Jay looks at me for a long moment, eyes shining brown and green under the street lights. “Do you really want an answer?” he asks back. “Isn’t it more exciting not knowing, just letting the possibilities be endless? Like, maybe I’m a genius and figured out some mathematical formula of probabilities to predict the lottery. Maybe I bribed the ball guy to rig the system.” He pauses to laugh and pulls the same ticket he’d shown on the video out of his pocket. “Maybe I faked this ticket, and I’m just giving them my own money. Maybe I’m psychic. Maybe I had a real good time at the poker tables. The maybes could go on forever, Watson, but we both know that mystery is better than the truth. So why not live with the magic? Be a kid again and believe in the fantastical. Life is more fun with a little smoke and mirrors.”
He gives me a devilish wink.
I shake my head at him, unable to keep my smile from growing wide. I point a finger into his chest, beaming up at him. “You, Mr Fields, are insufferable.”
He laughs. “That’s a lie. You find me charming. I know when you’re lying, remember?”
“Have I ever mentioned how much I hate that?”
“You don’t have to,” his voice is full of affection. “I can tell when you hate it, too.”
Something pops into my head, and I wag my finger at him. “A-ha, but I lied to you once, and you never knew.”
“Oh, yeah,” he says indulgently. “And when was this?”
“The night I was attacked by the thug. It wasn’t random. Una was there.”
Slowly, his smile grows wider. “I knew you were lying then, too. Didn’t you notice my knuckles were fucked up the next morning?”
“No, I didn’t. And what does that mean? You spent the night on the couch.”
“Not the whole night. I snuck out, found the fuck Una paid to threaten you, and made sure he wouldn’t be doing it again.”
I stare at him, awestruck. “How did you know?”
“I asked you a few innocent questions, watched your reactions, and figured the rest out for myself. It takes a lot of practice to be able to lie to me.” He pauses, voice going soft and sexy. “And I’m too obsessed with you not to know every single one of your tells.”
That answer both endlessly pleases and irritates the hell out of me at the same time.
“That’s…okay, that’s kind of cool.”
He chuckles tenderly as his arms go around my waist, pulling me flush against his body. I press my face into his shoulder, breathing him in. “And I love you,” I whisper.
He lifts my chin and takes my mouth in a slow, lingering kiss before coming up for air. “Yeah, ya do.”
Several people wolf whistle and shout encouragements at us as they pass by. He’s holding me so tight that I can feel his phone start to vibrate in his pocket, interrupting our little moment.
I giggle, breaking the kiss. “Is that a vibrating phone in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?”
He gives me a crooked smirk as he pulls out his phone to answer it. “A bit of both.”
He doesn’t let go of me through his conversation. I’m not sure who he’s talking to, but his end consists of a lot of yes and no answers, before ending with a, “Great, I guess I’ll be seeing you soon, then.”
I watch as he tucks the phone back in his pocket and pulls me closer, pressing his lips to my temples. “Who was that?” I ask.
His answering grin makes me shiver, in a good way. “That was my agent over in the States. You’re about to cough up on that agreement, darlin’.”
“Huh?”
“I just got booked for a string of shows. We’re going to Vegas, my dear.”
I stare at him, open-mouthed, remembering the time when he told me how he did one of his tricks, and in exchange I’d have to go to America with him the next time he had shows there. It seems I really am going to keep my promise to Dad and let Jay take me on an adventure.
I swallow hard, shivers breaking out all over my skin, and reply excitedly, “I guess we are. I can’t wait!”
Epilogue
Several months later. Las Vegas, Nevada.
I curse as I accidentally prick myself with the needle. The suit I’m designing for Jay to wear during his next performance is almost complete. Up until recently, I’ve only ever designed dresses, but since I’m now a permanent member of his style and wardrobe team, I’ve been inspired to create something truly original. Something that represents him completely.
If Mum is up there somewhere looking down on me, I think she’d be proud. I’ve taken the things she taught me and turned them into a career. It took me a couple of weeks to train a new secretary for Dad, but now I’ve finally left my solicitor’s office days behind me.
I get to give style advice and create my own designs for a living. For me, it doesn’t get much better than that.
This final part of the suit needed to be hand-stitched, a tiny red heart in the corner of the left lapel, and I was concentrating so hard that I managed to prick myself, drawing blood. I stick my finger in my mouth as I go in search of a Band-Aid. Finding one, I quickly wrap it around the cut and return to my sewing. I run my hand over the beautiful, midnight blue fabric, truly proud of the work I’ve done.
I can’t wait to surprise Jay with this. I’ve been sneakily taking his measurements the past few weeks, ensuring that the suit will fit perfectly, but he has no clue what I’ve been up to. As I go to thread the needle again, I suddenly become aware of something cold on my skin. Glancing down, I gasp, my hand going to my mouth in surprise.
Right there on my finger is the most beautiful diamond engagement ring I’ve ever seen, and it definitely wasn’t there a second ago. I stare at it for what feels like forever. Standing up again, I walk over to the mirror by my bed and stare at my hand through the glass. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I catch sight of Jay standing in the doorway, a smile on his mouth and love beaming from him.
This is the way of things when your boyfriend is an illusionist. He has a habit of appearing out of thin air, and deep down he’s just a big kid who thrives on mischievous pranks and coming up with elaborate ways to surprise people.
His childhood may have been stolen by adults, but he claims that childhood back with each new trick he creates. For months now I have been completely under his spell.
“What is this?” I ask, turning and thrusting my hand out to him; my heart is hammering and my brain is refusing to believe the very obvious meaning of the diamond currently residing on my ring finger.
“It’s yours,” the mercurial bastard replies, all matter of fact, while my heart is zinging with a thousand mushy, fuzzy, lovey-dovey emotions.
My eyes grow instantly watery with love and my cheeks flush pink with nervous excitement. “Jason, I’m not going to make you explain how you got this ring on my finger, but I must insist that you tell me why y-you’ve put it there,” I stammer, my voice jittery.
He strides towards me and takes both my shaky hands into his. He lifts them and places them on his chest, while looking down at the ring as he rubs his thumb over it.
“I want you to belong to me. I want to tell the world that you’re mine. That’s why I’ve put it there, Watson.”
I blink away a tear and keep my eyes closed, whispering, “You have to ask the question.”
His hot breath hits my cheeks as he leans in. He kisses away my tears, then nuzzles his nose into my temples. “Will you marry me, Matilda?” he asks softly.
I open my eyes then and look up into his, replying instantly, “Yes, oh my God, yes.”
He takes my face into his hands then, and kisses me until I’m tugging on his shirt and trying to figure out the quickest and most efficient way to rid him of his clothes. I don’t have to think for very long, because he pulls away, his eyes twinkling as he begins to undress himself with abandon. I watch, eating up every inch of skin that he reveals. Once he’s naked, though, he doesn’t come to me. Instead he walks over to the where I’ve left the suit.