I walked away.
And for the first time since seeing Mirabel Murphy step onto this yacht, I felt lighter.
Enough to breathe.
Enough to stop feeling like I was the girl I was before again.
Enough to remember who the hell I was.
The orchestra played somewhere behind me.
Laughter drifted through the ballroom.
Champagne glasses clinked.
The party continued.
And for once, I wasn’t carrying the weight of the past on my shoulders.
At least not as heavily.
I rounded a corner near one of the glass walls overlooking the river and nearly walked straight into Hayes.
He caught my elbow before I collided with him.
“There you are.”
I blinked.
“There I am.”
His eyes narrowed slightly. “Where did you disappear to?”
Before answering, I reached for a champagne flute from a passing waiter’s tra
