The smell of coffee and fresh-baked pastries enveloped Mykayla as she stepped into the bustling cafe, a welcome assault on her senses. Outside, the early August air in Washington State carried a crisp, almost autumnal chill, a stark contrast to the New Mexico heat she’d left behind. Braeynia and Danique, her younger sister and cousin, giggled beside her, already eyeing the display cases with undisguised glee.

“Mykayla, can we get a chocolate croissant?” Braeynia chirped, tugging lightly on her sleeve. Danique nodded eagerly, her eyes wide.

Mykayla smiled, the small, familiar ache in her chest softening. This was good. This fresh start, this new beginning, felt right. “Go on, you two,” she said, handing them some cash. “Get something sweet for all of us. You know what I like.”

As the girls darted towards the counter, Mykayla found a small table outside, sipping her coffee. The morning sun was bright, yet a subtle shiver ran down her spine. A strange, heavy sensation, as if she were being watched. She scanned the street casually, and then she saw him. Standing diagonally across the street, a man of breathtaking presence, his ice-blue eyes fixed on her. A jolt, primal and undeniable, shot through her.

Her phone buzzed, startling her, pulling her gaze away from him. An email from SM Industries HR. She’d gotten the PA job. Tomorrow. Eight AM. When she looked back up, he was gone, leaving only a lingering sense of loss and an unsettling question in her mind.