The Substitute

by Denise Grover Swank

  “Ramrod this family?” she shrieked.

  Kevin flung his arm toward Josh. “Megan’s not marrying this guy.”

  “Of course she’s marrying him!” Nicole shouted, her face twisted with a mixture of surprise and anger. She wobbled as her heel sunk deeper, pitching her to the side.

  Josh took a moment to survey the rest of the scene: Gram, who’d been seated in a folding chair at the side of the group, was watching it all, her eyes glittering with excitement. Megan’s cousins stood toward the back of the lawn, looking all at once uncomfortable and enthralled. Blair seemed like she was about to rush over and drag Megan away, but Libby was blocking her path. The minister stood behind, wisely keeping his mouth shut.

  Shaking Josh out of his stupor, Noah leaned into his ear and whispered, “You have to put a stop to this. Now.”

  “I know.” But did he? Part of him wanted to let it play out, to let Megan make her choice without any intervention.

  “Well, Megan?” her mother demanded, hands on her hips as she tottered back and forth like a baby giraffe. “Are you going to tell your brother to go back to the groom’s line so we can finish this rehearsal and go to dinner?” She shook her head, looking like she was about to implode. “If Josh will even let Kevin stand up with him.” She pointed her French-tip-manicured finger at him. “Your behavior is deplorable.”

  Megan looked from her mother to her brother, then finally rested her gaze on Josh, tears streaming down her face as her chin quivered.

  His heart twisted with a pain that sucked in his breath. He couldn’t do this to her. He couldn’t hurt her. Not her.

  “Megan.” He took a step forward as he said it; his voice cracked, but he didn’t care. “You are singularly the best thing that has ever come into my life.”

  She dropped Kevin’s hand and studied Josh as a fresh trail of tears tumbled down her cheeks. Kevin’s fists balled at his sides, but Josh didn’t let that stop him. He continued to take slow steps toward Megan, moving around Knickers. “You fell into my life and turned it upside down. You’ve made me question everyone and everything, but when I sort through it all, the only thing that makes sense is you.” He stopped in front of her, her eyes looking up at him in confusion and sorrow.

  He cupped her cheeks, his thumbs wiping her tears. “Don’t cry, Meggie. We’ll do whatever you want. You just say the word. If you want to end this right now, we can. I won’t fight you. But if you want to keep going…” He pushed past the lump in his throat, ignoring the fact they had an audience. “Can I tell you how I feel before you make your decision?”

  She nodded, fresh tears breaking free, the sight hurting his heart even more.

  “I can’t imagine walking away from this mess without you. I don’t know how this happened. I only know it did. You know how I said I left it all up to fate?”

  She nodded, sucking in her lower lip to stop her chin from quivering.

  He smiled at her and picked up her hand, cradling it between his own. “We’re supposed to be together. I know it. I don’t want to go back to Seattle without you. Don’t give up on us, okay? Don’t give up on me.”

  She watched him, indecision wavering in her eyes.

  He pressed his forehead to hers, lowering his voice to a whisper. “It’s up to you, Meggie. Either I walk away, or we keep going. I just want you to be happy. What will make you happy?”

  A soft smile lifted her mouth. “You make me happy, Josh. I’ve never been happier than I am with you.”

  Relief flooded through him, and he released the breath he’d been holding. “So what do you want to do about it? Do you want me to take you away from this mess?”

  She looked around at her family, then at the crowd of botanical gardens visitors who now lined the sidewalk by their practice lawn. They were watching with open mouths, as if they’d happened upon a particularly trashy episode of reality television. Finally she returned her gaze to him, her orneriness returning. “And walk away from a fifty-grand party? Not on your life.”

  He kissed her, his joy overshadowing the fear that lurked in the shadows of his heart. He still had to come clean, but not yet. Not now. He might lose her when he did, and he wasn’t ready to take that risk.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him and kissing him back.

  The crowd of onlookers—strangers and friends and family alike—broke into applause and a round of “Woots,” undoubtedly led by Libby.

