All Chapters of FALLING FOR MY MOM’S FIANCÉ : Chapter 1 - Chapter 7

MayaThe dress sticks to my skin like a second layer—silk and something I don’t really get, making me stand straighter, walk faster. Chloe’s heels click against the marble steps of the hotel, each sound echoing through the quiet lobby like a countdown.“Told you this place was nice,” she says, looping her arm through mine. “Look at the chandeliers, they’ve got to be real crystal. I read somewhere that each one costs more than a house in Queens.”I barely hear her. My eyes are fixed on the ballroom doors at the end of the hall, decorated with gold handles, red velvet curtains pulled back to reveal flashes of gold and white inside. The air smells like champagne and roses, so strong it makes my throat close up.“I thought we were going to the rooftop bar,” I say, my voice tight. “You said it was in Brooklyn… this is the Plaza, Chloe. I’d know this lobby anywhere.”“Change of plans,” she says, giving my arm a squeeze. “This client of mine you know, the one who does PR for luxury hotels? S

MayaI pull my hand back like I’ve been burned, wiping my knuckles against the fabric of my dress as if that’ll erase the feeling of his lips there. When I look at Philip again, his jaw is tight, so tight I can see the muscle working under his skin and his eyes are fixed on where Ethan touched me, dark with something I can’t read.“Ethan,” Philip says, his voice even but edged with steel. “The band asked if you’d join them for a song. They remember you from last year—said they still haven’t found anyone who can play bass like you do.”Ethan rolls his eyes but doesn’t argue, letting his hand fall away from mine. “They just want someone who’ll play their terrible jazz covers. Fine… I’ll go make myself useful. But I’m not playing ‘My Funny Valentine’ again. That song makes me want to throw things.”He gives me a small wave as he turns to head toward the stage, walking through the crowd with an easy confidence that’s nothing like Philip’s quiet poise. A few people call out his name… frien

Maya The cab ride back to my apartment is quiet. The driver keeps glancing at me in the rearview mirror, probably wondering why a woman in a red silk dress is sitting in the back seat with tears streaming down her face. I don’t bother wiping them away, I let him think whatever he wants.When we pull up to my building, I hand him a twenty without waiting for the fare, then practically fall out of the car. The door to the lobby is locked, of course it is, it’s almost midnight—but I manage to get my key in the lock on the third try, my hands still shaking.I’m halfway up the stairs when my phone buzzes in my dress pocket. Chloe: u home yet??? I've been texting u for an hour. I'm outside ur building with chinese food and tequila.I push open the door to my floor to find her sitting on the hallway carpet, a paper bag in one hand and a bottle of silver tequila in the other. She’s still in her party dress. It’s short, black, covered in sequins that catch the light from the hallway fixture.