Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 85608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Gavin reached across the table and took my hand. “I was glad that Whitley took the job in LA. It was perfect for her,” he said as if we’d rehearsed this part. “She deserves every good thing in her life. We were a classic right person, wrong time. But when she moved back to New York, I didn’t miss a beat.”
“That’s right,” I said, catching on to the part of the conversation we’d actually said in Midland. “It was a whirlwind. I’ve only been back a few months.” I glanced down at the ring. “The whole thing was unexpected.”
“How romantic!” my mom gushed. “And the ring is beautiful. Where did you get it?”
“It was my grandmother’s,” Gavin said, confirming what the rumor train had already told my mother. “When she passed, my mom entrusted it to me. She said she always knew I’d find the right person to give it to.” He was looking deep into my eyes now. I was ensnared. I couldn’t have possibly looked away if I wanted to. “And I found her.”
My mom dabbed at her eyes. “Oh, isn’t that romantic, Walter?”
“I’m happy that our Whitley has finally found love.”
I cleared my throat and removed my hand from Gavin’s. I was supposed to be playing a part. Playing up our love and all that. But the more Gavin stared lovingly into my eyes and held my hand and treated me like I was the most precious thing on the planet, the more something happened in my stomach. Butterflies of excitement. A new pull to him, like a string connected us and he was tugging me ever closer.
The wine appeared, breaking the connection. Gavin tasted it first and approved it with that same dimpled grin. Wine was poured, and we all held up glasses to toast the wedding.
“So, will the wedding be here in New York?” Mom asked. “Or back home in Dallas? Or would you prefer to have it in Midland?”
Gavin turned the full weight of his attention on me. “Whatever you want, dear.”
I nearly scowled at him. “Definitely New York.”
My mom sighed, as if she’d known I would say that. “Are you sure you don’t want to come back to Dallas for this? All of your family and all of Gavin’s family are in Texas. It would be much harder—not to mention, more expensive—to get everyone up here.”
“We can send the jet if it’s a problem,” Gavin said offhand.
I thought my mom might turn purple as she sputtered in shock. Yeah, we weren’t private jet rich.
“Plus, Camden Percy is a close personal friend. I’m sure he could put in a room block at Percy Tower so that everyone could stay in the heart of the city,” Gavin said as if he’d already thought this through.
“That would be … incredibly generous,” my mom said.
“Sounds like y’all have this all figured out,” Dad said with a nod of approval toward me.
I shot Gavin a questioning look. “It sure does.”
He took my hand again and brought it to his lips. “Our best friends are getting married right now. So, I’ve heard all the hoops they’ve jumped through. Their wedding will be much bigger than ours though since Court’s mom is the mayor.”
“The mayor of New York?” my mom asked in awe.
She was starting to get the sort of people that I hung out with here in the city.
“Yes, Court is the mayor’s son, and he’s marrying English. Remember her?”
My mom’s eyes widened. She’d thought English was some lowly slut who worked with degenerate rockstars and probably did drugs. She hadn’t even thought better of her after she married Josh, who was a legitimate movie star. But apparently, marrying the son of the mayor was something else entirely.
“Anna English?” she asked, just to be sure.
“Yep. We went to UCLA together.”
“I do remember her now,” Mom said.
“She’s a nice girl,” Dad said. “I’m glad she’s happy.”
“Me too.”
My dad changed the subject to my brother as dinner was served. I dug into my steak, only half-paying attention to the life my brother was leading back in Dallas. The kids were going into kindergarten and second grade this year. Carrie was working at some MLM business that kept her busy on the weekends when she wasn’t carting the oldest to baseball. Wyatt was helping dad run the business, of course.
I opted out of dessert, hoping that we could have this entire charade over sooner rather than later, but Gavin shook his head.
“I have never known you to skip dessert,” he said. Which was true, but damn it.
He ordered us each the cheesecake, which I’d been eyeing. I had no idea how he’d known it was what I wanted. He just smirked, as if he already knew me that well. He ordered a port for himself and my father while Mom insisted that she couldn’t spare the calories.