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“I don’t know if it’s evil and possessed me, but it’s definitely had an effect on my mood. Oddly enough.”
“How?”
“I don’t know. I guess I just feel…special. You may not have bought it for me, but you trusted me with it. With this whole weekend. With pulling off the part of being your fiancée. I know this can’t be easy, going to see the place where you could have married her.”
And sure, maybe I’m fishing for the reason they called off the engagement.
“What happened anyway? Why did you two break up?”
“Vanessa…she cheated on me. I don’t really want to talk about it,” Monty says in a rush. “I’ve got your signed contract.” He reaches into the front of his carry-on bag and hands the papers to me.
“Thanks,” I say as I tuck it into my oversized white purse.
“There were definitely some interesting parts,” he remarks. “Like the NDA for snoring.”
“Shh!” I hiss while glancing around to make sure nobody overheard. “A girl can’t be too careful.”
“And matching outfits?”
“Coordinated outfits. And you’ll look great,” I promise him.
“If you say so. It’s in writing now, so I’ll just have to grin and bear it.”
“Right,” I agree.
Monty wouldn’t dare break a law or contract.
“So, should we spend this time waiting for the flight going over the things you should know about me as your fiancée? I already know everything about you.”
“I think I’ll be okay.”
“Really? You’re just going to make things up, aren’t you?”
“If I have to,” he says.
“What’s my favorite color?”
“Pink.”
“Okay, that was an easy one since half my wardrobe is that color,” I remark. “Where was I born?”
“The small rural town of Madison, up near the Virginia border. You have a younger brother.”
“Huh. That’s right. Where did I go to college?”
“NC State. You majored in accounting.”
“How do you remember all that?” I ask him.
“Because you told me. And most of it was on your resume when I reviewed it after you first filled in for Lily.”
“Oh. Right.” Did my resume have my hometown on it? No, I don’t think so. “How will we say that we met?” I ask and a muscle in Monty’s jaw ticks.
“I don’t know. I hadn’t thought of that.”
“How did you and Vanessa meet?”
“At a charity event for disabled veterans. I thought she was there to help a good cause, but I think she was shopping for a husband.”
