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card,” he said, handing Cameron his American Express. “No future wife of mine is going to pay for her own engagement ring.”

Chapter 7
    Campaign
    Alex wasn’t sure that taking Cass with him to pick up Nina was a good idea, but that hadn’t stopped him from suggesting it. He had been momentarily surprised she’d agreed so readily until he remembered who he was dealing with. Cass always seemed to excel in awkward situations—always cool and confident in her own skin. It was probably what made her so successful at her career. While Alex also had a job that required him to have an unflappable demeanor, his calmness was completely external—a superficial layer he coated himself in. But Cass’ assuredness seemed to radiate from within, emanating from her core. It was who she was, rather than a role she played.
    Even as they drove to Tessa’s modest bungalow about twenty minutes from his house, Alex gripped the steering wheel to keep his nerves in check while Cass casually draped an arm out of the passenger’swindow, her hair blowing freely in the wind as she watched the scenery pass by, with a serene expression on her face.
Damn her.
    Alex pulled into Tessa’s driveway with a perfunctory “This is it.”
    Cass nodded as she pushed open her door. “Nice place.”
    And it was nice. The lawn was well manicured, the blue shutters vibrant against the white house, the flower bed lush with colorful flowers. Alex tried to tamp down the sudden feeling of annoyance. Tessa had never cared for their home like she obviously cared for this one. Or maybe the gardening was Pete’s thing. Either way, Alex and Tessa’s place had never been as inviting as this one, and it made him wonder if what he was seeing was the difference between a house and a home. He shook his head to clear the unwanted thoughts, thoughts he’d never had before, and ones he hoped to never have again.
    They walked up to the front door, and Alex looked over at Cass. “You ready for this?”
    Cass pushed her sunglasses to the top of her head and shrugged. “Sure.”
    Alex cast a quick look down at Cass’ hand to make sure the ring was in place. He didn’t want to walk into this charade and expose their lie immediately because they’d forgotten the hardware that evidently sold this whole farce. After confirming that it was there, he rang the doorbell.
    The door flew open and revealed an excited Nina. “Hi, Daddy.” She wrapped her thin arms around his waist, and he hugged her tightly. When she pulled back, her eyes drifted to his right. “Cass! Hi.” And then Nina was hugging Cass, and Cass beamed at the attention.
    Alex felt a swift pang of regret. No matter how often Cass reassured him, he still worried about how Nina would take the inevitable breakup that loomed over them. Because even though he was doing this
for
Nina, it would hurt her too. And seeing how warmly she greeted Cass made him concerned for just how hard his little girl would take the news when the time came. But he didn’t have time to dwell on it long, because Tessa joined them.
    â€œHi, guys. How’s it going?” Tessa smiled as she spoke, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. It was the kind of smile that was more indulgent than sincere, almost patronizing in its fakeness. But at least she tried. He could give her credit for that.
    â€œNot too bad. You?” Alex asked.
    â€œOh, you know. Same old, same old.”
    They both did that awkward nodding thing that people did when they’d run out of words to fill the silence.
    â€œYou have a beautiful home. I love all of the bright flowers,” Cass said.
    â€œI helped plant them,” Nina chimed.
    Cass’ eyes widened. “You did? Well, you did a really good job. I thought a professional landscaper planted them.”
    Nina’s smile brightened even more. “Nope. Me and Mommy did