by Murphy,Misti
A hand grasps my elbow, another coming around my waist as I land with an oomph against a hard wall of warmth. Right, need to breathe. Must remember to inhale and exhale.
“All right there?” he says quietly. There’s a little bit of humor inflected in the rough gravel of his voice.
“No.” I glance up into those electric blue eyes. Do I know this guy? Something about him is familiar. Unruly coffee colored hair and dark stubble frames his face. His lips twitch and curve charmingly. So beautiful. “Pretty.”
“What?” His brow furrows.
His hands are still on me. I can feel the warmth of his palms, the rough calluses on the tips of his fingers are creating a buzz on my skin. “Nothing. No. I’m fine.” I was not calling you pretty.
He sets me back on my feet, and I smooth my palms down my dress, the violet roses in my hand forgotten.
“Here, Beck. Give me the bouquet.” Olivia darts forward to rescue the poor flowers from my clutches.
“Are you ready, Beck?” My groom, his name is Lennox, holds out his hand.
I stare at it. Big hands, long fingers. He’s a musician. Long fingers are probably good for that.
Someone clears their throat, and I jerk my attention in their direction. The officiant. Oh shit. And everyone is watching me. Everyone. The guests, Olivia, the guy who I’m supposed to say ‘I do’ to.
“Liv.” I give a strangled whisper. I so cannot do this.
“She’s ready,” Olivia says.
I think I might want to murder my friend. I could strangle her. First time I’ve ever been this upset with her. I could claim insanity. I’d probably end up in one of those places where mentally unstable people go, spend the rest of my life crocheting or staring at the horizon mourning her. It’d have to be better than this, right?
“Beck?” He takes my hand from my side and squeezes it. “We can do this.”
Can we? Those eyes. There’s something in them that calms my nerves a little, just enough that I can breathe. Yeah, I can do this. I can marry a stranger. It’s only one night. Better than Olivia marrying the bartender, at any rate. She’d probably try to make it work, and get stuck in an awful relationship for the rest of her life. I can’t let that happen to her. She deserves one of those lifetime loves, whereas I can just disappear in the morning, get an annulment. “Okay.”
The officiant starts speaking as we turn to face him. The subtle warmth and firmness of Lennox’s grip keeps me grounded despite the fact I can’t concentrate on a word that’s being said. And then I’m being asked if I take this stranger to be my husband, whether we can get along for the duration of our marriage, which according to the officiant is supposed to be until death.
One night. “Y-yes. I mean I-I...” I don’t, but Olivia is staring me down and whispering the word ‘cupid’ over and over. “I do.”
Then yada, yada, yada, and the groom’s saying I do, too. And there’s a ring being pushed onto my finger. I’m pretty sure the sliver of white gold is probably going to cut off my circulation. I’m almost guaranteed to lose a finger.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You can kiss your bride.”
Did the officiant have to sound so happy about the idea of us being married? Of my having to let this guy kiss me?
Pulling me into his arms, he puts one hand on my cheek. He smells like orange blossoms and cloves, and I almost turn my nose to his wrist to inhale his scent. Bringing his mouth to mine, he tips my jaw and whispers his lips over mine. I part to his kiss, the sudden gentle pressure giving me a surprisingly tingly feeling low in my belly. My arms go around his neck, my fingers finding downy soft hair. The guests clap, and a couple whistle while he tilts me back, prolonging a kiss that should feel awful, but lights little sparks under my skin.
Before the noise dies down, Lennox breaks the kiss and drags me to a little table where the marriage license is laid out on top of a cream lace tablecloth. More lilies are placed in a vase off to the side. Pulling the seat out, he helps me into it. A million flashes go off around us. All these people, Olivia’s family and friends take photos of us while I pick up the gold plated pen. My hand shakes so bad I have to hold my wrist with the other hand to manage to sign my name.
Lennox leans over me and his warmth supports me while I wait for him to sign so I can bolt from this dreadful experience. This stranger is the only thing keeping me from becoming a mess. Shouldn’t he be the reason I’m so uncomfortable? I still have no idea how Olivia could talk him into being part of this.