  When he lifted his head, he noticed two people were not participating: Kevin and Blair. They stood together now, glaring at him as if he were public enemy number one. He could deal with their animosity—even hatred—as long as they didn’t try to take Megan from him.

  “Well,” Knickers said, breaking into the celebration. “Now that this nonsense has been taken care of, can we finish the rehearsal?” She pointed a finger at Kevin. “I’ll deal with you later.”

  Josh returned to the other end of the lawn next to Noah, Kevin shooting darts of hate at him the whole time. Too relieved to care, Josh took a deep breath, letting himself relax. He couldn’t believe how close he’d come to losing her. He couldn’t believe how panicked he’d felt at the prospect.

  Noah clapped his hand on Josh’s shoulder and leaned in close. “Good save there, Joshy.”

  Anger rushed over him, and before he could think about it, he hissed, “This isn’t a game, Noah. She’s important to me.”

  An uncharacteristic solemnity covered Noah’s face. “I know she is.”

  Josh blinked, words escaping him.

  “I know you, Josh… You love this girl. I’m sorry for what I…” He cleared his throat. “We’ll figure out a way to make it work.”

  In the entirety of his twenty-nine years, Josh couldn’t remember Noah taking the side of love or romance. He thought it was a hyped-up emotion that quickly ran its course. But as he sorted through his shock, he registered the word Noah had used: love. Josh started to protest, but Kevin, who’d been standing as far from them as the situation could warrant, leaned closer. “Do you boys have something you want to tell me about my sister?”

  Josh shook his head, his back tensing. “No.” If this wedding were real, he’d be tempted to invite Kevin to the parking lot to discuss this further. But he reminded himself that Megan’s brother’s animosity was really for Jay. He wasn’t sure whether to deck him or cheer him on for finally coming to her defense.

  Kevin edged closer, not stopping until he stood a foot away. “I don’t trust you. Something strange is going on here, and I’m going to prove it before Megan makes the biggest mistake of her life.”

  “Kevin!” Nicole shouted while pointing to his preordained spot. “This is your last warning. Get back into place.”

  Knickers began the practice drill, and since Josh’s job seemed to consist mostly of standing at the front, he had time to think about his brother’s words. Could Noah have read him correctly? He really liked Megan. He lusted for her like he’d never lusted for a woman before, but love? How could you fall in love with someone in a matter of days?

  They wrapped up the rehearsal and left for the restaurant. Megan’s mother had reserved a private room at a steak restaurant closer to their home. Because of the delay from all the drama, Neil and Mitch were already waiting for the group at the restaurant.

  As everyone headed down the hall to the room, Josh snagged Megan’s hand and pulled her out the front door, into the warm summer evening. She seemed almost relieved; her brother, of all people, had ridden to the restaurant with them, so there hadn’t been an opportunity for them to speak privately. Josh led her a little ways down the sidewalk, then took both of her hands in his. “I’m worried about you. How are you doing?”

  She gave him a hesitant smile. “I’m better.”

  “So we’re doing this?”

  She searched his eyes for a moment. “I guess we are.”

  He lowered his mouth to hers, giving her a gentle kiss. When she sighed and leaned into him, something tightened in his
chest. Suddenly he knew with certainty that if it came down to her or his employees, he wasn’t sure he’d pick his employees. He was seriously considering giving up a thirty-year-old business for a woman he’d known a few days. And that scared him.

  She pulled back and gave him a sweet smile that melted his heart. “We better get inside before my mother has a coronary.”

  “You’re right.” But he kissed her again, not wanting to let this moment go.

  “Maybe I can stay with you at the hotel tonight,” she murmured against his lips.

  “I don’t know.” He grinned. “Gram’s promised to make my last night as a bachelor a memorable experience. She keeps talking about the positions she wants to show me. All I remember is something about a camel and a baby.”

  Megan laughed, a pure melodious sound that he tried to bottle into a memory he could pull out later and reminisce over if things went south.

