by L. P. Dover
Cameron shook his hand. “Thanks. I’m honored to meet you. Although, I will retract that statement if you hurt my sister in any way.”
Lucas chuckled. “Ashley did say you’d be hard on me.”
Cameron pointed at him. “Don’t forget it either.” He put his arm around Olivia. “We’ll just keep this to ourselves tonight at the rehearsal.”
“You know, Sophia’s going to be pissed about this,” Olivia stated. “Guess she deserves the humiliation though, after that ridiculous story she told.” She looked up at Lucas. “I am so sorry for that. I don’t know why she lied.”
Lucas waved her off. “Happens all the time. According to the tabloids, they have me pegged at two hundred women already.”
Olivia gasped. “Does that not bother you?”
He shook his head. “I know the truth. No matter what I say or do, there are going to be people out there who want to hurt me.”
Cameron’s smile faded. “Yeah, well, let’s hope none of it involves my sister.”
Lucas draped his arm around me. “I hope not either.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Ashley
Today was the wedding. The rehearsal had gone off without a hitch, and luckily, Cameron and Olivia hadn’t told my parents I’d left the resort, so they had no clue I’d been gone the past couple of days. I slipped into my sleeveless, deep-purple bridesmaid’s dress and Harper zipped me up. We both had our hair in a ball of curls on top of our heads, and a pound of makeup on our faces. Olivia had a whole team of professionals come in to get us ready.
“What did Rhett say when he approached you last night?” she asked.
Groaning, I turned away from the mirror. “He wondered why Olivia thought I was seeing him in secret. I told him I was sorry for the misunderstanding.”
Harper snorted. “Bet he hated that.”
I shrugged. “You know how Rhett is. He’s always so calm and collected, even when he’s angry or happy. I just feel bad because I think he got the wrong impression. But I cleared things up and told him I had a date for the wedding.”
She laughed. “He’s going to shit a brick when he sees Lucas with you. I don’t think he likes him too much.”
“That’s because Rhett doesn’t like competition. He’s used to getting what he wants, just like Lucas.”
Harper rolled her eyes. “Neanderthals. I’m surprised they haven’t pissed on you to claim their territory.”
“For Christ’s sake,” I said, curling my lip in disgust. “If anyone so much as whips out their dicks to attempt such a thing, I’ll cut them off.”
A knock sounded on the door, and I took one last look in the mirror before I opened it. Lucas and Noah both stood in the hallway, dressed to perfection in their tuxes. “Well, don’t you both look handsome.”
Noah whistled at Harper as he walked past me, while Lucas stared at me in awe. He pulled me into his body and kissed my cheek. “I would kiss you, but Olivia would kill me if I messed up your lipstick.”
“You learn quick,” I said, laughing. He grabbed my hips and drew me in, a certain body part digging into my hip bone. “I guess you like what you see?”
He bit his lip and leaned into my ear. “I can’t wait to get you out of that dress tonight.”
I glanced down at my phone. “Oh crap. We should probably head down.”
“You ready for this?” Noah asked from behind. “Things are going to change. Your secret romance won’t be a secret for much longer.”
Harper gave me an encouraging nod. “She’s ready.”
Lucas lifted his brows, waiting on my answer. I smiled and opened the door. “I’m ready. Let’s go.”
He took my hand, and we all went straight to the elevator. Heart racing, I stepped inside and closed my eyes. There would be hundreds of people downstairs in the lobby. Some of them wouldn’t even know who Lucas was, but others would.
When we stepped off the elevator in our purple dresses and famous escorts, my heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest. There were hundreds of people in the lobby. Lucas definitely caught the attention of the gentlemen who followed golf.
Harper sucked in a breath. “Oh my God, is that Evan Townsend and Derek McLaughlin over there?”
Lucas chuckled. “Guess I’m far from being the only famous person here.”
