The Engagement Project

by Brenda Harlen

  But when Megan spotted Tara Gallagher standing inside the door and saw the way the other woman’s eyes widened when she walked in with Gage, she couldn’t deny the pride and possessiveness that surged inside of her. Maybe he was only hers for a while, but she was definitely going to enjoy every second of it.

  After receiving their name tags, Megan and Gage headed to the gymnasium where the band was playing songs intended to evoke memories of high school events. But of course, Megan had never attended any. In fact, she’d only ever planned to go to one dance, and only then because she’d been invited.

  Darrin Walsh had been the captain of the football team and her chemistry lab partner and she’d been so speechless when he’d asked if she wanted to go to the Spring Fling with him, she’d only been able to nod.

  The night of the dance, she’d waited at the door so long the excited butterflies in her stomach had slowly died with last pitiful little flutters. It was barely ten o’clock, two hours before their midnight curfew, that Ashley and Paige came home. Having seen Darrin stroll into the gym with Tara, they’d immediately guessed what had happened.

  But Megan had still refused to believe it, and she’d spent the weekend by the phone, waiting for him to call and explain. It was only when the phone remained silent, and when she heard the whispers and snickers as she made her way through the halls Monday morning, that she finally accepted the truth.

  The memory wasn’t a good one, but as Megan walked into the gym with Gage, it wasn’t as powerful or upsetting as it once had been. And it dimmed even further as Gage stayed close to her side through the evening.

  But after a couple of drinks and a few dances, she had to excuse herself to use the ladies’ room. When she came back out again and recognized Darrin Walsh across the room, her heart didn’t skip a beat and her knees didn’t tremble, and she finally accepted that she wasn’t the same shy, scared girl she’d been ten years earlier.

  Still, she was surprised when he crossed the room to approach her. She didn’t think he would have recognized her and, even if he had, he certainly wouldn’t have gone out of his way to speak with her.

  Her suspicion was confirmed when his gaze dropped to the name tag pinned to her dress, then his eyes went wide.

  “Megan Roarke.” His eyes swept over her, boldly, appreciatively. “Wow. You grew up.”

  “It happens to most of us,” she told him.

  “But…wow,” he said again.

  A few months earlier, she wouldn’t have been able to endure such blatant perusal without turning away, she wouldn’t have known how to respond to such a compliment without stuttering. But being with Gage had gone a long way to building her self-confidence.

  “And you’re as eloquent as always,” she told him.

  He smiled, appreciative of the compliment, oblivious to her sarcasm. “You went away to school, didn’t you?”

  She nodded. “Northwestern.”

  “What are you doing now?”

  “I’m a senior lab tech at Richmond Pharmaceuticals.”

  “Wow,” he said for a third time. “I can’t believe it’s really you.”

  And she couldn’t believe she’d ever seen anything in a guy who couldn’t stop staring at her breasts long enough to focus on a conversation. Of course, that hadn’t been a problem in high school because she hadn’t had any breasts back then.

  “What are you up to these days?” she asked, because it seemed impolite not to.

  He rolled back his shoulders, puffed out his chest. “I’m coaching football.”

  “Congratulations,” she said, unable to think of any other response.

  “The boys had a tough year last season, but we’re building a strong team for next fall.”

  She nodded. Although she’d once gone starry eyed over a certain football player, she’d never understood or cared about the game.

  Darrin nodded, too. He started to lift his beer bottle to his mouth, then paused. “Hey, can I buy you a drink? I mean, it’s probably the least I can do in exchange for all the help you gave me in high school.”

  “No, thanks,” she said, zeroing in on Gage as he made his way toward her.

  The way her heart bumped in response to the smile on his face told her she was treading on dangerous ground with her fake fiancé, but she was too relieved and grateful to worry about that now.

  “Are you here by yourself?” Darrin asked.

  The question drew her attention back to the man she’d forgotten was at her side just as Gage joined them.

  Whether he’d accurately summed up the scene or was just intent on playing his part, her fiancé dipped his head to kiss her full on the lips.

  “Oh, uh, obviously not,” Darrin answered his own question.

  “This is—” the words my fiancé stuck in her throat, so Megan amended her planned introduction “—Gage Richmond.” Then to Gage, she said, “Darrin and I were in twelfth-grade chemistry together.”

  “I was just thanking Roarke for her help in that chemistry class. I wouldn’t have got through it without her.” Then, waving to someone else across the room, he said. “Well, I’m going to go catch up with Toby Bell.”

  Megan watched him go and felt as if she might finally have put the past behind her.

  “Did I interrupt?” Gage asked, sounding more amused than concerned.

  She shook her head. “In fact, your timing was perfect.”

  “Were you really his study partner in high school?”

  “Not exactly.”

  He lifted a brow.

  “I wrote up all of his lab reports and let him copy off of my tests.” She shrugged. “He was the quarterback of the football team and I was foolishly and hopelessly in love.

  “Of course, he didn’t even recognize me,” she confessed. “He only knew my name because he read it on my name tag.”

  Gage scowled. “No doubt he came out of his way to…read your name tag.”

