Groom: The Deceit Duet Book Two

by Logan Chance

  “Hey,” I respond, “how’s everything going?”

  “Tenny and Troy played all night. Thanks for bringing that kite with him. They both loved it.”

  I hold a hand to my heart. “Aw, good. I’m glad they had fun. Did he give you trouble going to bed?”

  “Nope, he was an angel. Come on girl, I want all the dirty details.”

  I laugh. “There aren’t any details to give you, dirty or not.” I can’t tell her how I rode Gabriel in the back of his limo. How I was so close to coming when I did. My body heats at the thought.

  “Yes, there is. I can tell. Spill it.”

  “We kissed, ok?” I give her a nugget of info.

  She squeals into the phone so loud I have to hold it away from my ear. “How was it? I bet he’s a great kisser. Oh my god, tell me more. I want to live vicariously through you.”

  My phone beeps with the sound that a new text message is coming through, and I pull the phone away from my ear to see Ronin’s name. “Erin, I’ll call you back.”

  We hang up and I read the message, “Meet me at Givens Park. Alone. Monday 2pm.”

  THE FOLLOWING MONDAY, I try my hardest to get Tennyson off to daycare, but it’s like he has a special radar that something is going on today and doesn’t want to listen at all to anything I say. During breakfast he wouldn’t eat his pancakes, even though he has pancakes every morning.

  “Tenny, please come here so I can tie your shoe,” I say, sitting on the floor of his room while he plays with a Captain America action figure. I decide to make my life easier and swing low for a bribe, sometimes a girl’s gotta use what she has, “And if you’re really good at school, I have a surprise for you.”

  I’ve said the magic words and he bounds over, placing his sneakered foot in front of me. “I’ll be the best,” he says. I don’t even feel guilty over using this tactic when I grasp his laces.

  Once his shoes are all tied, I stand and kiss him on the forehead. “I’m sure you will be.”

  Tennyson smiles and in a blur of jeans and Batman t-shirt rushes through the door of his bedroom. Deep breath.

  I grab his backpack and follow him downstairs where I’m met by Gabriel standing in the foyer.

  “What are your plans today?” he asks, letting his eyes stray from mine to meander down one of the new outfits he purchased for me. I have to admit, the midnight silk blouse and dark jeans feel different than my other clothes—soft and luxurious. Decadent.

  I try to smile, hoping Gabriel doesn’t suspect anything out of the ordinary. “Work.”

  I know better than to mention my meeting with Ronin around Gabriel since it’s no big mystery the brothers don’t get along. Ronin’s instructions about coming alone were clear. If Gabriel found out I had a meeting with Ronin, I’m sure he would insist on coming, or worse, demand I didn’t go.

  “Just remember the meeting with the wedding planner at three.”

  Shit. I forgot. I nod, playing along. “Right, ok.”

  Tennyson tilts his head up to stare at Gabriel. “Are you going to work too?”

  “I have a few calls to make from here,” Gabriel answers.

  “Why are you dressed up?” Tenny points to Gabriel’s stark white dress shirt and trim fitting black slacks.

  “Why not?” he answers with a shrug.

  “I want a suit,” Tenny says, standing up tall, imitating Gabriel’s posture.

  A grin tugs at the corner of Gabriel’s lips. “That can be arranged.”

  “Ok, time to go,” I interject, not liking the unwelcome smile on my face from their exchange. “We’re going to be late.”

  Gabriel says goodbye to Tennyson, and then nods at me as I pass by him and out the door into the warm sunshine.

  Once we’re away from the estate, I take a deep breath and let it out, slowly. I’m going to need a lot of deep breathing to get through today.

  After dropping Tennyson off, Mayer drives me the short distance to work, and when I enter, the smell of baking cake envelopes me, relaxing me with the comfort of normalcy.

  I shuffle into the kitchen, spotting Erin and Dena out of the corner of my eye, whisking and whipping stainless steel bowls of frosting.

  Dena looks up. “I heard you’re getting married,” she screeches at the top of her lungs, never missing a beat as she continues to whisk. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  Erin gives me a cringe face, and I move closer until I stop at the prep table. “I’m sorry. It’s been a whirlwind.”

