Ready for You (Ready #3)(32)

“I haven’t forgotten. Be ready in twenty, and wear something comfortable. We’re walking—a lot.”

He disappeared into his room, and I slipped into mine. I raced around, freshening up my makeup and brushing my hair. I slipped on a pair of comfortable sandals and kept on my dress. It was comfortable, and I liked how I looked in it. I grabbed a sweater and tied it around my purse before making it out my door just in time.

“Not bad,” he commented. He was dressed down again, wearing dark jeans and a gray T-shirt. It clung to him and showed off the definition of his upper body.

I tried not to let my eyes linger too much.

“So, where are we going?” I asked.

We started walking down the streets of Manhattan.

“Well, you mentioned that you never left the hotel when you were a kid, so I’m taking you somewhere every kid has to go when visiting New York.”

Twenty minutes later, we were standing in front of FAO Schwarz.

“Oh my gosh! Are you kidding me? We’re going to a toy store?” I squealed, looking up at the massive store.

“Not just any toy store. This is the toy store. It’s awesome.”

We took the required cheesy photos with the live toy soldier standing at the entrance. I wondered how many photos that poor guy posed in each day.

Garrett wasn’t kidding. The store was massive with two floors and an escalator in between. It was insane. We spent an hour or more on the first floor, squeezing stuffed animals and playing with toys that were much too young for us. I didn’t think I’d laughed so much in my life.

We made our way upstairs and took a turn on the giant keyboard from Big. We were terrible.

Garrett went to go check out Legos, and I walked around. I stopped to check out something called Floam. An employee was doing a demonstration, and I was slightly envious that I hadn’t had cool stuff like that when I was little.

Now, I sounded old.

I made my way away from the Floam and wandered into the doll section. It was huge. They had every doll imaginable from expensive-looking porcelain ones that must have been imported from foreign countries to the type of dolls found at Target. My steps faltered in the aisle that had the baby dolls. I stood nearly frozen in place and stared, looking at the tiny outfits and shoes, as my fingers grazed the soft fabric of a baby blanket.

“There you are. I’ve been looking all over—” Garrett’s words evaporated as he came closer. “Are you crying?” he whispered.

I reached up with my fingertips and felt the wetness of tears.

“Hey,” he said cautiously, pulling me into his arms.

It was the first time he’d held me in years, yet it still felt familiar and safe.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“It’s okay. Let’s get you out of here and get some fresh air, all right?”

I nodded, not risking another glance at my surroundings. I didn’t need another reminder of everything I’d lost. The man holding me was enough.

~Garrett~

I took her out of the toy store, and her tears dried up rather quickly. She’d tried to hide them as if she were embarrassed by them.

I was just glad she’d stopped crying. I hated seeing her in tears.

As we walked down the street, I knew it would take more than a bit of fresh air to cheer her up from whatever had upset her in that store.

I’d only left her alone for a few minutes. When I’d found her, she looked destroyed. She had been staring lifelessly at the baby-doll accessories, her fingers grasping a tiny pink blanket like her life depended on it.

I couldn’t figure out—and then, it dawned on me.

No, she wasn’t allowed to mourn that. She couldn’t.

It had been her decision.

I glanced over at her eyes, still rimmed in red, and I wondered if something else had happened to her in the years we were apart to make her react that way. Had she experienced some other sort of loss? The thought soured my stomach.

“Hey, I’ve got an idea for dinner, if you’re up for it?” I announced, hoping to cheer her up and pull my mind out of the darkness.

She gave me a ghost of a smile and nodded.

I hailed a cab because it was now well into nighttime, and I didn’t want her to have to walk while feeling upset.

Within a few minutes, we arrived at the place I’d whispered to the taxi driver.

Mia looked up, and she laughed. It was a genuine laugh, and I breathed a sigh of relief. She was coming back to me.

“Wasn’t this place in a movie?”

“Probably several. There was a movie named after it actually.”

She smiled. “I know. I loved that movie. It was about two people finding each other after so long. It was very romantic.” Her eyes widened, and she immediately clamped her mouth shut.

I laughed. “Come on, let’s go inside.” I grabbed her arm, pulling her into the front doors of Serendipity.

The place was always packed. So, we waited our turn and made some plans for the next day. I had to meet a client in the morning, but I had the rest of the day free since I had originally planned on flying home afterward. I bought us tickets to the Statue of Liberty on my phone while we waited, and we planned on eating somewhere in Times Square for dinner.

Our table was called, and we followed the hostess upstairs to a small table in the corner.