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“If you’re thinking that he has a lot of women he spends his nights with,” Lily added, “then that’s not a good sign for marriage.”
“It’s a marriage for money.”
“Sure, but it eats at you.”
My lips twisted. When Sebastian and Lily had been in their arranged marriage, Lily spent many years thinking he was in love with his assistant. When I’d first met her in person, she’d nearly hit me with her car because she was leaving her house in a jealous rage.
But IknewLevi would do something like this. I’d been burned before, so I would go into this knowing what was going to happen.
“So you think this is a bad idea?” I asked.
“Normally, I’d say yes. But heisoffering to solve your problems without you working. And I refuse to outright say no and risk alienating you if you decide to do it,” Lily said.
Lily’s friend, Jessie, had done just that. She’d been so forceful in trying to tell Lily not to go through with the marriage that it broke them in the end.
“I appreciate it. But you could tell me not to and I wouldn’t hold it against you.”
She tilted her head as she thought about it. “I probably wouldn’t do it, but I get how desperate one can feel when they don’t have options. Andyou’rethe one calling the shots here, so it’s different than a contracted marriage like Sebastian and I had. You could say no to anything if you wanted to, so that changes things.”
“And Sebastian?”
“I . . . agree with my wife,” he said. “This seems like an easy way out, and as far as I know, Levi isn’t a bad guy.”
“I disagree there,” I replied.
“He’s not a bad guy in the waysIknow him, and even if he is, you’re going in prepared.”
“I really expected you guys to be more shocked about this.”
“Oh, weareshocked,” Lily said. “But you need advice, and we can process how unhinged this is later.”
“It’s so wild that you could probably write a book about it. I’ll need it when I don’t get my own happy ending.”
“Don’t say that. You could meet the one during this whole thing.”
“Who would I meet? Because it’s not the guy marrying me for revenge.”
“No, but someone else could walk into a coffee shop while you’re there one day.”
“I admire how positive you are since you and Sebastian ended up together.”
“It’ll happen to you too. And maybe you can help me write that book.”
“I don’t think I know enough words to write my own book. In fact, sometimes I feel like I don’t know how to read, and that I’ve just memorized words.”
“Is that a thing?” Sebastian asked.
“Wait, that’s from a show you told me to watch ... What’s the name?”
“New Girl,”I said. “You watched it?”
“Some of it. I use it as a palate cleanser between episodes ofHouse of the Dragon.”
I winced. “I don’t know how you can stomach that.”
“I’m just special,” she said.
And with Sebastian’s smile at her, I knew he thought the same thing. I watched the two of them gaze at each other, locked in their own little world. I couldn’t help but linger on Lily’s words.