“I made a commitment for no shenanigans.” He leaned closer. “I’m a man of my word. You said you wanted to prove to my Gran that we’re married, I’m just playing the part.”
Emma swallowed as his confession rolled over her. How could she have been so foolish? Maybe it was better that she finished up this trip soon and got out of here. But for now, she needed to get her head on straight and finish her deal. And if Austin was faking it. She could fake it better.
Emma reached out and touched Austin’s arm. Then she ran her fingers down his skin until she got to his hand. “Let me see that,” she said as she pulled it up to study his nail. “Did my hubby get hurt?” She brought his finger closer to her lips and kissed it.
When she glanced up at him, she saw his eyes had widened. “Um”—then he leaned closer—“What are you doing?”
She gave him an innocent expression. “Just playing the part.” She traced the tip of her finger around on his hand. “Like you, this morning.”
Austin’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he studied her. It seemed like he was fighting the urge to pull his arm away. “Good call,” he said as he nodded.
He watched as she traced her fingers farther up his arm. This was slowly becoming a game of who could make the other person nervous. “I just really want to take care of you,” Emma said as she stepped closer to him.
“Which is what a good wife would do.” He moved closer to her.
Emma cursed the heat that permeated her cheeks as she glanced up to see his intense gaze staring back at her. But she didn’t flinch. If he could handle this, so could she. Once her fingers got to the hem of his sleeve, she paused, playing with it. “Is this helping?” she asked. The breathiness of her voice surprised even her.
“Yes,” he said. His voice was deeper. As if he too were experiencing a physical reaction.
She slipped her fingers over his shirt and made her way up to his shoulder to the back of his neck where she let her fingertips play with his hair. “What else can I do to help you feel better?” She pressed closer to him. Her heart pounding in response. It must be the game she was playing that had her adrenaline rushing. The anticipation of seeing just how far Austin was going to let her take it.
She ran her hand up his other arm and intertwined her fingers behind his neck. He shifted, bringing his body closer to hers. She felt him dip down, almost as if he was going to kiss her. Her stomach lightened as she thought back to the moment they’d had earlier. She’d be lying if she told herself that kissing him had been awful. In fact, it had been. . . indescribable.
He leaned closer to her ear. “Emma,” he said, his breath tickled her skin.
She pulled back and swallowed, praying she sounded normal. “Yes, Austin?” The look in his eyes made her heart pound. What did it mean? There was a hint of desire mixed with uncertainty. Like he was holding back, but in any moment, he’d lose control and everything that he was hiding would break free.
He didn’t respond right away and that was okay. Emma was lost in his gaze and everything around her faded away. Then, as quickly as it came, his expression relaxed. His lips tipped up in a flirtatious smile.
“You play the fake wife, beautifully,” he said, pulling back from her.
His words caused her to come crashing back to reality. In those few words, the moment that they had just shared together, disappeared. And all that was left was the lie that they were living in.
Forcing a smile, Emma stepped back as well. “Good. I’m happy that I play the lie well.” She cleared her throat. “I have to applaud you, too.”
A sour expression passed over Austin’s face as he nodded. “Well, they didn’t cast me as Peter Pan in Middle School just because I was one of the only sixth graders.”
Emma just nodded. She wasn’t sure what to say to that. An awkward silence fell around them. She cleared her throat and waved toward the house.
“I’m going to go in and make some lunch,” she said. Anything to get away from Austin and their confusing relationship.
Austin just nodded and turned back to the fence post.
The sudden need to get as far away from him as possible rushed over her and she walked as fast as she could over to the porch and into the kitchen. Once inside, she was grateful for the privacy being inside brought her. Here, she was safe. Here, Austin wasn’t around to confuse her.
Fifteen minutes later, three sandwiches were made and sitting on the faded ceramic plates that Emma had taken down from the cupboard. After rummaging around in the pantry, she located a half open bag of chips in the corner and dumped a portion out next to each sandwich.
She stepped back and surveyed her work. It was modest. Nothing amazing. But she’d been helpful and working had helped her keep her mind off of Austin and that was good. She rubbed her neck with her hand and sighed. Except now, she’d have to go outside and call him in. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for that.
Just as she moved to the back door, her phone rang. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled it out and glanced down at the screen.
Mom.
Taking a deep breath, she hit talk and brought the phone to her cheek.
“Hello?”
There were some scratching noises on the other end. It sounded as if someone had said her name, but with all the static she couldn’t make it out.
“Hang on. I’ll call you back,” she said, glancing around Austin’s kitchen to see a landline phone hanging on the wall. “Mom? Mom, if you can hear me, I’m going to call you right back.”
She hung up and headed over to the wall phone where she picked it up and dialed her mom’s number. After a few rings, she picked up.
“Emma?” she asked.
“Hey, Mom.” Emma leaned against the wall. For the first time in a long time, she was grateful to hear the familiar cadence of her mother’s voice.
“Where are you?”
Emma closed her eyes as she thought about what she was going to say to that. Oh, Mom. I’m in Montana where I’m married to a cowboy who not only confuses every part of my brain but makes me so angry. And I can’t figure out if he likes me or if he’s just an amazing liar.
