.
Reed: Tell her I said hello and can’t wait till she pinches my cheeks again.
I giggled, hand over mouth. Noni almost always walked up to Reed and pinched his cheeks, not that his cheeks were chubby or fat; it was just something she did.
Me: I’ll be sure to pass along that message.
Reed: Were you able to get the hotel room sorted?
I sucked in a breath, uncertain how he’d react to the news.
Me: All sold out. We’ll have to share a room, if that’s okay. It’s a sizable one-bedroom suite.
Three dots bounced on the screen before they disappeared.
Fuck. My heart thrummed in my ears. Why would he want to share a room with me? Bad idea. He’d be replying with some lame reason why he couldn’t make it. Plans fail. Just like we did. When the dots finally reappeared, I held my breath.
Reed: Sorry, a group of ladies recognized me and asked for a selfie.?? Regarding the room, we’ll make it work. I promise to be on my best behavior. Besides, our ‘relationship’ will be more believable if we share the same room.
No argument there.
Me: Have a safe flight. I’ll see you when you get here. Give the front desk clerk your name. Room 2248.
Reed: Got it. See you soon.
* * *
“You can’t hide your excitement from me,mia bella.” Noni sat across from me, eyes lit with amusement. “You’re happy Reed has stumbled back into your life.” She brought her cup of tea to her mouth, which curved into an all-knowing smile. “Frankly, I am too.”
“Noni, he’s only doing me a favor. It’s not like we’re gonna fall back in love and get married.” I took a bite of buttered bread. “Besides, I’m notrealwife material; just ask Chad.”
“Stop being so hard on yourself,bellita.” Noni paused, shaking her head. “What Chad and Sofie did is nothing short of unforgivable. You showing up here shows your character is much stronger than theirs.” She reached over and placed her hand over mine. “Reed blowing back into your life is no accident.Il momento è giusto. The time is right. We all know you two had some growing up to do.”
After our split, my grandmother, beautiful and smart, told me Reed and I weren’t over, that we just needed to spread our wings to love each other even better than before.
“Have you told Reed why Chad…” Noni trailed off, tiptoeing around the reason my ex dumped me.
“No, but I’ll tell him this weekend.”
CHAPTERNINE
Reed
“You plannin’ on popping the question?” A gruff voice pulled my attention away from the window. When I turned to face the gray-haired gentleman sitting in the first-class seat beside me, he gestured toward the brandedHarry Winstonblack velvet box held firmly in my hand. “You’ve got a ring in there, right?”
“No”—I hesitated, shaking my head—“I mean, well, yeah, there’s a ring in here. But, no. I’m not popping the question.”
His brows pinched. “Did you change your mind, son?”
“Oh, no.” I chuckled. “This ring’s for afakeengagement.”
“Fake?” He tipped his chin forward. “Harry Winston’s mighty expensive for a fake engagement, don’t you think?”
“Sure do,” I agreed. “But I bought it six years ago when I planned to ask my girlfriend to marry me.”
“And, what happened then?”
I shrugged. “Never got the chance to ask. We split up, driven apart by our careers.”
