by Ella Miles
“To new beginnings. May you find a way to shove it to all these high-class idiots who don’t know how amazing you are,” Kade whispers in my ear, as he clinks his glass with mine.
I smile and drink my glass until it’s empty. When I look up, I realize Kade has done the same. I don’t know how many drinks he’s had, but he better be able to drive me home later. I won’t admit to him, but I enjoyed riding in his McLaren.
Anastasia grabs her fiancé’s hand and starts to pull him forward as she glances at our father to let him know she’s ready to make her announcement.
He smiles at her because of course, he’s happy his princess has found love. But if I were announcing I was getting married, he’d think I was a gold digger who doesn’t want to work.
“I think we should go. I changed my mind. I can’t watch this, no matter how beautiful I feel,” I whisper into Kade’s ear, pulling his hand to lead him out of here quickly. I don’t care if Anastasia knows why I’m leaving, I can’t stay.
Kade kisses the top of my hand, and I’m thankful he’s going to go without a fight.
A hand tugs me to the center of the crowd with Kade being the one forcing me in.
I glare at him, not liking whatever he’s doing.
He flashes me his handsome grin and gives me a tiny wink.
I can’t help but stop protesting when he looks at me like he is now.
“Thank you, Mr. Veil, for your toast, but I’d like to offer one of my own. My toast is to the most wonderful woman I’ve ever met. To a woman, I’m desperately in love with, and can’t imagine living without.”
I bite my lip to keep from grinning at his fake words. I don’t care that they are fake. I love hearing them. I could live in this fantasy world forever. Even deal with my stupid family and their friends if it meant hearing him say such wonderful things about me.
“I love you so much, Larkyn. You’re beautiful, smart, feisty, stubborn. And I couldn’t have built a more perfect woman for myself if I tried. I’ve been searching for a woman like you for a long time. And I kick myself every day for not finding you sooner, especially when you were this close to me.”
His words have a bit of truth to them, even though I know he means as friends. He’s sad we weren’t friends earlier. I am too, but I’m sure we will keep in touch after this day is over and make up for lost time.
Kade holds my hand tighter, as he bends down on one knee.
My eyes widen staring at him, and the crowd gasps all at once at the sight of him on one knee.
He pulls something out of his jacket pocket. But I can’t focus on the object, all I can do is stare into his eyes and try to figure out what the hell is happening.
“Larkyn Day, I love you. Marry me?”
Yep, he’s lost his damn mind.
He’s smirking, and I know he thinks he’s come up with the perfect plan to stop Anastasia. And he has. I just don’t think he’s thought this through. He’s making my dreams come true today, only to crush me tomorrow. We aren’t in love. We aren’t getting married. This is all a ruse. And tomorrow it will all be over. We can keep pretending for a while, but we aren’t getting married.
He winks at me though, and I can’t help but go along with his ridiculous plan. Even if it’s going to hurt me tomorrow, it will be worth it today.
“Yes,” I say, barely getting the words out.
“She said yes!” he shouts so the crowd can hear my answer.
Cheering and applause break out, and Kade stands up and slips a ring onto my finger. Where the hell did he get a ring?
And then he kisses me. Hard. Long. A kiss that makes me forget this isn’t real. That Kade King isn’t mine. And I’m not his.
But today, I am.
When the kiss ends, people begin hurriedly approaching us, bombarding us with questions, and ogling the ring I haven’t even had the chance to look at myself.
“Oh my god! Look at the size of the ring. Is it eight carrots or ten?” the woman stares at Kade.
He smirks. “Ten.”
My eyes come unglued as I stare at him. How the hell does he have a ten carrot engagement ring for a fake proposal?
He shrugs at me knowing I have a lot of questions for him. I know he’s rich and has a lot of friends. That’s apparently how I’m wearing this expensive dress right now. But I don’t care how many friends he has in the jewelry business. No one would lend him this expensive of a ring for one day, on this quick of a notice.
“Excuse me. I need to thank my fiancé. Privately,” I say winking at them, knowing I just caused a new wave of gossip as they think I’m about to take Kade into one of the bedrooms to fuck him.
I grab Kade’s hand, and I pull him into the house, but people continue to follow us in. As much as I like sticking it to my sister and family, I’m done with being the center of the attention and the reason for the gossip.
So I keep guiding Kade out the front of the house, and this time, he doesn’t argue or pull me back to the crowd that has now gathered outside of the house.
“Thank you all for coming to celebrate our engagement and Larkyn’s graduation. We would love some time to celebrate before we decide on a date. But it will be soon,” Kade says, winking at the crowd that is asking us questions about when the wedding will be.
Kade opens the door to his car and helps me inside, before jumping in himself and speeding off.
I hit him playfully on the shoulder. “You’re so bad. Why did you let them think there is going to be a wedding soon? And oh my god!” I grab the ring off my finger and thrust it into his hand.
“I can’t be wearing a ring this expensive. If I lose it, I’ll be paying you back my entire life. I’ll have to sell my kidney to make a down payment on paying you back.”
He smirks, pulls over abruptly, and shoves the ring back onto my finger.
