“Focus.” She was meeting with her mom in a little while. She needed to get as much done now as she could, because she didn’t know how long she’d be in her mom’s office. Considering what she needed to discuss, she might be in there for the rest of the day.
Six emails later, she pulled out the portfolio Evan had presented to her yesterday. At least on the surface, the partnership sounded like a win-win for the foundation as well as his company. Then again, she hadn’t paid as much attention to the presentation as she should have—a fact that annoyed her because she prided herself on being not only professional at all times but competent and able to multitask. With Josh across the table from her, it had been all she could do to simply follow along rather than stare at the man.
Courtney hadn’t gotten any further than the first page when someone knocked on her office door. The words “come in” were barely out of her mouth when the door opened and Addie entered. Occasionally, they’d meet for a late-morning coffee, but Addie always called to see if she was free; she never just showed up.
“What’s the matter?” Various emergencies ran through Courtney’s head that could explain Addie’s unexpected visit. “Is Kendrick sick again?” A few weeks earlier, Addie and Trent’s son had had bronchitis. She’d never seen anyone more miserable than the little boy.
Addie closed the door as she shook her head. “Kendrick’s fine. I just wanted to talk to you before I leave to meet a client.” She placed her coat on the back of a chair before sitting down.
With Addie sitting there, it would be as good a time as any to tell her about Josh joining them on Saturday night. Besides, running the story she’d come up with to explain her sudden engagement by Addie before she dropped it on her mom might not be a bad idea. It’d be like a trial run, allowing her to find any problems with it.
“Did you know
Josh is in town?” Addie asked before Courtney could decide on the best way to begin.
Okay. How did Addie know Josh was in Providence? Last night he said he hadn’t talked to Trent in months. Rather than answer the question, Courtney asked one, because she didn’t want to believe he’d lied to her. “How do you know he’s around?”
“Tracey…” Addie paused for a moment. “You remember Tracey, right?”
Courtney nodded. She’d met the nanny who took care of Kendrick during the day while Addie and Trent were at work, but she couldn’t imagine how the woman would know Josh was in Rhode Island.
“When she arrived this morning, she mentioned it. She’s a big fan of his and she regularly searches for any posts with the hashtag JTWilliamson. This morning a picture of him with a woman showed up. I don’t remember the exact wording, but the caption said something like ‘Look who I ran into at the Mayfair.’ Tracey said the person tagged Providence as the location.” Addie pulled her phone out of her purse and scrolled through the apps on the device before selecting one and handing the phone to Courtney.
A picture of Josh and a woman she’d never seen filled the screen. Sure enough, the caption attached to it read ‘Look who I ran into at the Mayfair. JT Williamson!’
“Was he visiting you?” Judging by the tone of her voice, Addie had already decided he had been.
Closing the app, Courtney handed the cell phone back. “Yes.”
Addie’s face lit up, and she smiled. “So you called him? Or did he call you?”
Here goes nothing. “Neither, actually.”
A moment ago she’d been fine; now her mouth felt as if someone had filled it with cotton balls. Picking up her coffee, she took a gulp of the lukewarm liquid and grimaced. Coffee needed to be either hot or ice cold. Once it hit the stage in the middle, the best place for it was down the drain.
“Okay. That makes no sense at all. Care to explain?”
“Josh and I have been together for a while. Even before those pictures of us in Hawaii showed up.”
If she didn’t feel so guilty about lying, she would have laughed at Addie’s stunned expression. “Really? Exactly how long is a while?” Addie asked.
“We met in July when he was in New York, and we’ve been together ever since.” Good thing they’d discussed this last night, saving her from making it up as she went.
“July!” There was a decent chance Steven in the office next door had heard her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
She’d expected this question. “Since I wasn’t sure how long it would last, I wanted to keep it out of the tabloids as long as possible. Keeping it a secret from everyone seemed like the safest route.”
Across the desk, Addie frowned, and her shoulders slumped. “I wouldn’t have told anyone.” In the beginning of her and Trent’s relationship, Addie had had her own run-in with the media, so she understood how relentless it could be.
“I wasn’t worried you’d tell a reporter, but you might have let it slip to Trent. And I wasn’t sure how he’d react, so until I knew there was something real between us, I didn’t want him to know.” She hadn’t expected Addie to be upset because she hadn’t confided in her. But at least to her, the excuse she’d pulled out of thin air sounded genuine.
“Then the two of you planned the vacation in Hawaii?”
Time to drop the rest of the surprise. Courtney twisted the ruby ring on her left hand and hoped Addie bought the rest of the story. “It was actually Josh’s idea, but yes, we planned to meet there right after Scott’s wedding. And while we were there, he proposed.”
“Proposed?” Addie shifted in her seat and leaned an elbow on the desk. “As in asked you to marry him?” she asked, propping her chin up with her hand.
Courtney nodded and held out her left hand.