Page 103 of Unmasking Mr. Crown

Natalie inspected the tray, which held her dream order from a French bistro she’d been dying to try but didn’t have the funds for. Noah’s thoughtfulness on beautiful display, all the way down to the tiny posey perched in a silver cup. The gesture should have made her feel better, but it only flipped the switch on her tears.

He sat down on the edge of the bed. “It’s not a virus, is it?”

“No,” Natalie squeaked out. “The weekend was a total clusterfuck.”

“I seriously doubt⁠—”

Natalie held up a hand, halting his response. Noah stopped talking and just let her cry. When she finally regained her composure, she filled him in on every warped detail in between bites of pan-seared foie gras, saving the most heart-wrenching plot twist until the end.

“Kate’s new boyfriend … is Mr. Crown.”

Saying it out loud sent her tears into turbo mode. Loud, ugly sobs bounced off the walls of her tiny bedroom. Noah’s hand shot to his mouth. He sat there, eyeballs wide with shock, like an emoji in human form, and shook his head in disbelief. After a few seconds, he moved the tray and pulled her into his arms, rocking her back and forth as he whispered things like, “It’s gonna be okay” and “Let it all out” and “I’m here for you”. Once she regained a degree of composure, Natalie filled him in on every excruciating detail of the weekend from hell.

“I could have had it all, Noah. My dream career and the man of my dreams. I thought I had to make a choice. I thought every man would do to me what Roman did. I was too afraid to take a chance on Dash and now …”

"What did he say when you told him you’ve moved on?"

“Nothing. He just nodded, wished me the best of luck, and left.”

"And how did it feel … when he said he’d never stopped thinking about you?"

Natalie struggled for a word or sentiment to convey the intensity of the moment. Did one even exist?

"It’s the best and worst thing that’s ever happened to me,” she whispered, a tightness returning to her chest. “I’m not sure⁠—”

Natalie’s phone lit up, stealing her attention mid-sentence. A text from Kate containing their secret sister code to call, then hang up.

“What? Who is it?” Noah asked.

“Shit, it’s Kate, with the secret code,” she said.

“Think she’s with Dash? Maybe he told her? And she needs an excuse to get out of there?”

Natalie tapped the Favorites icon on her phone screen and clicked on Kate’s number. She let the call ring twice. She started to end the call when Noah grabbed her hand and whispered, “Don’t hang up. Just talk to her. There’s no time like the present.”

Natalie shook her head.

Noah snatched her phone away. “Then I will.”

“Don’t you dare,” Natalie warned, her voice low.

After a twist of his lips, Noah conceded, tossing the phone to the other side of her bed. “Sooner or later, you have to tell her. You can't keep this a secret, no matter how much you might want to."

"And what should I say? Hey, that's a really great guy you've got there, and I should know because I slept with him last year. She's my sister, Noah. My goddamn sister! She lost her husband and now she's finally happy again after some pretty awful years."

Natalie’s emotions had gone full-on Texas weather forecast—scorching heat one minute, torrential rain the next. A tornado in human form. Noah remained silent for a moment, watching and waiting for her emotions to settle.

“Okay, let’s be rational and take a breath, please," he cautioned.

“Kate doesn’t know, and I’m not going to tell her.”

“You have to come clean with her. If Dash were to say something later⁠—”

“He won’t. We agreed we’d keep it between us.”

“I love you, Nat, but keeping Mr. Crown a secret is the wrong play. How would you feel if the situation were reversed?”

She looked into the understanding eyes of her best friend. "I just want her to be happy."