And ruined her life.

  A little more than two hours later, I followed the directions the PI had given me to an entertainment area where people walked a loud boardwalk holding drinks while music blared from small bars.

  I assumed most of the people I passed were tourists as they spoke with various American accents and sometimes in foreign tongues.

  My heart was pounding as this wasn’t a place I’d expected to find Clarissa. I followed the directions on my phone to a club located on a second floor.

  The place was packed with groups of people, but the music was so loud I doubted anyone could hear anything.

  Then I spotted her. She was glancing around the place but hadn’t seen me.

  Her red hair helped me identify her, but as she turned and I saw her profile, awareness rushed through me.

  She was still the prettiest woman I’d ever met, with flawless, soft skin and that gleam in her eyes that had captivated me.

  She walked backward toward the bar area and back patio.

  I rushed across the room to meet her at the door. I reached for her hand, and a spark traveled through me that ran to my toes and tips of my hair. I let her go and asked, “Clarissa?”

  She let out a long sigh and cupped my face. “It was you who came to my house.”

  My pulse quickened. I’d expected her to slap me. I shouted more than said, “I didn’t expect to find you in a club.”

  She shrugged and said between songs, “Look, we can’t talk here.”

  True. This wasn’t the place to have our heart-to-heart. “Can we go somewhere else?” I asked.

  She pointed behind us. “Just go.”

  A balding man, older than us by at least ten years, waved for Clarissa.

  She walked away, and I tensed. I needed to regroup fast so I could get her full attention.

  The balding man’s dark suit was at odds with the humidity. I stayed back but heard him ask her, “Do you have my money?”

  “I get paid on Friday,” she shouted.

  I edged closer. If I solved her problem, then she’d be free to talk.

  The man told her, “Not good enough.”

  I lifted my chin and decided I could handle whatever it was.

  Everything wrong in her life was because of me. I approached the balding man. “How much does she owe you?”

  His gaze narrowed as he regarded me. “Who's this?”

  “Sam’s father,” Clarissa quickly replied.

  My shoulders squared. My son’s name is Sam. Adrenaline rushed through me, though it made no sense that Clarissa owed money to a man in a club.

  The man said, “She owes me ten thousand dollars for that car of hers.”

  She put one hand on her hip. “That’s broken.”

  A car. I let out the breath I’d been holding. I'd feared something much worse.

  The balding man said, “That’s not my fault.”

  I stepped in front of Clarissa. “I’ll take care of the bill. I’ll need the account information for the transfer.”

  He let out a laugh. “Yeah?”

  “Don’t get involved, Elon.” Clarissa pressed a hand on my shoulder. “I don’t want your cash.”

  I needed to fix everything. She'd given birth to my son. I needed to offer her everything I should have offered years ago.

  The balding man said, “The men are talking here.”

  I met her eyes. “Don’t go anywhere, Clarissa. We need to talk.”

  She crossed her arms and shook her head.

  However, I used my phone to call up a payment app and paid off the man.

  When I gazed up, she was gone.

  My skin grew cold despite the heat in the air. So I left.

  I’d find her and hopefully this time start the conversation off right.

  2

  Clarissa

  The last person I’d ever expected to see again was Elon Norouzi.

  The second I stared into those baby blues, I saw our son and was glad Sam was the spitting image of him. The years had clearly been kind to Elon as he’d only grown into more of a stud.

  And for one moment, I had a patter of hope for the impossible. However, I shook off the fantasy that he was here because he loved me.

  No one ever had, except Sam, and that was fine. When Elon had dumped me, I’d deserved it. One day, even my son would understand the truth. I was entirely unlovable.

  The heat of the night hardly changed during the days. It was never cool. I snuck into the arcade where I’d left Sam for ten minutes and found him finishing off a slice of pizza left over from some kid’s birthday party. My shoulders slumped as we’d not had enough money for food today.

  I sat beside him at the small table and placed my hands on my lap. “Sam, it’s time to get going.”