“Not by a long shot,” I teased. “But that’s a good thing. We won’t be bringing too much attention to ourselves.” I nodded toward Evan and Derek. “Those two are really nice. I’ve met them a couple of times. Derek’s always the life of the party.”
His focus landed on them. “And here I was, thinking I was special to you.”
I squeezed his arm and winked. “You are. You’re just not the only celebrity I know.” I glanced back at Harper. “We have to go to the dressing room. That’s where Olivia and the others will be.”
She nodded and we made our way through the crowd. My brother stood with Rhett and his other groomsmen by the door to the ballroom, greeting people as they entered. He saw us, and I waved. Some of the guests moved out of the way so I could get to him. I threw my arms around his shoulders, praying the burn behind my eyes stayed just that. I didn’t want to cry.
“I’m so happy for you,” I whispered, hugging him tight.
“Thanks, Ash. Your day will come.”
That brought a smile to my face. “Maybe.” It was too soon to think along those lines with Lucas. We had a long road ahead of us. I let him go and grabbed onto Lucas’ arm. Rhett noticed it and looked away, keeping his face neutral.
Lucas shook my brother’s hand. “Congratulations, Cameron. I’m glad I could be here to celebrate this day with you.”
Cam smiled. “Thanks, man. Should be a good time.”
Harper had full on tears as she hugged him and introduced him to Noah. Cameron made sure to spill a couple of Harper’s secrets, which made her blush and laugh, but it was all in good fun. I could tell it was just to get her to smile. Cameron hated seeing anyone cry, especially her. That was how close they were.
The line grew even longer behind us, so we moved out of the way and headed toward the dressing room. “I don’t think your friend was happy to see me with you,” Lucas murmured.
I waved him off. “Rhett’s never short on his supply of women. I’m just the one he couldn’t get. He’ll get over it.”
Olivia’s wedding planner stood outside the dressing room door and opened it when we approached. She nodded, but kept talking into the earpiece she had wrapped around her ear.
Lucas squeezed my hands and winked. “See you out there.”
Harper said goodbye to Noah and we waved at them as they turned the corner, disappearing into the crowd. “You’re seriously going after my leftovers?” Sophia snapped from behind. “How pathetic is that?”
Harper jerked around, and I grabbed her arm. Clenching my teeth, I let the anger well up in my chest, but refused to let it out. Not today, Satan. I wasn’t about to cause a scene at my brother’s wedding. Luckily, I didn’t have to.
Olivia appeared over her shoulder, looking like a princess in her sparkling wedding gown and tiara. “That’s enough. I don’t know why you’re acting this way, Soph. She’s never done a single thing to you. Lucas chose her, not you. Get over it. I already know you lied about being with him that night.”
Sophia’s eyes bugged out of her head and she turned bright red with both embarrassment and anger. Without another word, she took off down the hall.
Allie appeared in the doorway and sighed as she squeezed Olivia’s shoulder. “I’ll bring her back.”
Olivia shook her head and shrugged. “I’m not worried. If she’s a true friend, she’ll adjust her attitude and come back.”
Releasing a heavy sigh, I hugged her. “I am so sorry. It took all I had not to say anything.”
She rubbed my back. “It’s okay. It’s not the first time she has lied about this kind of stuff. I’ve come to realize it’s her way of boosting her self-esteem. Makes no sense.”
It didn’t, but there were a lot of people out there like her.
Harper nudged me in the side. “Keep your eye on her. There’s nothing more dangerous than a woman scorned.”
Olivia agreed. “Exactly. But if she tries something here, I’ll kick her out myself. It’s my wedding day. We’re going to have a blast.” She grabbed my hand and hauled me into the dressing room. “Come on, I need more wine.”
“Feels like we’ve been doing this for hours,” I said, whispering to Harper.
She laughed and laid her head on my shoulder. “It’s because we have been. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much.” The photographer, a short Asian lady with long, shiny black hair named Ayaka had us all pose in different areas of the resort. Guess I’d probably do the same thing when I got married. I’d want all the memories.
