by Claire Adams
“Now where to?” Nancie asked.
“We’re getting ready at Gavin’s house,” I said. “You knew that. You had your dress sent to his place in advanced, remember?”
“Ugh, I know,” she said. “I was just hoping you’d change your mind last minute and tell me we were running away to Vegas.”
“Better luck next time,” I said with a small laugh. “You’ll like him; Nancie, just give him a chance.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll try.” We walked back to my car. “As long as he makes you happy and you don’t give up on your dreams, then I won’t hate him.”
“No one’s giving up on any dreams,” I said and shrugged. “This is just a small detour, and it might be nice to have someone out there with me, besides you. You get so damn busy all the time. Who’s going to hold me when things fall apart? Because you know this business well enough. Things fall apart all the damn time.” I gave her a knowing look.
“True dat!” She got into her side of the car and leaned back. “Tell me about the dress, seeing that you didn’t send me any pictures!”
“I didn’t want Gavin to get on my phone and see them before the ceremony today. You know it’s supposed to be bad luck if your groom sees you in your dress before the wedding.”
“Really?” She glanced over at me, looking suspicious. “That’s bullshit. You’re making that up.”
“You’re dumb. You knew that.” I pulled out into traffic and hit the freeway as we chatted a little more about her experience thus far in Cali. She was living the dream, moving into the high life, and loving it.
It was easy to love life when you weren’t completely broke. Now that I had some money in my bank account, I would wrap up the deal with Gavin and be on my way to the sunny state.
Sadness raced through me at the idea of not seeing him again. Could I really do that? It was what we both expected, but thinking about on our last night together, I was unsure of myself. He hadn’t been welcoming in the bed, but sometime during the night, he’d rolled over and snuggled up to the back of me. We fit so damn good together. Maybe not in life, but in lust.
“Hey, dreamer. You still awake?” She patted my shoulder and pointed to an exit up ahead. “Don’t miss our turn off, or we’ll be late. No one likes to wait at a wedding. It makes you think about the asshole you married beside you, or if you’re not married, you start to ponder the great mystery of life known as love.”
I laughed and pulled off the freeway as butterflies danced in my tummy. “You should seriously think about switching from modeling to acting. You’re so dramatic.”
“I’m multi-talented, darling.” She used a funny accent and wagged her eyebrows before letting out a long huff. “Are we really doing this? You’re getting hitched to this guy?”
“Yeah. I’m really doing it.” I tugged at my seatbelt, hating that I had to lie to her. She was my closest friend. Hell, she was my only friend. “He’s worth it.”
“I sure hope so.” She leaned back and turned her face toward me. “I do think it’s cool you guys are trying to get this done before his mother passes. I’m down with that.”
I smiled and turned down the road that led to Gavin’s estate. “Me too. She’s pretty excited about it.”
“And you are too, right?” She sat up and cleared her throat, turning to look at his property. “Wowzer.”
“Yeah. I’m thrilled.” I pulled up and parked. “And a little nervous. I mean, what if I trip? What if he doesn’t like the dress?”
“What if it all goes perfectly?” She snorted and got out of the car. “Come on, Princess. We need to get you all dolled up before we put you in your dress and send you down the aisle to your forever.”
My forever. I liked the sound of it. Too bad it was a damn lie.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Gavin
"You sure you're ready for this?" Ron glanced my way, the look in his eyes telling me that I should be scared shitless.
It was comical. He was the one with commitment issues. The only feeling I had racing through me was regret.
I glanced down at my mother as she sat in the front row of a small group of family and friends. The smile on her tired face made it all worth it, and yet I couldn't stop thinking that I was going to burn in hell for lying to her.
At least she would die happy.
The idea that she wouldn't be around when I really got married pained me. A deep ache that caused the warmth to flood from my system.
"I'm okay. I'm looking forward to it. Maddie is a special woman." I glanced over at my friend and cleared my throat as the wedding march began, and everyone stood up.
It was hard to see her from where I was standing, and it was weird that her father wasn't walking her down the aisle. My mom would have questions about that later, but we've figured out another lie to spew. Hopefully, Maddie would jump in and answer that one, leaving me to spare myself from one more untruth.
Several soft gasps lifted up from the crowd, and I could see why.
Never in my life had I seen a more beautiful woman. Whoever had denied Maddie the right to model was a fucking idiot. She should have been on the front cover of every magazine. She was stunning. Beyond gorgeous.
The white lace of her dress dipped down in her pert breasts, and my cock hardened just thinking about how good she worked me every time I relented to her.
It wouldn't be long and we would be making love instead of fucking. That really turned me on. I was far too deep for my own good, but I wanted love above lust any day of the week. Our arrangement just led to a different answer, one I was fine swallowing for the time being.
The smile on her pretty face was subtle, but the look in her eyes told me she was terrified.
The older guy walking beside her as a friend of Ron's daddy. He'd seen all of us raised up and was a good friend to my momma back when she used to go to church. When she could...
"This is you." Ron touched my back, urging me to walk toward my bride.
