He flashes me a smug grin over his shoulder as the girl squeaks something unintelligible before leading the way. I shake my head, rolling my eyes and pushing him forward, which only makes him even more proud of himself. But, much to my surprise, he stops and reaches for my hand, linking his fingers through mine as he pulls me with him, and I can’t help but blush at the feel of all eyes on us as we snake our way through the crowded restaurant, hand in hand. It’s not every day Harley Shaw is seen holding hands with a woman in public, especially not a woman like me.

Anna and Nash are seated out on the patio overlooking the Chelmer River. Their table is illuminated by the fairy lights decorating the space, hanging overhead, and little lanterns glowing in the center of the table, and it’s beautiful, magical almost. Despite the beauty, I try so hard to mentally prepare myself for the onslaught of their sickening public affection but, when we reach the table, Harley steps aside and my brow furrows, not expecting to see Nash frowning while Anna hisses something in his ear, anger obviously radiating from her.

“Hey.” I wave with an uncertain, tentative smile, looking between the two.

Harley stands next to me still holding my hand, and the awkwardness in the air around us is rife.

“Hey, guys.” Nash’s smile is tight as he flashes Anna a warning glance before standing from his seat to greet us, which is when his eyes flit down to mine and Harley’s conjoined hands. I quickly let go, instinctively stepping away from my make-believe boyfriend just as Nash wraps his arms around me, pressing a chaste kiss to my cheek. Despite his smile, the tension in his body is evident.

“Is everything okay?” I ask quietly.

“Nash is being a little bitch,” Anna scoffs, taking a big gulp from her glass.

My eyes widen in shock at her words, but I try so hard to pretend as if I didn’t hear what she clearly just said, loud enough, in fact, that the table across from us heard.

Nash stiffens, and I can see his Adam’s apple bob in his throat as he swallows hard. He nods at me, pressing his lips together in the semblance of a smile, otherwise ignoring my question before moving to greet Harley. Anna hesitates a moment before standing with a smile of her own that doesn’t even come close to reflecting the somewhat menacing look in her eyes that just screams drunk. She moves around the table to give me a hug that, quite frankly, feels a little forced. And it’s at that moment I notice the light smattering of purple lining her right eye that she’s clearly tried to cover with concealer.

“Oh my God, Anna. Your eye!” I gasp, taking a closer look, feeling an overwhelming sense of guilt. “I’m so sorry.”

It takes her a moment to realize what I’m apologizing for but, when she does, thankfully she just shrugs it off with a dismissive wave of her hand. “It’s nothing. It was worse this morning, so hopefully it should be gone in a day or two.”