  The others were already seated when they entered the room, but no one seemed surprised they were coming in late. They probably figured Megan and Josh had had some spat before the rehearsal and needed to iron things out. Thankfully, Kevin and Blair hadn’t conspired to split Megan and Josh up with the seating chart. There were three tables. One was for Megan’s parents and aunts and uncles; the second was for her cousins, Kevin, and Gram; and they were seated at the third, with Noah, Blair and Neil, and Libby and Mitch. Josh held Megan’s chair out for her and she flashed him a mischievous grin. The certainty of how much he needed her—not just wanted—hit him square between the eyes.

  Josh was surprised by how civil Blair was toward him. After a couple of drinks, she let her guard down and seemed to actually be having fun, albeit not with her fiancé. Neil was a quiet, unassuming man, and Josh couldn’t at all see the attraction between him and Megan’s tempestuous friend. By the time the entrées had been served, it was apparent their marriage would be one of convenience. Blair brought her prestigious career to the deal, but he couldn’t figure out what Neil had to offer.

  Mitch and Libby seemed like a much better fit. He was funny and attentive to her and she seemed to genuinely like him. But while Josh could hardly claim to be an expert at love or matchmaking, he thought something was missing—maybe that essential spark he himself had only felt with Megan. Noah must have noticed too. He spent the entire dinner by Libby’s side, deep in conversation with her. If Mitch felt threatened, he never let on. Josh worried that Kevin would come over to talk with them at some point and ruin the friendlier atmosphere, but he stayed where he was, seemingly content to continue sending evil glares across the room. Josh was suddenly glad he’d been exiled from the Vandemeer home. He wouldn’t put it past Kevin to come into Megan’s room in the middle of the night and hold a pillow over his face.

  How had nice guy Josh McMillan acquired so many enemies in such a short time?

  During dessert, Josh leaned over and gave Megan a kiss. “I need to go to the restroom. I’ll be right back.”

  She gave him a wry smile. “Okay, but no guarantees your cheesecake will still be here when you return.”

  He laughed, feeling happier than he’d felt in a long time. “I guess I’ll take my chances.” When he reached the doorway, he looked back to see her fork hovering over his dessert plate. He laughed, shaking his head as he made the short trip to the men’s room. After he finished his business and emerged from the restroom, he wasn’t surprised to see Blair waiting for him in the hall.

  “Blair,” he said, his voice tight.

  “Scumbag.”

  He tried to suppress a grin. He shouldn’t enjoy riling her up so much when she clearly had Megan’s best interest at heart.

  “You find all of this so amusing, do you?”

  Any hint of a grin fell. “No. Actually, I don’t.”

  “I need to talk to you in private.”

  Josh considered blowing her off, but if he had any hope of a long-term relationship with Megan, Blair was part of the package. “Okay.”

  She led the way out the front door and sat down on a nearby concrete bench. Josh only realized she’d brought her large black leather purse with her when she pulled out a folder and set the bag on the ground next to her. She patted the concrete seat. “Sit down. Let’s take a look at what I have here.”

  His heart leapt into his throat. What could she have in that folder?

  “So you carried through with your threat,” he said as he sat next to her, trying to keep his tone light.

  “Oh, you bet your fine ass I did.” She opened the folder.

  There was a recent photo of him stapled to one side, a photo that had been in the Seattle Times two years ago, along with a small piece about Josh’s firm.

  “Joshua Thomas McMillan.”

  “You found my middle name. You really are a super sleuth.”

  “I could list all the boring stuff,” Blair said, ignoring him, her tone breezy and casual. She actually sounded happy, which was surely a bad sign. “Like your birthdate, parents’ names, where you went to grade school...”

  “But then you don’t seem like the type of woman who wastes time.”

  She turned to him with a radiant smile. “You do get me.”

  He shrugged, forcing himself to act lighthearted even though he felt like he was about to throw up. “Why don’t we just get to the good stuff?”

  “Yes. Let’s.” She sounded like a giddy schoolgirl as she flipped through a stack of papers. “Does Megan know you’re an engineer?”

  He could deny it, but what was the point? “No.”

