Total pages in book: 23
Estimated words: 21861 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 109(@200wpm)___ 87(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 21861 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 109(@200wpm)___ 87(@250wpm)___ 73(@300wpm)
"Do you need me to talk to him?"
Hope slowly shook her head. "This is what I signed up for." She watched Colin's gaze sweep the room until he finally found her, and his body turned rigid when he realized she was with Charlotte.
"But if you do need someone to talk to..." Charlotte touched her arm. "Just give me a call. Promise?"
"I promise. And thank you." Charlotte's offer of support meant the world to her, especially since the contract she signed included a non-disclosure agreement. There was truly no one else to talk to except for Charlotte.
Hope's heart was banging loudly against her chest as she finally forced herself to join Colin and Princess.
He bent to kiss her cheek, the gesture both public and perfunctory. "Sorry I'm late. Princess's car needed a tow."
"I understand." This was the truth, but it didn't keep her heart from breaking. She turned to Princess, saying, "I'm glad nothing bad happened to you."
"You're so sweet." And yet her tone indicated otherwise. "But seriously, thank you for being so understanding," Princess added as she slipped into the chair opposite Hope. "And of course, I'm so grateful to Colin. He's always come running to my rescue, ever since we were kids. And honestly..." Princess released a sigh. "I need someone to lean on right now. Badly. Especially since Roland and I have been..." Her smile turned strained. "We're just having a difficult time lately."
Colin's jaw clenched, and Hope had to bite her lip hard to keep herself from saying anything.
Lunch proceeded with excruciating slowness. Princess dominated the conversation with reminiscences of high school days—stories carefully selected to highlight her history with Colin while excluding Hope.
"Remember that time we drove for like hours for that concert?" Princess twirled a strand of blonde hair around her finger. "Your old truck broke down, and we had to spend the night in that awful motel?"
Colin shifted in his seat. "That was a long time ago."
"But unforgettable. I think it's true, what people often say. The first times are impossible to forget. Or get over with."
Drew came up to them at that moment, reminding Colin that the golf tournament was about to start, and relief flashed over Colin's features.
"I'll have to leave you while I get changed," Colin told her.
Hope wasn't allowed to reply with Princess asking, "May I walk with you? Reception's on the way, and I need to make some calls about the car." Princess then glanced at Hope, her expression hesitant. "You don't mind, do you?"
"No, of course not." Hope told herself she meant this, and then she started repeating the words like a mental chant as she watched Princess accidentally trip (over nothing?), which caused her to stumble towards Colin, her breasts pressed against the side of his arm.
Hope forced herself to look away and fixed her gaze on her meal. You have no reason to feel hurt, Hope. You knew what you signed up for. So stop acting like this marriage is real.
Hope had just signed Colin's name to the lunch bill when she received a text from her husband.
Tournament running late. Meet you at hotel after?
Hope stared at the message, reading between the sparse lines. He wasn't coming back to escort her. She was on her own.
****
Colin signaled the bartender for the check, watching Princess sway slightly on her barstool. Three martinis had transformed her careful composure into something loose and reckless, her laughter a touch too loud, her gestures increasingly unrestrained. The hotel lounge had emptied considerably in the past hour, leaving them in a bubble of relative privacy he was beginning to regret.
"One last drink," Princess begged.
"I think you've had enough." Colin kept his tone firm but gentle, signing the bill without examining the total. "We should get you to your room."
"I was hoping you'd say that."
The implication hung between them, layered with history and alcohol-induced suggestion. Colin straightened, putting deliberate distance between them.
"I'll ask one of the female staff to assist you." He stood, signaling to a nearby attendant. "You're in no condition to be alone."
"Always the gentleman." Princess's expression shifted, vulnerability briefly replacing calculation. "That's why I loved you, you know. Even when you had nothing, you acted like you owned the world."
Loved, she said. She said she had loved him, and he used to believe that was true. But now? He was truly starting to question whether love had been present at all...for either of them.
"Let's leave the past where it should be," he said finally. "We've both moved on."
"Have we?" She slid from the barstool, closing the distance he'd carefully established. "Because it feels like we've been circling back to each other for twenty-five years."
"I'm married," he reminded her, the golden band on his finger suddenly heavier than before.
"You barely know her," Princess sneered.
She was clearly talking about the length of time he had been with Hope. But Colin realized that time was not everything.