Page 135 of The Proposal Pact
Inside the damn fountain.
Again.
I run a hand over my mouth, trying very hard not to laugh, but the small crowd she gathered is giving her standing ovations.
“There you are! Fucking finally!” Luke strolls up to me, his brows pulled together, his shirt drenched. “We’ve all been trying to reach you for an hour already!”
“An hour?”
“Yeah! That’s approximately how long Sophie’s been giving this free concert for one. We tried to get her out of there. Grace tried. I tried”—he motions to his wet clothes—“but she refuses to leave. What the hell is goingon, Callum?”
I spread my arms out. “You’re asking me as if you’re not married to her twin sister from another mister!”
“Callum!” Grace shrieks behind him and I let out a groan. “What did you do to break my best friend?”
“Jesus Christ! I didn’t do anything! I was at work, and this is your bestie’s usual MO after she goes out with you and the gang.”
“Yeah, except she didn’t answer any of our calls today. Didn’t answer her door and we didn’t go out! But most importantly, she’s singing sad songs! When have you ever heard Sophie sing sad songs?” Grace spits all that out quickly, and I frown just as my wife starts yet another song.
“See!” Grace cries out as Julie and Griffin approach us. “She’s moved on to Celine Dion now!”
Pushing past all of them, I step up to the edge of the fountain, my hands on my hips. “Little menace? What are you doing in the fountain again? It’s freezing!”
She stops for a second, squinting as she tries to locate me. “Clover! Is that you?”
“Mm-hmm. Flesh and blood.”
She snorts. “You’re funny! You know that?”
“A fucking comedian, that one,” I hear Luke mumble, then send him a glare, mouthing,Shut it.
“Sophie, were you looking for another grilled cheese?”
“No!”
“Wanted to take a swim?”
“No. Wait, maybe. I don’t remember.” She frowns, looking like an adorable wet gnome trying to recall what got her here once again. I roll my lips, part amused, part worried because she’s clearly been drinking, and if what Grace said is true, she was drinking alone.
What the fuck has happened since this morning when I left her sound asleep? Did Vassar call her again? I’m about to pull out my phone to dial him when she stops me.
“Oh, I was looking for a time machine!” Sophie exclaims, clapping her hands, satisfied that she could remember.
I click my tongue, not sharing this enthusiasm. “A time machine? For what?”
“To turn the time back, duh.” Sophie bends down, scooping some water and splashes it over herself. “But I couldn’t find it.”
“Uh-huh. And how does a fountain fit in here?” I cross my arms, my patience running out because this woman will drive me mad. She’s about to catch a cold, if not something worse, in this weather.
“It was the next best thing. This is where it started.”
“What started, Sophie?”
“You and me!” she screams, and I freeze, trying to understand what is it she’s saying. “We started here. And I need to take it back!”
“I knew you did something, you bastard,” I hear Grace hiss somewhere around me, but I ignore her.
“Sophie, why don’t you come out and we can talk about it at home?” I extend my hand toward her. Immediately, she shakes her head, dancing across the whole fountain.
