Accidentally Engaged(78)

The moment she was in her cousin’s apartment she fell onto Marley’s sofa. “Want to hear some dirt about my former Tanzanian/English boyfriend?”

Marley’s eyes widened. “Holy shit, former? It’s over already? You guys seemed so great together.”

“Yeah, well, apparently appearances can be deceiving.”

They took their tea out to the back deck, where Reena told them most of the story, skirting over the part where Dad lost money to the phony architect and the part where Mum spent her free time in a poker club. Best not to broadcast all their messy secrets to her mother’s brother’s daughter.

“Holy crap,” Shayne said. “He was engaged to Jasmine Shah? I followed her Instagram. He’s the mystery fiancé she was always talking about?”

Reena nodded. “He says they actually split a while ago.”

“And you don’t believe him?” Shayne asked.

She shrugged.

“He was really into you, though,” Marley said. “You have to believe that.”

“I believe he was very good at faking it. A little too good.” Reena paused, looking at the setting sun bathing the asphalt lot in an orange glow. “You think I should believe that he’s not with her anymore?”

“Why automatically believe the Shahs?” Marley said. “You don’t even know them, and hasn’t your father always hated them?”

Reena shrugged again.

“I dunno,” Shayne said. “I’d be more likely to believe our friend than that influencer who claims her hair is real. I could see her weave in one of her pictures, for god’s sake. And her hazel eyes? Contacts.”

“Shayne, don’t be catty. Nadim has nothing to gain by lying now. You should talk to him,” Marley said.

“I just did talk to him.”

“You yelled at him. Talk, Reena,” Marley said. “There’s more to this, I can feel it.”

“You sound like Saira.”

Marley chuckled. “Your sister—she’s changed a lot, right? I shop at her store, and she somehow manages to say the wisest things while still being eighty percent inappropriate.”

“I know. She’s Bizarro Saira, now.”

“I adore your sister,” Shayne said. “She’s so delightfully extra.”

Reena smirked.

Marley sipped her wine, perfect eyebrows furrowed in thought. “I think you should trust him. You know your parents and his are a little manipulative. The Shahs might be, too. I have no reason to believe that the guy who’s become our friend in the last month would lie to us. Do you think maybe you’re looking for flaws that aren’t there?”

That was ridiculous. Absurd. But…Reena bit her lip. “Last week someone said to me, ‘You ever get scared when something fits a little too perfectly? You think it’s not possible so you look for problems that aren’t there?’”

Shayne recoiled. “Wow, I feel sorry for whoever that person dumped. Why run away from perfection? Who said it?”

Reena gave a small smile, thinking of Anderson. “It doesn’t matter,” Reena said.

“Why don’t you ask your dad what he knows?” Marley suggested.

“Why would I do a thing like that?”

“He’s been working with Nadim for over a month. Whether he likes the Shahs or not, he does know them better than anyone else here. Maybe it’s a good idea to get support from your parents when things are shitty?”

She snorted. Did Dad know how to give support?

It was so unlike her to go to her father of all people…but maybe that was part of the problem. Reena took a long sip of her tea, the mellow, chilled drink cooling her core. If anything, these last few days had taught her that her normal way of dealing with problems wasn’t the only way. And definitely not the best way.

“Maybe. Yeah, maybe I should talk to Dad.”





CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE



Reena reluctantly agreed to talk to her father, but she wasn’t about to do it alone. She’d learned long ago that difficult conversations with parents were easier with the strength of numbers. So she called Saira and made plans to ambush Dad at the Diamond project together the next day.

They found Dad in the site office—a portable unit that the construction management team used for paperwork and meetings. He was at a desk, typing on a computer while Igor, the construction manager, was chatting with a hard hat-wearing woman while looking over huge sheets of paper on a table.

“Girls.” Dad looked up. “What are you doing here?”

“We need to talk,” Reena said. “Alone.”

Dad closed his eyes a moment, then stood. “Let’s go to the corner unit. There’s a table and chairs in there.” He guided them out.

He led them to a large L-shaped space, unfinished with concrete floors and walls, and an open ceiling. A folding table and grouping of chairs had been set up in the back. This was the store Nadim was struggling to find a lease for. It was strange to see it after he’d talked about it so much.

“Nice,” Saira said, eyeing the area. “Did you guys secure a tenant for this yet? You should think about doing a little shop along with a restaurant. Like a bodega-café.”

Dad waved his hand. “Everything is in limbo now. Losing a manager while in the middle of negotiations will set me back a long time.” He sat at the chair at the head of the table and waited for them to follow before speaking.