  “I have so many ideas for the perfect cake.” She reaches in and gives me a tight hug.

  “Can you believe it?” Erin asks. “Gabriel Prince.”

  Dena’s green eyes get bigger. “I know. I nearly had a heart attack when I read it in Gossip Weekly.”

  The fact it’s in a magazine shouldn’t surprise me, but it’s all very surreal. I need to get used to having my life splashed across glossy magazines for all to see.

  Dena hugs me again and then darts away to check on her cake in the oven. We spend the next few hours preparing several orders and chattering about my new “life.”

  When Dena goes to her office, Erin crosses the kitchen. “So, are you ready to fill me in on those details?” She wiggles her shoulders and puckers her lips toward me.

  “Well, there’s really nothing to tell.”

  Erin parks a hand on her hip, tossing a hand towel over her shoulder. “Tell me about the kiss.”

  I lean closer. “It was just a normal kiss.”

  “Oh, please. I know there’s more.”

  I shoo her away with a laugh, looking over the remaining orders for the day. “I have to leave a little early to meet with the wedding planner today. Can I borrow your car for an hour?”

  She nods, her eyes narrowing a bit on me. “Sure thing, but don’t you have a fancy driver to chauffeur you around now?”

  “I do,” I say, hesitant to share exactly what I’m about to do, “but this is a surprise errand I don’t want Gabriel to know about.”

  “Do you want me to go with you?”

  “Nope, this is a special surprise.”

  Erin’s attention is locked on me, and I hope I don’t sound too suspicious.

  “It’s still parked out back?” I ask her, holding my breath.

  “Yes. Everything ok?”

  “Yes. You’re the greatest,” I say with a big smile.

  Erin watches me for a few minutes longer trying to see if I’m lying, but then she must decide everything’s ok like I said and starts preparing a sampler platter for a later appointment.

  I throw myself into baking, trying my hardest to not think about meeting Ronin in just a few short hours. Givens Park is not too far from here, so I’m hoping I can make this work without anyone finding out.

  At one-thirty, I say goodbye to Erin, grabbing her keys from her outstretched hand. “I’ll be back before you know I’m gone.”

  I hustle out the back door and into Erin’s white Honda.

  On the way to the park, every light in town catches me, like a glowing red signal I should turn back. Finally, I hit the open road and after a few minutes make a right into the lot. I park under the shade of an oak tree and scan the grassy area, looking for Ronin before sending a text. “Are you here?”

  “Yeah,” is his quick response.

  I look up and there he is in jeans and a t-shirt, not the trench coat and hat I was half expecting.

  He eyes me through the windshield, and rounds the hood to hop in the passenger seat of the car. “Thanks for meeting me.”

  “What’s going on?” I ask him. “Why the cloak and dagger stuff? And what do you mean about danger?”

  “That’s a lot of questions.” His eyes roam over me.

  “Are you going to answer them?”

  “Yes, you’re in danger. There’s a man named Bishop Blackstone, and you’re on his radar.” He shakes his head. “He isn’t a good guy, Clem.”

  I suck in a breath, not telling Ronin I know Bishop all too well. “Oh
.”

  “I’m worried about you. And Gabriel is too thick headed to care.”

  I chew on my bottom lip. “I don’t think Gabriel will do anything to hurt me,” I say, gingerly.

  Ronin turns to face me. “Neither do I. That’s not what I’m saying.” He blows out an annoyed breath. “Inadvertently, Gabriel may cause you and Tennyson harm.”

  “Why? What does Bishop want?” I have a pretty good idea what Bishop Blackstone wants with me, but I want to hear why he thinks he’s sniffing around. Find out how much he knows.

  His eyes stay trained on mine. “He wants to stop the wedding at all cost.”

  “But, why?”

  “Let’s say the wedding doesn’t happen, ok?”

  I nod.

  “Then, Gabriel will lose everything. The company will be left vulnerable. All the deals Gabriel has in the works will fall through. It’ll be a mess, and Bishop will be there to pick up all the pieces.”

