Her Hollywood Fake Fiance

by Taylor Hart

  Nervous jitters wove through her as she rode in the limo through the streets of LA. Grant had gone down earlier and had sent a car to pick her up.

  She still couldn’t believe they were engaged. Staring down at the two-carat princess-cut diamond on her finger, she let out a nervous breath.

  “It’s going to be amazing,” Ari whispered, leaning into her. “The best part is that you get to meet all of the Kent brothers.” She clapped and squealed. “The extra best part is that you’re getting married tomorrow!”

  Jewel covered her ears and tried to quell the explosions going off inside of her, but she couldn’t help laughing. “I can’t believe it either.” She thought of how they’d made the command decision to have the official ceremony right away since all of his brothers would be coming to town for the premiere. Truth be told, they also needed to be married quickly so she could keep her promise to wait for marriage. Tomorrow night, she would be leaving for the honeymoon with Grant.

  But she had to focus. Meeting the Kent brothers wasn’t a little thing. Of course, she knew a lot more about them now that she’d been with Grant all the time.

  She’d done way too much FaceTiming with little Lily, Zane’s newest addition to the Kent clan. It was to the point that she didn’t want to answer his calls all of the time. But he was so sweet. Sarah, his wife, had gotten on the call last time and apologized for Zane’s bragging. Halfway through the apology, Zane had begun kissing her, and then Jewel had just ended the call on her own. She grinned thinking about it.

  Sloane and Hope had called and congratulated them, but Sloane had been on tour, so she hadn’t really spoken much with them.

  Walker had texted a couple of times, but Scarlett, his movie star wife, had spoken out for Grant and true love and told the press she wanted to go on a crusade to end all fake PR stunts in the name of movies. Jewel had been intimidated just having all the press on her since getting engaged for real, but after Scarlett had spoken out, the press had doubled down, asking all kinds of questions about their relationship.

  Will, his professional quarterback brother, had sent his congrats, but he’d been on a month-long honeymoon after marrying his high school sweetheart, so she would meet him tonight.

  Tom, his firefighter brother, had actually stopped in LA with his new wife, Emily. They’d met in Maui on a fluke, and he’d gone to a wedding with her.

  She was captivated and, yes, at times intimidated by all of the Kents and their larger-than-life romances. However, it was the gorgeous man waiting for her as the limo pulled up to the curb who drew her in the most.

  Grant didn’t wait on a valet to open the door. He opened it himself.

  She stared up at him, and it felt like all the breath had gone out of her. How had this beautiful man become hers?

  “Hey, Polka Dot.” His grin widened, and it wasn’t the grin he used for the media. No, it was the smile he reserved for her. “Whatcha waiting for?”

  Jewel let him pull her right into his arms. Unable to even think when she was this close to him, she found his lips on hers. She didn’t pull away, not even caring that a million pictures were being taken.

  “Man, you two!” Ari said accusingly as she got out.

  Pulling back from him, they smiled at each other, and she hoped this feeling between them never ended.

  “I love you,” Grant whispered, keeping her close and peering into her eyes.

  “I love you too, Hollywood.” She looked around. “And this is the real deal. I’m so happy for you.”

  Dramatically, he spun her out like they had been dancing. She giggled.

  More cameras snapped shots. Then she and Grant and Ari, who had taken Grant’s other arm, were walking down the red carpet. Grant was casually pausing and answering a few questions, turning on his charm with the reporters. She didn’t like to answer any questions, but she did when they asked her directly.

  Suddenly, Tracy Halls showed up, and all the reporters flocked to her car.

  Grant tucked Jewel closer to him, watching the car, then turning the other way. “Quick, let’s make a break for it and catch up to my family.” He sounded like a teenager, and she and Ari smiled at each other as they half ran down the rest of the runway.

  Tracy had been gracious about the “real” breakup. Grant had called her on Christmas Day and explained everything. She’d accepted it easily, explaining she and the stunt guy had gotten serious too. So that had been that.

  Other reporters tried to stop them, but they wouldn’t stop until they’d gotten to the end of the carpet. Instead of going into the theater, Grant led them up the stairs. “We have a room up here where everyone’s hanging out.” He winked at her. “Don’t worry, they’ll love you.”

  Grant was sweating bullets as he ushered Jewel and Ari to the preshow room he’d reserved for his family. All of them were waiting.

  He wasn’t that nervous. He loved his brothers and their wives. But Jewel wasn’t like others he’d dated. She was perfect in his mind. Sweet, genuine, beautiful.

  As they were about to walk into the room, he let go of Ari’s arm and called out, “I’ll be right in.”

  Ari laughed, and Grant held Jewel close, doing a little dance step and pulling her to the side and kissing her.

  She giggled and pretended to resist.

  He leaned against the wall, yanking her flush against him. “I can’t help it. Since I opened the limo door and saw you in this amazing glittering, sparkling dress, I just need you.”

  She giggled more as he cupped the back of her head and deepened the kiss, his hands moving through her hair. “Grant, you’re going to mess me up,” she said, a bit out of breath. He loved the effect he had on her.

