Grabbing a carrot, I crunched hard and glanced at Maddox, who laughed.
“You can even make eating a carrot look cute.” He reached for a stick of celery.
“You think I’m cute?” I asked, reveling in this bit of information. I tucked my right leg under my body and reached for another carrot.
“I think you’re adorable.” He leaned back and took a bite.
“Well, you don’t look so bad eating that piece of celery either.” I chuckled.
“Did you know that how other people eat is actually a big deal in relationships?” he asked.
“Seriously?” I laughed.
He shrugged. “I read it in some guy mag.”
“That’s good to know, because you don’t annoy me at all.” I drew a deep breath and looked at a bumble bee fighting its way into a pink fuchsia that was hanging on the corner of the porch. “And we might be eating many meals together in the future.”
“If I’m lucky.”
“Can you imagine being in a relationship where it’s so bad that even the way your significant other eats bothers you?” I shuddered, and he laughed.
“Or can you imagine being in a relationship and that was the only thing that bothered you?”
I pointed at him. “Touché.”
A hummingbird flew over Maddox’s head and straight to the same fuchsia the bees were loving.
I giggled as his hand waved to see what all the fuss was about, and he followed my gaze to the hummingbird.
“This is pretty perfect.” He turned his attention back to me. “Have you given any thought where you want to live, you know, after the wedding?”
I looked around my yard, and my stomach tensed. If I weren’t here to water, everything would die, but it might be fun to spend the summer in the city. Although, I suppose I could come over and water every so often and set timers.
“I honestly don’t know. I’d miss all this, but the idea of living in a skyscraper for the summer sounds kind of fun.”
He nodded. “What if it was for more than the summer?”
I drew a deep breath. “Maybe fifty-fifty once school starts? Weekends in Seattle or something?”
“That sounds good.” He stretched out his long, lean legs and linked his hands behind his head. “Would you mind Thistle living here?”
“I’ve always wanted a Thistle of my own. I just never pulled the trigger.” I grinned. “You never know, we might wind up with a really nasty custody battle at the end.”
He chuckled and shook his head.
My stomach knotted with what I was about to ask. “You know, if we’re actually going through with this, we need to pick up our marriage license no later than Wednesday. We both have to show up. There’s an office not too far from where your place is.”
“I was going to bring it up over dinner.”
“Great minds think alike.” I laughed, feeling a bit of the tension unravel. “I want to show you a couple of things.” I stood and motioned for him to follow me back inside.
He grabbed another piece of celery on his way into the house and walked behind me to my craft room.
“By the way, who is your third groomsman?” When I’d told Maddox about the conversation at the spa, I’d forgotten to ask who his third choice was.
“Terry.”
“Not Robert?” I asked, remembering who his mom mentioned.
He furrowed his brows. “Robert? I don’t know a Robert.”
“Oh.” I cocked my head slightly to the left as I tried to remember the conversation. “Maybe I got the name wrong. I thought your mom had mentioned that you were best friends with a Robert.”
He shook his head. “I don’t actually think I even know a Robert.”
I shrugged. “Well. I’m sure Terry will be a great groomsman. Is he from work or—”
“Terry lives in Portland. He’s driving up. I met him in my last year of school. He went on to med school.”
“Wow. A doctor?”
He nodded.
“Well, I look forward to meeting him.”
“I look forward to you meeting all of my friends.”
I grinned, glancing at the wicker basket I’d tucked my things away in.
I’d been working on embroidering handkerchiefs for our moms and my best friends. I finished his mom’s last night and was excited to show him.
I opened the wicker basket I had them in and lifted out the gift for his mom.
“I made this for your mom.” I handed him the pure white linen square with his mother’s name embroidered on one corner and a splay of wildflowers I’d carefully embroidered on the opposite corner.
“Oh, T.” He shook his head, holding it carefully. “This is beautiful.”
“I hope she likes it.”
His gaze met mine, and he let out a deep breath. “She’ll cherish this.” He shook his head. “I had no idea.”
“I just want everything to be perfect, you know?” I swallowed down the sudden lump in the back of my throat, and he nodded, clearing his throat.
“You have the kindest soul, T.” He dropped his gaze to the basket, and a few seconds passed between us before he said anything else. “I can’t imagine going through this with anyone else.”
I nodded, taking the handkerchief back and placing it in the wicker.
“Oh. This is kind of awkward, but I got this drawn up at an attorney’s office and wanted you to look it over.”
His brows furrowed as I handed him a folder with the pre-nup in it. “Basically, when our marriage dissolves, we leave it with everything we had. I’m not asking for anything, and neither are you. Although I don’t know what I’d actually have to give you.” I laughed nervously, and he nearly winced when I pulled my empty hand back.
Maddox stared at the folder and didn’t open it. “I’m not going to sign it.”
“What?” I cocked my head. “It protects you.”
“I don’t need protection.”
The oven dinged, and I shook my head, walking out of the craft room with Maddox behind.
“Don’t be silly,” I called over my shoulder. “Get someone to look it over for you and sign it. That way if things go sideways—”
“I trust you,” he interrupted.
