Page 28 of Deal with Mr. Cruel

“Well, we really haven’t told anyone yet.”

“Is it someone I know?”

“You could say that.” Mae fidgeted in her chair, avoiding Braydon’s questioning gaze.

“That’s a looker of a ring. It’s either a seasoned player or a CEO.” He eyed the ring, calculating in his head.

He continued making guesses, until Mae blurted out, “It’s Jonas.”

“Jonas?” Braydon nearly choked.

Mae nodded.

“Since when?”

“We’ve been together for a while. We just weren’t ready to come out yet, but then he proposed, and we decided to elope.”

“So,that’swhy you took that weekend off…” Braydon nodded his head, piecing everything together.

“Yes, but please, Braydon. No one knows yet. Please don’t say anything.”

Braydon nodded. “I’ll have to tell Julia.”

Mae rolled her eyes. “Fine.”

Julia was Braydon’s wife, and she knew if Braydon couldn’t tell anyone he would drive himself crazy.

“Great. Let’s all go to dinner tonight then,” Braydon said, slapping her desk with his palm.

“I don’t know—” Mae said hesitantly.

“Nonsense. We have to celebrate, and I want to heareverything.”He started for the door.

“But what about the guest list?” she called after him.

He waved her off with a grin. “We’ll get to it later. There are more important things at hand.”

That night, Mae stood before the bathroom mirror, applying lipstick. She smoothed her hair into a low ponytail and secured it with an elastic. She turned and looked over her shoulder at her reflection. Her silk emerald green dress draped low in the back as she tied it at the neck. She had bought it after work. Braydon insisted she leave early to shop for the occasion. When Mae saw this dress in the shop window, she immediately thought of Jonas.

“I can’t believe you agreed to dinner,” she heard him call from the living room.

“You really expect me to be able to hide this ring?” she said, walking out of the bathroom. She spotted Jonas leaning casually against the couch in an all-black suit. His hair was still damp from the shower. For a second, her breath caught.

“Plus, there’s no game tonight. There was no way out of it,” she said as she entered the living room. When Jonas saw her, he straightened and cleared his throat nervously. She smiled.

“You look…” he paused, as if trying to find the right word. “You look good.”

“Thank you,” she said quietly, willing him to say what he really felt.

“Well, we should go.” He gestured toward the door.

Disappointed, she slid past him as he held the door open for her. She could feel his eyes on her back, and it gave her a hint of happiness. She still had an effect on him.

When they got to the restaurant, the hostess informed them that Braydon and Julia were already at the table waiting for them. Jonas stepped closer and placed his hand on the small of her back. Although his hand was warm, she shivered at his touch. She looked up at him nervously.

“You ready for this?” he whispered.

She nodded.