Page 88 of Unpredictable
“Good.” I smiled, picking at a loose thread on my skirt. “Great, actually.”
It had been forever since we’d spent time just the two of us. I’d missed her. Missed having girl time, but that was what wedding season was like—crazy. And any spare moment I’d had was spent with Harrison.
“I’m so glad.” She smiled. “I take it that means Harrison finally told Olivia?”
I nodded. “Well, sort of. Apparently, she already suspected as much, and she was thrilled. She was so sweet about it.”
“Aww. Yay. That’s great news.” She smiled, but it seemed guarded.
“It is. I’m glad you asked to meet up today. Attending the wedding, being with Harrison…” My heart rate picked up. “Well, it’s got me thinking. You can tell your contacts to stop looking for Ryan. If they haven’t found anything by now, they’re probably not going to.”
“That’s the—” She glanced away with a pinched expression.
“You okay?”
“Yeah.” She coughed, sipping some water. “So, if they’d found something…you wouldn’t want to know, right?”
I stilled, gauging her expression. The closer I looked, the more I saw. The tight set to her jaw. The guarded look in her eyes. And then it hit me. “This isn’t a hypothetical question, is it?”
She shook her head, her mouth set in a grim line.
My mind swam, a heavy feeling settling in my stomach as my entire world turned upside down. “They…” I swallowed. “They found Ryan?” I whispered, scarcely believing it was true.
She pursed her lips, considering her words. “Someone matching his description… It might not be Ryan,” she rushed to add. “But it certainly looks like him.”
“Wait. What?” I jerked my head back. “You have a picture?”
She nodded, typing on her phone. Still, she didn’t show it to me. “Are you sure you want to see it?”
I nodded, my lips falling open on a gasp as she turned the phone to me. It had to be Ryan. If not, he had one hell of a doppelgänger.
“Oh my god.” I cradled my head in my hands, stomach churning. “What if it is him?” I was going to be sick.
Harper had just dropped a bombshell. And while I should be overjoyed, I was…conflicted. I’d held out hope for so long that Ryan was out there. And while I still hoped that was the case, hearing those words didn’t mean as much to me as I’d thought they would. Because I’d finally moved on.
“I think we should find out first whether it’s Ryan or not. We’ll go from there,” she said. I nodded, my mouth opening and closing a few times, but words wouldn’t come. “I’m headed to Thailand in a few days. Do you want me to follow up on it?”
“Yes, and I’m coming with you.”
My mind spun with plans. I needed a ticket. I needed to pack. I needed to talk to Landon. We had another wedding this weekend, and I wasn’t sure I’d be back in time. I’d never done something like this—never bailed on a client. I picked up the phone to call him.
“Hey, boss,” he said when he answered. “What’s up? Did we leave something at the venue?”
I shook my head before remembering he couldn’t see me. “No. I, um, something’s come up, and I have to go out of town.”
“Everything okay?”
“I… Harper and I are going to Thailand. She thinks she found Ryan.”
“What?” he shrieked.
“Yeah.” I laughed, the sound a bit hysterical. “Pretty crazy. Look,” I said, shifting to business mode. I was a planner; it was what I did. This revelation was throwing me for a loop. I had to focus on what I could control. “Do you think you can handle the Van Ness wedding?”
“Of course.” He paused. “But…are you sure this is a good idea?”
“Leaving you in charge?” I deflected. “I thought that’s what you wanted.”
“Juliana.” He blew out a breath. “I just… You’re finally happy again. I don’t want you to jeopardize that.”
