Page 93 of The Love Hoax

I take my seat next to a woman with blood red lipstick, thanking her for watching my bag while I stretched my legs. She reminds me of Anna.

Will Anna and Ari ever accept me after our deception? Adam is their child, so they have to forgive him. But the same may not apply to the fictitious Ronna.

I remind myself that none of it will matter if Adam doesn’t want me.

Which is a real and terrifying possibility. After all, the entire time I was with Adam, we were engaged in a fake relationship.

Was it all an act?

Memories of Adam’s heart-flopping late-night kisses in the Salt Lake City hotel room bring a blush to my neck.

Kisses don’t lie.

My subconscious slaps me upside the head. Of course they do,

The internal battle has been plaguing me since my middle-of-the-night call with Caroline.

Am I doing the right thing?

I picture myself showing up on Adam’s doorstep only to have him send me away. The thought makes my stomach hurt.

My phone dings with a text from Caroline.

You are powerful. You are vibrant. You got this.

Caroline is a mind reader.

I reply with a barbell emoji.

I am not going to let the fear of rejection get in my way anymore.

Better to have loved and lost and all that.

I will be all right. Even if he doesn’t love me, even if it was all a sham.

The gate agent turns on the mic. “Ladies and gentlemen, wewere just informed that the flight will be delayed another hour. We apologize for the inconvenience.”

This is followed by a round of loud groans.

I send a message to Caroline.

I’m going to Colorado even if I have to fly the plane myself.

Chapter Sixty-Six

Adam

“P

lease fasten your seatbelts. We expect a bumpy ride until we’re on the ground.”

The announcement from the flight deck is unwelcome. I clutch the armrests, my knuckles turning white.

“Are you okay?” asks the old lady sitting beside me.

“I don’t like flying.”

“Then you picked the wrong day for a plane ride,” she chuckles. Seeing my horrified expression, she pats my hand. “Don’t worry, we’ll be fine. It’s only a storm passing through.”