***
When she got in his car, Red leaned in and gave her a long, deep kiss on the lips that almost—almost made her not care about the two engagements, their argument, the tabloids, any of it.
His mouth was warm and his lips tender, and she could tell from the way he touched her that he cared about her. And then he started driving, as usual at high speed, his jaw set, eyes glued to the road.
“Do you still want to marry me?” he asked her.
“Yes.” She said it without hesitation and knew it was true.
“Good.” The car hugged a turn and the tires squealed a little.
“Maybe we should slow down.”
“You want to push the wedding date back?” he asked. “Because I didn’t think we’d even set a date yet.”
“I meant, maybe you should slow the car down. I don’t want to end up a paraplegic before the big day.”
He glanced at her, saw she was nervous, and immediately took his foot off the gas. “I like to drive fast.”
“I noticed.”
“Nicole, we need to get some things straight.”
“I agree.”
He glanced at her again. “I’ve lived a very big, flashy life for a lot of years. You’ve seen the articles, the interviews, the stuff on the web.”
“I know, and I don’t really care about that stuff. It’s the stuff about me, and my family—and your secrets—“
“Let me finish.” He took a deep breath. “It’s not possible to separate my life and my history from yours anymore. All of the people that used to write only about me—they’re now going to focus on both of us.”
Nicole gripped her purse tightly as his words hit home. “You need to give me some time to get used to this,” she told him. “A strange man called my phone—I have no idea how he even got my number—and told me things about you that nobody else knows.”
“Yeah. I’m going to deal with that. I want you to forward me that clown’s number.”
“Really?”
“Really. In fact, do that now.”
She took out her phone and texted the number to Red’s cell.
They drove a few more minutes in silence. Outside, the sky was getting lighter and the skyline of Manhattan was majestic, towering overhead. She was starting to dread having to go into the office and deal with all the judgments and hatred that people directed her way since the news about her and Red had come out.
“I’m sorry I’ve been so dramatic,” she said, finally.
“You haven’t done anything wrong.”
“I’m also a little freaked out that you were engaged twice already.”
He nodded. “I can understand that. But just so you know, one of those engagements was when I was in college.”
“College. Why would you get engaged as a college student?”
“Why? Because I was an idiot. And I was young.”
Nicole shook her head. Then she grinned. “I’ve only just graduated college, so who am I to talk.”
He looked at her and smiled his winning, magazine cover smile. “That’s true. You are a little on the young side. But you’re different—special.”
“Right. Lucky number three.”
He sighed again. “I suppose I deserve that.”
“So who was engagement number two?”
“Number two was just a bad idea. The woman I lived with for eight months. We were never any good for each other.”
“So, let me get this straight. Your judgment is pretty much terrible when it comes to women.”
“Usually, but not in this case,” he replied.
“How can you be sure?” she asked him.
“Because, you feel it, don’t you?” He glanced over at her once more. When his eyes connected with hers, even for just that brief second or two, there was a shot of electricity that radiated up her spine and warmed her body.
“I do feel it,” she admitted.
“Don’t forget that,” he told her. “Don’t let everyone else make you forget what we have.”
Soon, they were at the office and Red parted ways with her, after a long drawn out kiss that further reminded Nicole of what the two of them shared.
She got in and went up to her floor, making herself a piping hot cup of coffee and grabbing herself one of the complimentary bagels that were usually available if you got into the office early enough. Back at her desk, she chomped away at her little breakfast and sipped her coffee, relaxing for the first time since realizing that the entire world knew her business.
Just as she was starting to feel a little better about life, Edward stopped by her desk.
Nicole looked up at him, startled, since Edward rarely had any reason to talk to her. Almost all of her assignments came through Remi, and other miscellaneous discussions tended to be with Glen.
“Can we talk in my office for a moment?” Edward asked, his expression giving nothing away about what was in store for her.
“Yes, absolutely,” she said, wiping her hands with a tiny napkin and immediately getting out of her chair.
“Feel free to finish your breakfast if you need to,” he said.