“Did you hear me? I can’t afford to pay you back if I lost this ring.”
“I know. It’s not on loan.”
I narrow my eyes.
“How did you get the ring then? Please tell me you didn’t steal it off of someone’s finger when they weren’t looking.”
He laughs. “No, it belonged to my mother.”
Shit.
“I can’t wear it, it’s irreplaceable,” I say, trying to get the ring off, but it’s now stuck on my swollen finger. Great.
I feel the panic rising in my chest.
“Stop,” he says, holding onto my hand.
I freeze. If I don’t move, there is no way I can lose the ring.
“I want you to wear the ring.”
“Why?”
“Because I want to pretend marry you.”
7
Larkyn
Kade’s lost his damn mind.
Or he’s drunker than I thought.
Or maybe he’s high?
Except, he doesn’t seem any of those things.
He’s sitting in the driver’s seat next to me, waiting for me to speak. But he’s been waiting a long time; I’ve yet to find my voice or ability to move at all.
All I can do is stare down at the gorgeous ring that weighs heavy on my finger. Ten carats was what the woman said. That’s insane. If I’m going to do this, I have to convince him at least to buy me a cheaper ring to wear, because I can’t wear a ring this expensive or this sentimental to him.
What am I doing? I can’t be seriously considering this. This is crazy! I don’t even know why he would want to do this. He hardly knows me. He doesn’t want to be fake married to me.
Kade grasps my hand again and pulls it to his luscious lips, planting a small kiss on the palm of my hand before interlinking our fingers together.
I close my eyes as the familiar tingling crawls up my arm and races through my body. It’s such a sweet gesture. It’s his gesture. It’s what he does when he wants to comfort me. If I was actually his, would he do more?
Would he be kissing me on the lips? Hugging me? Fucking me? Something else to make me forget about whatever I’m thinking?
If I said yes, I might find out.
No.
He said he wants to ‘pretend marry’ me. It wouldn’t be any different than it was today. He would hold my hand and make polite conversations with people to make them think we are together. He would occasionally kiss my hand or kiss me on the lips. Nothing more.
But I would get to kiss him. And that alone would be worth the heartache of when this ended. Because this would end. Someone would find out. Or we wouldn’t need each other any more.
Kade is a guy. He won’t become emotionally attached, especially if there is no sex. He will use me to further his own goals, that’s it.
But every brush of his lips against mine, every grin, every kind word, every touch of his hand will make me fall for him a little more until I’m completely in love with him. And then, I’ll want this to be real.
Kade King is a gentleman. In fact, he’s incredible. Other than the first night when he was trying to convince me to leave. That night, he was an ass. He wanted to fuck me, and we both knew it. And instead of admitting it, he treated me like dirt.
“You hungry?” Kade asks, as the car stops.
My eyes widen as I stare out the window. We’re in the valet line of one of the most expensive steakhouses in town. I’ve never eaten here since it’s not in my price range, but I’m drooling thinking about the food I’ve seen from Sebastian and his friends’ Instagram posts of this place.
My stomach growls.
Kade laughs. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
I wince and nod.
He releases my hand, runs his hand through his hair, and jumps out to beat the valet to my door.
I stare at him wide-eyed, still not speaking, as he smirks. He picks my hand up off my lap, helping me stand. My ankle throbs as I stand, but I’m not going to let it ruin whatever is happening.
Kade is pretending to be my date and wants to fake marry me. That is all my brain can process at the moment.
I take a step, and my heel catches in the cobblestone.
Kade’s prepared and tightens his grip on my arm.
“Sorry, I should have taken you home first so you could at least change shoes, but I couldn’t resist bringing you here when you look this gorgeous in the dress.”
I blush. He’s making it harder for me to speak instead of easier.
We make it into the restaurant, only because Kade is holding me up.
“Mr. King!” the surprised hostess exclaims. “I’m so sorry if you made a reservation, it must have gotten lost. Give me one minute, and I’ll make sure we have a table for you.” She winks at Kade.
I grip his arm until I’m sure my nails are digging into his flesh and give her my best glare.
Kade chuckles and leans down to kiss me on the cheek.
“I think my arrangement is going to work out fantastically, but if you keep gripping my arm this hard, I won’t be able to marry you because people will think you abuse me,” he says.
I release my claws, but I still hold onto him, leaning harder into his chest. I can’t believe this woman has the balls to flirt with Kade. She’s the hostess. What happened to professionalism?
“We have a private table near the window overlooking the lake. I know it’s not your usual table, but I think you will enjoy the new view,” the hostess says.
I tense.
Kade nods and then leans into my ear again, causing shivers to roll through me. “Don’t worry. I’ve never brought a date here.”
I raise my eyebrow, not believing him as we follow the hostess.
“I haven’t. I only bring business associates here. I can impress a date without bringing her here.”
“Then, why am I here?”
He smiles. “I’m glad you haven’t completely lost your voice. Because this is a mix of business and pleasure. And besides, you aren’t like most woman. I need more than a fancy restaurant, fast car, and charm to convince you. You’re too smart to fall for one of them alone. I need a mix of everything to win you over.”
