by Rita Herron
"No... I mean, I believe in family traditions," Kimberly said, her mind racing. "And the gown is gorgeous, but—"
"There's a lovely bridal shop over at the mall if you want to look around before you decide. We can be there at ten when it opens." Mrs. McDane paused, dabbing at her eyes. "Or maybe you want to wear your own mother's dress—"
"No, my mother and father were divorced, I don't even know if she still has it—"
"Oh, dear, that's too bad." She patted Kimberly's hand. "Do you want to look at that bridal shop?"
"No, your dress is beautiful—"
"Oh, good." Mrs. McDane bent and kissed her on the cheek. "I'm so glad you're going to be my daughter-in-law."
Kimberly nodded, her eyes filling with tears at the sincerity in the older woman's eyes.
"What's wrong, hon?" Mrs. McDane asked.
"Nothing," Kimberly said, her throat tight. "I'd be honored to be your daughter-in-law." Her heart pounding, she rose and wiped her cheeks, determined to escape before she burst into tears.
"I'd better go wake Austin." She poured an extra cup of coffee for him, then headed toward the staircase.
She wanted him to be wide-awake when she killed him.
* * *
A sledgehammer was beating on the door. Austin rolled to his back, vaguely aware of a dull throbbing pain exploding between his eyes. He draped his hand over his face to shut out the blinding light, groaning when the room swam in dizzying circles. But the pounding continued.
Where the hell was he? On one of his construction sites?
He dragged his fingers down his face, prying his eyelids open long enough to survey his surroundings. Nope, he wasn't on a construction sight. He was back at home, in the guest room.
Seconds later, he remembered why he'd come home and the bachelor party.
Brief memories of the evening flashed into his head—the stripper, the guys teasing and joking, the pitchers of beer. God, when had he ever consumed so much alcohol? Not since college.
The pounding intensified, and he realized Kimberly might be on the other side of his door. His pride immediately deflated.
He did not want her to see him like this.
He crawled from the bed, hurried to the bathroom, then turned on the cold water and forced himself to step beneath it. Several minutes later, he wrapped a towel around his waist and headed back into the guest room.
The bedroom door eased open, then the goddess who was posing as his fiancée stepped into the room. She looked beautiful. Maybe she would nurse him and pet him and make him feel all better.
But their gazes locked and the panicked expression on her face and the murderous look she shot him brought his heart to a stop. Something was wrong, terribly wrong.
His already sour stomach churned.
She obviously wasn’t going to nurse and pet him.
* * *
Kimberly tried to wrestle her anger into control while she’d waited on Austin to shower. Surely Mrs. McDane had misunderstood. Surely Philip had.
There was no way Austin would have told them he was going to marry her this weekend.
She’d tell Austin about the conversation with his mother, then he’d explain the situation to her, and they’d all have a good laugh.
But the sight of him wearing that towel and nothing else robbed her words. Damn the man.
How was she supposed to stay angry with him when he looked so sexy?
Still, time was of the essence; for all she knew Mrs. McDane was calling the florist now. So she thrust the coffee at him. "Austin, drink this. We have to talk."
She unfolded his hand and plopped two aspirin in his palm, walked into the bathroom, then returned with a glass of water. Her hands were trembling, her chest aching.
Good grief, the man was half naked. His chest glistened with water from the shower, and his dark hair was wet and spiked around his handsome face, giving him a rumpled, tousled, bedroom look that made her want to jump him.
Austin looked shaky for a moment, then staggered to the bed, propped himself up against the headboard and downed the aspirin.
"What's wrong?"
Kimberly clenched her hands. What wasn't wrong? She was pretending to be her sister, pretending to be his fiancée, lying to everyone in sight, and standing in the bedroom of a near-naked man whom she wanted to make love to but who wanted her sister instead of her.
He took a sip of coffee. "Did I do something to upset you last night when you helped me to bed?"
Yeah, you wanted Marci. "We have a problem," she said instead. "I just talked to your mother."