I reached the kitchen, grabbing two oven mitts from the counter, and opened the oven to grab our dinner.
“And I trust you, but this isn’t about trust. This whole thing is a farce.” I set the metal pan on a trivet.
“Is it, though?” he asked.
My gloved hands whipped to my hips, and I scowled. “What are you saying?”
“I don’t know.” He took a step forward.
“Well, that’s a problem right there.”
I wanted him to confess that a seed of love had been planted and might sprout someday.
I wanted him to tell me he’d never been pretending.
I wanted him to promise me that all the things he’d said and done were real.
Sure, he’d hinted at having feelings and said some sweet things, but my heart wanted more than a tease.
And the last few weeks had felt like a big tease of what love could be like.
But that was our plan, our agreement, and I couldn’t fault him for it.
And while my heart wanted something impossible, my mind knew that we needed to stick to the plan we’d made. Neither of us could afford to fall in love, fall out of love, and destroy memories that we’d worked so hard to create for the ones we loved.
Maddox slid his arms around me and pulled me close. “It’s complicated.”
I looked up into his eyes and laid my gloved hands on his chest. “It’s a complicated mistake.”
He laughed and nodded.
“Being with you feels so easy. You’ve made it really difficult for the next guy. I’m not sure anyone could beat what you’ve pulled off in the last month.” I glanced at his expression to see him smiling, shaking his head.
“T, I have to confess something.”
“What’s that?”
/>
“I hope there is no next guy.”
His words rattled around me as if I’d woken up in a beehive. The little stings of hope here and there finally turned into a giant welt of painful anticipation.
I let out a slow breath as his blue eyes remained locked on mine. “I get that.” I chewed on my bottom lip until I found the words that needed to be said.
He touched his forehead to mine, his hands running down my spine as every part of my body responded to his touch.
“Maddox, I’ve fallen for you. Hard.” My eyes connected with his once more. “But I’m not ready for what this really could be. Too much is on the line. There are too many people involved now. The stakes are too high. I can’t fall in love with you.”
“You can’t, or you won’t?” he asked, his voice low.
“What about you?” I asked, waiting to glom onto any hint of the same, but I was only met with silence.
“Listen, we both know there’s something here, right? It might have merely sprouted, but it’s there…” I sucked a breath. “Waiting for the right time to bloom.”
“But you’re saying now isn’t the right time?”
I shook my head, feeling the pit in my stomach grow. My mind knew this was the logical thing to do, but my heart was screaming for me to stop and to confess that I’d done more than fall for him over the last month, that I’d fallen in love.
“Well, do you?” I asked.
Without an answer, he pressed his lips to mine. His kiss, unhurried and delicious, created a slow burn that I couldn’t deny. Our kisses deepened, his tongue demanding and promising as my body fell into his.
A little moan escaped my lips as his fingers slid under my shirt, and I promised myself another night with him would help me through the promised land of Maddox McKenzie.
My hand moved to the button of his pants, and I fumbled with it a second too long as a low, sultry groan from Maddox scorched into me.
Maddox’s free hand cupped my face as his thumb stroked my cheek, bringing me closer and deepening our kisses.
“God, you taste good,” he whispered between kisses.
“You didn’t answer my question,” I breathed, our kiss breaking.
“You answered it for me.” His arms fell to his sides.
“What do you mean?”
“It doesn’t matter what I think, T. It matters what you think. What you want. You’re calling the shots on this.”
I shook my head. “I was ready to end the façade over my friends and—" I stopped myself, not wanting to bring up why we kept going.
“I warned you that my ask was far more demanding…” His voice trailed off.
“And I recognize that and respect it.” I cleared my throat, seeing him pull away. “Which is why I don’t want to jeopardize anything. I can get wrapped up too easily, and I already feel the lines blurring too much. For now, we just need to stick to the plan.” I waited a few seconds. “And I don’t hear anything different coming out of your lips.”
“Fine.” He gave a quick nod. “I think I need to head to the office tonight.” He glanced at our uneaten dinner and then brought his gaze back to mine. “I have some stuff to sort out. To think about.”
The look in his eyes told me I’d made the right choice even though my heart was fracturing into a million little pieces. He didn’t know what he wanted. It might be fun for him to play along, but that was all it was.
Playing.
“But we’ll still go on with everything as planned?” I asked, trying to tamp the fear of losing him down. He wasn’t mine to have. This was pretend.
“To the end.” He nodded and glanced at my ring before walking out of my house.
Chapter Twenty-One
The shrill sound of my phone ringing in the middle of the night shot me out of bed. I reached for the glowing beast and quickly mumbled a sleepy hello into the phone, expecting it to be one of my brothers having too good of a time.
Or maybe it was Maddox calling to apologize. Or perhaps it was me who should be apologizing.
When I heard Dorothy’s voice come over the speakerphone, my world spun into slow motion.
“I’m so sorry to wake you—”
“What’s wrong? What’s happened?” I didn’t even wait for a reply as I pulled a sweatshirt over my camisole and slipped on tennis shoes.
