Page 100 of An Accidental Love Affair

No, that’s what you want. “You said after filming was over.”

He reached for her again. Something was on her mind. It had been eating at her for a while. “Nicole . . .”

She stepped away. “I need to go.”

He stopped her. “Go where? Nicole, talk to me.”

She glanced toward the party, desperate to get away from him. “Do you want to marry me, Reece?”

He dropped her arm. “What kind of a question is that?”

“Don’t answer a question with a question. Do you want to marry me? You haven’t shown any kind of interest in it since you told me we were engaged.”

“That’s not true.”

“It is,” she cried. “I haven’t been able to get a straight answer out of you about anything.”

He gave her a bemused smile. “Don’t men usually leave these decisions up to their women?” he joked, but she wasn’t laughing. “Why don’t you call our mums and start making plans. I’m sure they’d love to help you.”

She wished she could ask him straight out if they were engaged or not. But if he said it was indeed a sham, it would shatter her dreams. She didn’t want it to be a sham. She wanted the fairytale to be real. She wanted Reece Collins to be in love with her. She wanted him to love her more than his career.

“Lindsey says you haven’t picked out a dress yet. Maybe you could start there.”

“What’s the point? It’s not like you’re in any hurry to tie the knot.”

His anger was rising now. “I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t want to marry you.”

“Then set a damn date, Reece. I need something concrete to hold onto.” Tears were building in her eyes.

Was she crying? What the hell? His anger evaporated at the first tear. “You’re getting all discombobulated again, aren’t you?”

“Duh!”

He chuckled, jerking her into his arms and hugging her tight. “Listen to me. The movie is scheduled to premiere in November. We’ll both be busy trying to promote it. We’ll have interviews and red-carpet appearances. Our calendars are going to be full for some time. Neither of us is going to have a free moment until after the holidays. Why don’t we shoot for the first Saturday in March? Will that work for you?”

She exhaled loudly. It wasn’t as soon as she wanted, but at least it was a date.

“Are you feeling better now? Have I silenced your doubts?”

She smiled. “Yes, like a knight in shining armor, you’ve vanquished my demons.” For now.

Chapter 13

The movie Limelight opened to rave reviews, and the book shot to the top of the bestseller’s lists. Reece and Nicole spent a lot of their time on opposite sides of the country—sometimes the world. While she was touring the country promoting the book, he was doing the opening night circuit. They’d both been on multiple talk shows, had answered a thousand probing questions between them, but hadn’t seen each other in nearly a month.

The strain of separation was beginning to take its toll. The small space of time allotted to them for phone calls and video chats wasn’t enough to say what they needed to say and was often interrupted by others demanding their time, especially Reece’s. They were arguing because of it. Reece thought she should be more understanding of the demands of his career; she thought he should be more understanding of her insecurities. They weren’t talking to each other because of it.

Nicole was in a funk when she should’ve been having the time of her life. Her childhood dreams had come true. She had become a successful writer practically overnight, with a growing fan base reaching the thousands. Her books were being translated into foreign languages. Everyone was clamoring to the movie theaters to see her creation on the big screen.

And she was engaged to marry the most incredibly sexy man on the face of the planet. The plans for their wedding were under way. She was getting torn between the demands of her career, his career, and the demands of her mother. Lydia was on a mission to pull off the most extravagant wedding Goldsboro, North Carolina would ever see.

It was a circus. Nicole was exhausted. She’d appear on a talk show, run to the airport to catch a flight home for a dress fitting, and then run back to the airport to fly out for another interview. At times like this, she wished she had a twin. They could split up the work. As it was, her sister was no help to her. Lindsey was supposed to be traveling as her assistant and to keep her company, but she spent most of her time flitting off to see Damon Westmore. Lucky Lindsey!

Nicole wanted to fly to England, drive to the cottage, and sleep for a month. She wished more than anything to be there right now, lying in bed with Reece’s arms around her and reassuring her that everything would be okay.

Instead, she was curled up on the couch in her hotel room, flipping channels. She was trying to relax from another exhausting day of interviews when she stopped on the E network, finding Reece on the red carpet. Cameras were flashing around him at the London premiere. He looked dashing in his suit as he stopped to sign autographs, posing for selfies with his adoring fans.

As he made his way up the red carpet, he was stopped with questions from reporters. “Reece, are the rumors true? Have you and Nicole called off your engagement?”

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