“You really hate this, don’t you?” he asks as I climb out of the chair. “I’ve never seen a woman so scared to get married.”
“Aren’t you?” I want to pull my hand out of his, but he squeezes it. “This is crazy. I don’t know you. We don’t know each other. How can you be so calm?”
“It’s not real,” he says. “This isn’t real.”
“So why are you doing it?” I glance at him as we move to stand beside the officiant.
“Why are you?”
“It’s my great privilege to introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Lennox Casey,” the officiant announces to the guests and everyone claps.
Lennox drops my hand immediately, like my touch is repulsive. There’s an instant tautness that crosses his features and settled in his shoulders as he strides to where Jack is standing while Olivia swoops in to loop her arms around my waist. I guess she’s scared I’ll faint or something. “See, it wasn’t such a big deal.”
I do feel a little light-headed. A wee bit dizzy. What have I done? “I need out of this dress and I need to drink to forget this. I need to drink a lot.”
“Okay.” She nods.
“And one day you’re going to apologize for this crazy scheme with a first class world trip.”
“Done,” she agrees.
“Okay.” I slip an arm over her shoulder.
“So you’ll forgive me? One day?” We head toward where Lennox and Jack are still talking since it’s easier than wandering through the crowd.
“I forgave you for pushing me out of a plane that time, didn’t I?”
“We were sky-diving and you had a parachute and an instructor strapped to your back. And anyway, if you want to go through the stupid shit we’ve forgiven each other for, I did get over you sleeping with my brother.”
“Never happened.” Okay it had. We’d been drunk. We didn’t realize how badly Olivia would take it. And yes, we’d come clean. “I’ll always be sorry for that.”
“Right.” She grins. “So are you going to have sex with your hunky new husband?”
Sex with that guy. I glance at him and find him looking at me. I can’t shake the feeling we’ve met before. Have I already had sex with him?
“That’s her,” his voice carries. “She’s the woman I told you about.”
“You’re kidding me? What are the chances she’d drop into your lap like this?” Jack’s staring at me too, but his gaze flicks to Olivia. “Pity.”
They turn away, and we don’t hear anymore. Olivia gathers my train and drapes it over her arm and then pushes me forward. “What do you think that was all about?”
“I have no idea.” But I have to have met the guy before. What if he was a client’s boyfriend or partner? What if I was the deciding factor on whether his relationship fell apart? It’s not like I go out of my way to hurt people or destroy couples, I simply get the dirt where there is any. What if that’s what happened with him, and now, I’m married to him? “Oh, I so knew this was a terrible idea.”
Chapter Two
Nox
Her name’s Beckett McClain. Well, Beckett Casey now, since apparently we just got married. I mean, I know we did. I was there, and it wasn’t like we were drunk. At any rate I wasn’t, but she might have been. I can only assume since she would have had to be in the hotel bar to meet my brother, Jack. “I wonder if she remembers me.”
“Didn’t look like it.” Jack grips my shoulder, guiding me away from where these people I don’t know mill around.
“Are you sure it’s the same girl?”
They’re probably gossiping about how crazy this is. Or how Olivia Houghton managed to put on a show for them after her own fiancé left her high and dry. I swear I hear one of them mention money. It’s not surprising. The woman has to be made of it to offer me ten grand for my part in this weird situation. And why can’t a girl like Beckett McClain find her own fake husband? It’s not like she isn’t gorgeous. Crazy beautiful. The type of bombshell that makes men do stupid things.
Like sleep with her the night before I broke up with T. I knew her name was Beck, or something like that, knew she must have run as soon as I fell asleep. “Yeah, I’m certain that’s her.”
It hadn’t been my proudest moment, but Tia and I were already over. She’d been sleeping with her boss, and I’d only found out that day when she accidently butt-dialled me during a rendezvous with the dirt bag. I’ll probably never forget that crash, most likely the phone landing on the floor, since the next sounds were a frantic shuffling, shifting, and breathless words I couldn’t make out. I’d thought maybe Tia was in trouble. I’d been about to scream into the phone, but the next sounds were unmistakable for anything other than a couple getting it on.