I blush again, liking his answer.
We keep walking, and every time we pass a table, the entire table stops their conversation to look up at us. For the first time in my life, I feel like I belong. These people don’t know who I am, and they aren’t judging me because Kade King is on my arm. My dress would win in any fight against any of the dresses in here on those who-wore-it-best shows. And I have a flashy ring, double the size of most in here, on my finger.
It feels strange, fitting into a crowd I’ve spent my whole life on the outskirts of. Not willingly trying to enter their world, but hating that I was never invited in.
Kade pulls out my chair, and I take a seat in the dark black chair, set in front of a white tablecloth with red flowers in the center. I turn my attention out the window, where strings of lights hang over the balcony, before the lake surrounded by flowers, fountains, and views. I didn’t even know a lake existed back here, but it might be the most romantic spot in all of Santa Barbara.
Kade leans back in his chair, smirking like he thinks I’m going to be able to fix whatever problems he has.
I swallow. I can’t even fix my problems. And I doubt fake marrying Kade will be the solution, however appealing it is.
A waiter appears and pours us both a glass of red wine. He also gives us a dish of bread with butter. I haven’t had white bread with butter in ages. I only put healthy food into my body, but tonight, I’m eating anything placed in front of me.
“How did the waiter know we wanted red wine?” I ask.
Kade lifts the oversized wine glass out to me. I pick up my glass. It’s so light. It must be real crystal.
“Because it’s his job to know. I’ve come to this restaurant many times. He knows my preferences. And if either of us isn’t happy with the wine, he will bring us a new glass of something else. He knows I prefer not to be disturbed or asked too many questions, so he won’t, unless I let him know there is a problem.”
“Oh.”
“Now, to a night that will change both of our lives forever.”
We clink our glasses together, and I taste the wine. It’s good. I won’t be asking to return my wine.
Kade watches me as I take another sip before I put the glass down. I need to drink slowly, I’ve already had more alcohol than I usually drink and I need a clear head if I’m going to make the correct decision.
I take a piece of bread and spread it with the butter before taking a bite.
I moan as the rich honey butter coats my tongue and slowly slips down my throat.
Kade cocks his head to the side.
“What?”
He shakes his head. “You’re just sexy as hell when you do that.”
I blush and put the piece of bread back on the plate.
“So tell me why you’ve decided we should get fake married. Because my theory is you’re high or drunk.”
He doesn’t blink or react to my joke. He takes his piece of the bread and butters it before chomping down on it, making me wait. I hate waiting.
I raise an eyebrow.
Kade leans forward like he’s about to tell me a secret.
“Because you need me.”
I fold my arms and lean back with a sigh. “I don’t need you or anyone else.”
“Maybe. Or maybe you need exactly this.”
I stop breathing, as I look into his dreamy eyes and cocky grin. He’s going to win this. I need to make sure the terms are what I want. If not, I’m going to end up hurt.
“And why do I need this?” I ask, not looking at him, and instead, eating more of the crunchy bread that tastes like cake in my mouth.
“Because you need everything I’m offering. Money, a place to live, a job, and a way to prove that not only can you fit into the world your family lives in, but you can rule it. You can be the top of the top. You won’t have to worry about your father, mother, sister, or anyone in this town, ever looking down on you again.”
I bite my lip trying to think about his words b
efore responding, but I have too much on my mind to be patient with words.
“I don’t want—”
“I need your help too,” he says, cutting me off.
I giggle. “How can I help you? You’re a god in this town. I couldn’t possibly help a man like you.”
He leans back in his chair, as he waves over a female waiter.
“Hello, Mr. King. What can I do for you?” the woman says seductively while touching his forearm.
Kade doesn’t smile back at her. He ignores her and instead narrows his eyes as he looks at me like he’s undressing me.
I shift uncomfortably in my seat. I turn my attention away from Kade to the woman I hate. She doesn’t get to touch him like that. I glare at her.
“This is Larkyn Day,” Kade says, turning the waitress’ attention toward me.
I snarl at her, and the woman hesitantly removes her hand from Kade’s arm.
Better.
“She’s going to be my wife. We got engaged this afternoon,” Kade finishes.
“Congratulations,” the woman says, taking a step away from Kade. “I’ll make sure the manager knows, and he’ll bring some complimentary champagne and dessert to help you celebrate.”
“Thank you, Theresa,” Kade says.
The woman practically runs off, like she can’t get away from us fast enough.
“That is how you can help me.”
I frown.
“I don’t understand.”
“Women hit on me constantly.”
I snort. “And that’s a problem?”
He growls in a throaty way. “Yes, it’s a problem. I don’t mind casual sex, but I’m not looking for a wife or heir. Every woman I date, especially the women in this town, are looking for a proposal the second I slip my dick inside them. They want my money and prestige that would come with getting my last name.”
I blush when he says the word dick, which he positively notices because the edge of his lips curl up as he says the word.
“And I will help your problem how? You’ll be fake married to me, the one thing you don’t want.”
“Exactly, I’ll be married to you. A woman who can make women run away with just a look.”