Page 12 of The Love Rematch
It hits a little too close to home.
“No?” Nina puts it back and grabs the red one. Even on the hanger, the plunging neckline and precariously high slit clearly leave little to the imagination. “Sex kitten. Bombshell. A redhead who isn’t afraid to wear red? You’re bold and daring and ready to give the men the challenge they’ve been waiting for.”
There’s no way she’s wearing that. “Pass.”
“I figured.” Nina hangs the red dress back up and lowers her voice. “Between you and me, that was my least favorite option. Red never goes over well on the first night, but Nick insisted, so…” She rolls her eyes and then smiles when her gaze settles on the final dress. “The last option is this beauty.”
Nina lifts the nude dress from the rack. It glistens in the light. Every inch is studded with crystals, giving off an old-Hollywood vibe Emily is unable to resist. As part of her contract, she made the network agree to let her style her own accessories, and the second she sees it, she already knows what earrings she would choose—two studs made from chaotic nests of gold wire with cubic zirconia teardrops hanging below each one. They aren’t available in her shop. They’re a pair she made for herself, the first pieces she was able to design after everything went down with Jake, but it doesn’t even matter. She’ll have the rest of the season to promote her brand.
“High neck,” Nina continues. “Low back. It’s your classicbusiness in the front, party in the rear. The nude color will immediately give all the men dirty thoughts, but the cut is conservative enough not to alienate the viewers. It’s my personal favorite. It says,Yes, my mother shamed the entire country into helping me find a boyfriend, but no, she didn’t need to. I’m here and I’m hot and you all better watch out. I’m keeping my cards close, and oh, by the way, I have a great ass, which”—Nina glances pointedly south—“you do.”
Emily forces a laugh. “Thanks.”
“So, which will it be?”
She stares at the rack, seeing the dresses, yet not really seeing them. Her indecision isn’t about an outfit. She already knows which dress to choose. It’s about the people who will see her in that dress, all ten million of them, judging her, dissecting her every comment, wondering how she’s single and what’s wrong with her and what exactly she’s hiding. People with secrets aren’t supposed to go on reality television—isn’t that what everyone says? And yet…
Emily swallows.
How is this my life?
“I think I want…air.”
Emily shoves away from the vanity, throws the nearest window open, and sticks her head outside.
Breathe. Just breathe.
I can do this.
Think about my business. Think about my dreams. Think about Emily Ann Designs in every mall across America. Hell, in Europe too. The globe! That can be real. All I need to do is stick it out for six weeks. Six measly weeks! And, added bonus, I get to make out with thirty hot men.
Everything will be fine.
Everything will be amazing.
The fresh, salty air is helping. She’s on the other side of the country, but it almost smells like home. Not the lowcountry marshes or the misty morning dew, but the beach. Waves crash against a distant shore, their steady drum calming. She closes her eyes.
One. Two. Three.
One. Two. Three.
One. Two—
“I need to get the guys into their limos.” A deep voice interrupts her momentary reprieve. “Do we have an arrival order yet from Trish?”
Emily’s eyes fly open. Any sense of calm evaporates. She knows that voice. She’ll never forget that voice. The last time she heard it, his arms were wrapped around her, his body enveloped her, his warmth seeped into her bones.
I’m here, Em.
I’m here and I won’t let go.
They were the last words he told her before vanishing in the middle of the night, never to be seen again.
Until now.
I’ve got to be hallucinating. Right?
It’s not the first time. This city has been playing tricks on her mind. At the airport, she nearly toppled onto the baggage claim carousel thinking she saw him. Then at the hotel, she actually toppled into a bellhop thinking she saw him. And at the studio, she slammed directly into a glass door thinking she saw him.
