“And what do you have to say about Nora Tremblay? As you’re aware, her mother gave quite an explosive interview. Claimed her daughter is a known manipulator, someone only out for money. Voiced her suspicions that Nora had killed her ex-fiancé, making it look like an accident, as well as intentionally ended her pregnancy.”
I watch as Anderson fights to keep his anger in check. His jaw ticks. Fists clench. Muscles tighten. But he does his best to remain calm under pressure, offering Carly a smile that’s a mixture of forced and annoyed.
“I didn’t come on here today to badmouth anyone. Although there’s quite a bit I’d love to say to Dr. Harcourt if she ever dares show her face around me. I came here today to tell the truth about the woman I love. The woman I’m still desperate to call my wife, my queen…” He turns back toward the camera, his eyes pleading. “If she’ll forgive me for being such a daft knob.”
I choke out a laugh through my tears, my heart brimming with an emotion I can’t quite explain — a blend of love and forgiveness, and everything else that makes us who we are.
“Daft knob?” Chloe asks.
“Stupid dickhead.”
She processes this for a moment, then nods. “Sounds about right.”
“The truth is, Nora had no involvement in the accident that took her fiancé’s and unborn daughter’s lives.”
“How do you know that for certain? After Dr. Harcourt sat down with us, I did some digging of my own. Spoke to some law enforcement professionals familiar with the accident. According to them, the police reports were inconclusive. There was no evidence that her version of events was true. But also no evidence it wasn’t.”
“I can’t argue with that.”
She looks at Hunter’s parents. “Her fiancé, Hunter Copeland, was your son. You put out a reward for any information about a so-called Good Samaritan Nora claimed pulled her from the car moments before it burst into flames, killing Hunter. Isn’t that correct?”
Mary swallows hard, the loss of her son still affecting her. “We did. To the tune of $12,000. But no one came forward. At first, we questioned why someone would want to remain quiet about it, especially with a reward of that amount of money.” When she glances at Anderson, a grateful smile pulls on her lips. “But it turns out the Good Samaritan truly had no need for the money.”
You can practically see the lightbulb go off in Carly’s head, her wide eyes returning to Anderson. “It was you,” she breathes. Then she quickly rummages through the pages of notes in front of her. “Of course. It makes sense now. Your girlfriend at the time, Kendall Davies, died the same day in a hospital mere miles away from the scene of the accident.”
He nods. “That’s correct. I pulled Nora from the car. But that’s not all I did.”
I suck in a breath and shake my head, my hand covering my mouth. “No. Nonononono. Please, Anders. Don’t do this.”
But my pleas fall on deaf ears.
“I caused the crash.”
“What is he doing?” I mumble to myself, heart hammering in my chest.
“Remember what you told us your first night back?” Izzy asks. “That there were too many obstacles between you?”
I meet her eyes.
She crosses her arms over her chest. “Well, Nora, it looks to me like he’s removing those obstacles.”
Speechless, I look from her to Evie, who simply nods in agreement. Then to Chloe, who does the same.
When Anderson and I said goodbye, I thought that was it. That there was no path forward for us. That no one would allow him to do something like this. That they’d protect the king at all costs. That’s what every chess rule book would say to do.
Then again, Anderson and I have never been a couple to follow the rules.
“What does this mean?” I ask frantically.
“We can’t tell you that,” Chloe replies. “But the one person who can is only a quick cab ride away. If I were you, I’d get moving.”
“But you just had a baby,” I protest. “I can’t leave you.”
She throws up her hands. “Oh, shut up and get out of my room. I’m officially revoking your invitation to be here.”
I glance down at my wardrobe. It’s not exactly anything remotely close to what I should be wearing if going to see Anderson. I’m fairly certain the royal household would lose its mind if they saw me in my jeans and Mets t-shirt, my unwashed hair in a messy bun, face mostly devoid of makeup, apart from a bit of powder and eyeliner around my eyes. This is how I’ve blended in this past week. How I’ve gotten away with no one recognizing me. People are used to seeing the future princess with her hair perfect and makeup impeccably applied. Without those things, no one gives me a second glance.
“Go!” my three friends shout at the same time, Izzy pushing me out of the room.
I pause as a few brief thoughts of inadequacy run through my mind. Can I really put myself through all of this again? Allow myself to have hope? Is Anderson worth it?
When his voice fills the room as he shares our love story, I have my answer.
He will always be worth it.
“I love you girls,” I say quickly, then whirl around, ignoring the demands from the nursing staff to slow down.
But I can’t.
I race out of the building as quickly as I can. Luckily, there’s always a line of cabs nearby, and I dart into one.
“Rockefeller Plaza,” I say breathlessly. “As fast as you can.”
The driver nods, starting his meter. He merges into traffic, then steals a glance at me in the rearview mirror. “Do you know who you look like?”
“Grace Kelly?” I mutter under my breath, having gotten that most of my life.
“No. The American girl who was supposed to marry that European prince but her mother sabotaged it. Probably out of jealousy.”
I pull my hair out of the bun, allowing it to fall to my shoulders. “I am that American. And that prince is being interviewed by Carly Hart right now. So I really need to get to Rockefeller Plaza as soon as possible.”
His eyes widen in surprise. Then he turns into the New York cab driver I know he is in his soul. “Of course, ma’am.” He presses his foot on the gas, not paying much attention to the rules of the road.
I pull my phone out of my purse and bring up a browser so I can keep watching the interview. For all I know, it may already be over.
But when I tune into the live feed, I blow out a relieved breath to see Anderson’s still there. I turn up the volume, keeping my hand on the door handle to prevent myself from sliding all over the back seat as the car’s tires squeal around a corner.
I listen as Anderson shares how he was unaware he’d caused the crash until a year ago. How he’d experienced temporary blindness, what he now knows was a flareup of his MS, which was undiagnosed until last year. Then he shares how we met, something that’s been kept under wraps from the beginning. How he was on the brink of taking his own life after receiving his MS diagnosis, but saw me sitting in that Chicago diner. As he discloses how he felt when he realized who I was, a text pops up.
Chloe: #TeamNora is the top trending hashtag right now. This interview is going viral, more so than your mother’s. Nora, people LOVE your story. So go get your man! And don’t give up until you have him!