No one saw what he’d done. No one cared enough to catch a glimpse. Around her, customers continued getting drunk, paying no attention to her sitting at the bar alone. Aside from the bartender, Mira was the only black person in this restaurant and while she’d tried to ignore this reality before, the acknowledgment now filled her with fear. Fear told her to get up and go, head back to her cottage, and order room service. Fear made her want to ignore what just happened as well as last night, but she’d already ordered and the food would arrive soon. A scene would make the situation worse, and she feared leaving would cause one. He could still be watching her, waiting somewhere among the crowd for when she’d be alone. She couldn’t leave, and so did the only thing she knew to do—she crossed her legs and leaned across the counter, positioning herself in a way to make it seem like she deserved the space she occupied, but no matter how she arranged her body, no matter where she tried to focus her attention, she couldn’t let go of what he’d said. She could pretend, but pretending was not believing.

Next to Mira on the other side, two women talked. Each of them wore a pastel dress. Gold jewelry gleamed on their wrists as they brought their champagne flutes to their lips. Mira didn’t recognize them from the night before, but she didn’t recognize anyone. She assumed they were Phillip’s guests.

“What do you mean by ‘she’s gone’?” Mira heard one of them ask. She tried not to eavesdrop but she was close enough that despite her best intentions she heard anyway.

“Disappeared,” the other responded. “You know. Left. Got cold feet. With that heel I would have left too.”

“Heel? What did he do?”

“That man will go to town on anything in a skirt, if you catch my drift. He wanted to settle down but no one would have him.”

“I didn’t know about that. I only knew from Darcy that he could be a bit hot-tempered, but you know Darcy—she thinks a man who curses has gone too far.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me if he was too much to handle and that’s why he’d been single for so long.”

“I feel like a little fury is sexy, you know? Like when Rhett takes Scarlett in his arms and kisses her. I love that scene. He knows she wants him and is willing to take her. Every woman wants a man who’ll be forceful like that, but in the right kinds of ways.”