Page 160 of When Hearts Collide

I laugh. Rex is the clown of the family, which already has too many serious men, and I kind of dig that.

Rex looks at Maxwell, who is sitting near the entrance with a satisfied smile on his face, a king clearly pleased with his subjects.

“It’s your turn, Maxwell. Find yourself a woman. You aren’t getting any younger, you know. Those swimmers of yours may be defective if you wait any longer.” Rex doles out a shit-eating grin.

Maxwell arches his brow, clearly unfazed.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Ethan’s eyes roll heavenward.

“Rex Cassius Anderson!” Linus glares at his middle son, no doubt angry at his topic of choice in front of the ladies, if the aristocratic upbringing I’ve seen from their family is any indication.

“Your middle name is Cassius? Seriously? Like some dead Roman emperor? That’s why you never want to tell us, huh?” Taylor grins gleefully and Rex shoots her a baleful look, which makes everyone laugh.

The group settles into their seats and Maxwell chats quietly with Ryland.

Taylor frowns and waves at me to get my attention. “Is Belle coming? I thought she couldn’t go to the ceremony today because of her work trip, but she’s coming to dinner. Did that change?”

I shake my head. “I think she’s on her way. Things might get dicey with the traffic from the airport. Maybe she’s—”

Something clatters to the ground with a clang.

Maxwell mouths, “excuse me,” as he bends to the floor. I think he dropped his cell phone.

“I’m so sorry I’m late!” Belle dashes in, her face flushed and very much out of breath, but she still looks every inch the fashion goddess dressed in her black couture tweed dress.

“Don’t worry about it. New York traffic is no joke,” I reply, turning back to Belle. I point to the empty seat by Maxwell. “We haven’t started yet. Sit next to Maxwell.”

She nods and gives everyone a sheepish smile before pulling out her chair.

Maxwell stands back up and straightens his suit. He holds up his phone and murmurs, “Apologies again.” Then, he turns toward Belle. “Hi, I’m Maxwell, Ryland’s older bro—”

He freezes as he takes in Belle for the first time. His nostrils flare and his jaw clenches.

Belle looks equally shocked as well. “I thought you weren’t going to be here.”

“You guys know each other?” Taylor asks. As far as I know, the two have never met before.

Maxwell turns toward us, his face grim. The frigid king doesn’t look cold at the moment, with his hands gripping his tumbler tightly, his forearm trembling with tension. His jaw locks as he stares at Belle with something akin to fury in his eyes.

“Yes. She’s my fiancée.”

“What?” This time I think it’s Rex, but I can’t be too sure because I’m reeling with this surprise. She’s engaged?

“Did you know about this?” Ryland interlaces his fingers with mine and squeezes. I shake my head. What on earth is going on?

I whip my head toward Grace and Taylor, seeing their equally astonished expressions on their faces.

Grace scrunches her brows. Did you know about this?

I shake my head vehemently. Did you?

“No,” she mouths.

Taylor sits frozen in her seat in apparent shock, her mouth dropped open, and Grace gently nudges her.

“What the fuck? Belle?” Tay whisper-shouts, all too unsubtly.

Belle’s gaze swivels toward us, her brows furrowed, her eyes shining with guilt.

---