  Every part of him wanted to be married to this woman for so many reasons. So many, many reasons. He breathed in her neck and smelled the gorgeous scent of rosebud. He laughed. “Ari got you.”

  She took him by the shoulders and peered into his eyes. “She did.”

  Both of them smiled, and they pressed their lips back together.

  “I can’t wait to marry you,” she whispered.

  He traced her cheek, anticipating all of the craziness tomorrow. “Me too.” A flash of his parents’ faces went through his mind. It was the only thing he wished were different.

  “I know you miss them.” She frowned.

  It was uncanny how the woman could read his expressions.

  “Where is he?” Will boomed out from behind the door.

  Gently, he kissed her. “Come on, we better get in there.”

  Taking her hand, he opened the door for her, but walked in with her. Everyone burst out clapping. Grant hadn’t expected it, but he smiled.

  Then he heard a countdown: “Six, five, four, three, two, one—last Kent married!” His brothers madly rushed him with crazy looks on their faces.

  “Ahh!” Jewel had a real look of terror on her face as his brothers picked both of them up and hoisted them up overhead.

  Grant laughed and yelled down at them. “You’re so getting it!”

  They only hollered some more.

  All the women surrounding them laughed. “Watch out, Jewel!” Zane’s wife, Sarah, called out. “They will be this crazy forever!”

  Grant watched Jewel’s face. She leaned back and laughed harder, tears on her cheeks. Her hand reached out to him. This woman didn’t care how crazy his brothers were. She was real, and she really loved him.

  “Let them down!” Zane commanded, hoisting part of Grant’s body weight off of him, almost dropping him. “Big Shot’s got a premiere, and we need to behave.” He made a circling gesture with his hand. “Let’s make ourselves decent and make Mom and Dad proud.” He turned to Grant. “Hey, Grant, you just missed the producer. He told us you got your next role.”

  His heart leapt. “What?”

  Scarlett moved next to him. “Turns out Daddy still has a couple of friends.”

  Grant’s mouth opened and closed, lost for words.

  Walker pounded a hand o
n his back. “You’re gonna be awesome, man.”

  Grant laughed.

  Jewel nudged him, a huge smile on his face.

  He kissed her. “I can’t believe it.”

  She laughed harder. “You have to do the voice. You have to.”

  With a grin, he rasped, “I’m Batman!”

  Everyone hollered and laughed.

  Grant kissed her hand and put it in the air, just like he’d done at the ski resort. “I want you all to know that I might have been given the role I’ve always dreamed of, but this woman—” His voice broke. “—this woman is the dream of my life.”

  “Awww,” they all called out.

  Tears were in her eyes as she leaned up and kissed him. “I love you forever, Hollywood.”

  Thank you for reading, Her Hollywood Fake Fiance!

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  ***SOON-TO-BE-OUT***November 20, 2019!

  Her Football Boss Fake Fiancé: Christmas Romance.—PRE-ORDER IT HERE!

  A football player and the lie he's told his family. A woman who hates egomaniacs. Will they help each other out this Christmas season?

  Keep reading for a sneak peak of my soon-to-be released Her Football Boss Fake Fiance! About Ocean Brady!

  —PRE-ORDER IT HERE!

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  Keep reading for a sneak peak of my soon-to-be released Her Football Boss Fake Fiance! About Ocean Brady!

  Sneak Peak Her Football Boss Fake Fiance

  Ocean Brady sat on his back deck and stared at the moon. He loved living in Los Angeles, and he loved playing football for the Los Angeles Wave. He had a good life. A great life, in fact, but it wasn’t perfect.

  Unrest stirred in his gut. He’d lied to his family about still being engaged. He’d been lying for almost nine months. It had started as a simple way to protect the family from dealing with his youngest brother Ty’s diagnosis of ALS last Christmas. Then it had blossomed into a massive cover-up on his part.

  He raked a hand through his hair and wished he’d just told them all the truth when he’d broken things off with Susan initially. He’d thought he could protect them from more bad news. Truthfully, he’d wanted to protect his mother the most. Now the whole family was descending on his home to spend five days together before Christmas. Five days that Ty had already deemed part of the “No Regrets Tour” that he’d been on since finding out he had a terminal illness. Five days of family time to do things that Ty wanted to do together for Christmas, because it could be his last.

  Ocean felt the pressure of that “last” tag attached to all things Ty-related, so he’d chickened out in telling them about his own problems. He cringed and wanted to slam someone, wishing for the tackling dummies at the stadium. He’d been preparing himself to face the music, to face the onslaught of his mother crying and his brothers wanting to kill him for causing her tears. When their father had passed of cancer three years ago, Ocean had sworn to protect his mother. Now, he would fail.

  He hadn’t been able to eat or sleep the past week, trying to figure out a way to tell her without turning it into an international incident. His very Catholic mother, who wanted all her boys to be married off and happy, would take it badly. He knew she would.

  As if on cue, his phone buzzed and he saw his mother’s number. Dread filled him as he answered. “Hey, Mom.”

  “Ocean, how are you?” She sounded out of breath.