Hearing them fuck had made me sick to my stomach, and then she told him she loved him. I just couldn’t bring myself to talk to her after that. I’d wanted to confront her face to face, but I’d been hours away from Reverence.
“You’re thinking about Tia, aren’t you?” Jack grumbles as he pushes through the glass doors that lead to the ballroom, which is set up for the reception. “I don’t know how you can still give that woman a spare thought. She put you through hell.”
“That woman was almost my wife.” That woman had taken me for everything, because I’d cheated on her, and she had proof. Unlike me, who had nothing but a bruised heart and way too much gullibility.
I’m still trying to bounce back from what happened with Tia. It isn’t that she broke my heart, but money-wise she’d left me fucked. I’d had to use Dad’s studio as collateral to keep my house by the time she was done. “I just think it’s odd that this girl showed up that night. And somehow Tia had pictures of it by the time I got home. It can’t be related, can it?”
“You’re too suspicious for your own good.” He strolls past me to the bar where he pours bourbon into a glass and pushes it into my hand. “Besides, does it really matter? Now you actually have a wife, or at least for the present. You only have to put up with her for three months and all the damage Tia did goes away.”
“Yeah.” He’s probably right. That girl showing up, the furious attraction between us that had me going against my better judgement can’t be related to what happened with T. And now, Olivia’s offered me exactly what I need. More than I need, but only if I stick out this farce for the duration. Ten thousand dollars for getting through the ceremony, and half a million dollars if I could stick out for three months. The money would leave the studio free and clear. I’d be able to go back to what I love—music—instead of carting lumber.
I couldn’t very well turn it down, not after the phone call from the bank this morning. But how did Beck get roped into this? She doesn’t seem like she’d need any help finding someone on her own. I glance over my shoulder at the room, which is slowly filling up with suited men, and women in cocktail dresses. People I don’t know or care to know. But I make small chat anyway when a few of them approach to congratulate me and ask where the bride is.
“You should probably go find her. Introduce yourself again. See if she remembers you.” Jack refills the glass in my hand. “Or at least make nice. Otherwise living with her might be hell.”
“Right.” I leave him at the bar while I make my way through the packed room. That night is memorable to me, but not because of her, so why the hell would she remember me?
I find her in Olivia’s suite. The door’s ajar, and I can hear them talking from the hall before I knock. Beck’s voice is high-pitched, like she’s about to burst into tears. “I don’t want to go out there. I don’t want to spend another minute having to pretend to like that guy.”
Well, baby doll, I’m not much interested in having to pretend I like you for the next three months, either. I raise my hand to rap on the door.
“Oh come on, Beck. I’ve given you the perfect opportunity to prove for yourself that relationships don’t work,” Olivia says. “All you have to do is push his buttons, and he’ll be gone so fast you’ll get whiplash.”
My jaw snaps tight. I didn’t expect this deal to come without a catch, but I expected Olivia to keep her end of the bargain. Doesn’t sound like she plans to.
“Then you can spout your statistics at me as much as you want. I’ll even let you continue to stick your nose in my love life.” Her voice gets a little wistful, and pained. “That’s if I ever date again.”
“You will. You always bounce back. No matter how many times I explain—” That’s Beck talking. My wife. I’m going to have to get used to that, at least temporarily.
“Just stop with the numbers. Love isn’t all science and it’s time you understood that.”
“It’s only one night, right? This time tomorrow, I can high-tail it out of here?”
“Well, actually...”
“Liv?”
Beck lowers her voice, and I can’t make out what she’s saying so I knock and let myself in.
Olivia is standing at the edge of the giant bed, still in the bridesmaid dress, while Beck’s changed into an aquamarine mini dress that clings to her golden skin, her white-blonde hair flowing in a curtain of curls around her shoulders.