  “It seems strange being here,” she admitted. “I feel like a fraud.”

  “Why?”

  “Because this isn’t me. It doesn’t matter what I’m wearing on the outside—inside I’m still the same ‘Roarke the Dork’ I was in high school.”

  Gage tipped her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze. “You’ve only got it half right,” he said. “The reason it doesn’t matter what you’re wearing is because you’ve always been an incredibly beautiful woman hiding behind your brain.”

  “The way you say it almost makes me believe it’s true.”

  “Let me convince you,” he said, and bent his head to kiss her.

  His lips were soft but firm as they moved over hers in a slow, sensuous exploration that made her heart pound and her body yearn. His tongue slid into her mouth, not deeply probing but gently teasing, and her blood heated in her veins, melting any last token resistance. Her hands moved up his chest, over his shoulders. He splayed his hand against the small of her back, drawing her closer, close enough so that she could tell he was as aroused as she was.

  When he finally eased his mouth from hers, she was breathless and just a little dazed. “What was that for?”

  “Partly to convince you. Partly because I really wanted a taste of you.” He grinned. “But mostly because I want all of the guys here to know who you’re going home with tonight.”

  Maybe she should have been offended by the arrogant and very public way he’d staked his claim, but she was too aroused to be angry.

  “Speaking of going home,” she said.

  His smile widened. “You read my mind. But we should have one last dance before we go.” He led her to the floor where several couples were already swaying to the tune of an old Madonna ballad.

  Megan melted into his arms, thinking she was seriously crazy for him, and that had never been part of the plan.

  Ashley wished she’d never badgered Megan into accepting the invitation to their high school reunion, because then she wouldn’t have felt compelled to come. But she’d wanted to attend the reunion, and she�
��d assumed that Trevor would be with her. She couldn’t have guessed that her fiancé would choose a weekend golf trip with the guys over her.

  So she’d come with Paige. But shortly after their arrival, her cousin had struck up a conversation with Marvin Tedeschi—former yearbook editor and chess club champion—and they’d been inseparable ever since.

  Sure there were other people for Ashley to talk to and hang out with. She’d been one of the popular girls in high school, part of the in-crowd and friends with almost everyone one, so it seemed that she couldn’t turn around without seeing someone else who wanted to reminisce about the good old days with her.

  Except that Ashley didn’t feel much like reminiscing. She’d thought that coming to the reunion would be her chance to face her broken dreams and ancient heartache and finally put them behind her. She’d also thought that she’d be facing those broken dreams and ancient heartache with Trevor by her side, and his absence just made her all the more aware of everything that was missing.

  At least there was a bar, she thought philosophically, as she made her way toward it. She ordered a glass of chardonnay, figuring she would sip at it for an hour or so while she mingled, then quietly slip away.

  She spotted Megan and Gage dancing and smiled. Regardless of their reasons for being together, there was no denying how well they fit, even if neither of them was ready to admit it.

  As she turned away from the couples on the dance floor, she found herself face-to-face with Cameron Turcotte.

  “Hello, Ashley.”

  She tightened her grip on her wineglass and forced a smile, because she absolutely refused to let him see how much his unexpected presence had rattled her. “Cameron. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

  “This was my high school, too,” he reminded her.

  As if she needed reminding. As if just seeing him again didn’t open the floodgates on too many memories she’d tried for so long to forget.

  “You came all the way from Seattle for a high school reunion?” she asked, hoping to sound both disbelieving and disinterested.

  “Actually, I happened to be in town for a meeting,” he admitted. “It was just lucky that the timing worked out.”

  Lucky for him, maybe, and very unlucky for her. She lifted her glass to sip her wine, and refused to ask the question that was on her lips.

  “My meeting was with Elijah Alexander,” he told her, despite the fact that she hadn’t asked.

  The name was enough to confirm the rumor Paige had warned her about, that Dr. Alexander was looking toward retirement and was actively seeking someone to help out his local practice.

  And though she wanted to continue to ignore him and the information he’d revealed, she heard herself say, “You’re going to work with Dr. Alex?”

  “I’m considering it,” he agreed. “I wasn’t sure how I would feel, coming back after so many years. Then I walked in here tonight and it was almost like the past twelve years had never happened.”

  Ashley only wished she could wipe those years from her mind so easily. But as hard as she’d tried, she couldn’t forget, and she wasn’t going to stroll down memory lane with the only man who had ever broken her heart. Instead she asked, “Did your wife make the trip with you?”

  She’d learned, through a chance meeting with his mother at the grocery store, that he had married. At the time, the news had stunned her so much that she couldn’t even remember if she’d responded to Gayle Turcotte’s announcement. But that was a long time ago, and she spoke casually now, as if his marital status was of no concern to her. Because it wasn’t.

  “No.” He looked away. “I’m divorced now.”

  “I’m sorry to hear it,” she said.

  He shrugged. “Things don’t always turn out the way we plan.”

  “I know,” she said pointedly. “I learned that lesson the hard way.”

  She started to move away, but he reached out and put his hand on her arm. It was a casual touch, but it froze her in place.