  “Gabriel will have literally nothing thanks to dear ol’ Grandpa?”

  “He’ll have his inheritance and a few other trust funds, but he’ll no longer be in control of Prince Holdings, and all their subsidiaries. His legacy will be ruined.”

  “Can’t Gabriel and I just run off to the courthouse? Do a quick wedding?”

  Ronin’s smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Gabriel has a certain standard to uphold. I assumed you realized this by now.”

  “Right. I get it.” This whole thing is making me nervous. Who knows what Bishop is capable of.

  “I can help you get out.” Ronin’s eyes are set with determination. “I can help you leave.”

  “Leave? No way.” I shake my head. “I can’t be on the run. Absolutely not.” I’ll stay here and take my chances with Bishop. I peek at my watch. “I have to go. I need to get back to work.” I don’t tell Ronin about my plans with the wedding planner. The less people who know my whereabouts, the better.

  THREE

  Gabriel

  * * *

  “WHAT DO you mean he’s missing?” I say into the phone to Dean.

  “I mean we followed him to Zanzibar, where he just vanished after leaving Bishop’s place.”

  I drop my head into my hand as I sit parked outside the office building that houses Lana Devario, the wedding planner. “Zanzibar? How could you lose him on an island?”

  “He caught a small boat to Africa, and then was gone.”

  “But he made it to Blackstone’s place?”

  “Yes.”

  Today of all days has to be the day we can’t find Ronin. I should have sent someone with him to pay off Blackstone, but I figured he could handle it. I grind my teeth attempting to regain my control.

  “Did you check the nightclubs and underground?”

  “We’re sweeping the city, leaving no stone unturned.”

  “Keep me updated,” I say before hanging up and exiting the car.

  It’s two fifty-five and Clementine’s nowhere to be found. I know this because I scanned the street for her while I was on the phone. I unclench my teeth and remind myself she still has time, and she was the one who insisted I be here. I relax my shoulders, assuming the sophisticated manner I was brought up to exude in public, and head inside where the receptionist immediately escorts me to Lana’s office.

  “Mr. Prince, hello,” her husky voice greets me when I step inside the rectangular room filled with enough lace and fresh flowers to make me light headed.

  It’s what you imagine a wedding planner’s office would look and smell like—swatches of fabric and pictures of women in wedding gowns, all surrounded by the overwhelming scent of roses. I swallow my urge to gag. Clementine is going to pay for this.

  “Lana, hi. Please, call me Gabriel.”

  She rises and crosses the space to shake my hand. “Where’s the fiancee?”

  “She should be here soon.” She better be.

  I glance at my phone. I’d sent Clementine one text message asking her where she was before I walked into this building. The text still sits there, unanswered. I hate the fact I don’t know where she is, and I contemplate putting a tracker on her phone. Mayer would let me know if she wasn’t at work. Most likely she got held up.

  I wish she’d just quit her job already. She doesn’t need the money. I understand she doesn’t want to give up that part of herself, but she could always open her own cake shop, or hell, bake all day in my state of the art kitchen. I shouldn’t like the idea of her always at home cooking as much as I do.

  “We can get started as soon as she arrives,” Lana says. “Please, sit. Would you like something to drink?”

  “No, thank you.”

  I take a seat in one of the two leather chairs in front of her desk, and we sit in silence until Lana fidgets and starts rambling.

  “I’ve spoken with the Juniper about security for the event,” Lana states, lapsing into a detailed summary of what they provide.

  “I’ll have my own security as well.” You can never have too much security. Never.

  The door flies open and Clementine rushes in with flushed cheeks. “I’m so sorry I’m late.” She takes the seat next to me, but doesn’t look me in the eyes. “Cake emergency.”

  Lana smiles. “It happens. I was just going over the security details with Mr. Prince.”

  “Security, right.” Clementine places her bag on the floor. “I think we need lots of security because…” her words fall away and her eyes, for the first time since she plowed into the room, meet mine. There’s a flush to her face, and I’m not sure if it all has to do with her running late, or something else.