His startled gaze swung up to hers. "What's wrong with Mom?"
"Nothing. As a matter of fact, she's terrific. She's so excited she hugged me when I went in the kitchen. She thinks we're getting married today," Kimberly said, enunciating each word carefully.
Austin almost dropped his coffee in his lap. "What? Today?"
Kimberly nodded. "Today, as in a double wedding with Marilyn and Josh."
The color completely drained from his face.
"Apparently when Philip got home from the bachelor party, he dropped the bombshell."
Austin pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers and moaned.
"Why would Philip tell her such a thing, Austin?"
"I... I don't know." Austin scrubbed his hand over his eyes as if he was struggling to think.
"Well, if this is your brother's idea of a joke, you need to do something fast because right now your mom thinks we're getting married this evening. She just showed me her wedding gown, and she wants me to wear it!"
"She does?"
"Yes," Kimberly said, still moved by the offer, but totally frustrated that she was lying to such a nice woman.
A tender look settled in his eyes. "Then she really approves of you." His voice was so low she could barely hear it. "Mom would never offer her dress if she didn't like you. She really believes in family traditions."
The tightness in Kimberly's chest turned to a dull ache. "But that's just it, Austin. We're not getting married. How did Philip get this idea?"
"Oh, no." Austin dropped his head forward with a low moan. "Last night... I sort of remember some talk about our engagement at the bachelor party."
Her voice barely got past the lump in her throat. "So you're saying Philip didn't make it up?"
"I... we were at the party, drinking and joking... And... I remember Josh kidding about us having a double wedding."
Kimberly tapped her foot up and down. "And?"
Austin sat the coffee cup down with a thud, not bothering to wipe the liquid up when it sloshed over the side. "And I joked back, but I was just joking. At least, I thought I was, or maybe"—he paused, massaging the center of his forehead—"the guys kept ribbing me, and Josh said it would mean a lot to him and Marilyn, and he was worried about me, and oh, God..."
"And you agreed?" Kimberly leaned against the wall, horrified. She could very well imagine herself married to Austin, but Austin didn't want her.
What were they going to do?
* * *
What in the world was he going to do?
Nausea climbed to Austin’s throat as he stared at the floor. He would never drink again.
He'd obviously been half-looped, let the mood and Josh's anxiety goad him into agreeing to an impromptu wedding—with a woman he'd had to pay to accompany him to his best friend's wedding.
"Austin?" Kimberly's voice sounded weak. "You have to do something."
He bit down on his lip, hoping the pain would take his mind off his throbbing headache and the mess he'd created. "If I tell Mom the truth, she'll be devastated."
Kimberly threw up her hands. "But we can't get married!"
He winced, her comment stabbing at his already wilted pride. She obviously found the idea of marrying him to be repulsive.
So much for the sexual chemistry between them.
"I'll think of an excuse," he told her in a rush. "We'll make up something, tell her we don't ha
ve a license or blood tests."
"Maybe we should just admit the truth. I really hate to lie to your parents, Austin," Kimberly said with her heart in her eyes. "They're nice people. They don’t deserve this."
He nodded, her words resurrecting his own guilt. But Josh's comments about Austin's engagement being the best wedding gift he could give them reverberated through his head.
"We can't," he said gruffly.
"Why not?" Kimberly sank down on the bed beside him. "Your folks love you. They'll understand."
He shook his head. "I know that, but they already think I'll never get married."
"Well, at the moment, does that really matter?"
His throat thickened. "Yeah. It does. Maybe it's never happened because I haven't found the right person," he said softly. Their gazes locked. Tenderness and understanding simmered in Kimberly's eyes, not the teasing he'd expected from a flirtatious woman like her.
"Then tell them that," she urged. "Josh will understand, too."
He shook his head. "Don't you see? If I told them now, they'd think I made up a fiancée to hide my real feelings."
"Is that what you did?"
