Fake Wife

by Stacey Lynn

  She makes the sign of the cross over her heart and puts her hands together. “Cross my heart.”

  I tell her everything. From the morning just over a week ago that now seems like forever ago, to running into Corbin to being whisked away to his mansion at Cannon Bluffs. She peppers me with questions, but mostly allows me time to talk, only pausing when our food and another round of drinks are delivered, which I decline.

  A weight I didn’t realize I’ve been carrying releases from my shoulders as I talk, making it easier to breathe again. It feels good to have someone to talk to. Someone who knows Corbin so well, someone who can answer my questions…which she evades as effortlessly as Corbin can.

  I’m learning rich people have a slick way of non-answering just about everything.

  By the time I’m done, Caitlin’s on drink number three, giggling herself silly, and our appetizer plates have been licked clean.

  “And you haven’t heard from him today at all? Not even after last night?”

  “No.”

  “Then go find him.”

  “I don’t know him, Caitlin. It’s not like I know where he hides out.”

  “Please.” She rolls her eyes. “You know exactly where he is, and I bet, if you think hard enough, you even know what he’s doing. My suggestion: if you want to get to know Corbin, go find him and figure out who he really is.”

  Cannon Bluffs. I know immediately, but why would he go there and not tell me?

  “What would he be doing?”

  “Not another woman,” she assures me. Although until she says it the thought hasn’t even entered my mind. “You don’t have to worry about that like your ex. Who by the way, if he’s with Missy, is soon going to be paying enough consequences for cheating on you; that girl is certifiably crazy. Spoiled little brat, but I’m not kidding. She’s nutso.”

  I can’t rouse the curiosity to care. I’m still too stuck on Corbin.

  “You didn’t tell me what he’d be doing out there then.”

  “And I won’t. That’s his business, literally. But I suggest that if he’s still not at the penthouse when you get home, you should head out to Cannon Bluffs and find him. I think you’ll be surprised. I’m not sure you two are as different as you think you might be.”

  She’s already paid the check, and as she finishes that cryptic message, she slides from the booth. “Come on. You can walk me home.”

  “I think you might be the nutso one,” I say as she links her hand through my arm and walks out the door, waving goodbye to Jonas, who’s busy behind the bar. He puts his hand up in a silent gesture for her to call him and she returns a thumbs-up.

  We walk the few blocks in the direction back to Corbin’s apartment and I gape at Caitlin as she enters the lobby, still holding on to me.

  “Hi, Maurice, how’s it shaking?” she calls out to the security guard.

  “Miss Pappas, Miss Monroe. Pleasure to see you ladies this evening looking so beautiful.”

  “Flatterer,” she teases him.

  “I thought I was walking you home,” I say.

  She presses the button for the elevator and grins at me. “You are. I live on the tenth floor.”

  “Yeah. You’re nuts.”

  “But harmless.” Her brows scrunch together. “For the most part, anyway.”

  We take the elevator up, and as the doors open, Caitlin steps out holding them open and faces me. “I’m not crazy. I just thought it’d be weird for you to know I live in Corbin’s building. When I moved out of my parents’ house, he helped me get this place. He’s one of the best, Teagan, I promise you, and I think you guys will be perfect for each other.”

  She steps back and out of sight as the doors close. Before I can remind her it’s all pretend. And I ride the elevator up to the penthouse, smiling. The girl is harmlessly crazy, a bit wild, a whole lot energetic and kind, and I think I’ve finally found my first friend in Portland.

  Funny that it’s only taken me five years.

  Chapter 14

  Corbin

  I’ve sent ten text messages to Teagan. All unanswered. I’m pacing my living room, practically wearing the Italian wool rug down to nothing as I stare at my phone.

  I didn’t mean to be gone so long, sneaking out of Teagan’s bed early this morning to head out to Cannon Bluffs before the sun had even risen. But I had to get out of there, away from Teagan and her sweetness and her vulnerability.

