Chapter 1 #2
She told herself it was the music or the excitement of the evening, but deep down Madison knew this night was a night she’d remember long after it was over. Which was exactly why she planned to keep it just that. A memory. Nothing more.
Near midnight, the crowd began thinning as couples slipped toward the exits. Garrett walked the mystery woman back onto the dance floor one last time. “One more?” he asked.
She smiled. “One last dance.”
The band struck up a slow, sweeping melody.
He guided her through the steps easily, spinning her outward before drawing her back toward him.
The last song slowed, the room dimming around them until it felt like they were the only two left moving.
He shouldn’t have pulled her closer. But he did.
His hand tightened at her waist, just enough to feel the shape of her beneath the silk, just enough to know he was crossing into something he wouldn’t be able to walk back from.
She didn’t pull away. If anything, she leaned in.
That was the problem. All night, he’d kept it light—easy conversation, anonymous smiles, no names, no history. A clean break when the night ended.
That had been the plan.
But now . . . his gaze dropped to her mouth. He hadn’t meant to take things any further, but he couldn’t seem to stop.
Her lips parted slightly, like she was waiting for him to make a move.
Hell. He lifted his hand before he could think better of it, his fingers brushing along her jaw—slow, deliberate—giving her time to stop him.
She didn’t.
His thumb settled just beneath her lip, grazing the soft edge of it, and her breath caught. That sound—quiet, barely there, hit him harder than it should have. He tilted her chin, just enough that his thumb traced the line of her mouth.
When she leaned in, he lowered his head.
Her body stilled and her breath hitched.
God, he wanted to lose himself in her, but at the last second, he shifted. Instead, his mouth brushed the corner of hers.
Her inhale caught against his lips. She didn’t move, didn’t pull back, like she was holding on to the moment as tightly as he was.
Every instinct in him pushed for more—to close the distance, to take the kiss he’d already started—but that wasn’t what this night was supposed to be.
He’d promised anonymity. If he kissed her for real, it wouldn’t end there. And he wasn’t sure he’d be able to walk away.
So, he forced himself back, slow and controlled.
He let his hand fall from her jaw, his thumb trailing once—light, almost absent—across her lip before he let go completely.
The song ended. The spell broke when applause erupted around them.
As she turned beneath his arm, the edge of her gown shifted slightly off her shoulder.
And Garrett caught sight of something, a small cluster of stars inked along the curve of her shoulder blade.
He frowned slightly, trying to place it.
Another turn and more of the tattoo came into view.
Seven tiny stars connected by thin lines.
Recognition hit him.
Gemini. The same constellation Mason, his best friend and business partner, had tattooed on his arm.
Garrett blinked, momentarily thrown. What were the odds? But before he could think about it too long, she stepped back into his arms.
“Thank you for the dance,” she said softly.
He nodded. “Best anonymous night I’ve ever had.”
She smiled at that, and then she slipped away into the crowd, leaving Garrett standing on the edge of the dance floor with the lingering feeling that he’d just let someone important walk out of his life.
In his car on the way home, his mind kept wandering back to the masquerade.
To Madison, Mason’s twin. It had to be her.
He’d heard she was due back in Minnesota, but why was she at the ball?
Had it been anyone else, he’d have found a way to track her down again—he hadn’t been this attracted to anyone in years.
But seeing that scatter of stars across her shoulder changed everything.
Lost in thought, he almost let the incoming call go to voicemail, until he glanced at the dashboard screen. Nick. It was past midnight, and his older brother wouldn’t be calling unless something was wrong. His stomach tightened.
He tapped the steering wheel control. “What’s wrong?”
Nick’s voice came through tight and strained. “Finally. Where the hell have you been? I’ve been trying to reach you all night.”
Garrett kept his eyes on the dark stretch of highway ahead. “I was attending a business function. What’s going on?”
Nick paused just long enough to send a chill down Garrett’s spine.
“Dad had a heart attack,” Nick said.
The words hit Garrett with brutal, unexpected force. “What?”
His hand tightened around the steering wheel.
“Late this afternoon,” Nick said. “He’s at St. Luke’s.”
Garrett’s pulse pounded in his ears.
While he’d been dancing, laughing, and forgetting the rest of the world existed, his father had been fighting for his life.
A rush of guilt hit him square in the chest. His phone had been buzzing somewhere in his coat pocket while he was out under string lights, spinning Mason’s sister across a dance floor.
One of the best nights of his life.
And he hadn’t answered.
Nick continued, his voice quieter now. “He’s out of surgery and he’s going to be okay.”
Garrett exhaled slowly. “You could have led with that.”
“Are you coming?”
“I’m on my way.”