  He found a napkin and cleaned himself off—he was a great kid—and then asked, “What’s going on?”

  The rent at my apartment had been paid, though my heart whispered it was part of Hunter's trap to get me to go back there. So I wasn’t sure whether we should sleep there or not.

  My head pounded from having to make all these decisions. I took a deep breath. “It wasn’t Hunter who came to the apartment last week.”

  He smiled bright. “Good.”

  I lowered my head. One of the reasons I’d never sought out Elon to tell him the truth was that I feared the moment Sam knew about his father, he'd entirely forget me.

  But now that Elon was close, it was time to tell Sam the truth. “It was your father.”

  His eyes widened. “Wait. What?”

  Fair. I’d shocked him, though he was bright for an eight-year-old—smarter than most kids his age. He'd also got his intelligence from Elon.

  I stood and offered my hand. “We have to go.”

  Sam stood, clasped his palm to mine, and asked, “Was my father bad like Hunter?”

  My head pounded at the reminder of another of my mistakes. I’d never thought the man I'd let into my life might hurt Sam. I cupped his face. “No.”

  We walked out of the arcade and onto the pavilion. Sam stalled. “Then why are we running?”

  Elon wasn’t going to hurt me physically. He’d always been sweet and kind to me. He’d be able to offer everything to the only person in the world who mattered to me. I stooped down to Sam's height, uncaring that tourists flocked around us. “Because I need to protect you.”

  His eyes widened. “Protect me from my father? Who is he?”

  I stood. The hair on my arms stood at attention as though something was about to happen.

  Staying here was a bad idea. I now had ownership of the car. If it got Sam and me a hundred miles from here, we’d be safer.

  I kept my son close. “It’s not only him. If he finds me, then my parents are next, and you don’t want to face their disappointment.”

  As we headed to the exit, I saw Hunter in the crowd.

  If he saw me too… a shiver rushed through me as I hurried with Sam through the crowd. My heart raced. There was another exit. We swerved around a group of tourists following a man holding a purple flag, and I walked right into a wall of muscle.

  My body craved the impossible as I gazed up into Elon’s eyes.

  “I can help you both,” he said.

  “Elon.” My breath caught in my throat.

  Sam stared at me quizzically, but I held him tight to my side. Hunter was still close by, and who knew what he’d do to my son.

  Elon rocked back on his black loafers. “If you're worried about your parents, we don't have to tell them I found you. We can stay at my place.”

  I was one step closer to losing the only thing that mattered, so the answer was a given. Sam and I needed to disappear fast. I’d never let Sam be hurt again. I shook my head. “No, thanks.”

  “If you’re worried about anything, I can fix it.”

  I let out a laugh. He had no idea what he was saying. His money didn't matter to me. I lifted my eyebrows and decided to repeat a long-ago hurt I’d carried close to my heart. “As you said, ‘we’re done,’ so let’s not whitewash the past. Sam and I have to get out of here now.”

  He pressed his hand to his heart and lowered his head. “I’m sorry. Every day over the past eight years, I’ve hoped for the chance to say that to you.”

  The air above us crackled.

  Tourists ran, and my entire body tightened.

  It was about to rain, but I stood still. Maybe the water would wash away this nightmare.

  I pivoted and saw Hunter. He stayed back as I was with Elon, but time was up.

  Sam shook my arm. “Mom, listen… he said he was sorry.”

  Damn. Tears formed in my eyes just as it started to rain.

  If I kept Sam from Elon, our son would think of me as the bad guy.

  Elon said, “I want to help.”

  I swiped my face. I wouldn't let anyone see me cry as that never solved problems. I met Elon’s eyes. “You swear that you won't call my parents or force them to come see me if we come with you?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  I held Sam’s hand as tight as he’d let me. “Then fine.”

  Elon placed his hand over my head like he might protect me from the rain and Hunter.

  I almost laughed. The rain provided a welcome break from the unending heat. Elon walked us toward one of the most expensive hotels in the area. At least I wasn’t wearing anything that identified me as an employee of one of the theme parks. There was no way Hunter could figure out who I checked into the hotel with. If he did, he’d be a fool to show up at a penthouse or whatever room Elon picked.

