Page 119 of Promise Not to Fall for the Rich & Famous

Zander set his eyes on the clip and forced his breaths to slow.

And there she was, sitting in the spot where they’d declared their love for each other. Zander recalled the feelings coursing within him at that time, and mused they’d only grown deeper in the days since; nearly all he’d done was think of Kat. Of how he could respect her wishes to be left alone, like Marsha had warned him, though he’d desperately wanted to explain why it’d been so hard to tell her.

“Duke Benton has surprised me in a million ways,” Kat said in the video. Hearing her call him Duke only added to the upset within him.

“And here we are, just halfway into our honeymoon, and I can honestly say that I’ve fallen in love with him.” Kat laughed and shook her head. “It probably sounds crazy, but there’s a reason I felt so good about the experiment. And that reason is…well, it was meant to lead me to him.”

Boy, did Zander feel the truth of that in every part of his being. Yes, however crazy the series of events had been, they had to be part of a divine plan that put him with her.

The recording hurried on a bit, and suddenly it showed Kat’s brow furrowing as the hum of a motorboat grew in the distance. She came to a stand next.

A sick dart of regret sank into Zander’s chest as he witnessed it—lines of worry creasing her brow, unaware of the devastation that awaited her. How might this have ended had Zander just told her who he was?

The video faded to black.

“Let’s welcome the gorgeous woman who made smarts sexier than ever, the lovely Kat Morgan Benton.”

The audience clapped. The cameras panned. But that spot on the stage remained still.

“Kat?” Lisa came again.

Panic erupted within Zander as he looked to Lisa, then back to the corner where Kat had stood only moments ago. She’d been there, waiting to step on. He’d seen it for himself.

“On second thought,” Lisa said, tapping at a hidden earpiece, “due to a moment of technical difficulty, we need to take one last short break, but please don’t go anywhere. You won’t want to miss the conclusion of tonight’s live broadcast.”

Chatter broke over the crowd, only adding to the chaos within him.

Zander feared he already knew what the conclusion might be. He’d given Kat a way out, hadn’t he? Perhaps she’d taken him up on the offer after all.

Kat stared at the screen in the greenroom while Marsha fiddled with the mic attached to her dress.

“Zander probably thinks I took off,” Kat mumbled, recalling the look on his face when she didn’t step onto the stage.

“You’re right,” Marsha said, “poor guy.”

Kat was still holding on to her balloon of hope. And in truth, it felt as if she’d latched onto another as well. Watching her declaration of love had filled her with a renewed level of trust, not in the program, but in herself. Kat knew happiness when she felt it. And as leery as she’d grown where her feelings were concerned, she was finding faith in them once again. She justhoped it was enough to forgive Zander and give him another chance. As of now, she still wasn’t sure she could do it.

A lanky kid stepped into the room. “You called?”

Marsha shot him a glance. “Yeah, would you mind grabbing her another mic? Something’s wrong with this one.”

“Sure thing.” He took off as quick as he’d come.

“Dumb thing,” she mumbled as she tugged the tiny cord from its hidden spot behind her neck. “Listen, while I have you here…I wanted to fill you in on a small detail I overheard just now on the guys’ mics during break.”

The term all ears was meant for moments like these. Kat felt her heart slow as it too waited to hear what Marsha had heard. “What did they say?”

Marsha shrugged and shook her head, as if the detail might be insignificant, but something in Kat’s gut said otherwise.

“Duke basically confessed that when he filled out the questions, he did so knowing Zander’s answers—rather than his own—would be more likely to get picked.”

Kat’s mind was blown. “What are you saying? That he filled out the papers like he was Zander?”

Marsha fiddled with the mic box once more, eyes pasted on the small device. “That’s what it sounds like to me.”

“If that’s the case, then the show really did line me up with Zander. It was meant to be him all along.” Kat might not have even needed that tidbit to make the right decision, but boy, did it help raise her spirits. In fact, the knowledge was a massive bouquet of helium balloons, lifting her hopes sky high despite the roof above her.

“Hey, would you look at that,” Marsha mumbled. “Looks like it’s working after all.” She proceeded to clip the mic back into place.