I took a shallow breath and walked down to meet her, stopping beside her and letting my eyes take in her beautiful face. The makeup she normally wore was nowhere in sight. She had a little bit of pink here and there, and her lips were glossy and alluring. She could make a princess from a Disney tale run in shame of not holding a candle to her.
"Hey," I whispered and smiled, losing myself in the moment. How fucking amazing would it have been if our ruse wasn't a lie at all, but a hidden love story?
The writer in me itched for my laptop. I felt the swell of inspiration and found it so ironic that it would end up being Maddie. The woman who'd sold her soul for money.
"Hi," she whispered back and slid her arm into mine.
I nodded at the older man beside her and offered him my hand. "Mr. Mills."
"Gavin." He glanced down at Maddie. "I knew the two of you would end up together. Fate always has a funny way of doing stuff like this."
I forced a chuckle. "Thank you, Sir."
We turned, and the pastor from my mother's previous church walked out, stopping in front of us. I hadn't told the poor guy that we weren't really getting married but lied about not having the marriage license. He wasn't thrilled about getting up in front of a group of people and performing a ceremony that he didn't have the license for, but I gave him a sob story about my mother, and he relented.
We could deal with the technicalities later.
But later would never come.
It wasn't for him to bother with, and my worries had to be tucked away. I wanted to be present at the moment, why I wasn't sure. Good plot information for a wedding scene if I ever wrote one?
The pastor welcomed everyone and dove right into the ceremony, preaching about God and love and joking about babies. I laughed and glanced down toward Maddie to find her looking back at me.
Something protective inside of me swelled, and I wanted to ask if she were okay, but it would have been silly.
Of course, she was. She would get her money and run, and eventually find he
rself doing this wedding thing again, but the next time it would be real, or hopefully so.
I couldn't help but wonder if she would keep the dress and use it again. Would I keep the ring?
Fuck no.
Looking down at her, I couldn't help but feel how real the ceremony could have been. I was grateful seeing that it was all for my mother.
"Who has the rings?" the pastor asked, the smile on his face friendly.
"Ron?" I glanced down at my best friend and extended my hand, taking both of them before handing them over to the preacher.
We walked throughout vows and turned to face everyone before us as the preacher's voice boomed behind me.
"And I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride."
I turned and pulled Maddie into my arms, leaning down and kissing her deeply, passionately. The sound of whooping and hollering filled the space around us, and our kiss broke with both of us smiling.
It was so real that it hurt me to know that I would never forget it. The moment was impressed upon my broken heart. Did she feel the same? Was she alive at all? Awake enough to feel the passion between us, the building warmth that I couldn't deny even if I wanted to?
"I'd like to introduce you gathered here today to Mister and Misses Gavin Hayward."
Everyone stood and clapped as I took Maddie's hand and we walked back down the aisle. Birdseed was being thrown above our heads, and the sound of music and laughter had me smiling.
I moved back and turned, shaking hands and giving hugs until Ron and my mother were the only ones left in line.
"Well, I have to say, that was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." Ron pulled me into a quick hug before turning to his cousin. "Makes me want to consider acting right and getting myself a wife."
"I thought I would never hear the day." Maddie hugged him and laughed as I turned to my mother. Ron wasn't going to settle down. He was a playboy with the hopes of sleeping with as many women as possible before he was forced to put a ring on someone's finger.
"Mom." I reached out and cupped the side of her face as tears rolled down her eyes.
"My baby. All grown up and married to a princess." She smiled and moved back, lifting a camera. "Let me take a few shots to send off to the rest of the family that couldn't make it this fast." She glanced over at Maddie. "You can post it up on your social media too, sweetheart. Everyone is going to rave seeing you in that beautiful dress. You should be on the cover of a wedding magazine."
"I agree." I glanced down at my fake bride and pulled her to my side, leaning in and smiling like it was the best day of my life.
"Thank you, Ms. Hayward."
"Call me mom." My mother moved over to Maddie and pulled her into a long hug. "And make sure to take care of my boy. You're all he's got outside of Ron; God help us."
Maddie laughed, but I could hear how forced it was. "I sure will. Let's get you back to your house so you can rest."
Mom glanced back at me, reaching out and taking my hand. "That sounds like a great idea. I had so much fun." She turned and touched my face. "I love you. I'm so proud of you, and your daddy is looking down from heaven today, too. He's proud. I promise you."
"Thanks, mom." My heart broke in my chest as I wrapped an arm around her and helped her back to the house.
Maddie walked closely on the other side of her, asking questions about her and my father's wedding day. I let her go on until we had mom in bed. We closed the door to my mother's bedroom and walked out of the small house after talking with Karen for a minute.
"Well? We did it." Maddie reached for my hand, and I twisted my fingers around her.
"Yeah. You were stunning. Still are." I let my eyes run down the length of her body as we made the short walk back to my house.
We walked into the house, and I closed the door as she stopped and turned to face me.
"I know this isn't the way you wanted all of this to go, but thank you for taking me up on my offer." Her expression softened.
