Of course, you don’t.
“There’s also the matter of safety. The owner of the yacht, along with maritime law, has precautions and rules. There’s no way of getting around them.”
Melody grunted on the other line, and Roxanne resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Had this woman never been told no in her life? The answer was blatantly obvious from her childish and immature response.
“But it’s my day!”
“And it will be beautiful,” she inhaled a breath, “for you, your husband-to-be and one hundred and twenty guests.”
Her phone pinged on the desk, and she glanced down.
Jonah: Are you messaging me from a burner phone?
Roxanne covered her mouth, battening down her chuckle. Laughing within earshot of Melody would probably send thebride over the edge. She grabbed the other phone and tapped the screen.
Roxanne: It’s my backup. Consider yourself lucky. Only a select few know this number.
He responded immediately.
Jonah: You sound important. What time should I pick you up?
Roxanne: I can just meet you there.
Jonah: Is this a date?
Her blood warmed, and her belly flipped. She hadn’t gotten butterflies in years. She brushed her fingers against her lips, remembering their kiss. Heat spread throughout her body. A week had been way too long to wait. They’d messaged each other, but she was counting down the minutes until tonight. Her premonition from last Saturday had been on point. It was a long week.
Roxanne: Yes.
Jonah: I’ll ask again. When should I pick you up?
Roxanne: In forty-five minutes. My address is 32 Fairlawn Ave.
Jonah: I’ll see you then.
Roxanne stared at the message, zoning out for a brief second. All her thoughts were on Jonah, their kiss and all the possibilities for the evening.
“Hello! Roxanne? Are you still there?” The nasal voice on the other line had her straightening in her chair, bracing for the next ten minutes of complaints.
At least I have something to look forward to.
“Yes, I’m still here.”
Unfortunately.
*
What she’d hoped would’ve only been ten minutes, turned into twenty, and she had to race to her apartment. Thankfully,she lived five minutes away. Unfortunately, it only left her enough time to quickly change her outfit and touch up her makeup.
Parking was an absolute nightmare on her street, so she wanted to be waiting downstairs when Jonah arrived. She sent him a message but hadn’t gotten a response. She stood near the curb, glancing at each end of the road.
When she saw his truck pull down the street, she waved. He pulled up to the curb, and she rushed toward the passenger door but stopped midway when Jonah got out of the truck. It was still running, and he was parked in a loading zone. It wasn’t a good sign. A wave of dread washed over her. Had something come up? Was he canceling their date face to face? Do people do that? Jonah rounded the front of the truck and scanned her face, furrowing his brows.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing. Why?”
“You look upset?”
