Fake Engagement, Nashville Style

by Jules Bennett

  Cassandra pursed her lips and thought. “You know, that’s not a bad idea.”

  “I’m being serious. You can come up for a bit to make an appearance. It’s important.”

  Cassandra sighed. “And your work is more important than mine?”

  Maybe nothing had changed after all. Still battling over careers and emotions, just like old times. At least now she knew the outcome and wouldn’t be blindsided.

  Luke growled and eased around the bar to stand right next to her. She shifted her body so she could gaze up into those captivating eyes. He’d always been able to persuade her with just a look, but she was in charge now and no sexy glance or cute words or even toe-curling kisses could get her to give in. This wedding was too important to her and would most certainly be career-changing, which was precisely what she needed for her brand-new company.

  “Just for an hour,” he commanded. “You can stay for an hour.”

  Cassandra wanted to give in. She wanted to go hang out and have a drink and listen to music and unwind, but that wouldn’t help her try to figure out the details for Hannah and Will’s big day. They’d entrusted her to make this the best day of their lives and not even Cassandra’s attraction to Luke Sutherland would make her lose sight of that responsibility.

  “As much as it sounds like fun, I can’t.”

  Luke continued to stare until she realized he was leaning in closer...and closer still.

  “Wh-what are you doing?” she murmured.

  His hand slid along her jawline and Cassandra couldn’t help herself as she leaned into his touch. Then when his thumb raked over her bottom lip, she closed her eyes and instinctively touched the tip of her tongue to his skin.

  “I’m just getting to know you again,” he answered, his voice husky from arousal.

  More like trying to seduce her again...and, damn it, it was working.

  “There’s no need for that.” She pulled in a shaky breath and willed herself not to lean in and kiss him. “You know me well enough to pull off this fake engagement.”

  The back of his fingertips feathered over her jawline, along the column of her neck and down to the V of her shirt before he pulled away slowly, methodically.

  “Maybe I still find you attractive,” he countered. “Maybe I’m done denying my wants...and your wants.”

  She stared up into his eyes. “You have to deny everything. What we’re doing is nothing more than a temporary sham.”

  “Perhaps,” he agreed, then leaned in closer until his mouth was a breath from hers. “Or maybe while we’re together, we should explore this.”

  “This?”

  His warm breath tickled her face and she wished he’d just close that distance and put her out of her misery. She could finish this and take what she wanted, but considering she was telling him this wasn’t a great idea, she’d just be contradicting herself.

  “We’re adults, Cass. We’re still drawn to each other. There’s nothing wrong with acting on that and realizing exactly what this is...and what it isn’t.”

  She blinked up at him and forced herself to take a step back before she lost her mind and gave in to everything he was offering—gave in to everything her body so desired.

  “There’s everything wrong with it,” she countered. “I can’t get wrapped up in you any more than I already have.”

  His eyes held hers for a second before he nodded. “Then I’ll let you get back to work.”

  Without another word, he turned and let himself out. Cassandra stared at the door long after he was gone, wondering how the hell he’d been inside her penthouse for so short a time, yet had made such a sizable impact on her every thought.

  She also wondered what had made him leave and finally accept her rejection. Had she wounded his pride? Did he finally see that pushing forward on some temporary fling was a terrible idea?

  One thing was certain—Cassandra knew Luke well enough to know that once he set his mind to something, he wasn’t about to give up...and that meant he would be back. He would try to convince her they could still be good together.

  She had to be ready to resist.

  Five

  She was a damn fool. When she should have been in her penthouse working on the wedding, Cassandra found herself hanging out in the back of the crowd, listening to the new band Luke had introduced thirty minutes ago.

  He’d been right. The band was amazing and no doubt they’d be a hit one day soon.

  Luke had also been right that she should be here. Enjoying music at his bar was better than worrying and second-guessing herself with her work.

  Maybe it was the almost kiss. Maybe it was the way he’d stroked her jawline. Or perhaps the way he’d looked at her, as if he actually needed her in the most primal way.

  No matter what had gotten her up to the rooftop, she couldn’t deny that memories were intertwining with present emotions and she had no idea how she was going to handle all of it.

  After he’d left, she’d taken a few minutes to battle with herself over what to do, but she couldn’t stay in that penthouse with her thoughts and her sexual frustrations.

  Cassandra had changed clothes, thrown her hair into a messy bun, added some mascara and gloss, and found herself up at The Cheshire.

  As she glanced around the crowd, she noted many people smiling, drinking, nodding their heads to the catchy beat of the music. She saw Will back in the corner with Hannah tucked in at his side.

  Cassandra made her way over and realized Cash and Gavin were seated on the couch across from Will and Hannah. Well, the entire Sutherland clan was here, and she assumed the lady between Gavin and Cash was Cash’s fiancée, Presley.

  Maybe she shouldn’t have started walking that way, but it was too late to turn around because Will caught her eye and immediately waved her over. That motion caught the attention of everyone else and they all turned to see who was coming.

  With a smile in place, Cassandra maneuvered through the crowd. Will came to his feet when she got to the sofa.

  “Luke didn’t tell us you’d be here.” He greeted her with a hug. “Have a seat.”