“I’m in Montana,” she said. It was probably best to just be honest. Plus, she’d had just about as much lying as she could take for a while.
“Montana? Why are you there?”
“Just helping out a friend.” And there she went again. Lying. But how was she supposed to tell her wedding-crazed mother that she got married without her knowing? It just might break her heart.
“Why don’t I know this friend. You’ve never mentioned anything about friends living in Montana.”
“You met him, Mom. Austin. From Shannon’s wedding?”
Silence.
“Emma. Why did you run off to Montana with him?”
“It’s not like that.” Except, it was exactly like that. But, she seemed to be the only one who was falling for the other person. Austin seemed shut off. Like he could do anything that a couple could do but without any of the emotional repercussions. Every touch and kiss seemed engrained in her mind from the moment they kissed in front of the judge at the courthouse.
“It’s not like what, Emma?”
Emma tried not to sigh. This was her mother’s tactic. Ask lots of questions and say her name over and over again, making her feel like a little kid again. Well, it wasn’t going to work this time. She was going to stand her ground. She’d promised Austin a fake marriage and she wasn’t going to mess that up with feelings or confessions that would just get her heart broken.
“He just needed a little help around his ranch and I agreed to come out. No shenanigans. I’m here for just a little bit more and then I’m coming home. I promise.”
There was silence but then the receiver filled with the sound of her mother’s sigh. “Well, make sure you keep me informed. I don’t want to be one of those Dateline moms.”
Emma rolled her eyes. “Dateline mom, really?”
“It happens.”
“Okay, Mom. I’ll be careful.”
Her mom chuckled. “Okay. I love you, honey.”
Emma nodded. “Love you, too.”
She hung up and Emma returned the phone to the base. Sighing, she turned and made her way toward the back door. How had things become such a mess so fast? This wasn’t how she’d seen any of this going. Maybe it had been a huge mistake, coming here. And what for? With the way Alayna Maverick seemed to be staring at her, she didn’t believe that Emma and Austin were married.
Maybe it was time that she stopped faking it all. To be honest and get out. After all, in the end, Austin deserved to be happy just as much as she did. If she backed away now, there would still be time for him to find someone to marry. Someone he loved.
The thought of him being at this all alone caused a hollow feeling in her chest. That wasn’t what she wanted for him. And perhaps, that wasn’t what his grandmother wanted either. It was easy to hide away. To not face the past and your feelings. To decide that you weren’t worthy of love.
And Austin shouldn’t settle for any of those feelings. He should get out there. Find the one. Living a lie was no way to live. Emma took a deep breath. At least, that’s what someone who cared for someone else would do. And she was beginning to realize that she cared for him. More than she wanted to admit.
Chapter Sixteen
Austin
The sound of tires moving down the gravel road pulled Austin’s attention toward it. If it wasn’t the post that was giving him a hard time, it was the memory of Emma pressed so close to him that seemed to have him all out of sorts.
It’d been over a half hour since Emma left him alone with the feeling of her skin still burning on his own and he still couldn’t gather his wits enough to finished pounding the post into the ground. He’d already hammered his finger more times than he cared to admit.
So, when Gran stepped out of the SUV, he welcomed the distraction. She straightened her shirt and shouldered her purse. There was a contemplative look on her face that told him, something was wrong.
“Hey, Gran,” he said, leaving his hammer next to the post and heading over in her direction. When he got to her, he extended his arms and gave her a hug. When he pulled back, she had a disgruntled expression on her face.
“Really, Austin? You’re so sweaty.” She wiped at her arms and shirt as if that was the magic cure to eliminate whatever she thought he got on her.
“Sorry,” he said, shoving his hands into his front pockets. They’d gotten off on the wrong foot earlier. Having her appear in his kitchen in the wee hours of the morning was not how he wanted her to meet Emma. Or to convince her that they were married for real. He was desperately trying to hang onto to this lie even though every time he was around Emma, this whole fake marriage thing was getting harder and harder to maintain.
She nodded toward the house. “Is your friend in there?” she asked.
Austin followed her gesture with his gaze. Emma had hightailed it in there after their strange and intimate encounter in front of the fence. He’d been trying to distract himself from that exact question.
“You mean, Emma? My wife?” he asked, shooting Gran a look. As much as he wanted to fight it, Emma was rapidly becoming someone more than a friend. And perhaps it was bugging him that he wasn’t quite sure what she was becoming. Or if he had the capability to make any distinctions yet. All he knew was, he didn’t like the way the word friend rolled off Gran’s tongue.
She shot him a look. “We’ll see about that.”
Austin’s heart sank as he followed after her retreating frame. What was she going to do? Did she find something out in town? His heart picked up speed as he kept hot on her heels. He tried to take calming breaths as he told himself that he was acting crazy. She didn’t find anything because there was nothing to find. They were married. Legally.
And love? Well, that was something much harder to prove. If he didn’t know, how was someone random person in town going to know?
“What’s going on, Gran?” he asked as she went up the porch steps and made her way to the front door.