His fingers tightened around the towel. "No. But I didn't want Josh and Marilyn to think I was upset over their marriage. When I left and moved to Atlanta, they got this crazy idea that I'd left because of Marilyn. They think I never got over her."
Kimberly's mouth tightened at his comment, but he didn't have time to analyze it.
"And if we tell them the truth today of all days, everyone will be upset. It'll ruin Josh and Marilyn's wedding."
Kimberly was studying him, her eyes searching his face. For what, he didn't know, but he wished to hell he did. Because he'd give anything to see that sweet smile again. And desire in her eyes. She had wanted him last night, hadn’t she?
Or had he been so drunk he’d misread her signals?
"I can't do that to them," he said adamantly.
"All right," Kimberly whispered. "But you have to tell your mom we're not getting married today. Tell her we need more time to plan, to invite friends."
He nodded, her words stirring a lonely ache inside his chest. Resigned, he stood, but his towel caught on the bedpost and suddenly slipped to the floor.
Kimberly gasped softly. His sex surged and swelled, his arousal heightened by the look of surprise in her eyes.
Then she turned and suddenly bolted from the room into the adjoining bathroom as if seeing him naked had completely revolted her, shredding the last remnants of his fragile male pride.
And driving home the fact that they weren’t getting married today or any other time.
* * *
Kimberly raced into the other room, the image of Austin naked and aroused flooding her with desire.
She'd never seen a more virile looking man, had never had her senses jump-started as they had when Austin's magnificent body had been revealed. Wow. He was sleekly muscled, darkly tanned, and powerfully large from head to toe.
And more man than she'd ever had before or ever dreamed of having. Literally.
He would have to realize she wasn't Marci just by her reaction.
Kimberly's sister would never have acted so blatantly excited that she'd had to run from the room or risk throwing herself at the man.
She tried to stifle her lusty yearnings, reminding herself she needed to gain control before facing him again. Or his mother. The sweet, dear lady who'd offered to loan Kimberly her wedding dress.
Tears pricked at the backs of her eyelids. Lust and sentiment were not emotions meant to be experienced in the course of the same hour. This whole situation was driving her crazy, provoking thoughts of passionate love and sex and happily-ever-afters. And babies.
Darn it. She wanted babies. Austin’s babies.
She splashed water on her face, patted it dry, then stared at her reflection. Mirror, mirror, on the wall... the old childhood rhyme came back to haunt her, and she quickly dismissed it with her usual answer. Marci.
Marci was the sexiest of them all.
Kimberly was the sex-starved one. That was all too obvious, from the way she'd fled at the mere sight of a naked man.
Disgusted with herself and knowing Austin needed time to straighten out the double wedding misunderstanding, she slipped into the bedroom. Marci probably wouldn't be back from Vegas yet, but she'd leave another message on her cell and tell her sister to cancel her appointments on Monday. Marci could fill in for her, answer the phones at the childcare center and postpone everything else.
Worry knotted her insides. Although the last time her sister had filled in for her at work, chaos had descended. Kimberly groaned and reached for the phone.
Things just kept getting more complicated by the minute.
* * *
"I know what Philip said, Mom, but I just got carried away last night. We don't even have a license or blood tests and there are plans to make." Austin felt Kimberly squeeze his hand for moral support and shot her a sideways look of thanks.
Truth was, he was a big fat chicken. He’d intentionally waited on her to come out of the bedroom so he didn’t have to face his mother alone.
"Don't take long to get a license," his father said, propping himself against the kitchen counter.
"In Virginia that's all you need," his mother confirmed.
"I don't want Austin to feel rushed or pressured," Kimberly said, coming to his defense.
"At Marilyn's bridal luncheon, you admitted you wanted to go ahead and get married, Kimberly, but you didn't want to interfere with Josh and Marilyn's big day."
Austin's gaze flew to Kimberly's, his brows furrowed.
Mr. McDane chuckled. "Josh and Marilyn are all for sharing the day. And your mom here is a whiz at making plans."