  “The security will be handled by my team,” I reiterate, letting both ladies know I have everything covered.

  Lana takes a seat behind her desk and taps on her keyboard. “Just making some notes. Ok, moving on.” She glances up at Clementine. “The wedding cake?”

  I touch Clementine’s hand when she doesn’t respond right away, and she jumps a bit. “Clementine will make a great cake.” I remove my hand, hoping Lana didn’t notice the discomfort on my adoring fiancee’s face. She really needs to learn how to be a better actress.

  “Well, I’m not a professional yet.” Clementine’s cheeks turn a brighter shade of red and she squirms a bit in her seat. “But, I can do the cake.”

  Lana continues with her checklist of items while Clementine smooths down her wild tresses, and I’m positive something’s not quite right with her.

  “If you’ll excuse me,” I say, standing from my chair. The nagging in my gut refuses to go away, and I always trust my gut. “I’ll just be a moment.”

  I ignore Clementine’s questioning gaze and slip out of the room, shutting the door behind me. I grab my phone and move further down the hallway for some privacy. My finger smashes into the dial button connecting to Mayer on the first ring.

  “Where was Clementine this afternoon?” I say into the phone as soon as he answers.

  “She was at work.”

  “You drove her from work to here?” I ask him, still uneasy with the way she was behaving.

  “Yes, I drove her to work this morning. She stayed there until we rushed across town to make it here.”

  “And she didn’t leave at all?”

  “No, she was there all day,” he confirms.

  Maybe it really was nothing more than a cake emergency. A voice in the back of my head is having a hard time believing that, but Mayer is one of my best, and I trust him. I hang up the phone and head back inside where Lana and Clementine now talk about flowers.

  “What kind of flowers would you like?” Clementine asks me. “I was thinking the crisantemi.”

  Lana holds her hand up. “Actually, that flower is more for funerals.”

  “Perfect.” Clementine smiles, and based on that answer, it looks like she’s back to normal. Maybe all my worrying was for nothing.

  I resume my seat. “Lana, we’ll take roses and lilies.”

  Clementine looks over at me. “I thought you sai
d you didn’t care.”

  I eye Lana before directing my full attention on Clementine. “Well, I guess I do. The lily was my mother’s favorite flower. And the crisantemi is what we had at my parents’ funeral. I don’t want to be reminded of that day on my wedding day. Call me old fashioned.”

  “Oh,” is all Clementine says in response to that. “I actually adore roses, so that works for me.”

  I shoot her a smile letting her know I appreciate her easy acceptance of my reasons. “What’s next?” I ask in a more upbeat tone. “Maybe we can release rats at the end of the ceremony instead of doves?”

  Clementine remains still, attempting to hide her smile, while Lana gawks at the both of us. I’m sure she’s never come across a couple like us before, but that’s the thing, we’re not a couple. One wicked hot kiss in the back of a limo doesn’t make us boyfriend and girlfriend. I don’t like how much my heart kicks with what I’m afraid is disappointment.

  Lana launches into a spiel about which foods are best to serve for which time of the year, and I’ll be honest, I zone out. Instead of listening to talk of vegan options, I focus on Clementine’s profile and the way her bottom lip is slightly fuller than the top. The way her brows pull in and down as she concentrates on the selection of foods Lana presents to us. I’m not interested in any of it, because, really, the only thing I want to eat is inside the jeans Clementine is wearing.

  “Is that all?” I ask, ready to escape, when they finish up the menu options. How did I let her convince me to sit through this ridiculous meeting?

  Lana smiles, like she has a big secret to tell us. “Well, I was thinking... if you want to really wow people, we could bring in a few statues from London and Greece for decor at the reception.”

  Clementine’s eyes widen and she turns to face me. “Do you want statues?”

  “Do you?”

  “Honestly? No. Sometimes less is more.”

  I hate that I like that answer as much as I do. Clementine never ceases to surprise me. “Then, no statues.”

  We continue going over every detail and when we get to the guest list, Clementine pales at the number of politicians attending the wedding. I pat her on the hand, attempting to reassure her it’s no big deal.