Page 194 of The Fake Date Agreement

Thankfully, at least I know what she was wearing.

“Hi.” I greet the woman at the front desk. “I have a question about a woman who was waiting in the lobby. She was wearing a green dress.”

The woman beams at me. “Ah, I do recall seeing her.”

I smile, relieved, until the woman adds, “Are you a friend of the happy couple? I don’t believe anyone took photographs if that’s what you’re here for.”

My smile freezes. “Happy couple?”

She nods. “The proposal.”

There’s no question in my mind what Marc was doing now when he drove his car at Caleb—clearing the way to get to Tobie.

He knocked Caleb down, hoped we would rush to the hospital, and he would have all the time in the world to propose to Tobie.

“Did she say yes?”

“I believe so. They left together,” the woman says, smiling apologetically. “Unfortunately, I must see to a guest.”

I thank her and walk away.

My cell vibrates, and I pull it from my pocket. I don’t know how I feel. Shocked, angry, and numb.

“Caleb’s mom and brother called to say they’re on their way,” Reid says. “Did you find Tobie? I keep getting her voicemail.”

“She was here,” I say, my voice strange.

“What is it?” His voice rises. “Is she hurt? What happened?”

“He proposed to her.”

Reid is silent.

“Marc proposed to Tobie, and she said yes,” I say louder, and it still doesn’t seem real.

“How could you know that?” he snaps.

“Someone at the front desk saw it. They left together.”

Reid is silent for another long moment. “But maybe she didn’t. Maybe he forced her to go with him. And she’s not answering her phone. Maybe she’s in trouble.”

“We knew this would happen,” I say softly.

We all knew it was only a matter of time before Marc realized the error of his ways and went crawling back to her. “We shouldhave told her how we felt before. Now it’s too late. We’ve lost her.”

She’s not going to want to talk to any of us.

In her eyes, we stood her up. She doesn’t know about Caleb. Doesn’t know what Marc did. “I’m going to her dorm to make sure she’s okay.”

“She wouldn’t marry the guy, would she?” Reid asks quietly.

They were together for six years. She must have loved him to be with him so long, and maybe he reminded her of those feelings.

I hang up.

I’m almost at my car when my phone vibrates. I nearly drop it fighting to get it out of my pocket, thinking it’s Tobie.

My jaw tightens when I see who’s calling. Mom. I can’t deal with this now.

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