The sudden departure, the cool winter night, and the peaceful easiness between them . . . The only bad thing about my relationship with Trip, Lark thought, is that he isn’t around more often. And yet maybe that was part of the magic, too. Maybe spontaneity and separation were the very ingredients necessary to keep a relationship healthy and vibrant long term. She had seen Dylan every single day until she couldn’t stand the sight of him. So.
She thought about saying something to Trip, but the silence was too sweet to break. There would be plenty of time once they’d arrived.
Lark had been wondering what kind of glamorous, high-end resort Trip had reserved for them—he’d stepped outside with his phone while she was getting her things together—so she was surprised when they turned off East Palm Canyon Drive into a small, nondescript parking lot in front of a low building. The sign on the front had no name, only an image of two birds.
The lobby was fun and funky, the pool was small, and their secluded cabin at the back of the property was somehow cozy and airy all at once, a gorgeous blend of red-stained wood and stone walls. The similarly decorated bar was about to close, so Trip ordered a bottle of champagne and a plate of cheese and crackers, and they pulled on their jackets and headed outside to the flickering firepit, where they were the only guests. Pulling two Adirondack chairs as close together as possible, Trip plunked the champagne bucket down on the ground between them, and they settled back with their feet near the fire. The darkness erased all traces of his weariness.
Lark was amazed at how many more stars were visible only two hours away from the city.
“Your timing is perfect,” she told Trip. “Everything is going great, but I’m definitely starting to feel some stress about work. And, of course, we’re overdue for some time together.”
He squeezed her hand. “More than overdue.”
“Do you ever think about what’s next for us?”
“All the time.”
“And?”
Trip swallowed champagne and nervously tapped a fingernail on his glass. “I’ve done my best to let you drive things, but it’s hard.”
“I appreciate that, but it can’t be all about me—that’s a little old-fashioned, Trip.”
He winced. “Ouch. Well, what do you want?”
“I want you to tell me what you want. To let me know how you want to be in my life.”
Trip turned his body so he could look directly at her. “I don’t want to scare you.”
Lark felt a shiver of anticipation, wanting him to say something big. Wanting him to commit to more than wonderfully dramatic appearances in her life.
“You can’t scare me.”
“Well, in that case . . .”
Setting his glass on the stone rim of the firepit, still holding her hand, Trip slid out of his chair and knelt in front of her. His eyes were black gemstones in the flickering firelight.
A thousand butterflies beat their wings furiously. She felt dizzy as she suddenly understood why he’d been acting differently.
“Lark Robinson, will you marry me?”
Chapter Thirty-Two
JESSICA
I don’t claim to have the best ideas, just the ability to spin gold from straw.
—“How I Lied about My Name and Discovered My Truth,” a TED Talk by Jon M. Wright
“I left Chicago last night,” Jon said when he finally called her at work on Monday morning. “Things didn’t go well with Holly, and I just need to clear my head.”
“Where are you?” Jessica asked.
“The desert.”
“Sedona?” Jessica asked, thinking it was code for their charming getaway spot when she’d lived in Arizona. “Should I meet you there?”
“You need to go to Omaha. Tonight. If the ticket price is ridiculous, have Olivia authorize it with accounting.”
Jessica’s pulse quickened. “Why? What’s wrong?”
“Randy Warner is apparently in Bill Nelson’s ear again. Somebody spotted Randy, Bill, and Sharon Montgomery coming out of a huddle looking unhappy.”
“Can’t I at least wait until I hear what’s going on from them? Marco is there.”
“Marco’s just a salesman. He needs backup.”
If she weren’t married to the boss, she’d be flattered to be sent off to save the day for Cancura. Instead, she wondered why Jon hadn’t thought to take her with him to the desert in the first place. Why did he get to clear his head while she kept her nose to the grindstone?
She was still sitting at her desk, ready to call him back and ask him, when an email popped up in her in-box.
From Holly Wright.
You need to know that Jack and I are still married. We never separated.
Jessica’s irritation was swept aside by a torrent of sudden fear. She needed to get the fuck out of town and put as much distance as possible between her and Jon’s batshit-crazy ex-wife.
She dialed Jon, now to tell him about the email and let him know she was going to have to take out a restraining order against Holly.
He didn’t answer.
Instead of leaving a message that would only leave him feeling as stressed out as she did, she decided to book her ticket first and call him again when she was safely on her way to Omaha. As she logged in to Cancura’s travel booking site to search for flights, her fingers froze on the keyboard.
Holly and Jack, as she called him, couldn’t still be married, because he’d already gotten remarried. To Jessica.
He’d been living with Jessica for months.
It was Holly’s words from the grocery store that cut like glass.
What makes you think he’s not lying to you?
She knew Jon lied when it benefited Cancura. And himself?
Jessica rubbed her throbbing temples. Jon had said over and over that Holly was a master manipulator, and this was only her latest mind game. Jessica couldn’t let herself get drawn in. The way to win was to refuse to play.
After a brief glance at the ticket prices, she got up and walked
