Alvina moves up next to me. “I’m sure it’s not what it looks like.”
I don’t answer. Instead, I spin in a slow circle, taking in all the TVs in the airport. There are a lot of them, one at every gate and in every restaurant and store. All are watched by travelers who stare with unwavering attention. The same image is displayed on each screen, over and over and over again.
It’s a picture of my fiancé kissing his ex-girlfriend.
?
The click of the hotel door closing wakes me up. I scoot up onto my elbows and stare blearily at the clock on the nightstand. Eleven forty-five p.m. I’ve been asleep for a little over an hour. We had a late dinner at a nearby restaurant. Turns out Helen is staying here as well, so we invited her to join us. She was a nice addition to our group. Quiet but kind.
Since registration for the conference opens early tomorrow, we’d gone tobed shortly after we ate. Alvina’s sharing a room with me, two queen beds with a nightstand between them. Wayne’s right across the hall. I yawn and stretch, then snuggle back under the soft, white covers, still tired. I had a hard time falling asleep.
The image of Caleb and Lola kissing kept me awake, even though Alvina repeatedly assured me that Caleb would have a good explanation once I talked with him. I’d called him twice before I fell asleep, but no answer, a fact that only added to my unease.
The thought of Alvina makes me sit up again. I peer through the darkness, trying to make out her shape in the bed across the room, but the blankets lie flat against the mattress. She isn’t there.
That’s odd.
I rise and pad to the bathroom. She isn’t in there either. The murmur of voices from the hallway draws my attention. I move to the peephole in our door. Rising onto my toes, I can barely see out.
The scene before me rocks my world. It’s Alvina…and Wayne. They’re embracing and are they kissing?!
Yes. Yes, they are.
Not just any casual smooch. This is a passion-filled kiss, like they’re trying to suck the air right out of each other. They pull apart and—wait—they’re beaming. I’ve never seen either of them look so happy.
What the heck is happening?
Wayne holds his door open, and Alvina walks into his hotel room.
I think I might puke.
It’s not that I don’t want to see them in a relationship. They deserve love, but I never thought it would be with each other.
On the nightstand, my phone rings with Caleb’s name on the screen. A tremor of apprehension runs through me as I accept the call.
Caleb greets me, his voice deep and raspy. “Hey, I’m glad you’re up. Sorry I missed your message earlier. I stayed late at rehearsals, helping orient Justin. He’s still settling in.”
“Oh yeah. How’s he doing?” I had almost forgotten. Caleb’s old understudy for his Broadway musical,Crazy for You, had gotten a starring role ina different production down the street. Justin was hired a few weeks ago to replace him.
“He’s fine. Super-grateful. He said as soon as he got this understudy position, he quit his old job, which he hated. How about you? How was the flight?”
“Long.” I climb into bed and sit cross-legged.
“Hang on,” Caleb says, “let’s FaceTime. I need to see you.”
“Oh, good idea.”
We end the call, and I redial. There’s a chiming sound as our phones connect and there he is, sitting in his bed with the phone propped in his lap. The lights are turned off, leaving only moonlight and the glimmer of stars outside the window to illuminate the room. That mix of silver and gold reflects off the sharp angles of his cheekbones and adds a metallic glint to his skin. He’s gorgeous, almost too handsome to be real. I drink him in. Caleb looks at me the same way, staring like he hasn’t seen me in years rather than hours. My eyes drop to his full lips, and it comes back to me that earlier today that mouth was pressed to Lola’s. The glow that was lit in me from seeing him fades, replaced by an inky darkness.
“How was your day?” I ask, on the hunt for the truth. I expect to have to ferret the information out of him, but I should have known better.
Caleb’s not a liar.
He says, “It was okay, but I need to warn you about something.”
“What?” I lean against the padded headrest, already guessing the answer.
Caleb clears his throat and says, “There was an…incident when I was leaving lunch today. I bumped into Lola.” He pauses, braces himself, and plows on. “The press was there, and they took some pictures—”
