Crossing the Line Part One (A Novella) by Samantha Long

Chapter One
    Victoria
stretched to ease the stiffness in her back and looked around the
combined living room and kitchen area of the condo. The work made
her proud. Color and life, furniture and art now filled the
previously hollow room.
    Rachel would sell this condo in a flash
now.
    Her cell rang from inside her purse and she
dashed to the bar in the kitchen and dug until she found it. She
bit back a curse when she saw the display.
    Roger. Roger, who was supposed to be picking
up Lucia and Helena from school today. Roger, the ex who wanted to
"go find himself" and decided a wife and family weren't part of
that. He'd only waited two days after the divorce was finalized to
date a socialite.
    She reminded herself that the divorce was a
year old and that bitterness didn't suit her. "Yes?" If she
answered the phone with a little bit of bite in her voice, it
didn't make her bitter. It showed how tired she was of him bailing
on her.
    "Hey, babe." Roger still didn't get the fact
that he couldn't call her babe. Ever.
    A headache started at the base of her skull.
"What is it? I'm busy." She needed to meet her dad and the
contractor at her new office.
    "I can't pick up the girls from school. I'm
having dinner with someone and I'll be late if I don't leave
now."
    "Roger," she sighed and looked at her watch.
The girls needed to be picked up in ten minutes. "You promised me
you would get them. Plus, I'm on the other side of town. There's no
way I can get there in time." Sanctuary Bay wasn't a large town,
but tourist season had started, so traffic would be heavy.
    "I'm telling you ahead so that you can make
arrangements."
    Temper ignited at the exaggerated patience
in his voice. "You're telling me ten minutes before they're
supposed to be picked up. That's not telling me in advance."
    "Look, babe. I can't make it. Give my love
to the girls."
    Victoria glared at her phone when he hung
up. She closed her eyes and took three deep breaths. There was a
way to solve this situation without maiming her ex. She'd just have
to call one of her sisters.
    She dialed her youngest sister, Addison,
with her fingers crossed. Addie taught at a school not far from the
girls. If there were no meetings, Addie should be able to pick them
up.
    "Who's my favorite sister?" Her voice
dripped syrupy sweet when Addie answered.
    "God, what? You only act like this when you
need something." Addie said.
    Victoria heard the smile in her sister's
voice and took heart. "Can you pick up the girls?"
    "Did Roger back out again?"
    "He decided to have dinner in the city." She
leaned against the counter and surveyed the condo again to prove to
herself that she'd moved on after the divorce. That she was better
off. That her girls were better off.
    "That douche. I'll leave right now. But you
owe me dinner."
    "Thanks, Addie."
    After she hung up, she changed into a black
pencil skirt, a white button up shirt, and red pumps for the
meeting. She pulled her black hair into a sleek ponytail, dressed
her brown eyes in natural makeup and mascara.
    The drive to the ocean front office on the
boardwalk took an extra thirty minutes. It didn't bother her,
though, because the warm air smelled like the sea, and she enjoyed
every minute of it. She pulled her SUV into the shopping center and
spotted her father's truck parked close to the office he'd helped
her buy. Being a retired contractor, he recommended a friend of his
to redo the inside to fit her needs. She had high hopes on the
outcome.
    "Hey, sweetie." Her father stood outside the
door, his salt and pepper hair close cropped. He shared his sloe
eyes with his two eldest daughters, and they warmed when he saw his
oldest. "How was the staging?" he enveloped her in a tight hug.
    "Great, I finished the condo for Rachel and
I have consults tomorrow for a few personal interior designs."
Victoria looked at the door. Her stomach tightened in excitement.
An office of her own. She wouldn’t have to work out of her house
anymore. "Let's go in. I want