She pulled the door open and headed into the kitchen. “Oh, just a little tidbit I picked up in town.”
Austin groaned. This was not good. “Really, Gran? You’re going to believe the word of the town now? Since when did you care what they thought? According to you, they were just a whole lot of hill-billies that would never amount to anything.” He wasn’t quoting her exactly, but very similar words had come from her the day she left.
Gran whipped around and narrowed her eyes. “Austin, I have never called the people of this town a bunch a hill-billies. Uneducated, yes. But not hill-billies.” She slipped off her shoes and set her purse next to them.
“What’s the difference? For how much you dislike them, you’re going to take their word now?”
Gran raised her hands in surrender. “If they have information about how my grandson is trying to pull the wool over my eyes, I’ll listen.”
“Wool over your eyes? What are you talking about? Emma and I are married. You saw the certificate. What more do you want?” Frustration raced through his body as he stepped up to her. This was ridiculous. None of this would have happened if it hadn’t been for her ridiculous stipulation about him getting married. If it hadn’t been for her, he’d lived just fine at his ranch. Alone.
Now, she’d made him drag some innocent girl into this mess. And perhaps, he’d allowed himself to have feelings for her. Something more than a fake husband should have for his fake wife. And the worst part was, she didn’t feel the same. She was never going to feel the same.
Emma was standing at the counter when Gran burst into the room. She jumped, whipping around to look at them. She rested her hand on her heart. “You scared me,” she said. When her gaze fell to Gran, her expression turned worried. “What’s going on?”
Gran shot a look in Austin’s direction as she removed her phone from her pocket. “I would like to know what is going on here. I give my grandson the stipulation that if he wanted to inherit this ranch, he needed to find a wife. Because living a life alone is living a life half lived.” She raised her eyebrows at him and then she moved her gaze over to Emma.
“If you have something to tell me, now would be the time.” She tapped her finger on the phone.
Austin stared at her. Was she seriously trying to intimidate them into telling the truth? What could she possibly have on her phone that was incriminating at all?
“Gran, why are you acting this way? And what could you possibly have against us?” He stepped forward. This needed to stop.
Gran turned to Emma, raising her eyebrows at her. “Do you have something you need to confess?”
Emma’s lips opened and closed as she swept her gaze over to Austin. His heart pounded from the panicked look on her face. This wasn’t what he wanted. He didn’t want to hurt her. Or stress her out. What a fool he’d been to think he could keep her safe. To keep anyone safe.
He took a step forward. It was time to confess everything.
But then Emma opened her lips, stopping him in his tracks. “Truth is, Mrs. Maverick. I’m in love with your grandson. He’s. . .” Emma’s gaze fell to him. There was a look in her eye that made his breath catch in his throat. One that said perhaps her words were true. “He’s one of the best guys I’ve found in a long time. He came to me when I was at my lowest and he proved to me that there are still gentlemen in the world.”
Austin felt light headed. Was she speaking the truth? It felt strange that the moment she’d confess her feelings to him it would take place in front of his grandmother. But if it was how she felt, he’d rather know it than not.
“Emma,” he whispered. There was so much he wanted to tell her.
She closed her lips and shook her head slightly. He wanted to continue but kept his mouth closed. If she was asking him to stay silent then he would.
“So, yes. Our marriage was a whirlwind one. But I couldn’t imagine spending my life with anyon
e else.” From where he was standing, he could see tears forming on her lids.
Gran was studying her. She sighed and fiddled with her phone. After a few seconds, turned it around. “So, what does this mean?” she asked, moving to phone over so Austin could see it.
It was a picture someone took over Emma’s shoulder. A text to Vincent. Gran held it steady as he read it.
Things with Austin are bad.
“Jasmine told me that she took this just yesterday at the bar. Wanna tell me what it means?”
Austin’s heart broke as he reread the words he’d seen earlier. Why he wanted Emma to care about him, he didn’t know. A smart person didn’t let people into their lives. They kept themselves separate from everyone. That way, they never got hurt. Why did he let Emma into his life?
“Mrs. Maverick, that was my fault. In an emotional state, I texted that to my ex. I didn’t mean it. Austin and I are still trying to figure each other out. I’m sorry I ever said that.”
When Austin met her gaze, he couldn’t turn away. She was sorry. There was a look in her eye that told him, she cared. How much, he didn’t know. But their arrangement had quickly moved from platonic friends to something else.
“Truth is, the more I get to know him, the more I find myself caring for him.” Her voice dipped down as she turned to stare out the window.
Gran sighed, glancing from Emma over to him. “This true? Is that how you feel as well?”
Austin stepped closer toward Emma. Was it wrong that he wanted to yell his answer? It felt as if it would burst from his chest.
“Gran, Emma is the sweetest, nicest”—he lowered his voice—“sexiest woman I’ve ever met. I’m lucky to have met her and even luckier that she said yes to marrying me.” Emma turned to look at him. A tear slipped down her cheek. Not fighting his feelings anymore, he took the two big steps and brought her into his arms. Reaching up, he gingerly wiped the tear from her cheek. “And I love her,” he said, his voice so full of emotion that he could barely get the words out.
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