Page 16 of LA Reign

Bobby blinks. “Wow. You’re married?”

His surprise makes me smile wider. If you’re going to bump into your ex, then looking like I do now, and on the arm of an incredibly hot husband, is definitely the way to do it.

Alejandro shakes Bobby’s extended hand, his grip firm, his expression unreadable. “And Bobby is…?” he asks, the low dangerous growl in his voice unmistakeable. To me at least.

I bite my lip and take a second to think. Who is Bobby? My first crush. My first kiss. The boy I once thought would be my first everything.

But I definitely don’t lead with that. “Bobby was my high school boyfriend,” I say nonchalantly, hoping that’s enough.

But Bobby’s eyes flick to mine like he remembers every detail I left out. I suppose we were so much more than that.

This is my first time seeing him in years. Seven, if I’m counting right. And he’s all grown now. The lanky high school jock has turned into something far more dangerous. Sandy blond hair cut short at the sides. Blue eyes that still sparkle with that easy charm. Broad shoulders filling out an expensive suit.

He’s…handsome. Not even remotely in the same league as the sex god of the man beside me—but still. I can’t deny the small, petty satisfaction curling in my stomach, even if I’m ashamed of it. Let Alejandro wonder for once. At least he isn’t dealing with two exes at the same time, like I did that time with those bitches Michaela and Keira.

Before Bobby can say anything else, another man stumbles up beside him. “There you are, buddy,” the guy says, already sounding a little drunk.

“Justin,” Bobby says. “This is my old friend Alana and her husband Alejandro.”

Justin squints at me, then his eyes go wide. “Alana? You mean the one that got away? That Alana?”

Oh God. Alejandro’s arm tightens around my waist, his entire body vibrating with suppressed anger.

Bobby sucks in a breath before letting out a quiet laugh.

I laugh too, desperately trying to defuse the moment. “I think you’re confusing me with someone else, Justin.”

Alejandro’s voice cuts in. “Just how long did you two date?” His tone is calm. Too calm. It has that deadly quiet menace about it.

“Not that long,” I say quickly.

“Almost two years” Bobby says at the exact same time.

Perfect. Now it sounds like I was lying.

The bartender sets our drinks down just as one of Alejandro’s security guards approaches him and murmurs something in his ear. My husband curses under his breath and then turns to give me his full attention. “I have to deal with something. I won’t be long.”

His eyes flick to Bobby and back to me. That vein in his neck is pulsing, and I imagine he’s thinking about dragging me away with him. But to my relief, he doesn’t. Instead, he leans down and brushes a soft kiss over my lips. “Behave,” he murmurs.

And then he walks away.

Twenty minutes later, Alejandro still hasn’t returned and I’m halfway through my second Scotch. My husband’s love of expensive whisky has clearly rubbed off on me, and I enjoy the smoky warmth as it slides down my throat, settling pleasantly in my chest.

Bobby and Justin sit on either side of me, telling me about the company they built—some kind of security tech that apparently made them both very, very rich. Overnight millionaires, they say. Justin eventually staggers off toward the restroom after ordering another round, leaving Bobby and me alone.

He turns to me, his expression softer now. “I’m really glad I ran into you, Alana.”

Something in his voice makes my chest tighten.

“I’ve always regretted how things ended,” he adds.

The memory flickers through my mind instantly. It was Christmas break, and he came home from college and told me he’d slept with someone. I suppose I can’t blame him when I made him wait for almost two years. He went off to college in another state, halfway across the country, so I didn’t entirely blame him for giving into temptation. How ironic that the night he told me was the night I was planning to have sex with him, to give him my virginity. It hurt at the time, finding out that he’d cheated on me, but not like I expect it was supposed to. More like I’d lost a best friend than my boyfriend. I know now that there was no passion or romantic love between us. Alejandro has shown me what that is.

“It was a long time ago,” I assure him. “We were just kids.” And honestly…I never even think about it anymore, but I don’t tell him that. There’s no need to be deliberately hurtful. “Besides,” I add with a smile, “everything turned out exactly how it was supposed to.”

His eyes search mine. “Are you happy?”

I don’t hesitate. “Yes. Deliriously so.”