“Seriously. I can smell you from over here,” I joke.
“Yea, yea. I’m gonna hop in the shower, and then we’ll head out for the day? I know you wanted to do some exploring? I got some info on the Arboretum.”
“Sounds good,” I say, because it does. I am determined to forget all about the text convo I wasn’t supposed to see, so I can enjoy our day together.
Something’s off with Molly, but I can’t quite figure out what it is. And I’m not dumb enough to ask a woman what’s wrong.
So, I’ll wait it out, figuring that she’ll either tell me what’s bugging her or that it will go away naturally. Maybe it’s a headache or the time change or something.
We wind our way through the outdoor walkways lined with flowers and enjoy a gorgeous day in Dallas. The conversation is fine, but I’d be lying if I said it was as easy, as effortless as always. Hell, maybe this all stems from meeting my ex last night. That woman is like a black cloud of misery.
“You hungry for lunch soon?” I ask. Food’s always a good idea, right?
“I never say no to lunch.” She smiles.
“There’s a great barbecue place on every corner, if the internet is to be believed.”
“Ha! That doesn’t surprise me.”
“Here,” I hold out my phone. “You want to see what looks good?” Her face blanches like I just showed her a knife and not a device we both use constantly. Okay…
“You pick. I feel like it would be hard to find bad barbecue in Texas. And we drove by a bakery on our way in. That’s a sign of a good food day.”
“I like the way you think, Gorgeous. First stop, barbecue. Then we can walk around the market and work up an appetite for cheesecake.”
“Speak for yourself, Handsome. I always have an appetite for cheesecake. But I do want to check out the Farmer’s Market, so count me in.”
I fiddle with my phone for a few minutes, figuring out the best routes to all the places we’re going. I get an incoming text from Nate, giving an update on the files he’s working on. I feel momentarily guilty that he’s elbow-deep in paperwork, while I spend the day as a tourist with my girlfriend.
“Poor Nate’s back at the hotel, crunching numbers for our meeting on Monday.”
“That guy is a workhorse. He wants to show you how capable he is.”
“That’s the thing, Molls. He’s damn sharp. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s promoted in the next year or so.”
“Aw, don’t tell me you’re attached and going to miss him.”
“I sure as fuck will. We make a good team.”
“Well then, since he’s cooped up in a hotel room while we gallivant around town, why don’t you have some food delivered to his suite?”
“You are a genius.”
“Accurate,” she says, with a smile and a flip of her hair. There’s my girl.
The day has flown by, and I loved every minute of it. The gardens were gorgeous, the market was full of great finds, and the food here is amazing. It’s late afternoon now, and I need a bath, a bed, and some sexy-time, not necessarily in that order.
“Molls, I want to stop by the front desk. I got a message from Simon that the veil Elaine wanted was delivered an hour ago. And I’ve been given orders to send a screenshot of it, just to make sure it’s the right one.” He rolls his eyes, as though he’s above all this nonsense.
“No problem, and quit your eye-rolling. Your sister has been so chill about this whole thing. All she wants is a pretty veil she saw online and not to puke on her wedding day. I hardly think that’s too much to ask.”
“You’ve got a point,” he concedes. We walk over to the check-in desk, and Ev gets his ID out, so he can sign for the package.
Barry, the balding man behind the desk, is damn near beside himself with excitement. Just how special is this veil?
“Yes, sir, we certainly do have the veil. It arrived earlier today. I’ll have Nancy release it from our locked cabinet.”
Nancy looks only too happy to do Barry’s bidding, as she sashays off to the secret storage unit. It’s all very hush-hush, like they know something we don’t. I take a sec to message Elaine.