  Sam swung my hand. “Mom… introduce me.”

  I stopped and didn’t care if rain ran down my face in buckets. Sam’s innocent blue eyes were sweet, and he deserved to be protected. I straightened my spine and pivoted to face the man I hoped would ensure nothing bad ever happened to Sam again. “Right. Elon, this is Sam. Sam, this is Elon, your father.”

  Elon crouched down and smiled. Sam reached out and hugged him.

  My heart swelled.

  They deserved each other.

  Elon took Sam’s other hand, and the three of us jogged into the hotel. As we waited in line at check-in, Sam asked, “How do you know my mom?”

  Elon met my gaze. He stared at me like he had something to say. Then he swallowed. “She… and I go back to when we were younger than you. She’s unforgettable.”

  I rocked on my feet. His family had provided the only normalcy in my childhood. My parents served his, but when I’d been allowed to hang out with Elon and his brothers, I’d had enough to eat and… laughter.

  Sam asked, “Why weren’t you here before now?”

  I cupped his face. My son had no idea what kind of person I’d been. I’d vowed to love him and protect him.

  It wasn’t his fault I’d failed in that too.

  Elon took out his wallet as we were next in line. “I… didn’t… I was in school.”

  “School? But you're old.”

  I laughed. Then I was old, too, as Elon and I had been born a week apart, and I used to save a piece of his birthday cake to celebrate my own birthday.

  Elon spoke to the clerk at the front desk, and I heard them discuss a penthouse option with multiple bedrooms.

  Sharing a common space was fine. I’m sure there was zero way Hunter could get past the front desk and then Elon to find Sam and me. Once again, I owed Elon.

  Elon swiped his black card and told Sam, “Medical school and residency took me seven years. And I had the money to start my business right away.”

  Elon offered me a plastic key card. I took it and said, “We’re not staying forever, Elon. It’s just temporary.”

  I needed to know Hunter wasn’t around the corner waiting to hunt me down. We walked to the elevator. “You and I settling everything is all I ever hoped for.”

  As the doors opened, I whispered to him, “Good, but let’s not get Sam’s hopes up.”

  We stepped inside, and the doors closed. Sam asked, “Why not? He’s better than Hunter.”

  I cringed. Sam had overheard me. I didn't want Elon to know I'd made one more awful choice in a lifetime of making terrible decisions. This time, it could have ruined my son’s life.

  Elon asked, “Who is this Hunter?”

  The elevator went up and up, and I wasn’t sure I had enough air to breathe.

  Sam said, “Mom’s mean ex-boyfriend.”

  The doors opened. Elon guided us to the door and slid his key card to open it. “Mean? How mean?”

  We stepped inside, and I glanced around the room. I’d never been on the top floor of any of the hotels in Orlando. This penthouse had a view of the two parks. I could see the lights of the roller coasters and imagined we'd soon have a perfect view of the fireworks being shot from the lagoon. I was dripping wet from the rainstorm, so I took off my waterlogged shoes.

  Sam did the same with his shoes.

  Sam headed to the couch. Once I was sure I wasn’t creating a huge puddle that would need to be cleaned, I realized Elon was waiting for an answer.

  I lowered my head. “He beat me up pretty bad a few weeks ago. I grabbed Sam, put him in the car, and we took off.”

  Elon’s face went white. “Is Hunter the guy in the bar?”

  I let out a long sigh. “No, that’s Paul. He’s a loan shark, and he’d lent Hunter the money for said car. I took the car to get away from Hunter. Turned out he had a way to track it, and I said I’d show up to meet him tonight, so we could figure out what to do about the car.”

  “Good,” he said, and then the doorbell rang. I jumped to block Sam in case Hunter had found us. Elon opened the door to a bellman and accepted the luggage.

  He closed the door and handed me one of the bags. “Let’s figure out who's sleeping where tonight as you both look exhausted. Room service will be here soon and hopefully perk you both up. We can take the jet tomorrow.”

