Page 24 of He's The Reason Why

Piper got up to pull out plates, wine glasses, and silverware. She had it all on the table by the time the doorbell rang. She touched the unlock button for the door on her phone, then shouted, “I’m in the kitchen!”

Neil waltzed in with bags of food in his hand and a giant smile on his face. He wore his usual impeccable gray suit with a crisp, white button-down shirt. The man could walk down any runway in Paris and feel at home.

She snatched the Magnolia bag out of his hand. “How do you not sweat to death in this heat wearing that suit?”

“Hey, you can’t eat dessert first!”

“Watch me,” Piper told him. She fished the banana pudding out of the bag and ripped off the top.

“Heathen.” Neil proceeded to lay out the rest of the meal in a more dignified fashion while Piper ate her dessert first. “And this isn’t asuit. It’s an Audrey Vidal original. It’s linen. It breathes.”

“Uh-huh.” She fished out a yummy mound of decadence, which she popped into her mouth with a heavy sigh of pleasure. “Oh…my…God. This is perfect. Exactly what I needed.”

“Do I know my girl or what?” Neil placed the drunken noodles and spring rolls on a plate and pushed it over in front of her. “You can’t just have dessert. You have to eat a real meal too. Now tell me all about today. I needallthe details.”

Piper downed another heaping spoonful of pudding and shook her head. “You go first. I know you spent the last hour getting all the gossip, so spill.”

Neil took a delicate bite of noodles. “Gossip is such an ugly word. I prefer to think of it as an accounting of the day’s events with information from reliable sources.”

She reached for the chopsticks. “And those sources would be…”

Neil picked up the bottle of wine and examined the label. “Belhurst private label? Nice. Iadoreyour sister. How are she and the new hubby?”

“They’re basking in wedded bliss.” The drunken noodles were perfect and still hot. She had no idea how Neil had managed to drive so far to fetch them and arrive with them tasting fresh out of the kitchen. The man had magical powers when it came to food delivery. “They want to host Christmas at Belhurst Castle.”

“Oh, holidays at that inn would be fantastic. You have to go, and you have to take me with you.” Neil poured them both a glass of Belhurst Castle’s best wine. “Though I suppose I should ask Rupert first. His family does this big thing, but it’s always so awkward. It’s the one time during the year they all actually speak to each other and it’s like they’ve forgotten how. But if I couldkidnap him away to go toyourfamily Christmas, I wouldn’t have to go to his.”

“I’ll tell Lizzie that you’re both coming,” she told him.

Neil and his husband were fun to have around, and they provided excellent buffer for her own family drama.

Neil placed a glass of wine in front of her. “Drink, then tell me howyouthink the day went. I want your perspective, then I have some interesting news for you.”

“Come on, Neil. I’m too tired. Can’t you just tell me what the news is first?” She had a feeling she knew exactly what the news was. Her performance today had been cringe-worthy enough to get Blake to give her acting lessons, after all. “Do they want to fire me? That’s the news, isn’t it. Rachel talked Tamar into kicking me out.”

Neil frowned. “Of course not. Why would you think that? Tamar Shurer wouldn’t let anyone talk her out of talent she’s committed to. Besides, your contract is iron tight. I wouldn’t let you sign anything that wasn’t.”

She thought about that. Had Blake been serious when he’d said that, or had it been part of his scheme to stir up her emotions? Everything she knew about Rachel made her believe he’d told the truth, but now…he’d said it right before he sauntered off with that shit-eating grin on his face.

“Blake said…never mind. What’s the news?”

Neil picked up both wine glasses. “Come on. Bring the noodles and let’s go sit somewhere you can actually relax.”

She took one last bite, grabbed another banana pudding and a spoon from the bag, then followed him into the den. She’d left the script spread out over the coffee table, and the empty yogurt container lay on its side, dangerously close to the edge of the table.

“Okay, clearly someone was having a moment.” Neil set the wine glasses down, stacked the script into a neat pile and set itaside, then carried the yogurt container to the trash. “Was it that bad today?”

“It was horrible.” Piper set the pudding down on the coffee table and dropped onto the couch with a groan. She buried her face in one of the pillows. “Vomit-inducing awful. I felt like a kid on the first day of school in a foreign country.”

“Really? That’s not what I heard,” Neil said in a far-too-casual tone. He was baiting her.

It worked.

She looked up.

Neil peered at her from over the edge of his wine glass to hide the smirk that made his eyes twinkle.

“What did you hear? From who?” Piper pushed the pillow aside and reached for her pudding. “I think I might need another dozen of these. And some cookies.”

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