Shanna sleepily leaned on Jason’s shoulder. “So, what’s your real name, Jason the Globetrotter?” she asked after a few minutes of companionable silence.
“What’s yours, Anneliese the Very Ordinary Fashion Magazine Editor?”
She sought his hand, and they intertwined their fingers. “Shanna. Shanna O’Connell. No fashion magazine editor, just a freshly fired waitress.”
“And the prettiest water nymph in Vegas.”
Was it her three cocktails, or was he making no sense?
“You?” she prompted again.
“Simon,” he said after a second. “Simon Montague.”
Something about that name tickled her memory. Had she heard it before? It wasn’t easy to fight through her inebriation, but as she repeated the name a few times in her head, it clicked.
She shot up, nearly butting his chin in the process. “Simon Montague? The tech guy—the Aries CEO Simon Montague?”
He spread his arms but sounded almost dejected as he said, “That’s me.”
“Oh, shoot.” She sat back down. “Really?”
“Really.”
Shanna stared ahead, the hallway blurring before her eyes.
She’d just married Simon Montague.
But what was weirder still—it didn’t matter. It helped knowing what he did for work, but beyond that, she didn’t care. She didn’t know the boss and businessman Simon Montague, but this guy—she liked him. He was funny and kind, and—well, she clearly hadn’t been wrong about him being smart. He’d told her beautiful fantasies, and for one night, he’d made her forget she was cursed.
Plus, he seemed to have Jinx’s full approval.
“Nice to meet you, Simon.” She put her head back on his shoulder. He’d stiffened when she recognized his name, but soon relaxed and leaned into her, his breath tickling the top of her head.
“Nice to meet you too, Shanna.”
“So, what do we do tomorrow?”
“I have to go back to San Francisco.” He shifted and caught her chin with his fingers. His perfectly straight eyebrows furrowed. “Would you like to meet me there? Go on a date?”
“I think I would.” The pleasant buzzing feeling spread from her head to her belly. “I’d like that a lot.”
“Good.” The corner of his mouth lifted. “I’ll call you.”
The very slight but persistent reminder of her curse squeezed through the more pleasant thoughts.What if he forgets you before that?“Don’t take too long.”
He gave her one last smile, wide and shiny and knee-weakening. “I won’t.”
Chapter 2
Night whizzed past the windows as Simon’s Jaguar sped down the road. His ringtone interrupted Fleetwood Mac’sThe Chainand Simon accepted the call on the touchscreen.
“How are you, my boy?” Everett’s voice blared through the speakers.
“I’m driving home now,” Simon said. “I’ll be there for the meeting tomorrow.”
“I wasn’t worried about that. You know I can call just to ask you how you are?”
Simon grinned. “Something did happen in Vegas I have to tell you about.”
