Page 88 of Royal Icing

He had better check in with Sal to see if he could stay there for a few days.

“So you didn’t get to make your pitch?” She gestured at his laptop.

Leo sighed. “It didn’t matter. They’re leasing the land to a ski resort.”

The thought twisted his stomach. People were going to suffer, and it was largely his fault.

“Maybe I could bring it up to them?”

He shook his head. “This isn’t your fight. I’ll find a way.”

“I know you will.”

She gave him another hug.

“Your Christmas gift is in my room under the tree,” he told her. “I need to go.”

“Where are you going?”

“I don’t know, but I can’t…be here. I love you, kid.”

“Love you back.”

With a final squeeze, he released her and went back to his room.

The Christmas lights were still up, a dizzyingly cheerful display for such a melancholy morning.

Where could he go from here? He had squandered an opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of people in this community.

But he didn’t regret dancing with Emma. Making love to Emma. He had seen firsthand what she knew to be true all along—his mother was immovable as marble. She never would have given Emma the money back.

He owed Emma a gigantic apology. And more than anything, he just wanted to see her again. Even if she slammed the door in his face.

With no real plan, he lugged a suitcase out of the closet and began checking flights.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

EMMA

Everything was fucked.

Emma dragged her suitcase down the uneven sidewalk in Greenpoint. Even the tree roots were determined to ruin her day, tripping her up every couple of feet. Her body ached with fatigue and jet lag, and her eyes stung from crying. The couple hours of rest she’d had at the airport gate hadn’t reinvigorated her.

She had torpedoed her career. Squandered her mom’s best chance for a better future. And then Leo had scolded her. Against all odds, she was even worse off now than before she left.

Even Brooklyn matched her mood. Dirty snow was piled on every corner, and car horn blasts were everywhere as harried people crisscrossed the streets without waiting for pedestrian lights. It felt strangely alien after the small-town bustle of Hollybrook.

This was lower than low. She had taken a drill to rock bottom, mining straight to the hot, miserable core of the earth. No steady income. No health insurance. No money for food or heat. Merry freakin’ Christmas.

And it was all her fault. She had almost fallen in love with a prince who lived thousands of miles away. She knew sheshould’ve stayed away from Leo. That’s what she got for allowing herself to be distracted by a man. They weren’t trustworthy. She was better off alone. Her mom needed her to be better, to do better. And now she had to go home and tell her she had lost her job and taken a crème brûlée torch to her future.

Tomorrow, there would be time to find a new way forward. But today, she was going to cry.

At least Cooper was still happy. His tail thumped back and forth, sweeping the curb they stood on.

They paused at an intersection. The woman next to her lifted her head and looked confused.

Emma offered a weak smile and turned away.