She gasped.
I got down on one knee and looked into her eyes. “For the past two years you’ve been my best friend and the woman I could always count on. You’re the most beautiful, talented, and ambitious person I know, and I’m happy to say that you are who I want to start my future with.”
“Ethan…” she whispered.
“I don’t want to spend another day in separate cities, and I don’t want to go another hour without making you mine. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
“Ethan I—”
“Say yes. Say yes first,” I smiled.
“I—”
“Marry me.”
“I met someone else.”
What did she say?
“What?” I was pretty sure I didn’t hear her correctly.
“I’m sorry,” she took a step back. “I didn’t know you were planning to propose…I thought we were just celebrating your birthday.”
My friends and family let out a collective gasp.
“You didn’t mention someone else when he was taking you to France, Italy, and Bora Bora every month!” my grandmother yelled. “Did you? Did you!”
“Grams stop that,” I stood up.
“Ask her why she never mentioned this when you were taking her on all those trips!” she shook her head and frantically motioned for everyone else to go back outside.
Embarrassed, I tried to control my anger. “You met someone else? When were you planning to tell me?”
“Tonight.”
“On my birthday?”
“Well technically, after your birthday…once you took me home. I’m so sorry, Ethan. You’re an amazing guy and I do love you, but not enough to marry you. I never really minded the long distance; it was you and all your checkpoints.”
I can’t believe this…This is not happening to me…
“Checkpoints?” I scoffed. “What are you talking about?”
“When we first met, you were carefree and fun and just…different. Ever since you went back to Autumn Wonder—”
“You’re blaming me for your infidelity? You’re joking, right?”
“Ethan, I’m saying that over the past year, you’ve been more calculated and safe. And you grade everything! You graded my last Christmas present to you! What did you give it again? An eight out of ten?”
Six out of ten…
She sighed. “You started going through these little checkpoints like, Oh it’s been six months, time to meet each other’s parents. It’s been eight months, time to go on a trip together. It’s been—”
“Just stop,” I shut the ring box and put it back in my pocket. “I think I’ll take you home now.”
“I still want to be friends, if that’s okay with you.”
What!
“Jade…” I balled my fists to prevent myself from exploding.
“Can we please be friends?”
“Jade, you just dumped me on my birthday, in front of my whole damn family. I don’t think so. It’s getting late. Let me take you back to your hotel.”
“I’m sorry…Can we still go to Hawaii tomorrow?”
“What? No! Let’s go!”
Chapter 3
Selena
“Samantha! Samantha!” I yelled.
Why haven’t I fired her yet? I shouldn’t have to yell to get the attention of my “personal” assistant!
She stepped into my bedroom. “Yes, Miss Ross?”
“My water isn’t at room temperature. Does it feel like winter in my room?”
“No...”
“So why is there ice in my glass? Remake it and get me the latest Us Weekly.”
“Yes, Miss Ross,” she walked away.
I’ll fire her once she brings it back.
I turned the TV on and flipped to the E channel. I wasn’t too worried about the so-called “scandalous” pictures, but I knew their coverage would be indicative of how the other news outlets would report them.
“Good afternoon everyone, and thank you for watching E News!” Ryan Seacrest sat at the news desk in a dark gray suit. “Our top story of the day, of the year really, is Selena Ross and director Phillip Hartford! Us Weekly released the photos last night and both A-listers are in some very compromising positions! Here with the scoop is Us Weekly editor Shannon Mason. Good afternoon, Shannon.”
“Good afternoon, Ryan!” she beamed.
“Tell us, what exactly transpired over the past few weeks and how did you guys keep it under wraps for so long?”
She clasped her hands together. “Well, we weren’t exactly sure what was going on at first. Our photographers happened to be taking some test shots at Gramercy Park and saw what appeared to be the two of them kissing on a bench.”
A grainy picture of Phillip running his hands through my hair appeared on screen. Another picture, one of him lying on top of me, in the back seat of his convertible, appeared next.
“Why didn’t you immediately release the photos?” Ryan asked.
“We were trying to make sense of it. We knew it was sensitive information, so we decided to put a private team on them to see what was really going on.”
“And you found that this was a full blown affair?”
More images of Phillip and I floated across the screen—one of him applying sun lotion to my bare back, one of me leaning over to kiss him in my car, one of us frolicking in the ocean after dark.