  I’m quickly learning that she might be the first girl I’ve found who’s truly too good for me. Her innocence and kindness, her openness, her lack of secrets. All of it’s so drastically different from the world in which I was raised. When I’m around her I feel unsettled and insecure, which is rare for me.

  Especially after last night. Now she’s been ignoring my calls and texts for the last three hours, ever since I left Cannon Bluffs.

  As usual, I lost myself in my work—in the screeching sound of saws along with noise-canceling headphones. I didn’t see her text from this morning until I got in my car to return to Portland. I didn’t even think she’d be looking for me.

  But when I got home and she wasn’t here, without a note, or a word, I’ve become increasingly worried.

  Panicked.

  Terrified.

  Has she left me? Taken off because I was such a gigantic prick last night? Did I drive her so insane she got piss drunk to the point of throwing up? Good God, I literally drive the girl to drink.

  Perhaps I’m not so different from my father.

  “Fucking hell,” I mutter, stabbing my fingers on my phone screen to pull up her name again.

  I press the call button, and before I hear a ring, the click of my door unlocking and then opening makes me hang up.

  She’s here.

  My home.

  She came back.

  Why does a forceful rush of breath escape me with how relieved I am?

  I’m rushing toward her before I realize I’m practically running. “You’re here. Where have you been? I’ve been calling and texting. You had me worried.”

  She jumps back, pressing against the door she’s just closed. “I was out with Caitlin.” Her voice is soft, hesitant. A tiny ripple of warning goes through me as she narrows her eyes at me. “I would have told you if I thought you cared.”

  She scurries around me, but not quickly enough. I reach out, gripping her bicep, and hold on. What the hell? “Why would you think I wouldn’t care?”

  Teagan glares at my hand on her and tugs. I let her go, but hell if I don’t want to pull her closer.

  Like until her mouth is pressed to mine, our bodies flush. Sleeping with her last night, even if we were clothed and she was passed-out drunk, was the worst night of my life. Besides waking throughout the night to make sure she was okay, I was inundated with the feel of her body lined perfectly with mine and the silkiness of her caramel hair on my chest when she’d roll into me.

  Fucking, fucking hell. I have got to find a way to be with this girl and not want to fuck her every time I’m within a ten-foot radius of her.

  “Where were you all day?” Her tone is accusatory. And something else.

  It’s then I see the hurt simmering in her eyes, which she’s trying to hide.

  I scrub my jaw. I’ve already showered, but the scent of cedar and pine still lingers all over me. “Cannon Bluffs. I thought I’d be back earlier this afternoon.”

  “Okay.”

  “I’m sorry, Teagan. I didn’t know you’d be worried.”

  “I wasn’t worried.”

  “No?”

  “No. I was embarrassed. And I thought you left because you can’t deal with my crazy.”

  A soft laugh escapes me. “Crazy? You haven’t seen crazy until you’ve seen Trey, Caitlin, and me throwing back shots like the world will end tomorrow. You have nothing to be embarrassed about.”

  She nods slowly, her cheeks losing their slightly pink hue, and she rubs her fingers over her lips.

  I want to be those fingers. The urge
to kiss her hits me hard and fast, but I want more, too. I want her under me, her soft skin brushing against mine, her eyes large as I bring her to climax. Damn. This woman is beautiful.

  I reach for her and, this time, she lets me pull her close.

  “About Caitlin,” she starts, and my shoulders tense.

  “What about her?” I drop my hand from her arm, releasing her. She tenses again and steps back, rubbing her arm where my hand was. I fight back a grin. She doesn’t appear to realize she’s softly stroking where I was just touching her and I’m not going to point it out. I like watching it.

  “Um, we were out getting drinks, and I told her everything. The truth about us.”

  “What truth?”

  Her brows furrow. “About the contract and everything. I didn’t mean to, but she knew; she said she and Trey figured it out. I told her to talk to you, but well, Caitlin’s sort of—”

  “Persistent.”

  “Are you mad?”