  “I’m sorry, Ashley.”

  She shook his hand off, angry with him for stirring her up and angrier with herself for letting him. “What, exactly, are you sorry for?”

  “Hurting you.”

  “It was a long time ago,” she said dismissively.

  “I’d like to explain.”

  “There’s no need. Really.”

  “But…”

  His words trailed off and she saw that his eyes were fixed on the ring nestled on the third finger of her left hand. Not nearly as eye-popping as her sister’s, but just as significant.

  “You’re engaged.”

  He sounded both surprised and disappointed, a reaction that might have given her some sense of satisfaction if she wasn’t feeling so much confusion about the meaning of the ring on her finger. “We’re getting married in the fall,” she told him.

  “Well, then, I guess congratulations are in order.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Where is your fiancé?”

  He looked around, as if expecting the man who’d put the ring on her finger would be somewhere nearby.

  As he should have been, but Ashley forced that thought from her mind.

  “Trevor had to be out of town this weekend.”

  “I’m sorry I won’t get a chance to meet him—” his eyes met hers, held “—to tell him what a lucky guy he is.”

  “I’m sure he knows,” she said, even though she wasn’t sure of anything anymore.

  Gage was leading Megan away from the crowd, anxious to get her alone—somewhere much more private—when she suddenly stopped moving.

  “Oh, no.” The words were barely more than a whisper but heartfelt.

  He turned. “What’s wrong?”

  “Ashley.”

  His gaze moved in the direction Megan was looking, and he spotted her sister on the edge of the dance floor, talking to someone. “I don’t see a problem.”

  “That’s Cameron Turcotte.”

  “I still don’t see the problem.”

  “There’s some serious history there,” Megan told him. “Cameron grew up across the street from us and Ashley dated him all through high school.”

  “What happened?”

  “He dumped Ash when he went away to college.”

  “That’s not an uncommon story,” he said gently.

  “I know,” she admitted. “But Ashley really loved him. And he broke her heart. Completely.”

  “And it was a lot of years ago.”

  “I know,” she said again. “And she’s engaged to Trevor, and he’s married to someone else, so maybe they’re just reminiscing about old times but—”

  Her words trailed off when Ashley turned away from Cameron.

  Even Gage could see the tears that glittered in her sister’s eyes, so he dropped the arm he’d settled around her shoulders and said, “Go.”

  She looked up at him, gratitude and regret reflected in the luminous depths of her violet eyes. “This isn’t how I wanted the night to end,” she told him.

  It wasn’t how he wanted it to end, either, but because he understood and appreciated her loyalty to her sister, he only kissed her gently. “Rain check?”

  Her smile was soft and filled with promise. “You bet.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  The following Friday, Gage and Megan played hooky from work—with the boss’s approval, of course—and drove up to Lake Placid. Allan and Grace had a house on the water and had offered it to their youngest son for the weekend.

  “To take a much-deserved break from the lab,” Allan told Gage.

  Which translated, Gage told Megan, into “a reward for finally acting like the son we want you to be.”

  Megan suspected Gage was too cynical, but regardless of the reason for the loan of the house, she couldn’t get too excited about it. Because a romantic getaway wasn’t quite so romantic when it was yet another act in a carefully staged play. And because she was all too aware that Gage had been carefully and deliberately
withdrawing from her over the past week. Since the reunion, in fact.

  She should have known it would happen. Their “engagement” had already, by his own admission, lasted longer than any other relationship he’d had in the past several years. Obviously he was starting to feel hemmed in. Or maybe he was just bored with her.

  The latter possibility, though more depressing, was also more likely. Gage had dated a lot of beautiful, sophisticated and experienced women. She’d had a total of two lovers in her twenty-five years and while the passion she had shared with Gage seemed real and compelling to her, she didn’t really have much basis for comparison.

  But she did know that nothing else about their relationship was real. It was all about creating and maintaining an illusion, and this getaway was only the latest chapter in a book filled with lies and deceptions.

  Still, she was determined to make the most of the weekend at the beautiful two-story, timber-frame house with huge arching windows that looked out over the water.

  “The bedrooms are on the upper level,” he said, as she followed him through the door.

  Megan set her duffel bag at the foot of the stairs and traced his path into the kitchen.

  While he put away the groceries they’d brought, she took a look around, admiring the glossy cherrywood cabinets, wide granite countertops and gleaming stainless-steel appliances. Beyond the breakfast nook was a pair of French doors that opened onto a covered deck.

  “This place is amazing.”

  “I used to love coming here when Craig and I were kids,” he told her. “But the older we got, the busier we got, and our trips were fewer and farther between. To tell the truth, I can’t even remember the last time I was here.”

  “Or who you were with?” she wondered aloud.

  “No, that I’m certain of. It was either my parents or just me and Craig. I’ve never been here with anyone else.” He closed the fridge and smiled at her. “I told you my parents like you.”

  Which, instead of reassuring Megan, only made her feel worse about her part in his deception.

  “What do you want to do?” he asked. “We could go into the village or walk down to the lake or just flake out in front of the television.”