“Fine.” I sigh. “I want us to still be together.” And there it is. “But unless you know where I can find a time-traveling DeLorean with a working flux capacitor, I don’t know how to make that happen.” I bite a nail as the curves of Nash’s entire backside skim the water. “I feel like we ruined our chance eight years ago.”
Mom says, “Just tell him about Bennie and that you’re still in love with him.” She has the nerve to sound impatient. With me. The one down to her last dollars trying to clean uphermess. “You make everything so damn difficult.”
“Gee, Mom, I was just following your lead of harboring a secret brain tumor and baby daddy before giving all our money away. I didn’t mean to be difficult.”
“Like that has anything to do with Nash,” she counters. “And don’t forget we’ll be there soon—ticktock, ticktock. Who knows what I might be capable of if I never get this tumor removed.”
I close my eyes and stretch my neck. I should not have made this phone call.
“Rue has a point, Mom. You’re a pain in the ass,” Reese says. “Who gets a brain tumor that makes them give all their money away? Not to mention withholding divorce papers and emotional blackmail. No wonder Rue’s resorted to treasure hunting. I’ve only been here a week and need therapy.”
Remy’s offended on Mom’s behalf. “Shut up, Reese. You’re just fine, Mom. The tumor will get taken care of and this is no big deal. Rue should have told Nash anyway. You’re giving her a love nudge.”
No big deal?If I weren’t having an unrelated crisis, I’d laugh my ass off at that. But it’s thelove nudgethat makes me want to commit murder.
“I don’t know how to do this,” I admit. “Jonathan’s out of town and anything I say to Nash before talking to him is, I don’t know, wrong. Betraying him by simply admitting how I feel. I don’t want to marry him, but I don’t want to hurt him either. He didn’t do anything.”
“Text him,” Reese says, like no big deal. “I’ve done worse over text. Fired people. Closed down entire companies. It’s just an engagement.”
“Over text?” My jaw drops. “No way. What kind of animal are you?”
“The cold-blooded rich kind,” she says. “Probably one of those high-dollar pythons.”
Wow.
At the shallow end of the pool, Nash drags his hands over his face before resuming his laps, his bare ass skimming the surface.
Frank trots across the yard, sniffing until his nose is on the screen of my spy window, barking so loudly I drop to the floor.
“Shit.” I hold my breath while another bark rings out. Behind a cupped hand, I whisper into the phone, “I think the dog found me.”
“Rue, guess what?” Mom says, not caring one bit that my cover is about to be blown or that I’m ending an engagement. “Reese is bringing vendors into the store to help with the money. Even Sylvia. And she hired two new people.”
“She what?” I sit up so fast my head bangs the windowsill.
“Ignore her,” Reese snaps. “And I have work to do. Every idiot at the firm forgot where their asshole was when I left.”
“Reese, n?—”
She hangs up.Bitch.
I can’t worry about them now. Or the store. Reese’s private equity firm can scoop it up and strip it down before selling it for all I care.
Nash’s muffled voice calls for Frank across the yard followed by the jingle of Frank’s collar as he trots toward it.
Back at the window, Nash is out of the pool, towel around his waist—I barely even notice how narrow and fit it is. Barely even feel jealous of the water dripping down his torso. He looks at his phone.
I take a deep breath and try to organize my thoughts.
Mom still needs surgery, and we still don’t have money—nothing has changed there: I still need the gold.
What has changed is that I can’t marry Jonathan. Even if Nash and I go nowhere but a divorce, I’m feeling something for another man who isn’t my fiancé; it isn’t fair. If he were thinking about another woman the way I’m thinking about Nash, it would be all I needed to know we weren’t right for each other.
I can’t marry him.
Now that I’m not hysterical and rain soaked and horny as hell, this doesn’t seem so dire and urgent. I’ll keep looking for the gold and keep a healthy distance from Nash until I talk to Jonathan after his trip. When everything is done, I’ll have a levelheaded conversation with Nash about how I’m feeling and Bennie.
Right after I figure out how to get cleaned up and get out of here.
