara said. ‘I want way more than to be his friend. You must’ve figured that.’
‘My point is the same. You’re going about it all wrong.’
Tara blinked, searching for something to say. Finally, she popped a chocolate-covered pretzel in her mouth and resumed staring out the window.
The landing was bumpy, but they’d made it safely to Miami.
Samantha gave Hugo and Adrian a final hug goodbye before they parted ways. They were heading to customs and she was off to catch her connecting flight. Hugo couldn’t let go. He held her tight and swung her around while Adrian stood off to the side, scrolling his phone, giving them the space they needed.
‘Bye, gata,’ Hugo whispered. ‘Take care of your heart.’
‘You too,’ she whispered back. ‘And take care of him. He’s all right.’
‘Sure. I might kill him, though.’
‘Don’t!’ She gently pulled away from him. ‘I’ve got to run. Try to be good.’
‘Never! Just wait until I break the news to the others about you know who.’
They would never ever shut up about it. ‘Ugh! I hate you!’
‘Love you! Bye!’
Samantha watched them go, chatting and wheeling their carry-on luggage behind them, then took a minute to check the information on her boarding pass. Just as she was ready to charge off, You Know Who walked right up to her and tapped her on the shoulder. ‘Hello again!’
Tara had gathered her things as soon as the plane stopped moving and charged to the front of the line, past glares and goggle eyes. ‘I hate waiting around’ were her only parting words. However, it seemed she’d been waiting for Hugo and Adrian to leave to approach Samantha.
‘I’ve got some time to kill before boarding my flight to New York,’ she said. ‘Want to hang out?’
‘I can’t. My flight boards in twenty minutes.’
Tara flashed that winning smile. ‘Probably for the best, right?’
Samantha couldn’t disagree. ‘Probably.’
‘Well, hey. I know this is awkward as hell, but I’m glad I met you. All in all, I feel better knowing Roman is in good hands.’
Samantha took a step back. ‘He’s not in my hands at all.’
‘You’re in denial. That’s OK. Go home and get settled. You’ll find out soon enough that it’s not so easy to get over Roman Carver. It took me three tries to get it right.’ Tara swung her duffle bag over her shoulder. ‘Bye now! Safe travels!’