Chapter 24 Nyah #2
He turned to me with a mock frown. “You know, it sounds better when we do it together. Maybe we could get Disney on it.”
Laughter erupted around the table.
“It’s actually all true,” Caleb continued, sipping thoughtfully from his whisky.
“I was an ass when she met me, but she forced me to open my eyes and see past the end of my nose. When I finally did, I saw what a wonderful woman she really was.” His gaze locked on mine, as if the rest of the restaurant no longer existed.
“She is the most generous, warm, caring, and selfless person I’ve ever met.
And she’s an amazing mother to her son, Lucas. ”
My breath caught.
“Falling in love with her took weeks,” he went on, his voice softer now, “but it happened in the blink of an eye. I didn’t even know when it happened, but I fell…” He swallowed. “Deeply in love with this woman.”
Frozen, I stared at him. My heart slammed so hard against my ribs it almost hurt, the sound of it rushing in my ears.
My lips parted, breath catching somewhere between disbelief and something dangerously close to hope.
I tried to look away, to ground myself in the restaurant, the table, anything—but my eyes betrayed me, clinging to his face.
The words deeply in love echoed, reverberating through places I kept locked down.
It felt intimate in a way I wasn’t prepared for, like he had reached inside me and touched something.
This isn’t for me, I reminded myself. It can’t be.
Believing it, even for a moment, would mean risking something I wasn’t sure I could survive losing.
Still, my chest ached with the unwelcome longing to be seen that way again, to be wanted with certainty, with devotion. I missed that kind of closeness more than I had ever allowed myself to admit—the kind that curled your toes and made you forget to guard your heart.
“Ahem.” Harper’s voice cut through the moment.
I blinked rapidly and drained the rest of my wine.
“It’s quite a story,” he said, studying me as if searching for cracks in it.
Caleb shrugged easily. “It’s the truth.”
“How romantic,” Daria sighed. “I’ve got butterflies just hearing about it.”
“But this isn’t about us,” Caleb said, lifting his glass without drinking. “We’re here to toast your upcoming wedding. So—how are the preparations going?”
Once again, Daria took centre stage. She talked through the entire main course, detailing flowers, themes, colours, caterers, and the DJ. She had organized everything herself.
I watched Harper as the list grew longer. I remembered him once saying that if he ever married, it would be small and intimate—family and close friends only. This sounded like the opposite. Still, I told myself, as long as he’s happy.
“So what you’re saying,” Caleb interjected smoothly when Daria paused for breath, “is that you’ve taken care of everything, and Harper just has to show up.”
She laughed. “Well, Harper has chosen his tux, so that will be a surprise.”
Harper smiled and kissed her cheek. “Honey, it’s your day. I just want you to be happy.”
The server cleared the plates and asked about dessert. Daria declined firmly, but Harper ordered ice cream and four spoons. When he winked at me, something inside me twisted. On our first date, I’d told him no meal was complete without something sweet. He’d remembered.
Caleb paid the bill despite Harper’s protests.
After hugs and kisses on cheeks, we said our goodbyes. Caleb stood with me in the lobby as Harper and Daria exited through the front doors.
“Why did you come and pretend to be my boyfriend?” I asked.
“I thought you might need a friend and some moral support,” he said, then paused. “Turns out all you needed was alcohol.”
I smiled faintly.
“Do you want to take the afternoon off?” he asked. “Go for a walk along the waterfront, sit with a coffee. If you get tired, we’ll take you home and put you to bed.”
Instantly, I was transported back to the day we met, when his shirt had been ruined and he’d asked if I planned to help undress him. Heat rushed to my cheeks. My jaw must have dropped because he immediately held up his hands.
“I’m so—no, I didn’t mean—just sleep. Because you said—”
“It’s okay,” I said, more to stop him than anything else. “I know you didn’t.”
“Because I wouldn’t suggest—well, I mean, I know I did that one time, but I wouldn’t now.”
“Really, it’s okay,” I replied, though curiosity flickered. Why wouldn’t he now? Was it because I was a mother? “Let’s just go back upstairs. If I need a nap, I’ll close my door and tell Amy no interruptions.”
Caleb laughed. “You’re the boss.”
We walked to the elevators together. Using the distraction of movement to avoid eye contact, I said, “I don’t remember if I thanked you for pretending to be my boyfriend.”
“You’re happy I did?”
I hadn’t loved lying to Harper and Daria, but having Caleb beside me to take the attention away from me as the ex-girlfriend had been liberating.
His words echoed in my mind.
Falling in love with her took weeks, but it happened in the blink of an eye. I didn’t even know when I did, but I fell... deeply in love with this woman.
I shivered. “I’m very happy you came,” I said. “Thank you.”
“It was my pleasure.”
The elevator doors opened. “Now,” he added lightly, “you know you have to come to the wedding with me.”
“Just make sure I have a Scotch when it’s Daria’s turn at the microphone.”
I smiled at him in the elevator mirror as the doors slid shut. “I’ll order doubles.”