I put on a smile as sweet as my buttercream. “Oh, it won’t be to just any guy. But don’t worry. That guy will never be you.” I turn to Jessica. “Can we discuss payment options?”
Yuna offered to pay for the ring, but I can’t let her. It’s my dream, so I need to finance it.
Noah shoves a black AmEx at Jessica. “Here. My fiancée isn’t going to pay for her own ring.”
I freeze, unable to process what I just heard. There’s no way he just called me his fiancée.
Then bitterness starts to swell in my heart. If he’d said this maybe even a year ago, I might’ve been ecstatic. But now? Now there’s only pain and resentment. He must consider me a complete idiot to think I’ll keep playing this game with him. Especially when the only prizes are my torment and a broken heart.
Jessica glances at me, her eyes uncertain, then back at Noah and starts to reach for the credit card.
I snatch it out of Noah’s hand and slap it against his chest, putting some real force into it. “Who thehellare you calling your fiancée?”
He takes a staggering step back. “You.”
“Since when? I haven’t heard a proposal.”
“You want me to do it right? No problem.” He instantly drops to one knee, like he’s been dying for a chance.
Once again, a year ago I would’ve been teary with joy. But now I know he isn’t serious. He’s only doing this because he can’t bear the idea of losing one of the toys he occasionally pulls out and plays with. “No. I don’t want you to do anything at all, because I’m not your fiancée. And you aren’t going to be my husband.”
He looks like I just backhanded him. “What’s wrong with me?”
“Are you kidding? How long am I going to be your fiancée? Until you get a call that some cheetahs are about to fuck and they need you to take photos?Hey Noah, Cheetah Only Fans needs more content.Until you get another rush of inspiration for your novel and spend three days locked away not answering your phone? Remember that one? Or until you find basicallyanything better to dothan keep a promise to me?”
Guilt and remorse twist his handsome face, and I steel myself. I can’t let this display affect me when I know he doesn’t care enough not to hurt me again.
“No. You’ll be my fiancée forever. I mean, until we get married,” he says.
“You know what I was doing before you walked up? I closed my eyes and envisioned a proposal. And guess what?You weren’t in it.” I step forward and push him again, making him put a hand down to keep his balance. Once he realizes I won’t be easy pickings, he’ll move on.
“Bobbi—”
“Go marry some girl you really love. One you moan about in your sleep.”
“That’syou.” The confusion on his face is so sincere, its claws leave a vicious gash in my heart.
I smile to hide the pain. “Nope. Sorry. You chose your precious cheetah porn over me. I never meant anything to you, so stop.”
He regards me for a long moment.That’s right. You got nothing to say.
He slowly stands up and looks me in the eye. “You’re wrong. You mean everything to me, and I’m going to manifest another chance to prove it to you.”
Chapter Fourteen
Bobbi
The first thing I do after getting home from Peery Diamonds is place my vision ring on a chain and loop it around my neck so the piece rests snugly against my bare chest. Then I go about changing the locks so Noah can’t invade my home using the key I foolishly gave him back when I thought we meant something to each other.
He’s also probably changed his passcodes by now. If he hasn’t…
My fiancée.The memory flashes through my mind—soirritating that he has the gall to believe there can still be anything between us. I expel the air from my lungs, imagining it’s the toxicity of my past.His delusion, his problem. Not mine.
On Monday, Noah sends me a giant bouquet of white calla lilies. I drag the trash can out from behind the counter and drop the flowers into the gray plastic bin right in front of the delivery guy.
“You’re, um…” The kid looks like he’s about eighteen, and clearly isn’t prepared for this.
“Supposed to sign for them before I chuck ’em out like old lettuce?”