  “No.” Surprisingly not. “Trey called me this morning anyway, woke my ass up before the sun even rose and gave me the same third degree. The good news is he likes you.”

  Her lips press into a circle. Lush, pink lips. God. I need to get laid. Yanking my dick every morning isn’t doing anything to erase the lust that hits me every time we’re so close. “And the bad news?”

  Specifically, Trey’s words were, “She’s fucking gorgeous and a smartass. You don’t want her for real, I’ll take my shot at her.”

  Trey and I have come to blows dozens of times over the years, all over stupid shit. As soon as he said that, I’ve never wanted to punch him more. And then kick him when he was down.

  Until this moment, I didn’t realize why. But it’s the same as last night, this unexplainable jealousy that makes me need to go to the gym and kick someone’s ass at the mere thought of someone else touching Teagan.

  I’d growled a string of expletives over the phone, and Trey responded by laughing, saying, “Yeah, that’s what I thought,” before hanging up.

  I’m not telling Teagan a lick of it. I grin, gently guiding her toward the kitchen and out of the entryway. “There is no bad news.”

  “Okay. Well, good, because I thought you’d be upset.”

  “There was no point in trying to hide it from them. My friends are my life, the only people I have left who give a shit.” Fuck. I press my fingers to my eyes, squeezing them closed to release the tension. Cannon Bluffs had been too quiet this morning, too devoid of Eleanor’s praise and company while I worked in the pole barn. Every time I looked up expecting to see her sitting in a chair I’d made for her, empty, no hint of her hot tea or anything that was Grandma around, the pain hit me fast and hard.

  “Corbin.”

  Teagan’s voice is soft and I open my eyes. She’s closer now. Too close. There’s too much in me needing to be released, or pushed down into a black hole. I step back, putting space I don’t want between us.

  “It’s fine.” I wave my hand and turn around, grabbing bottled water from the fridge. Her worried expression is as obvious as the water in my hand is cold. “I’m fine, Teagan. Honest. It just hits me sometimes harder than others, and when I’m at Eleanor’s sometimes it hits a little harder.”

  “What were you doing out there, anyway?”

  “Ah.” I scrub the back of my neck. Few people know. There’s only about four, now three people, I trust, and it’s not only a pride thing, it’s also out of caution. Dad would be pissed, not that I care about him or his opinions, but if he knew what I was doing, he’d find a way to shut it down. I don’t want this business to expand, I need it. It fuels something hot in me, ignites me in a way that punching keys on a computer at work and drafting business plans will never do. “Working.”

  “And you didn’t go to the office?”

  “It’s not that kind of work.”

  Teagan’s brows arch, a questioning look on her face, and when I think she’s going to ask, she instead moves to the refrigerator and begins digging through it, pulling out a bowl of carrots and freshly chopped broccoli.

  Every one of her movements startles me. I’m used to everyone poking and prodding into my life like I’m not owed privacy simply because I was born into a wealthy, prominent family.

  Teagan has a tendency to do the opposite.

  Ironic. All the women in my life who try to find out everything they can about me, and the one I actually want doesn’t really give a shit.

  “You’re not going to ask?”

  She chomps off a chunk of broccoli. “Not my business.”

  Her indifference annoys me. It simply won’t do. We were supposed to spend this weekend ironing out wedding details, lunching with my mom, and getting a ring for her. Is she really in this only for the money? Can’t blame her. She has lofty goals and dreams. But fuck if I’m not tired of people only wanting to be around me for money. Other than Caitlin and Trey, there’s no one to trust.

  “We’re going to be married, Teagan. Don’t you think it is your business to know what your future husband is doing, and where he is?”

  She has a small carrot halfway to her mouth and freezes, looking up at me through her lashes at my words.

  “We’re…we’re not…it’s different for us.”

  “Is it?”

  A blush heats her cheek, turns brighter than the peach-colored top she has on. And when she bends over, I see a hint of a matching colored bra.

  Fucking hell. I want to tear her clothes off, throw her on the counter, and fuck her until she’s screaming her head off, and she’s casually chomping on fresh veggies.

