“Oooookay. Deep breath,” Raelynn encouraged. “You didn’t ruin anything. Especially because you don’t owe Camden any explanation about anything.”
“He’s going to be my husband, and I want this to work. I always knew this was my future and this past weekend showed me a glimpse that my parents were right, and this could work. He’s probably a good man under all his bravado. He’s probably just set in his ways and needs to adjust to sharing his life with someone.”
Nova’s lips pursed, and her eyes looked anywhere but at the screen.
“What?” I asked. She sucked at hiding her thoughts.
“Nothing.”
“Oh, it’s definitely something,” Raelynn said. “Probably the same something I’m thinking.”
“What?” I asked in exasperation.
“He’s…” Nova hesitated, looking around like the right words were written on her van walls. “I’ve obviously never met him, but he doesn’t seem super great.”
I sat up straighter, hating that my friend didn’t like him. I got it, but I wanted this all to work out even if I had to force it. I opened my mouth to object when Rae cut in.
“You know we support you no matter what. And maybe he will shift to someone better. But for now, you’re not obligated to anyone. If you want to fuck your boss all over the office, all day, every day. You can without having to answer to anyone but you.”
I drained my glass in an attempt to coat my dry mouth. Sleeping with Nicholas didn’t sound horrible when I remembered our night on the patio. However, remembering our meeting from earlier sounded horrible. My lips twisted at the memory of how rudely he spoke to me.
“It wouldn’t matter anyway. He accused me of knowing it was him I was sleeping with to get a position on a new big project he’s in charge of.
“What a dick,” Nova said.
“Ugh. Men,” Rae added at the same time.
“What if…” I started, scared to voice my biggest worry. “What if he finds out why I was really at the party. He was so focused on the fact that it was me, that he didn’t even consider to think why I was at an expensive charity event among the shipping elite. He’d probably fire me if he knew I lied about my name to get this job.”
“Nah,” Raelynn said, shrugging it off. “You’re still you. You still got the job with your own amazing credentials. You used your grandmother’s maiden name. It’s not like you created a whole new alias that didn’t even graduate high school.”
“I don’t know.”
“You stick to your plan,” she said. Nova nodded in the screen next to her, agreeing with Rae. “You push past this, show up every day, conquering that job, and you treat him like he doesn’t exist.”
“Kill him with kindness,” Nova said. “Show him how you kick ass all on your own.”
“He doesn’t exist, and his cock doesn’t exist…even though it was pretty big. How big again?” Rae asked, holding her hands apart like she was guessing the length.
“Raelynn!” Nova scolded.
“Are you sure you have to stop fucking him?” Raelynn asked, only partly joking.
“Oh my god,” I said, laughing this time. “Yes. We have to stop.”
A knock at the door pulled my attention away from the screen.
“Okay, guys. I have to go. Someone’s knocking. Thank you so much for talking me down and helping me through my crisis.”
“Anytime,” Nova said.
“Keep us updated,” Raelynn requested.
We said our goodbyes, and I closed my laptop, heading to the door.
I was a little shocked to find Camden on the other side. I opened it to find him in a Navy suit he probably wore to work that day, sans tie.
“Camden. Hey. What are you doing here?”
He pushed past me and turned right into the living room. “I’m glad you’re home.”
My brows rose high, and I looked side-to-side like someone else would be looking back with the same shock. I slowly closed the door and met him standing in the middle of my white living room.
“Yeah,” I said lamely, not sure where to go with this. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“I’ll just have some of this wine. Thank you.” He filled the empty glass about half full and drank, scrunching his nose.
“Sorry, it’s not a great bottle.”
“Yes, well. When we’re married, I’ll have to take you to a vineyard and teach you about better wine.”
I ignored the arrogant tone and instead chose to focus on how he wanted to travel together. “I look forward to it.”
He finished the wine in three swallows and set the glass down before digging in his breast pocket. His smile tipped his lips slowly, and the two measured steps closer had my shoulders pulling back. He produced a white envelope, and something about the glint in his eyes warned me that I should just shove it back and say no thanks.
Instead, I tugged the small rectangle from his grip and barely breathed, trying my best to keep my unease hidden.