  He grinned, sure his mother was madly cleaning her home in Denver. She always cleaned frantically before a trip. “Good.”

  “Good. Listen, I was just thinking that we need to have a meal plan so I can shop when I get there,” she said in between breaths.

  Ocean scoffed, eyeing something hanging on his sliding glass door that he’d missed. He pulled the paper off the glass. The flyer declared, “Supreme Chef: Let us cook for you for Christmas!” He hated it when people put advertisements on his window. “Mom, you’re not going to cook on your vacation.”

  “But I have some classic Christmas dishes I want to make.”

  “That’s fine, but I don’t want you cooking the whole time.” As he stared at the paper, an idea formed in his mind. “I’m hiring someone to do that.”

  “What? No.” His mom sounded horrified by the idea.

  “Yes. Mom, listen. This could be our last Christmas with Ty. I want us all to enjoy it. We only have five days before league break ends.” Ocean and his other brothers—Dax, Ziggy, and Boston—all played professional football. Sucking in a long breath and feeling overwhelmed by all of the people coming to visit, he scanned the flyer again. He’d call them tomorrow.

  There was silence on the other end of the phone.

  “Mom, are you okay?”

  Finally, she spoke. “I don’t want to talk about Ty’s illness while we’re there. I don’t want it to be the focus. I just …”

  He could picture her with her hand over her mouth, holding back tears. Dang it. “Listen, Mom, it’s going to be great. Just great.”

  “Have you found a shelter to serve Christmas dinner to? Even with everything going on, I want to carry on that tradition your father started.”

  “Yes, and the guy is willing to do a disco dancing party like Ty wants, too.” His brother was ridiculous, but what could any of them do? They weren’t going to tell Ty no.

  She let out a light laugh. “I don’t know what to do about Ty and his “No Regrets Tour” bucket list. I guess we’re all in it.”

  “I’ve got it all covered, don’t worry. We’ll have fun, Mom.”

  “I know. And it will be great. Christmas is always fun with the Brady brothers. How’s Susan?”

  Sucker-punched, he sucked in a breath. “Ah, good.”

  “She’ll be there for Christmas, right? She’s not on assignment? I really want everyone there.”

  The only reason he’d been able to maintain the lie so far was because unlike his brother, Boston, who was a media freak, Ocean hardly ever posted on social media. Plus, Susan was a war correspondence reporter, so she wasn’t able to come to a lot of family gatherings because of her job. It’d been the perfect cover-up once he’d broken things off. “Yep, she’ll be here.” He pressed his forehead into his hand. Even though he knew he shouldn’t keep lying, he couldn’t make himself stop. For crying out loud, he’d made his mother cry seconds ago. He didn’t want to do it twice in less than a minute.

  “Oh, good.” She sighed, taking in an uneven breath. “Good. Yes. Perfect. It’s going to be so nice for all my boys to have that special someone this holiday.”

  Sadly she would be the odd person out. A stab of pain hit the center of his chest. His father had been too young to leave his mother all alone.

  He put on a fake smile; he’d read somewhere that people could always tell if you were really smiling when you spoke to them on the phone. “Love you, and see you Monday.”

  “Wait, Ocean?”

  “Yeah?”

  “You might want to consider helping someone for Christmas. I know you get busy and kinda lost in your head.”

  Well, that was unexpected. “O-kay.”

  “I mean
, just giving to others feels good, Ocean. Be helpful, and your life will be better.”

  He fought the urge to roll his eyes at the life lecture. “Sure, Mom. Love you.”

  “Love you, too, Ocean.”

  He pressed end and stared at the phone, wishing he could take a time machine back and tell the truth about Susan from the beginning. What was he going to do?

  Moonlight beamed down, and the water was calm. He sucked in a breath. It’d been rough since Ty had told the family last year that he had ALS. Ty was his baby brother, the brother right beneath him, and the news had nearly ripped his heart out.

  He tried to push all the anxiety away. It would be fine. All the Brady brothers were hitched now, except him and Ty. At least Ty had Luna, his girlfriend of the past few months. Ocean and his brothers worried about Ty having a girlfriend, but none of them ever mentioned it to him.

  Ocean needed to run. He left his flip-flops on the patio and took off down the beach. It was almost eleven o’clock, but the dark didn’t bother him. Why should it? If someone was crazy enough to attack a six-two, two-hundred-fifteen-pound running back, they’d regret it.

  He ran faster, loving the release he felt when he pushed hard. He thought of Rocky and Apollo running down the beach in Rocky. Briefly, he slowed so he could tug his phone out of his pocket, put on the Rocky soundtrack, and slip his earbuds in; then he took off again, letting the music swallow him. Faster, faster, faster.

  He didn’t know how long he’d been running. He was a couple of songs in and “Hearts on Fire” was blasting his ears when he saw someone. It looked like a woman was crying on the beach, holding her ankle. He slowed to a walk and yanked an earbud out.

  Curse words tumbled out of her. “I hate this!” she growled.

  Athletic, blond, pretty face. Cute in a girl-next-door kind of way. Ocean stopped next to her. “Excuse me, can I help you?”

  But it HERE!