Page 132 of The Contract Marriage

“All taken care of. In the end, it was easy.” I shrug.

“Awesome. But I hope you recorded it. So you can rewatch it when you’re feeling down. Or when you’re PMSing. I bet it’d work better than Advil.”

I snap my fingers. “Dang, forgot to set my camera up.” I laugh, then suddenly realize it’s actually easy to talk to her—almost like we haven’t been away from each other for so long. “How are you doing, London?”

“Fantastic! Just spent a month in Thailand, and I met this super hot Thai kickboxer. Amazing stamina, if you know what I mean. You?” She leans forward. “Never mind, why do I even bother to ask? I saw that video from Ted’s party! Who attacks a pregnant woman?”

“A special kind of asshole, obviously. Who is now in jail. No bail.”

“Good. A stalker, right?”

I laugh. “My ex-fiancé, actually.”

She gasps. “You know that it’s always the ex that hurts women? You can never be careful enough. Get a bodyguard! Want me to hire one for you? I know some really good ones.” She winks. “Nice bodies, too.”

“Thanks, but I’m okay for now. Why don’t we order a couple parfaits?”

“Oh, that’s right! I heard great things about this place, although I never got a chance to try it. What do you recommend?”

“The Deutsche,” I say. “You still a chocoholic?”

“Did King Arthur have a Lazy Susan? Does a hedge fund invest in shears? Of course!”

We laugh and order two Deutsches. The parfaits arrive quickly, and London digs in, then sighs. “Oh my God. Girl, I love you. This is delicious! I feel like I’m going to be ruined for other chocolate, though. Argh.” She laughs. “So what’s up? You said you needed a favor?”

“Yes.” I inhale deeply. “I heard that you won Liam Kingswood at a bachelor auction.”

Her eyes sparkle. “Yes. He’s so hot. Why?”

“Well… This is kind of embarrassing, but, um…he’s my husband.”

She puts down her spoon. “What?! How come I never even heard about it? We used to play together! Our families—at least our moms—were so close.” She pouts.

I smile awkwardly. I never reached out, even after college, because I was scared to bring her to Brielle’s notice. “It was, um, kind of abrupt. He didn’t even get to invite his brothers.”

Her perfectly plucked eyebrows go up. “It must’ve been very abrupt. Fine, I’ll forgive you. So…what? Are you telling me to give him up?” Her eyes twinkle teasingly.

I laugh. “I’d never do that without offering something.”

“Don’t tell me you’re offering money. That’s so plebeian.”

“You’re right. So. Name your price. If you haven’t claimed your date with him, I’d like you to transfer it to me.”

“Scared I’ll steal him from you?” She grins.

“No. But…” I sigh. “London, this is serious. He and I had…an argument, and now he’s kind of avoiding me. And I really need to talk to him.” I lay a hand over my chest. “I just want a quiet, dignified dinner where we can talk openly. Lay everything on the table. I feel that we haven’t communicated very well. So… Will you help me?”

She nods. “Of course. I have a condition, though.”

“Name it.”

She snorts. “You really shouldn’t say that without hearing me out first.”

“At this point, I’m willing to do anything.”

“I want to be your baby’s godmother.”

I blink. “You…do?”