“Ashley! Harper!” Olivia called out. We looked over and she waved. “I want pictures with you and your partners.”
Harper snickered and patted my shoulder. “Good luck on that one, Ash.”
My partner was Rhett. He smiled over at me and held out his arm as I approached. I linked my arm with his and he pulled me over to the fountain. “At least, now I can talk to you alone.”
The photographer posed us closer and angled my face toward Rhett. “What’s going on?”
“Alright, you two. Smile.” We looked at the camera and smiled. Ayaka then moved us over to the garden and she shot several more photos.
When she was done, Rhett kept hold of my arm. “You know he’s not right for you.”
“And you are?” I countered.
“I don’t know, you’ve never given me the chance.” He shrugged. “Look, I just don’t want to see you get hurt. Montgomery’s not the kind of man to stay in one place for too long.”
“I guess that’s something I’ll have to deal with.”
Letting me go, he stepped back and focused on something over my shoulder. “Just know I’ll always be around if you need me.” He walked off and I felt the presence of someone behind me.
Lucas lifted his brows and glanced back at Rhett, who’d disappeared inside with the other groomsmen. My parents stood by Olivia and Cam, staring at us curiously. “He must love pushing my buttons.”
I shook my head. “He simply warned me about you. And don’t worry, I’m not going to run off with him.”
He scoffed. “He made sure to hold you awfully close when you walked down the aisle together.”
Wrapping my arm around his waist, I leaned into him. My dad’s eyes widened at our closeness. “How about we forget about Rhett for now. You need to meet my parents. They’re staring at us.”
He blew out a nervous breath. “Think they’ll like me?”
I kissed him. “They’ll love you.”
Taking his hand, I led him over to my parents. They scrutinized him and looked unsure, as if they weren’t positive he was who they thought he was. “Mom, Dad, I’d like you to meet Lucas Montgomery. Lucas, these are my parents, Diane and William Locke.”
Lucas held out his hand to my father first. “It’s a pleasure to meet you both.”
“Same to you, young man. How exactly did you two meet?”
Lucas extended his hand to my mother as he answered. “We met here at the resort. I gave her some golf lessons and we realized we had a lot in common.” Okay, so that was a little ways off from the truth, but they didn’t need to know I’d been drunk and had sex with him on the first night.
“So, you’re together?” My mother’s face brightened. “Like boyfriend and girlfriend?”
Eyes wide, I stared at her in disbelief. Lucas squeezed my hand and smiled. “We are,” he replied. “That is, until she gets rid of me.”
My mother winked. “Hopefully, that won’t be the case. However, I do have a stubborn daughter. Try hard to not piss her off.”
He chuckled. “Believe me, I know how that goes.”
I rolled my eyes and my mother smiled brilliantly. “You know, you’re more than welcome to give me some golf lessons. I try to keep up with these two,” she gestured at me and my father, “but so far, it’s been useless. Having your help might make me better than them.”
I burst out laughing. “Good try, Mom. No amount of lessons will make you that good.”
She huffed. “Well, at least you can invite him over to your father’s birthday dinner next Sunday.”
Lucas gazed down at me, cocking his head to the side, like he was waiting for me to ask him.
I smiled. “Would you like to come to dinner with me next Sunday? Although, I’m sure my parents will understand if you have other plans.”
“Not at all. I’ll be there.”
My dad shook his hand again. “Sounds great. I look forward to talking more with you. But for now, we should probably get back.” He kissed my cheek and I hugged my mother before they walked away.
As soon as they were out of sight, he pulled me into his arms. “I think that went well.”
“It did,” I agreed. “You know, I leave tomorrow. It’s time I get back home and back to my job.”
He nodded. “And what would you say if I wanted to stay with you? I don’t think I’m ready to spend a day away from you.”