  The farther away from Hunter both Sam and I got, the better.

  Elon walked over and gave Sam a bag as I opened mine to see what was inside.

  Clothes.

  And nice clothes, not from a warehouse of returned clothing or unclaimed items from the park's lost and found. I asked, “Where did you get these clothes?”

  “Just in case you agreed to come with me, I texted my assistant to get you both some things sent over.”

  Of course. He hadn't called my mom or dad, but people like my parents took care of people like Elon.

  Sam took out an electronic watch and smiled. “Wait, are you rich?”

  Elon shrugged. “Yes, and so are you.”

  “No, he’s not.“ I cringed. Once Sam started believing everything Elon said, I was lost. And Sam was the only one who mattered.

  “Mom!” Sam cried.

  Coming here was a huge mistake. Accepting Elon’s help was a blessing and a curse mixed up in a dream.

  Elon tilted his head. “He’s mine, and the money is his birthright.”

  I closed the bag and clutched it to me. I needed time to think. My heart raced. “Maybe this will all make sense after I eat something. But you and I need to talk once Sam goes to sleep.”

  “Okay,” Elon said.

  I headed to one of the bedrooms as Elon said, “Order whatever you want.”

  Sam immediately said, “I want a cheeseburger, French fries, and a soda.”

  So much for eating healthy, though Sam hadn't eaten much of anything today. I shrugged and called “He’ll also have an apple that he needs to eat first.”

  I closed the door. I hoped to God that I'd made the right choice tonight. Hunter was a threat that could end my life or Sam’s. Going on the run without money wasn’t smart, but I wondered whether Elon would try to take my son. If he did, I needed to ensure at least that my parents would have nothing to do with Sam. He didn’t deserve to be treated as though he were invisible.

  3

  Elon

  The moon was high in the sky. Clarissa hadn't come out of the bedroom, and I hadn’t wanted to move Sam, who passed out on the couch after his room-service meal.

  Some man out there had hurt my son. And I wasn’t sure where he was or how to fix any of this.

  So I rocked on my feet, enjoyed how the rain had finally ended, and just watched the moon.

  The bedroom door opened, and Clarissa came out wearing a white T-shirt and blue-striped sleep shorts. She’d liked the color blue when we were kids, so I'd mentioned that to my assistant. I waved for her to join me at the window.

  As she came closer, she seemed to glow and looked as innocent as she had years ago. My pulse zipped. “I thought for sure you were going to stay in there for hours.”

  She glanced at Sam on the couch. “Sam’s asleep. He’s usually a night owl.”

  He was like me then. I never could sleep when I'd been a kid or even now. I shrugged and said, “The burger filled him, and I went to the bathroom. When I came out, he was snoring.”

  She sucked on her bottom lip. I wasn’t sure what she’d do, but then she nodded. “Can you carry him into the bedroom?”

  I went to his side. “The suite has three, so he can have his own room.”

  She nodded. “He’d like that.”

  I lifted him, and she followed me.

  We tucked him under the sheets, and she kissed his cheeks.

  I wasn’t sure what to do. Sam and I needed time to get to know each other. I’d ask Maman how she'd gotten Joshua to open up as he'd been quieter more than the rest of us when he was adopted. Out of my twelve brothers, five had been born to Maman and Pedar, but our parents treated and loved all of us equally.

  Clarissa walked out of the bedroom with me, and I closed the door. She smiled. “Thank you for the clothes and the bedrooms to sleep in.”

  If I offered her alcohol, she might get the wrong idea. However, I lifted a bottle of wine. “We were all soaked through. I can have whatever you want moved so you don’t have to lift a finger.”

  She came beside me in the kitchen, took out two glasses, and rinsed them in the sink. “I don’t know. Money doesn’t solve everything.”

  “It solves most things.” I poured for both of us, and we walked to the couch and sat. “Clarissa, it’s clear you’re in trouble. Please know you can trust me.”