I try not to stare at her huddled in the middle of the comforter, an open bottle from the mini bar clutched in her hand, several others scattered at her bare feet. Now that the nerves of the past hour have worn off, I’m finding it difficult not to stare at her, not to remember meeting her the first time. Flashes of her and I, the zing of lust that had enveloped me when we’d bumped into each other that night, the way she’d ordered me to kiss her as I pushed her up against the wall of a club I no longer recall the name of, her body as I pulled the tight, little dress up over her head, the way she sank to her knees and stared up at me while she yanked at my pants. Everything about that night had been instant, powerful, consuming. I take a full step toward her, before I get a hold of myself. That night is mired in the shit that was my relationship with Tia, which is the only reason I’m here.
“Thought I should come and introduce myself properly away from the hustle downstairs.”
“Come in.” Olivia is all smiles as she surges forward to greet me. “Beck was just getting changed and then we were coming down, but this is better. You two should get acquainted.”
“Ah.” I slide my fingers through my hair and then fiddle with the tie at my neck. The bit of silk is uncomfortably snug. “I think Beck and I might have met already.”
“We have?” She looks up from where she’s sitting on the bed. Her eyes are full circles, her pretty lips parted. Little lines crease her forehead and she bites the side of her lip, before she shutters her expression. “I-I’m sorry, I don’t remember.”
“I didn’t think you did. We, uh, met in a club. It was probably a year ago. We had a great night.”
“We did? Did I? Did we?” She blanches.
“You kept calling me Ox. There might have been a moment where you got down on your knees and tried to rip my pants off in public. It was, we were, pretty full on that night.”
“Ox?” Her mouth screws up with concentration, her eyes huge again. I see the moment she twigs. The horror in her smoky green eyes as she clamps a hand over her mouth. “Oh Lord. Ox. Nox. Lennox. Shit.”
“Wait. I think you told me about him.” Olivia drops down on the bed next to her friend. “Oh. He was the guy, that guy.”
She sniggers, and I get uncomfortable under the two gazes staring at me. The silk tie grows tighter, and I rip it off. It was a night, not a great night, not terrible either. I mean, it
had been pretty damn spectacular. But it wasn’t memorable other than the whole incident with my ex. I doubt I’d recall Beck’s name or face if it wasn’t for the photos. Still.
Olivia bounces off the bed to clasp my hand. “It is so good to meet you. You were the topic of discussion for weeks. What a small world. I can’t believe, wow.”
Is that good or bad? Do I want to know whether I was the butt of jokes, or mind-blowingly good?
“Right.” I slip my hand from hers while keeping my gaze on Beck. “As unmemorable as I am, I guess we’re sort of stuck together for a little while now. So we should probably start again.”
“Yes,” Olivia says. “Actually, I think I might go find Jack. Give you two a few minutes alone.” She winks at me, and then addresses Beck, “Play nice.”
With that she breezes out of the room, shutting the door behind her.
“So?” Now that it’s just the two of us, it’s awkward. Rocking on the balls of my feet, I shove the tie in the pocket of my borrowed suit.
“So?” She flicks her gaze over me like I’m a danger to her.
She’s sizing me up, and I don’t think I care for it at all. Whatever the circumstances, we’re stuck together for now. There’s no way I’m walking away from this without the money Olivia offered. I take a deep breath before moving to sit beside Beck. “I’m not sure how I feel about your friend and my brother.”
“She asked him to marry her.” Beck picks up the empty bottles and puts them in a neat pile off to one side. “I stopped it, apparently by sacrificing myself, but I kept them from doing something they’d regret.”
“I didn’t know that.” I slump. It wouldn’t be the first time Jack landed himself in hot water with the ladies and needed a hand to get him out of it. “Thanks.”
“She likes him, though.” She picks at the creases in the sheets, making mountains and then smoothing them out. “But she’s had a rough day, and break-ups make her crazy. She’s not the type to drown her sorrows like a normal person. It’s all bungee jumping, sky-diving.”
“Marrying off her friends that clearly don’t want to be. Why is that, anyway?”