Page 9 of The Dating Contract

“We dated in high school,” Leah confirmed, reluctantly passing along the information. “You remember how I was sobbing into my Passover wine our senior year?”

A shock of recognition crossed Naomi’s face as Leah opened the door. “The guy who didn’t stand up for you?”

Which was a pretty good explanation of an incident where a sixteen-year-old girl had to hear her boyfriend sitting silently and even laughing at the cruel jokes made at her expense. “Yeah. He was Mr. Spineless.”

“So thehot soferwho is making your sister’s ketubahs is the infamous Mr. Spineless all grown up?” Naomi shook her head as Leah closed the door behind her. “Wow.”

Wow was an understatement. “It’s something,” she said.

“Well,” Naomi replied as they headed toward the elevator. “Now that you’ve given me the info on the ketubah writer, let’s head out on the town and get your sister a photographer.”

As they headed out, the nagging feeling inside of her was back. The last time it showed up, she ran into Samuel for the first time in a long time. The very last thing she needed was a repeat.

He wouldn’t show up at a photography show the same day of the wedding expo, right?

Chapter Three

“So,” Liam saidwith a smile. “How’s it been going?”

The exhibition had been going on for a while, and it had been…fun. “Good,” Samuel said. “Photographs have been some of his best, and it’s been nice, you know, being around creative people.”

“Glad you enjoyed seeing the photographs,” Liam said and laughed, and there was a slight touch of reprimand in his mentor’s voice that Samuel didn’t get. “But I meant the people.”

Which made sense. “Well,” he began, trying to explain himself, “I…”

Liam shook his head, stopping any explanation he could possibly make. “Didn’t bring you here just for you to stare at photographs, you know.”

He didn’t know—that was news to him. “What?”

His mentor clapped his shoulder. “I know,” Liam said as he looked into the crowd for someone, “pretty much everybody here.”

It wasn’t a surprise; Liam had always been well connected. Which meant Samuel should take advantage of the position he’d been put in. “Anybody in particular that I should say hello to?”

Liam nodded, pointing into the crowd. “Oliver Goldsmith.”

Oliver was an artist he admired. “The painter Oliver Goldsmith?”

“He and I went to school together,” Liam replied. “He’s a good contact for you as you keep your feet in two different areas of lettering.”

Right. Oliver, aside from being a painter, was also a trained colorist—another very specialized area of comic art. “Okay.” He paused. “Where is he?”

Liam pointed to the other side of the room, to one of the only other people wearing a collared shirt. “Him.”

Samuel nodded. “Okay.”

Liam, clearly not convinced that Samuel would listen, and right about it, laughed. “Let’s go over there.”

As he followed his mentor into the small group of people, Samuel knew that everything was about to change.

*

“So,” Naomi saidas they got out of the taxi a block away from the gallery. “Now tell me about what has everybody buzzing.”

Leah blinked. “Everybody?”

“Party planners, brides. The expo.”

Leah sighed as she started to walk down the street, regretting her decision to wear heels. Apparently her cousin’s perception of who ‘everybody’ was changed with the minute. “What exactly are you talking about? I told you the story.”

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