Page 2 of Collide

Squirming free, I find myself at arm’s length as her eyes scan every inch of me.

“Oh, my goodness, look at you,” she gushes, brushing her hair over her shoulder, grinning ear to ear. “You look great!”

“Considering I spent twenty hours on a plane?” I tease, stretching my stiff neck.

She winks. “You’re surviving it well.”

“Thanks, Pip.”

She gasps. “Oh, God, no one’s called me that in years.”

Laughing, she reaches for one of my roller bags.

“Thanks,” I say, slinging my guitar case over one shoulder as we make our way toward the exit.

“Dad is so delighted to have you back home.”

Oh, I bet he is.

The bastard finally got his way—his two ‘jewels’ back in his possession.

The terminal’s sliding doors part, and the June heat rushes in, thick and suffocating. I’d left winter behind, and now the humid air clings to my skin like a second layer. Outside, yellow cabs honk, drivers load bags, and passengers climb into their cars.

Philippa leads me toward a sleek black town car parked at the far end of the curb. I brace myself, hoping—praying—he’s not inside. I’ll have to face him eventually, but I’m not ready.

“So,” Philippa chirps, glancing at me as the driver approaches, “if you don’t want to get jet-lagged, you need to stay up as late as possible. What do you want to do today?”

“Sleep,” I groan, wiping the condensation forming on my brow.

Philippa’s smile falters into a pout. For a second, she looks like her twelve-year-old self who never took no for an answer. Exactly likehim.

She’s used to getting what she wants. The daughter of a tycoon, raised in the lap of generational wealth, every bit the Manhattan heiress. He doted on her—an Ivy League education, a place in his company right after graduation, vacations around the world during holiday breaks.

None of it ever interested me.

My mom and I were happy in our slice of paradise on the other side of the world, far fromhim.

The driver greets us with a nod. “Miss Montgomery.”

He grabs my bags with ease and loads them into the trunk before I can protest.

“Oh, I can take those,” I offer, heat creeping up my neck.

“Miss Montgomery, it’s my pleasure.” He smiles, shutting the trunk.

I’m not used to this—people waiting on me. It’s not a thing back home.

With a sigh, I slide into the car, the cool leather soothing my sticky skin.

“Pip, it’s been a long day. Can’t we chill at home?”

She sighs dramatically, rolling her eyes. “I thought we could do a little shopping. Sister bonding time.”

“Another time. Maybe tomorrow.”

She grins. “Well, that’s not a no.”

I shake my head, glancing out the window as the car pulls away from the curb. The city blurs past—towering concrete giants, sunlight bouncing off building windows, the constant motion of people threading the sidewalks. The city is alive, electric, untamed.