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Has he been trying to become friends this entire time?

Perhaps this feud has been more one-sided over the years.

“Grace.” Sadie waves her hand in front of my face. “Are you okay?”

“Yes.” I perk up and take the drink she’s offering me. “I’m fine. I’m just thinking about all the moments we missed out on because I never took the time to give him a chance.”

Brooke smiles, but her head tilts as she keeps her eyes on me.

I look away instantly.

Nope, she’s not reading me. Not today.

“Has he been pining for you all these years?” Sadie asks.

“Yep,” I say and then give them a true smile. I’ll have to catch Preston up with this version of the story later. I mean, he did say we could use his hesitance to settle down as my reason for always being mad at him.

“Have you two been…” Brooke’s words trail off, and her eyebrows dance. “You know, doing the deed all these years in secret?”

Sadie smacks Brooke’s arm. “Yes, that’s a great question, but her niece is present.”

“Oh, right, sorry.”

“Don’t be. I’ve heard worse at school.” Layla shrugs and then looks at me. “Go on.”

Oh, my poor brother.

“Yeah,” I answer.

There, short and sweet.

“What?” Brooke snaps in a high pitch.

“This is great.” Sadie claps quietly.

“Preston had a thing about commitment, and every time he’d come here, I’d get my hopes up. Eventually, I decided to just hate him. It was easier, but the man wore me down, and here I am. Engaged.”

Brooke reaches for my left hand. “And the ring?”

“He wants to take me to LA to pick one out together.”

Oh, great. Another lie. We never really discussed it after I stormed out of my office earlier.

“So, it really was a spur-of-the-moment proposal,” Sadie says.

“Yes and no,” I say, as Preston and I rehearsed. “The feelings were always there, and deep down, I think I knew he’d be the one I would marry, even if it took him longer to figure it out.”

“I’ll say.” Brooke huffs. “Dutton isn’t surprised, which surprised me since he’s so mad that he found out from a post online and not from you.”

“He wasn’t?” I ask before I can think twice. “Why?”

She sips her drink and grabs one of the snacks Sadie brought. “He said that anytime Preston is in town, he always asks about you or seeks you out. His affection for you didn’t go unnoticed. How far it went did.”

Oh my god. It really was one-sided.

An uneasy feeling settles in the pit of my stomach.

I think I need to apologize to him and stop acting like this whole thing is putting me out.