“Potayto, potahto. I’m a horny dude. You asked for the truth, and I gave it to you. Stop licking your lips. You got it?”
She smiled and nodded, her eyes watering as she looked at me. “You’ve always had a way of making me feel beautiful, Chewy.”
“I’ve told you many times. You’re the most beautiful girl in the world. Now, come on. They’re going to be here any minute. Get ready to gush over me.”
She opened her mouth to say something, and the doorbell rang.
“Game time, Miney.”
I took her hand and led her out to the front room before pulling the door open. There were more people there than I’d expected. Lane Fortworth was the woman I’d spoken to on the phone, and she quickly introduced herself to Reese and me. But there were at least a dozen people behind her.
“This is the lighting and camera crew. I probably should have told you that the whole team was coming, but you’ll barely notice them. They’ll stay out of our hair.” Lane stepped inside when I held my hand out, inviting her in. She wore a navy pantsuit. Her hair was short and cropped around her ears, and she was probably in her mid-forties.
“That’s not a problem. The more the merrier,” Reese said as we led everyone to the kitchen.
Reese had put out juice and muffins and fruit, and she told them all to help themselves. Lane checked out the space and told them to set up in the kitchen area, and she pulled the chairs to one side of the table.
“There’s a lot of natural light in here. This will work well.” She motioned for us to sit across from her. “It’s nice to meet you both in person. I’m thrilled that you’re joining us, Reese. The world wants to meet the woman who stole Finn Reynolds’s heart. A heart we’d heard would never be up for grabs.”
“Well, I’m happy to be here, and Finn’s my favorite topic.” Reese leaned her head against my shoulder, and I wrapped an arm around her on instinct.
Lane beamed and waved her hand in the air to adjust the lighting, and she let us know that she was beginning the interview. She held a notepad on her lap, but she also had a device on the table beside her and said that she would be recording our chat, as well. We’d be taking photos afterward.
“Let’s do this,” I said.
She dove right in, asking questions about Jessica Carson and pressing for a response from me.
“Listen, I don’t want to dredge up something that I’d rather put to rest. I will say this… There was never a relationship. We worked on the same set. It never went very deep, and she’s painted a very different picture from what really happened.”
“There wasn’t an ongoing romantic relationship?”
“There was not.”
“Do you believe him?” Lane asked, turning her attention to Reese.
“One hundred percent. I’ve known Finn my entire life. He’s the most honest person I know. He’s taken the high road, even though his character has been dragged through the mud. That’s who he is. He doesn’t want to hurt anyone or embarrass anyone. But that relationship has been fabricated, and that’s the truth.”
“Okay. Good to hear the other side of things. So, how did your lengthy friendship become a romantic relationship?”
Reese glanced over at me, biting down on her juicy bottom lip, blushing at just the right time. My God. She could be a professional actress because the way she was looking at me had even me believing she was madly in love with me.
“We spent the last year apart. We’d never spent time apart before, and I think we both realized how much we missed one another,” I said, reaching for her hand and holding it in my lap.
“And you were engaged before. Is that right, Reese?”
I startled the slightest bit, but Reese didn’t appear even remotely fazed by the question. “Yes. I had a long-term boyfriend, and we’d gotten engaged before I’d accepted the job in London. I realized that I wasn’t happy with my life, and I wanted to take the opportunity that had presented itself.”
“Like something was missing?” Lane pressed.
“Definitely. I wasn’t on the right path, so I made a change.” Reese let out a breath, and I squeezed her hand. I didn’t want her to say anything that would mess up her future with Carl, even though I hated the dick weasel. “If my relationship had fulfilled me, I don’t believe I would have left. But the person I missed the most when I was away is the man sitting beside me right now.”
A tear moved down her cheek, and my fucking chest squeezed.
Damn, she was good.
I leaned forward and swiped at the tear before placing my hand beneath her chin and turning her toward me. I kissed her. It was quick, but it felt right.
Nothing about it felt fake at the moment.
“Oh, my.” Lane fanned her face. “You two are just so cute together. Get ready to swoon, America. The love between these two is palpable.”
“Tell me something fun about one another that nobody knows. I mean, you’ve known one another your entire lives. I’m guessing you know each other better than anyone.”
I glanced at Reese and turned my attention back to Lane. “Reese’s favorite color is citrine.” I chuckled. “Everyone gives her shit about it, saying she should just say that her favorite color is yellow, but I never did because I know the reason.”
“And what’s the reason?” Lane leaned forward, completely invested.
“We’d race daylight every day when we were growing up. We’d stay outside until just before sunset, and during that last hour, she’d always look up at the sky and point to all the colors. Man, this went on for so many summers over the years. And she’d point out this particular shade of yellow and tell me that it was citrine. She’d call it a gift from the sun.”
Reese laughed. “Good memory, Finn. He’s also being modest because that wasn’t the only place that I would see my favorite color.”
“Where else did you see it?” Lane asked.
“Look at his eyes. There’s a gold ring around the outside, and if you look closely, you’ll see the layers of amber and citrine.”
“I do see it.” Lane motioned for the photographers to snap a few pictures of us while we were sitting close and having a good time.
We spent the next hour talking about our favorite movies, our nicknames, and telling her about some trouble we got into as kids.
“You got taken to the police station at ten years old? How in the world did that happen?”
We were both laughing so hard now, and I motioned for Reese to tell the story.
“Finn and a few of our friends dared me to run through the Leonards’ farm. I wasn’t about to turn down a challenge. But I didn’t expect to get chased by a pack of pigs,” Reese said over her laughter.
“Yeah. I freaked when I saw them going after her, so I jumped in, and we both slipped in the wet mud and flopped around. I got her up, and we made it to the gate, but a bunch of the chickens and pigs and goats got out, and let’s just say, old Mr. Leonard wasn’t too pleased. We were taken to the station, and I swear it was worth it because I’ve never laughed so hard in my life. She was covered in mud and trying to explain that she got goosed by a goat.”
We were all laughing, as were the members of the crew around us.
“You two have quite a history. I imagine this one’s going to stick.” Lane smirked.
“I think it’s already sticking, Lane.”
And that wasn’t a lie.
fourteen
Reese
“What do you think?” Maggie asked as we stood in front of my new office space, looking at the logo she’d just painted on the window.
“I love it. It’s perfect. Thank you so much.” I took a couple of pictures with my phone to send to Finn, and we both hurried inside as the wind began to pick up.
“It looks so good. This has to make it feel very official.” Maggie and I had grown up together, and she owned Buttons & Boots, one of my favorite boutiques just a few doors down. She was an artist at heart, and painting was her true passion.