  Christ.

  “Teagan,” I say, my voice commanding. “Are you telling me you don’t care what I do? Where I go? Who I’m with?”

  I’m prodding. Bordering on turning into the asshole she’s seen too many times, something truly uncharacteristic of me, but damn if I don’t want a reaction from her. And I do. Her jaw clenches and her shoulders pull tight.

  She bites a carrot, chewing it like it’s hard as nails. “What do you want me to say?”

  “I want you to ask me. I want you to be curious. That yeah, you want to know where I am when I’m not with you.”

  I want you to care about me.

  The reality slams into me, making my chest burn. I do. I want her to give a shit about me for more than a monthly allowance and an easy couple of years to start her own business.

  I want her to want me more.

  “Okay. So what kind of work do you do out at Cannon Bluffs?”

  “You know that bed in your room there?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I built it. Started a company a couple years ago, been slowly refining the craft, growing local customers. Trying to expand it regionally.”

  She freezes, a soft look passes over her features, and her gaze moves to my living room before slowly coming back to me.

  “You make…furniture?”

  God. Why does her approval mean so damn much to me? And yet the fear of not getting it holds me back.

  “Have to do something other than be a playboy trust fund baby.”

  “Don’t do that,” she says, shaking her head. “Don’t talk about yourself like you have nothing to offer anyone. You’ve helped me, given me a place to stay when I needed it, and you have really good friends who care about you. Plus, Caitlin told me you helped her.”

  “It’s easy to help people when you have money.”

  “Maybe.” She steps forward, hesitant little steps, and a pink spreads from her cheeks down her neck. God she’s pretty. If my plan was to find a normal girl to marry, I failed hugely. There’s nothing normal about Teagan. Her hand presses against my chest, a barely there glimpse of a touch, and before she can pull back, I grip her hand and hold it against my chest.

  “Teagan—”

  “It might be easy to help people if you have more money than God, Corbin, but you also have to have a heart.”

  She’s making me lose it. The feel of her hand sears my che
st like a branding iron and I want that…to be branded by her. Perhaps if I hold her hand to me forever, I’ll become the guy she thinks she sees.

  A groan builds in my throat, the tension between us crackling, spreading, swirling around us, pulling us together, and I can’t help myself.

  She’s all I have thought about for a week, all I’ve craved since I moved her in here.

  I don’t want to think about contracts and pretending. I want to truly see what we can have.

  “Can I see it?”

  Her question confuses me. “See what?”

  “Your furniture.” She grins, and it’s sparkling. The hesitancy has vanished and there’s only excitement reflecting back at me. “I want you to show it to me.”

  “It’s all around you,” I tell her. Almost all the wood pieces in my own home are things I made, most of it crafted as my first pieces. Not good enough to sell, but I was able to use some of them to promote Bluffs Builders at the beginning, over two years ago.

  I don’t want her to see the old, early pieces. I want her to see everything. I want her to see the doors I was working on all day, thinking of her.

  “Go pack an overnight bag,” I say, my voice gruff. Too thick to be polite. “We’ll go back to Cannon Bluffs.”

  “Tonight? We can’t. We’re supposed see your mom tomorrow, be engaged. All that stuff.”

  God. Back to business.

  I want to avoid it for as long as possible. The sooner we get married the sooner she can leave me.

  “We’ll reschedule. It can wait a few days. Go get ready.” I lean forward, unable to stop myself, and press my lips to her forehead, inhaling her sweet scent. Lavender and something fruity, warm and soft. Cherries.

  God I want my hands on this girl.

  She pulls back, breathless, her hands drifting off my body like it’s the last thing she wants to do. “Okay. Give me ten minutes.”

  Chapter 15

  Teagan

  My second trip to Cannon Bluffs with Corbin is the exact opposite of my first one. Instead of being in the car with a rich, sexy stranger and apprehension making my skin buzz, this time there is only pure excitement.