Page 36 of Miss Belief

Reid

Teagan and I had been so busy the last few days that I hadn’t had time to worry about how everyone at the wedding would react to me bringing a date. Until now. At two am in the Emirates check-in line at the Dubai airport.

“You okay?” she asked.

She appeared cool as a cucumber and looked adorable, wearing flip-flops, black sweatpants, and an oversized T-shirt with the words, “Not a hugger” under a picture of a cactus. She’d straightened her hair, which was a much different look for her.

“If you’re worried about what I’m wearing, I brought clothes to change into on the plane.”

“No, no, it’s a long flight. You should be comfortable. I’m fine. Are you okay?” She’d been quiet since I’d picked her up at her apartment. Then again, it was in the middle of the night—the downside of flying out of Dubai were the early morning flights.

“Yes. I’m good.”

“You straightened your hair. Looks longer.” It was nice, but I had to admit I preferred her wilder curls. They seemed to match her personality better.

“I needed the hair to go with the designer clothes.”

I hope she hadn’t thought she had to go to the trouble. I’d wanted her to feel comfortable over the weekend, and able to withstand the judgy crowd, but I had to admit the result was making me uneasy. “Is this crazy? The entire thing?”

She lifted a perfectly arched brow before narrowing her eyes. “Nope. No way. Do not go getting cold feet now, Reid Maxwell. Not after I spent hours trying on clothes, straightening my hair, and I even studied etiquette, so I don’t go getting the damn salad fork mixed up with the dinner fork.”

I was shocked to hear she’d gone to such lengths. “You studied dining etiquette?”

She sighed, appearing uncharacteristically uneasy. “I would say it was more of a crash course to keep me from embarrassing you at one of the fancy dinners. Anyhow, we’re up.”

We were called up to the check-in desk, delaying our conversation. The gate agent checked our passports, took our luggage, and pointed us toward the Emirates business-class lounge. As we headed for the lounge, I found myself sincerely flattered at the effort Teagan had gone to so she’d fit in at the wedding, but at the same time, I didn’t want her to think she had to change on my account.

“I hope you know you’d never embarrass me, Teagan.”

She slid her gaze toward me. “Aw, you’re so full of hope, I think you may actually believe that.”

I couldn’t help chuckling. Her humor was irresistible. “Seriously. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable.”

“Oh, so I shouldn’t feel uncomfortable in a crowd including your ex-fiancée, your brother who cheated with her, your mother you don’t get along with, and a bunch of your country club friends who will probably watch my every move?”

I almost physically cringed. When she put it that way, I felt hard pressed to get on the flight. “Maybe we should head for Mexico instead.”

“Ha, nice try.”

We entered the opulent lounge and found seats at a table near the full-service bar. “Something to drink?”

“Mm. Ginger ale is good.”

Yeah, alcohol at this hour didn’t sound so appealing. So two ginger ales it was.

When I returned with her iced glass, she murmured a “thank you” before blowing out a long breath.

“You okay?”

“Yes. God, I hope we don’t have to keep asking each other if we’re okay this entire trip. Why are you so nervous?”

“Who said I was?”

She lifted that damn brow of hers again. “I recognize your signs. This relationship may be fake, but our friendship isn’t.”

My words thrown back at me. “Fine. I’m once again nervous about putting you in an awkward position. Maybe I should’ve gone solo. With my ex there and possibly my brother, there’s no telling what kind of drama there may be.”

She shrugged. “You may not get to choose what someone says, does, or acts, but you can control your reaction to it.”