Page 19 of Forbidden Match

It’s Sunday night. Valentine’s Day is over, the weekend is over. Levi will have to go back to his busy schedule and so will I. If we stayed together, we’d likely have to keep this a secret from Sam forever.

Instead of dwelling on that, I tell the matchmaker that I’ll be down as soon as I can.

“What are you going to tell her?” he asks. Does he seem on edge?

“You know there’s a big cash prize if she fails, right?” I ask. “Ten grand. What would that do for your business? You said you want to advertise more, right?”

“It’d be good savings for you for when your dad’s better and you’re ready to leave town,” he says. Does he sound bitter?

I get dressed, fighting the urge to crawl back into bed with him. Our hometown is more than an hour’s drive away, and I’ll need that time to try and find a way to explain my absence this weekend. I don’t bother taking a shower because I want to keep Levi’s scent as company on the long drive.

“Wait,” he says as I’m zipping up my overnight bag. He pulls the hotel robe closer around him and stands in front of me. “What should I tell the matchmaker? We should be on the same page, right?”

I swallow hard. “Just tell her the truth.”

Before I start bawling like an infant, I kiss him quickly on the cheek and leave the room. “See you around town,” I call over my shoulder as I smash the elevator button.

He lets the door to the suite swing shut, and the last glimpse I have of his face is a confused frown.

That wasn’t the most awkward and heart-wrenching thing I’ve ever done at all. Nope. Not at all.

I almost skip going to the meeting room where Madame Amour is, but feel like I should abide by the rules. I’m surprised tosee she’s really there, looking even more imposing than her hologram self.

“Have I done well matching you with your soulmate?” she asks. “Or will you be the first person to win the cash prize? Tell me, Molly. Have you won love or money?”

I want to tell her she didn’t match shit and think about everything I could do with ten thousand bucks. But in the end, I can’t make myself lie about what I’m feeling.

“He’s my soulmate,” I blurt out, tears welling on my lashes. Of course he is. He’s always been the one man for me, even before Madame Amour put us together for the most amazing weekend of my life. I’ll never be able to surpass this.

I don’t bother waiting for her to congratulate me before heading toward the door.

“You could still win if he doesn’t feel the same,” she calls after me.

I pause, hand on the doorknob.

The idea that Levi doesn’t feel the same as I do is more painful than a knife to the back. After a deep breath, I nod and keep going, not stopping until I’m in my car. Somehow, I managed to keep from crying the entire way home.

What if Levi really doesn’t feel the same about me? Sure, he admitted to being attracted to me for a long time, but that’s different from love.

But … what if hedoesfeel the same?

What would we do about Sam? Levi is loyal to the bone—he’d never betray my brother. He practically views like a brother as much as I do.

All of these thoughts race through my head, and before I know it, I’m home and pulling into the driveway.

It’s late, but Sam is still up, waiting in the kitchen and making himself a snack.

“So, how did it go?” he asks. I freeze instantly at his question and he shakes his head. “I know you dug that ticket out of the trash and went to the thing.”

Okay, so he knows. What he mustnotknow is that Levi also went, otherwise he’d be going ballistic. Either way, I’m in no mood for his teasing. With a shrug, I turn away.

“Oh come on, Mol,” Sam says as I try to leave. “Tell me if you found your soulmate or not.”

I can’t even summon enough energy to glare at him. I only make it to my room by seconds before the waterworks start.

How can being in love hurt so damn much?

Oh, right. Because I don’t know if the man I love feels the same, and I can’t be with him, even if he does.

---