Reunited in Love by Nadia Lee Page A

actions that had put a huge strain on his family and enraged hers, with him caught in the middle.
    Lisa had insisted on seemingly irrational and incomprehensible things without explaining herself. Her family had thought he was lying about her behavior to smear her name and paint her as a crazy woman.
    Something crashed on screen. Kerri started and dropped a couple pieces of popcorn.
    He smiled and reached over, and she took his hand. The salt felt gritty between their palms. Of course Kerri wasn’t like Lisa. His ex hadn’t been able to talk to him or accept any sort of warmth from him in the last few weeks of her life.
    He relaxed into his seat. It had to be just him being sensitive. Lisa had died in late fall, just as the gold-and-red season was being bleached into winter. He sometimes thought of her around this time of the year, that was all.
    Couples had petty and pointless disagreements here and there. But that didn’t mean anything major was wrong.
    After the movie, they returned to the penthouse. Ethan had to get ready for a charity function he’d been invited to. Hiding a small smile, he went to his walk-in closet and pulled out a large garment box. It contained the dress he wanted Kerri to wear. He’d seen it at a mall when he’d gone to pick up a present for his nephew during lunch break, and instantly known he had to get it for her.
    She was in the living room watching the news, standing with her arms wrapped around her torso. “Hey, come here,” he said.
    She came over to the dining table, ponytail swishing with every step. He had a sudden carnal urge to grab her by it and bend her over the table.
    But first, the dress.
    “Here.” He gave her the box.
    She opened it and gasped. “Oh wow. It’s gorgeous!” She pulled out shimmery golden silk, carefully cut and sewn into a backless gown. “My god.”
    “There’s a charity ball tonight,” he said. “It’s for a really good cause—building schools in Africa. I thought you’d like to come with me.”
    “Oh.” She looked away. “Do I have to go?”
    “Ah…” Not exactly the response he’d anticipated. “Well, who else would I go with? The ticket price is for two, so I kind of need a date,” he joked.
    Something desperate and hard crossed her face.
    “What’s wrong?” He had the most absurd desire to fix things so she’d never wear such an expression again.
    “I…just don’t feel comfortable at events like that.”
    “Why not?”
    “Not my kind of thing.” She shrugged and started to fold the gown and put it back into the box. “This is beautiful, and I want to wear it out with you sometime. But I think you should take someone else tonight.”
    “We’re supposed to be exclusive while we’re together.”
    “Well, I don’t want you to
sleep
with her. But that doesn’t mean you can’t take somebody else to a public event. As you said, it’d be a waste since you paid for two.”
    He clenched his jaw so hard, even the muscles in his neck tightened. “What’s the real issue here? It’s not like you have something to do tonight.”
    “Ethan, I don’t know what to do at high society functions.”
    Frustration rose. She was lying to his face. They’d been together for several weeks now, and Kerri had always known exactly what to do, every action proper. Studying Emily Post for an afternoon wasn’t enough to give someone that kind of refinement. She’d grown up in a genteel moneyed background. “Are you ashamed of being seen with me?”
    “
What?
No!” Her eyes grew as big as saucers. “Oh my god, Ethan, it’s not like that.” She rubbed her forehead, turned slightly away. “This is such a mistake. I was wrong, thinking everything would work out,” she said, low enough that it was slightly hard to hear her.
    His insides grew cold at the resignation in her voice. “No, you didn’t. You can regret other things if you want, but not what we have.”
    “But if you need a date for—”
    “I’ll deal with