outside looks super intimate, even though I know it’s not.
I bring up Sebastian’s contact details and call him again. This time, it goes straight to voicemail. I check the time. It’s got to be eleven thirty at night in England. Maybe he’s gone to sleep?
“Honey? Aunt Judy’s leaving,” Mom calls from the other room.
“Coming!” I slip my phone into the back pocket of my jeans and say a silent prayer Sebastian still has faith in me and that he’ll call me back and put me out of this misery.
That night, after a meal of mac and cheese with Mom, during which I try not to let my anxiety over the photos come out, I slip between the crisp, cool sheets of my childhood bed, physically, emotionally, and mentally exhausted. There are no messages from Seb, which I tell myself makes perfect sense. It’s got to be two in the morning over there by now. He’s not likely to call me at that time. He’ll be asleep, dreaming good thoughts about me, trusting in my love for him.
I lie in my childhood bed and stare at the ceiling of my old room, willing sleep to come. Although I’m beyond exhausted, jet-lagged, and a total emotional wreck, sleep evades me.
I count the glow-in-the-dark stars Mom stuck up on the ceiling when I was seven and wanted to be an astronaut following a school visit to NASA. Sleep doesn’t come.
I’m too amped. I’ve got too many things competing for thinking space in my brain.
Sebastian.
Those darn photos.
Mom.
Thoughts click over and over in the dense forest of my mind as I try to find a wooden bench on which to rest.
Jilly’s words roll through my head. The universe has spoken. Seb and I are not meant to be. I begin to wonder whether she’s right. All the things that have gone wrong for us—and the list is long—point to it.
Perhaps I’m no good for him?
Perhaps he’d be better off without me?
My belly in knots, I roll over and pull my knees up to my chest.
I love Seb. I love him with all my heart. There’s no denying it.
When I went on Dating Mr. Darcy, I never in a million years thought I would end up falling in love with him. I figured there was something wrong with a guy who wanted to pose on TV as one of the most adored romantic heroes of all time. He was either a publicity-hungry narcissist or totally deluded into thinking he could find love on a reality show.
He was neither.
He was a guy who was desperate to save his family home, who felt responsible for their loss of fortune, who put himself on the line to protect his family. He was noble, he was strong, and I fell for him.
Oh, how I fell for him.
Now? Now here I am, back where I started, only things have changed irrevocably. My heart, once untouched, is now his. Fully and completely. And I know deep down inside, that will not change. My love for him will not fade. He is the best man I’ve ever known, and I know he loves me.
It’s as certain as I know the sun will rise tomorrow.
But…is that enough?
Jilly took things too far, saying we’re not meant to be, but she’s right about one thing: I’ve brought stress and challenges into his life. I’ve divided his family, caused him embarrassment, and the production company was clearly against me.
My phone vibrates on the nightstand, causing my heart to leap into my mouth. I check the screen.
It’s Sebastian.
“Hey,” I say as my pulse threatens to burst out of my chest.
“I’m sorry to call you so late. Are you okay?”
“Have you seen the photos?” I ask breathlessly.
“I have.”
“Seb, it was all totally innocent. I’m not having an affair with Chris Hampshire or with anyone else for that matter. You’ve gotta believe me.”
“Of course I believe you.”
Tears prick my eyes, my throat tightening. “You do?”
“Brady, photos of you and Chris at a café aren’t going to dent my trust in you. I love you.”
“Oh, thank God,” I say in a rush. “I love you, too. So much. This is all so horrible.”
“Someone is trying to stir the pot with those photos. I don’t know who, but we’re not going to let it get to us. Not now, not ever.”
Tears roll down my face, my heart contracting in my chest. “You’re incredible. You know that? You see photos of me with your arch nemesis, the guy who caused your dad’s downfall,