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My heart was torn because she was truly wonderful, and I shouldn’t have needed her opinion or blessing. “And I’d do anything for you, too, but right now, I’m looking for advice.”
Her lips curved higher. “Go for it.”
He loved me. I believed him on some level, but deep down, I was lost. I glanced at the door and saw that he was speaking on his phone. “Kir is amazing and wonderful, but?—“
“If there is a but, keep working, get yourself a place to live, and give yourself time.” She gripped my hand.
My shoulders slumped. It wasn’t the answer I thought she’d give me. “Oh.”
She continued, “Mom and Dad would want you to be absolutely sure before you settle down.”
Nothing about a life with Kir would be settling. I kept my voice low. “What if the issue is me entirely?”
She stared deep into my eyes. “What kind of issue?”
“Letting someone else other than you take care of me.”
She snapped, “That’s old-world thinking because as women, we don’t let men take care of us.”
You don’t need to worry about that, because isn’t someone taking care of you? I sat back as adrenaline rushed through me. “Look, I have to go. Kir really is wonderful, so don’t think anything bad about him.”
She pressed the button for her bed to go down. “Of course.”
He came in and said, “Good night, Abigail.”
She stared right at him like they were having a private conversation. “You too. Be good to my sister.”
I walked out with him, though I was more confused than ever. If he loved me, and I let myself really figure out what was in my heart, maybe we would be happy.
Or I was a fool. We’d started as fake, and technically, we were still that.
He asked, “What did you two talk about?”
I met his gaze. I wasn’t processing right, and if I said the wrong thing, I risked losing him forever “How I look sleepy.”
He pressed the up button on the elevator. “Well, let’s take the helicopter, then, and get you home.”
I filed in next to him, and my stomach did little flips. If he loved me, I was supposed to be ecstatic and not stressed anymore. Instead, I was almost nauseated.
We made it to the top, and I asked, “What were you doing on your phone?” I walked with confidence onto the chopper, not worried about heights.
“You don’t want to know.”
I buckled myself in, and his staff closed the door. Then I pressed my hands to my knees. “Now I do.”
His face brightened. “At first, I was talking to Michael Fuller about getting you a surprise.”
More amazing gifts weren’t going to clear the cobwebs from my brain. I said, “You don’t have?—“
“It’s not a big deal, but then I started getting these messages.“ He took out his phone and showed me a text message and the anonymous number.
It took me a minute to read through the message. My friends were excited about the trip. I imagined how everyone would hate me for lying. My friends wouldn’t believe me about anything ever again. He shook his head and directed me to another message, this time from a blog and unknown number.
My arm had goose bumps. “Are we being blackmailed?”
He took his phone back. “I don’t care if we’re exposed as fake.”
I swallowed. I watched the Manhattan skyline grow closer and closer, and my eyes had tears in them. I gazed out the window so he wouldn’t see. When I was sure I was under control, I said, “I do, though. I don’t want to lose my job.”