How easily I could have fallen in love with a beautiful woman like her. "No, thank you." I closed the distance between us and leaned down, brushing my nose against hers. "You made my mother's day."
"No, Gavin. You did." She slid her hands up my chest and pulled me down for a long slow kiss.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Maddie
He looked perfect in his suit, standing at the front of the ceremony with the preacher and Ron on either side of him. His jaw had been locked in place, and the depths of emotion in his eyes had almost split me in two.
He was thinking about his mother and his father. He had to be. Hell, I was thinking about my parents and how much they loved each other. Had I really sold us out for a sum of money? Both of us? We had to walk through the fake motions of the best day in most people's live, and it was all for nothing. For a scam I was running.
I cupped the side of his neck as we stood in his house and brushed my thumbs down his throat as I pulled him closer. The soft brush of his lips against my quickly turned into something so hot it hurt.
He ran his tongue over mine and slid his hands down my back to cup the top curve of my ass. A moan left me as the thickness of his growing erection pressed against my stomach.
"I want you on top of me," I mumbled against his mouth, half-expecting him to tell me to hush and stop being bossy.
"I'd like that." He moved back and licked his lips. "I'll get the shower going. You grab a bottle of wine from the kitchen and two glasses. Meet me in there, and I'll help you out of your dress."
I couldn't find words. The softness in his voice gave me a false sense of hope, and it almost seemed like speaking might destroy it and send me tumbling back into reality. We would be over soon, and he would be in his own world, and I'd be back in mine. Without him.
After grabbing a bottle of white wine from the fridge, I picked up two glasses and kicked off my heels. The sound of him humming something gave me pause.
The Wedding March.
A smile lifted my lips. He could pretend to be a hard-hearted guy all he wanted. He wasn't one at all. He was a romantic. No wonder he was so damn pissed over my offer to play his fake bride for money. It spit in the face of what he believed to be true.
He wasn't jaded about having a beautiful, loving relationship with someone like his folks had. Hell, like my folks had. He was all for it. Maybe his writer's block was due to the fact that everything in his life that represented that love, that hope, was dying.
And I had spit on the little bit that was left.
Sickness swelled in my stomach as I walked into the bedroom and extended the wine and glasses to him.
"Gavin," I started.
"No. No more words. I know we're both a little off because of what happened today, but let's not dive into it. Alright?" He set the wine and glasses down, leaning over to pour it as I watched him.
He had undone his tie and had his button-down shirt opened a little bit, giving me the perfect view of his beautiful chest and stomach.
I moved closer and slid the shirt off his thick shoulders as he stood up. My eyes moved around his face as if asking permission. He nodded, knowing exactly what I was up to.
"Turn around, Maddie." His voice was deep, thick.
I turned slowly and let my head drop as he unzipped my dress and pushed it off of my shoulders. His hands snaked around my waist, reaching up and cupping my breasts. The soft press of his mouth against the side of my neck caused a tremor to run through me.
His warm chest pressed against my back and rough fingers slipped into my panties, opening my folds and rubbing in a rhythmic fashion.
I moaned and leaned back against him as emotion raged through me. "You were perfect today."
"You were, too," he murmured against my neck and rimmed my opening. "Go get in the shower, and I'll be there with a glass of wine shortly. Let's finish up this act with one last night together."
I couldn't speak, or tears would drip down my face. I nodded and stepped out o
f my dress with his help. It was hard to keep my back to him, but I managed it somehow. I got into the shower and moved under the spray, washing off my makeup as a few tears escaped.
Would tonight be our last night?
"Here you go, pretty girl."
I turned at the sound of his voice and took the glass from him. The way his eyes moved across me left me feeling beautiful. He reached out and brushed his fingers down between my breasts as he stepped closer, his body bare.
I reached out and stroked his erection, pumping the weeping head as he took a long drink of his wine and groaned. "I love shower sex."
"Me too." He finished his drink and nodded at mine. "Drink that. There's a lot more, and we're not wasting that bottle."
"So bossy," I whispered with a cocky grin on my mouth. I downed the drink and reached for him, pulling him into the hot spray with me.
He cupped the back of my head and ground against me as he made sweet love to my mouth. I opened up, offering him everything I was. The desire to comfort him, to love him, was almost too much. I was grateful in a lot of ways that the act was almost over. I'd almost lived the lie long enough to convince myself of it.
"God, you're sexy." He slid his hands over my ass and squeezed as he licked at my mouth. "I'm gonna fuck you bareback a little bit, but when we get close, I'll pull out."
"I'd like that." I gripped his shoulders and jumped, wrapping my legs around his waist.
He positioned us to press his thick shaft deep inside of me on the first thrust. We shared a long sigh of passion before he tightened his hold on the back of my thighs and pumped his hips, driving into me with carnality.
I leaned back in and pressed my lips to his, enjoying every hard thrust he gave me. The biting sensation of his fingers against my legs was pain mixed with pleasure and had me panting as an orgasm swelled in my belly.
He turned and pressed his hands to the shower behind me, tucking his forearms under my knees as he pulled out of me. "Drop your ass a little, baby."