Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 111732 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 559(@200wpm)___ 447(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111732 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 559(@200wpm)___ 447(@250wpm)___ 372(@300wpm)
I flap my lips together. “Okay, I’ll call him tomorrow and tell him the whole embarrassing truth.”
“Good girl. The truth shall set you free. I promise I’ll tell Henry tonight, unless he’s already asleep, in which case I’ll tell him in the morning.”
I lean over and hug her. “Thank you for being so amazing. I’m so glad you’re dating my father.”
“You’re not mad that I sort of masterminded our meet cute?”
“Not at all. I think it’s adorable.”
Gigi sighs with relief. “Hopefully, your father will have a similar reaction.” She grabs her phone and looks at the group photo we took today in front of her painting. “Henry is such a sweet man. I really enjoyed getting our families together today.”
“I’m so glad you’re the one dating him.”
Still looking at the photo in her hand, Gigi says, “I have a crazy favor to ask, Marnie. Feel free to say no.” She looks up from her phone. “Would you mind me posting our group photo from the gallery today onto Facebook for only Alexander to see? Now that I know your history with him, I think it’d be hilarious to post the photo with a caption that says, ‘Congratulations to Max and Marnie on their engagement!’” She bursts out laughing at the very idea. “I promise I’ll delete it after a few hours—once I’m sure Alexander has seen it. I’m sure he’ll call me when he does, and I’ll immediately tell him it was a prank. But the mere thought of Alexander seeing that photo and thinking Max is engaged to the woman he cheated on his current wife with . . .” She cracks up again. “The best part is Alexander couldn’t tell me or anyone else about his history with you, without admitting he’d cheated on his wife. So, he’d have to sit there and pretend to be excited for Max, even though he’d surely be freaking out.”
Maybe it’s the wine, but I can’t help laughing hysterically at Gigi’s diabolical plan. “Are you sure Alexander won’t call Max and tell him everything before I’ve had a chance to do it myself?”
“I’m sure,” Gigi says. “Like I said, Alexander can’t tell Max the truth without ratting himself out. Plus, even if Alexander called, Max wouldn’t pick up his father’s call, anyway. They’re estranged these days.”
“Why?”
“Max is the one who discovered Alexander cheating on me, and Alexander had the audacity to tell his son—his fifteen-year-old—to cover for him to keep our family together. Max rightly decided to tell me everything, but the whole situation was devastating to him.”
“Oh my god. Alexander really is a monster.”
“He’s a piece of work.”
I pause. “Okay, I’m down to help you inflict whatever pain you can on Alexander, through any means necessary. Post the photo for his eyes only. Let’s give that cheating bastard a heart attack.”
“Or at least, a panic attack.”
We both cackle with laughter.
When we calm down, Gigi asks, “You promise you’ll tell Max the truth tomorrow?”
“I promise. And you’ll tell my father the truth, too?”
“I promise.”
After we link pinkies to seal our promise, I run my fingertip over the rim of my wine glass. “Do you think I should have told Alexander’s wife the truth about her husband cheating with me? I’ve been feeling guilty about not doing that.”
Gigi scowls. “Absolutely not. Ashley knew Alexander was married to his second wife when she started dating him. If she thinks that man is miraculously going to remain faithful to her, even though he didn’t manage the feat with his first two wives, then she’s a fool.”
“Oh, that makes me feel a whole lot better. Thank you for telling me that.”
Gigi waggles her eyebrows mischievously. “And now . . . for our fun little prank.” She taps on her screen, and when she shows it to me, the deed is done. The photo posted.
For a while, we sit and laugh about Alexander’s reaction when he wakes up and discovers his son is engaged to me. After a while, though, I feel sleepy, so I rest my head on Gigi’s comfy, warm lap and ask her to tell me about Max as a kid. As Gigi strokes my hair, she tells me stories about Max’s innate tenacity. His protective nature. His generosity. His tenderness. His surprising goofiness. The moment feels so lovely and relaxing, I close my eyes. And soon, Gigi’s pleasant voice and warm lap lull my mind and body into a pleasant, wine-induced sleep.
13
MAX
“Answer your fucking phone, Mom.”
I’m shouting into the void of my empty car after my tenth call to my darling mother has once again gone straight to voicemail.
It’s just before 7:00 am on Monday morning, and I’m driving to Henry’s house, since my darling mother won’t answer her fucking phone. She’s normally up with the sun, so where the fuck is she?
I went into the office before dawn today to catch up on the work I didn’t tackle over the weekend; but I’d barely sat down at my desk before my phone started blowing up with texts from family and friends on the East Coast. People in a time zone three hours ahead who woke up and scanned their Facebook accounts and then lost their minds to find out, at least according to a post by my mother, that the one guy they all expected to remain a bachelor for life has gotten engaged, out of the blue, to a woman nobody has heard of before. A woman with a kid, no less.