Page 111 of Forbidden Eyes
“You don’t have to be sorry. It’s going to be what it will be, Fia. Anyway, think about visiting.”
I nod, watching her stand and straighten her clothes, the conversation apparently over. She grabs hold of her bag and gets a mirror and some lipstick out, applying it.
“So, have you and Carter got any plans this weekend?”
I stand with her and cross through the lounge, heading for the kitchen. “I’m not sure. I’ve got a new researcher starting at the lab on Monday.”
“Do you have to be there for that?”
“Technically, no. I’ve got a great team around me including friends I trust, but I’ve been clear right from the start that this is my project. My business. And so, I make sure I’m involved in everything.”
“That’s a good work ethic, Fia. I’m proud of you.”
“Thanks, Mom. I’m proud of myself, too. If we could only get the latest round of trials to show what I know they can, I know we’d be so much quicker to market.” We’ve been able to focus solely on the primary objective. Hiring Andi really helped. She was with me at school when we were just starting out on this, and now we’ll be able to finish our work together. With our team, we’ve been able to make much faster progress than I ever thought possible. Yet we’re still a giant leap away from what I really want. As we’ve made progress, I’ve been able to adapt and explore other goals and now there are wider implications of my research. Not just regarding drugs, but addiction of all kinds. How the brain and neurons interact.
“Remember, though,” she says, snapping her mirror closed and putting it in the bag again. “Don’t get lost in your work. I know it’s important to you, to both of you, but you have the same habit as your father. Single-mindedness. Don’t neglect the people around you for another few hours at work. You’re too young for all that.”
“Mom, I think I aged twenty years when I came out to visit Uncle Quinn.” We giggle because it’s right. I went from a sheltered teenager to an independent woman in a matter of weeks. Something the man upstairs seemed to help with a great deal.
She opens the front door, revealing a car idling ready to take her to the airport.
“Let me know when you arrive, won’t you?” I say, trying to keep the tears at bay.
“Will do. Take care, sweetie.”
“I will.” She wraps me in her arms and squeezes me as tightly as she did when I was a small child. Through all of this, she’s always ensured I know how much she loves me and how she’ll always be there for me. Even if it did take me a while to see that.
“Bye.”
She steps down and into the car with only a quick glance back, a smile on her face. I stand at the door and wait for her to leave, eventually watching as the dust from the drive settles back into position once the car’s disappeared out the gates.
“Has she gone?” Carter’s hands snake around my waist to seize me.
“Uh-huh.” Emotion races through me, threatening to take over the calm I’m trying to portray. I miss her already.
“Would it help if I said I have a surprise for you?”
“Maybe.”
He turns me, and I look up into his green eyes. He still stuns me when I see him looking at me the way I look at him, and, as usual, it sets my heart beating so fast my breath catches. Maybe I’ll get over the girlishness of it one day. Or not.
“I’m taking you away this weekend,” he murmurs.
“Oh?” What a coincidence.
I never did like the idea of my mom and boyfriend being in contact with one another, right from the get-go when I found out she’d met him in that bar, but after some time I’ve realised that both of them benefit from the alliance. Me, too, in various ways.
“Yes. And before you say you can’t go because of work, I’ve already spoken to Simon and Andi. They have the new researcher covered. You have a full induction scheduled with them on Wednesday. So you, Sofia Vico, can have a long weekend away with your neglected man.”
“Neglected?” I scoff, thinking back to last night and the night before. And the night before that. This morning, actually. “And what, do tell, are you neglected of?”
“You. Alone. Without a fucking alarm clock or schedule.” His lips tickle the column of my throat as he bends to kiss and nuzzle.
“So where are we off to?”
“Colombia.”
I back away from his hold and cross my arms. “Oh, so this is about relaxing together with no work?” I raise my brow, knowing full well that Gabby and Nate have been pursuing interests out there. And that Carter has got plans for that area all lined up. It’s been in the pipeline for months.