Page 37 of Yours Temporarily

With a surge of joy I can’t contain, I flash my newly adorned hand. “I’m engaged.”

How surreal those words are!

“Yes, we are.” Jeremy chimes in, his tone brimming with genuine enthusiasm, devoid of any previous hesitations.

Jill squeals, steps away from her desk, and closes the distance between us. As she examines the ring, the diamonds catch the office light in a dazzling display, and she nods her approval. “Jeremy Kress, I might have sold you short.”

“And why’s that?” he asks.

“You’ve made a wise choice.” She gives me a knowing look. “Congratulations are in order.”

“Thank you.” He pats my shoulder. His gaze dips, slow and heated as it skims my dress. “Jill, could you retrieve the duffel bag from the conference room closet? It contains spare company shirts, and my fiancée needs to change out of her wet clothes.”

The way he articulates “my fiancée” resonates, frosting our current façade with a sweet layer of undeniable reality.

CHAPTER 14

Zuri

“You’re engaged?” Damien erupts like a pressure cooker with blocked valves. Disbelief sends him into a coughing fit as the cereal he’s been munching catches in his throat.

It’s only hours after that moment in the rain. Now, I’m huddled with my friends and brother around the kitchen island making dinner. Chicken and vegetables roast in the air fryer. The kitchen lights catch the diamonds on my ring, scattering tiny stars across the marble surface.

Olivia, eyes still wide, twirls my finger, inspecting it at every angle, her voice bubbling over. “Look at it gleam!” Her eyes sparkle almost as much as the diamonds. “It’s gorgeous!”

Lexi leans closer, her grin infectious. “This calls for a celebration.” She claps. “We have to throw an engagement party for you two!”

“No way!” Damien’s objection slices through the warm cheer. “You two hardly know each other, and you’re already engaged?”

“We’re not rushing into anything.” I hold up my palm in an attempt to soothe his concerns. “We need at least a year to plan the wedding.” If only he knew the full story.

“The man can have any woman he wants, why you?”

Ouch. Low blow, bro. I try not to sound offended. “Because I’m that one woman for him?”

But he must’ve sensed my deflation. “You’re too good for him, and I’m—”

“He’s too good for me.” If things work out, Jeremy outshines me. “He’s resourceful and skilled. His insights have been helpful in my business planning, and he’s smart and decisive, quick to seize command.”

“You mean bossy.” Damien rolls his neck from side to side, tension radiating from him.

“He’s good at what he does, and you know it.” Olivia waves a dismissive hand in Damien’s direction.

“Kress is practical. I like that,” Lexi adds. “He focuses on doing what’s necessary rather than dancing around things.”

I smile. That’s all true.

“What Damien won’t tell you”—hands on her hips, Olivia eyes me, then Damien—“is he’s admitted Kress is selfless when it comes to mentoring and supporting any team member’s growth and skill.”

Damien gives Olivia the look. But at least he’s seen some good in Jeremy. “This is not about work.”

Olivia dismisses him, her pre-dinner snack, cereal, abandoned. She loops an arm around my waist, and her ponytail tickles my neck as she leans in. “How did he propose?”

Lexi, ever the documentarian, waves her camera, apparently already thinking about the visuals. “Put your hand back on the marble. We need to get a shot of that ring for your blog followers.”

Whoa. No way. I shake my head. “I’m not posting any engagement photos on my blog.” The girls know, so they must hear the unspoken word fake engagement.

“Don’t spare any details.” Olivia hugs me tighter, eyes wide. “How did he propose?”

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