“It’s Maddox. There’s been an attack, or I don’t know...”
I froze in my bedroom.
“An attack?” I shook my head.
“He’s in surgery.”
My blood turned cold, and my mouth became dry.
“Is he okay?”
“We don’t know. He’s at Harborview. Joe is driving us there now.”
Harborview was a Level-1 trauma center. Gunshot wounds, stab wounds, vehicular accidents…those were sent to Harborview. I felt sick, lightheaded.
“I’m on the next ferry.” I swallowed through a cry. “Is there anything I can do?”
“Just be there when he wakes up.” His mom sniffled. “If he wakes up.”
I grabbed my purse and keys, carrying the phone as I spoke. “I don’t understand. What happened?”
“Tessa, I don’t know the details. He was on the phone with me, walking back to his place. I just hate how he walks there at night. He went to the office for some reason. I was hoping since he’d met you, his late nights there would be over.” She blew her nose. “I was just telling him about my good news, and someone attacked him.”
“My God.” I locked my house and went to my car, shoving my bag inside as I climbed in. “I’ll be there as fast as I can.”
“Don’t speed. Don’t rush. We don’t need two tragedies tonight.” She sniffled. “I just had to call. I know how much you love him and how much he loves you.”
My breath caught, and I closed my eyes, feeling the tears under my lids, threatening to escape.
“I can’t imagine my life without him,” I whispered, realizing I hadn’t ever spoken more accurate words.
“I know, dear. I can’t either.”
We hung up, and I put my car in reverse. The next ferry was set to sail in twelve minutes. It was pushing it, but if luck were on my side, I’d make it.
Fireweed was dead at this time of night. Even our local bars had shut down before their official closing time. I saw the glow of the ferry booth and the hulk of the ferry sitting at the end of the terminal. Cars were still loading, and there was no one in front of me.
I quickly rolled down my window and passed the ferry clerk a one-way ticket.
“Don’t see you this time of night goin’ into Seattle. Just coming from.” The woman smiled and gave me a nod. “Lane four. Looks like you just made it.”
“Thanks. My fiancé is in surgery.” I nearly peeled out as I drove over to my given lane before pulling onto the ferry.
Nothing about tonight seemed real.
As I pulled behind an SUV, I let out a sigh and turned off my car.
My hands were trembling as I dialed Winter’s number. By the second ring, she picked up.
“Hello?” She yawned into the phone.
“Winter. It’s me. Maddox is in the hospital. In surgery.”
“What?” She became immediately alert. “Where? What happened?”
“I’m not sure. It sounds like he was attacked somewhere between his office and his house tonight.”
“Why was he at the office?” she asked, and guilt churned through my system.
“He said he had something to take care of.” I wanted to tell her everything, but I couldn’t.
Not now, anyway.
But as I sat in the middle of the Sound in the middle of the night, I realized I was done with the charade. I was falling in love with Maddox McKenzie.
No, I was in love with Maddox, and the thought of losing him was paralyzing.
“You’re going to be okay. He’s going to be okay.” She drew a deep breath. “I’ll call the girls, and we’ll meet you there.”
“Okay, I’ll text what
floor when I know. I’m already on the ferry.”
I hung up and stared at the darkness, waiting, praying to get to the light ahead.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.
He was such a good man.
A decent man.
I shook my head and stared ahead at the buildings finally coming into view. Speckles of light dotted the city as the ferry pulled to the dock. What felt like the longest ferry ride was finally over, and I gripped the steering wheel tightly until I was instructed to pull off.
As I pulled onto the streets and up the hill toward the hospital, I refused to look in the direction of where Maddox lived. The sickening feeling slushed around in my stomach as my mind flitted to what happened.
What he’d gone through.
Who was there to help?
He never should have been there tonight.
I should have just continued to play pretend because at least I had him. I never should have pressed him to say words he wasn’t ready for, maybe never would be prepared for.
As I saw the red emergency sign come into view, I quickly turned into the designated parking area and found a place to pull in. This late at night, it wasn’t that difficult.
I nearly flew out of my car as I followed the signs to the emergency room when I got a text from Dorothy telling me what floor to go to.
My pulse was racing as I prayed in the elevator that Maddox would pull through. That we’d get another chance.
A real chance.
When the elevator opened up, I saw Dorothy and Joe following a doctor into a waiting room. I quickly made my way toward them when the surgeon stopped me.
Dorothy nodded. “No, it’s okay. Tessa is his fiancée. She needs to hear this too.”
She held onto me as we took a seat next to Joe’s dad.
“What happened to my son?” Dorothy asked.
“Your son sustained multiple stab wounds to the left chest in the mid-axillary line. During surgery, we found three lacerations on the surface of the liver which required suture closure. We also found a perforation on the anterior of the stomach. The blade missed the lower quadrant of his heart by a millimeter. He lost a lot of blood. There was also a lung abrasion to his lower lobe, but we expect it to heal.”
Mr. Mistake: A Fake Marriage Romance (Mr. Mistake Series Book 1) Page 20