AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Dash?
I stop. “Wait, did he put you up to this?” I ask, looking around. “Has he seen your plans?”
“Well, not exactly,” Ed admits. “But he trusts us to look out for his interests—and so should you.”
“I prefer to trust my instincts.” I say, and then walk out the door.
I don’t want to spend another minute of them telling me how my values are stupid and doomed to fail, but as I exit the building and hit the sidewalk, my indignation falters, and insecurity bubbles to the surface again.
What if they’re right?
What if my plans are just that: Big dreams that will never become reality. Dash’s investment is the one break I’ve had in years of trying, I don’t want to fail now, but I don’t want to give up my integrity, either. I want this company to be building something good, not just shipping in boxes from some other part of the world. It’ll be worth it, doing things the right way.
It has to be.
* * *
With everything whirling in my mind, I almost forget about Dash’s mysterious invitation. I don’t have time to go home and change, but I figure my business-casual getup will be just fine. It’s only Mavericks, after all, so I head to the bar to see what he needed to talk about so bad.
Hopefully, not more fake relationship shenanigans.
Now I see why Charlie’s cousin runs that agency: It’s like I need a handbook and etiquette guide just to navigate what’s real and what’s pretend. I thought it would be simple once we got back to New York, but it’s only grown more complicated. And with Zelda in town?
I’m hoping Dash doesn’t want to rope me into another lie. I feel bad enough for the show we put on in Palm Beach, but even then, it felt truth-adjacent because I was busy falling for the guy.
Now? I don’t know where I stand anymore.
I step through the front doors of the bar and pause. The place is packed, but it looks very different from when I was here last: There are bouquets of roses everywhere, silks draping to cover the pock-marked bar, and is that…
Yup, a string quartet in the corner, playing Taylor Swift covers.
I can see all of Dash’s friends here, dressed up fancy, and then it strikes me—is this some kind of romantic celebration for Grace and Charlie? An anniversary, maybe.
Dash emerges from the crowd, looking relieved. “You’re here!” he says, grabbing my hand. “Quick, follow me.” He pulls me through to the back of the bar, and into the hallway. “I’ve been trying to talk to you all day.”
“I know, I’m sorry,” I follow him away from the crowd. “I’ve been busy, and this meeting today…” I trail off, not wanting to get into it. “But anyway, I’m here now. What did you want to tell me?”
Dash winces. “It’s about this. Tonight. It’s a proposal.”
I gasp in excitement. “For Grace?”
“For you.”
I stare at him, flabbergasted. “What?!”
“Shhh,” he hushes me, sending an anxious glance to the main room. “Zelda’s somewhere around here. This was all her idea. She just showed up, wanting me to propose and lock it down. So I figured, why not get it out the way? You can turn me down, and then the whole fake part of the relationship will be over.”
His words stab me, right in my chest.
“Over,” I echo numbly. “Just like that.”
“And we won’t have to lie anymore,” Dash gives me a big smile. “I know, it’s fast, and I tried to warn you, but... Zelda is like a damn hurricane, you know that. Can you believe she pulled all this together in twenty-four hours?”
“No… I can’t believe it.”
I swallow hard, processing this bombshell. “So, I’m supposed to turn you down, and then, what? We go back to our everyday lives, and I send you investment updates every quarter?”
Dash’s smile slips. “No. No, that’s not what—”