"We really don’t want you to elope." Mrs. McDane nodded. "Please do it here so your family can witness your special day."
Austin’s pulse pounded. How could he deny his sweet mother?
"Marilyn's already called," she continued. "She wants to know if there's anything she can do to help."
"Josh called and said he'd be by to help, too," Philip said.
Becca tapped her computer, gesturing toward the array of flowers on the screen. "Do you want roses or lilies for your bouquet, Kimberly? Or would you rather have something else?"
Becca grabbed Kimberly’s hand and dragged her into the seat beside her, scrolling through different flower designs.
Austin slurped his coffee, searching his mind for another argument while Kimberly tried to dodge questions.
His brother darted out, looking as if he was up to no good.
Kimberly had been right—his mother was ecstatic. When he'd first found her in the kitchen, she'd been grinning all over, humming the "Wedding March" as she carefully ironed her antique wedding dress. Now she was working on straightening the lace on the veil.
"Oh, goodness," his mother exclaimed. "We'll need to order more champagne."
"Look, Mom, Dad, I don't want to complicate things with these hurried plans," Austin finally cut in. "There's too much to do in such a short time. Let's just hold off."
His mother waved her hand, the lacy dress rustling in her hands. "For heavens' sakes, don't worry about the details. We'll take care of everything."
"I called your grandmother and she's delighted she can make it." His dad hooked his thumbs in his overalls. "You haven't seen her lately, son. She couldn't make it to the engagement party because her health's been failing."
Mrs. McDane shook her head sadly. "A wedding might just be the thing to perk her up."
Defeat settled in Austin's throat. Kimberly's lower lip quivered as if she'd been touched by the news of his grandmother's failing health as much as he was. One lie had definitely snowballed into another.
How could he possibly tell his family the truth now?
"We'll give y'all a big party and invite all the relatives as soon as you get back from your honeymoon," his mother suggested. "And if you two want to p
lan a ceremony to renew your vows in front of Kimberly's family, well, that's all right, too. We certainly won't mind having a second wedding!"
Austin gulped. Things were completely out of control.
April flew in, her baby girl snuggled in her arms and kissed his cheek. "Congratulations, bro. I can't wait to see you walk down the aisle. By the way, Rob's friend is a photographer. He's going to videotape the wedding!"
Austin fought panic at Kimberly’s trapped expression. Then an image of her wearing his mother's wedding dress flashed into his head, and his panic oddly subsided.
In his mind, Kimberly was smiling at him, looking breathtaking in the antique ivory lace gown, her eyes glowing with love. Caught up in his family's excitement, the fantasy seemed so real he almost believed it could happen, that he and Kimberly could marry and live together happily ever after.
"Kimberly, my sister Edna owns a bakery. She's already getting the cake ready!" Mrs. McDane shrieked excitedly.
Kimberly started to protest, but Philip reached for her. "Can I get an early kiss from the bride?"
Austin forgot all coherent thoughts as a streak of jealousy bolted through him. The stunned look on Kimberly's face, coupled with his brother's mischievous look, and the image of Kimberly being his wife had Austin so rattled he pushed Philip aside. "No one’s kissing my bride but me."
Well aware he sounded like a caveman, but not caring, he dragged her in his arms and kissed her senseless.
At least he felt senseless when he was finished.
When he finally released her, his breathing was labored, his mind reeling from the passion simmering between them.
His brother laughed. "Control yourself, bro. It’s not the honeymoon night yet."
Behind him he heard his mother's tearful voice say, "Just think in a few hours, Kimberly, dear, you'll officially be part of the family."
* * *
"I thought you were going to tell them we weren't going through with it today," Kimberly hissed as she dragged Austin into the bedroom.
She was totally turned on from his kissing, aroused to the point of frustration from letting herself imagine actually being married to Austin, and feeling guilty as all get out for deceiving Austin's family. If she ever were to marry, the McDanes were exactly the type of family she'd choose.