Heart pounding, I couldn’t stop myself from smiling ear to ear. “Sounds amazing. Just don’t go snooping in my underwear drawer when I’m gone.”
He slapped a hand over his chest. “Who me? What if you have a pair of pink thongs I like?”
Shaking my head, I laughed. “You’re too much.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ashley
“You ready for this?” Lucas asked.
I buckled my seat belt. “I think so.” He slid into the passenger seat of my car and shut the door. We were going on our first public outing away from the resort. As of yet, there hadn’t been any stories of us on the internet. That was a good sign. Maybe it wasn’t going to be as bad as I thought.
Instead of playing golf at the resort again, we’d decided to try another golf course. It was time to try someplace new. Lucas needed a challenge.
He glanced out the back window. “Doesn’t look like anyone’s following us. The only people we’ll have to worry about are the ones at the course.”
I shrugged. “Yeah, but that’s usually middle-aged men. I don’t know what I’ll do when we go somewhere and women fall all over you.”
Taking my hand, he kissed it gently. “It’s not that bad, sunshine. Women may like to flirt, but I know how to not flirt back. You’re the only one I want.”
“Do you always have to sign autographs or take pictures when you go out in public?” I asked, turning to him. We were at a stop sign and there was no one behind us.
“Most of the time,” he stated. “Then again, there are times when I can go somewhere unnoticed. Not everyone in the country knows who I am.”
“When you first started golfing, is that what you wanted, to be famous?”
Shaking his head, he focused on the road. “I never really thought about the fame. I just wanted to follow in my dad’s footsteps. And the notoriety was fun at first, but once you get in the spotlight, it’s almost impossible to escape it. If I’m being honest, I never thought much about it until I met you. Guess I just figured when I decided to settle down, it wouldn’t be hard to adjust.”
Sunset Meadows golf course was a public course with a couple of par five holes that ended up being my enemies. There were sand traps and ponds sprinkled everywhere. He’d only been stopped by a few older gentlemen on the eighteenth hole who shook his hand and started up a conversation.
I couldn’t imagine going somewhere and people knowing who I was everywhere I went. The only people who knew me were my patients.
“Who were those men?” I asked once they’d left.
Shrugging, he took the score card from me. “Just two men asking if I was going to be playing in the RSM Classic Championship in a few weeks. They’re going to be there.”
I hopped in the cart. “Are you?”
He slid i
n beside me and started down the path back to the parking lot. “No. I’m taking off the rest of the year from the PGA tournament. I’ll start back in January. The first one will be in Maui.”
“Maui,” I repeated with a sigh. “Now there’s a place I’d like to go.”
We stopped and unloaded our golf bags. “Why don’t you come with me? We can make it a vacation.”
I got out and stretched. “That’s still a little over two months away. A lot can happen between now and then.”
Stepping forward, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me into his body, causing me to shriek. I laughed and held onto his neck. “I plan on being right here with you, sunshine. I’ll kidnap you if I have to.”
“That kind of turns me on,” I teased, kissing his lips. “I’ll see what I can do about getting the time off.”
We kissed again, and something flashed out of the corner of my eye. I looked over toward the clubhouse and there was a man with a camera, taking more pictures.
Lucas touched my chin, turning my face away. “Ignore it, sunshine. It’s the only way I can pretend to have a normal life.”
My heart dropped. “For a moment there, I thought this was going to be easy.”
Lucas shook his head. “I’m sorry. Let’s get out of here.”
I placed my hands on his cheeks, and this time, I kissed him. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to let anything spoil our day. It’s just you and me.”
A sad smile spread across his face, and I could tell he wanted to believe me, but didn’t. I just had to prove to him that I could handle the chaos. Then again, it was only the beginning. It was going to get much worse than just a simple picture taken here and there.
“What are we going to do when we get to your house?” Lucas asked.
We were almost there and my heart pounded against my chest. “Probably take a shower and get some dinner ready. I’m hungry and feel disgusting from sweating so much.”