  “Hmm…” A twinkle lit up her eyes. “Now why is that?” But she didn’t give him a chance to answer, rummaging instead through several printouts of press releases and financial statements on his company letterhead.

  He grabbed a page from the stack, his anger surfacing. “How did you get this stuff? It’s confidential.”

  “I told you I’d find out everything.” Her gaze dropped to his crotch before returning to his face. “Circumcised,” she sing-songed.

  “You obviously think you found something important, so why don’t you spit it out?”

  “Oh, Josh,” she pouted. “I could go for the clean, humane kill, but what fun would that be? I’d rather toy with you first.” Her eyes narrowed. “I like to watch the sleazeballs squirm.”

  Josh jumped to his feet, trying to control his temper. “This is a game to you?”

  She looked up at him, clearly unnerved. “Everything’s a game, Joshua. You, of all people, should know that.”

  He shook his head, pointing to the restaurant. “Not her. Not this.”

  She got to her feet too, tilting her head slightly, her eyes icy cold with rage now. “Yes, this. Especially this. You’re using my best friend to gather information to steal her father’s patent.”

  “Steal his patent!” Josh shouted. “He stole my design!”

  She shook her head, glaring at him. “No, Josh. Protest all you want. He filed the patent first.”

  Sick dread gave him a chill despite the warm night air.

  “He came to me three years ago. He told me that he had a revolutionary design his firm wanted to patent. I couldn’t help him, but I had a friend who could, so I made the introductions. I met Tim in law school, and now he works for one of the best patent firms in the country, Haverty and Simmons in Boston.” She took a step toward him. “You filed your patent, but it was a week too late. So now you’re here trying to steal information that will paint Bart and his firm in a bad light.”

  “If you know so much, then you must know my firm will be dead by Monday morning if I don’t get proof my design was stolen. Ten employees will lose their jobs.”

  “Boohoo. They’ll find new ones.”

  “These aren’t nameless people to me, Blair.” He held his hand out, pleading with her to understand. “Some of them were hired by my father when he first opened the doors thirty years ago. They have families to feed.”

  “People lose their jobs all the time, McMillan,” she sneered. “The
y’ll live.”

  He shook his head in disbelief. “How are you friends with that incredibly sweet and sensitive person in there?” He jabbed his finger toward the front door of the restaurant.

  “You were counting on that, weren’t you?” she said. “You studied her, found out she’d broken off her engagement. You bought the seat next to her on the plane so you could use her.”

  He shook his head again, his eyes wide in horror. “No. No.”

  “Yes. You purposely sat by her and played her like a freaking fiddle.” Her face contorted with hate. “You took advantage of her vulnerability and used her.”

  He took a step back, trying not to panic. What if she told Megan her twisted version of events? Worse, what if Megan believed her?

  She shook her head in disgust. “I swear to God, if I had a gun right now, I’d be tempted to shoot you myself.”

  He ran his hands through his hair. “I’m surprised you’re not inside right now, presenting your case to that room full of people. It seems to me you’d want to broadcast my imperfections to as many people as possible.”

  “Imperfections? This reaches far beyond imperfections.” Her eyes narrowed. “And I actually care about Megan. I’m not telling anyone else but her. She’s been embarrassed enough over the last couple months.”

  He breathed a silent prayer of relief.

  She laughed, a bitter sound. “I think we can make a deal, Joshua McMillan.”

  Fear seized his heart. “What kind of deal?”

  She began to pace the sidewalk, her hands behind her back, the folder still clutched in her grasp. “I’m sure we can reach a compromise that’s satisfactory to us both.”

  He highly doubted it. “Go on. You obviously have the terms worked out in your head.”

  She released a haughty laugh. “In my head? Oh, no, Joshua, I’m an attorney. I’m the queen of paper.” She pulled another document out of the folder and handed it to him.

  He took it with shaky hands. “What’s this?”

  “Your agreement to slink away into the night and never speak to Megan again.”

  “No.”

  “Don’t be so hasty in your decision.” Something in her voice caught his attention.