  “I told him I was working, but I wanted to take a break.” Cassandra eased down onto the couch where Will had vacated his seat. He went to sit on the other side of Hannah.

  “So, how is everything coming along?” Hannah asked with a gleam in her eye. “You don’t know how excited I am.”

  Not nearly as excited as Cassandra was as she worked on this once-in-a-lifetime dream wedding.

  “It’s all she’s talked about,” Will stated. “You’ve created a bridezilla.”

  Hannah laughed as she slapped his chest before turning her attention back to Cassandra. “I’m not a bridezilla. I’m just so thrilled that someone knew my vision better than I could ever explain.”

  Cassandra smiled and then turned her attention to the other sofa, where Cash was staring at her.

  “Hey, Cash,” she greeted. “It’s been a long time.”

  “It has, and apparently things have picked right back up where you all left off.” He continued to stare at her with an unsettling gaze. “Rumor is you and Luke are engaged.”

  “What?”

  “You are?”

  Will and Hannah had spoken up at the same time. Cassandra’s breath caught in her throat and she wished like hell Luke would’ve given her a heads-up as to what he’d told—or not told—his brothers. Then again, he’d been busy sneaking into her penthouse and trying to seduce her.

  “That’s what I saw online,” Cash laughed. “So who knows.”

  Why hadn’t she and Luke discussed what they’d tell his brothers? Or why hadn’t he addressed this with them to begin with? Now she was stuck in an awkward spot. Did she go along with this or deny it?

  But their whole plan had been to pretend to be engaged, right? So she went with it.

&n
bsp; “Actually, we are,” Cassandra announced. “It’s new—you can ask Luke about all the details, but we didn’t say anything because we really didn’t want to take away from Hannah and Will, or Cash and Presley.”

  “Nothing would take away from any of that,” Hannah exclaimed. “I can’t believe you guys didn’t say anything when you were at the house. This is so exciting.”

  Well, Cassandra wouldn’t quite put that bold label on the moment, but she was on shaky ground here and really wished they could talk about something else.

  “Where’s your ring?” Will asked, his eyes darting to her left hand. “Don’t let Luke skimp on that. He’s frugal, but come on.”

  “That last one he picked out wasn’t as big as what he could afford now,” Cash joked.

  “The last one?” Cassandra asked. If she thought her nerves were shot before, that was nothing compared to the effect of this bombshell.

  Cash nodded. “When you two were together before. He’d asked Mom to help him look for one in his price range. He ended up with a pearl with diamonds or something like that. Do you remember, Will? It wasn’t traditional.”

  Cassandra’s heart pounded. Luke had gotten her a ring before? Why had he never said anything? He knew she wanted to marry him, that she’d left because he wouldn’t do just that. How could he let her walk away without a word? What the hell? He couldn’t have come to her and told her what he’d planned—that he had a ring?

  She had so many questions, but asking them would only result in thrusting her back into the past and nothing good would come from that.

  Besides, the more she tossed this new fact around in her head, the angrier she became...which wasn’t good for either of them. She wasn’t in town to analyze everything that had gone wrong in the past. Too many years had passed, and quite honestly, she wasn’t the same woman anymore, and it was obvious Luke wasn’t the same guy. The man she’d fallen in love with would never play games. He would have been totally transparent and open. So what had happened?

  “Oh, yeah. He’d put all his money into starting the bars,” Will replied, pulling her from her thoughts. “We gave him hell over such a small ring, but he refused to take money from anyone.”

  As the brothers went back and forth about the ring and what ancestor the piece belonged to, Cassandra scanned the rooftop area as her mind raced. Through the variety of people mingling, drinking and dancing to the music, she finally spotted her faux fiancé.

  Luke smiled and nodded as two twentysomething ladies were talking to him. One of the women placed her hand on his arm and threw her head back in a dramatic, nearly pathetic laugh for attention. Jealousy hit Cassandra hard, so she excused herself from the group and made her way through the crowd.

  She had no idea why this whole scene pissed her off, but if they were going to fake a relationship, then that’s what they needed to do. Aside from the women hanging on him—oh, and now trying to get a selfie with him—Cassandra was still reeling from the revelation that Luke had gotten a ring for her when they’d been together.

  Without even an “excuse me,” Cassandra slid between the women and her “fiancé.” With her arm around his waist, she glanced up at him, loving that surprised look on his face.

  “Hey, babe,” she greeted. “Sorry I kept you waiting.”

  “I thought you had to work,” he stated, clearly shocked she was here.

  She smiled, though she gritted her teeth to keep from lashing out...which was ridiculous. She had no reason to be jealous. None. Luke was a sexy, successful man and Cassandra knew full well he’d been with women since they’d ended things. But having the fact shoved in her face didn’t sit so well with her.

  “Nothing is more important than spending time with my fiancé,” she declared, purposely pouring on the fake affection.

  “Wait,” one of the ladies said. “You’re engaged?”

  Cassandra glanced to them, pretending she’d just realized they were so close. She really should earn an award for her acting skills.

  “Oh, how rude of me.” She extended her hand. “I’m Cassandra Taylor, Luke’s fiancée. And you two are friends of Lukie’s?”

  Lukie?

  She hadn’t meant to sound that fake, but she also knew that nickname would tick off Luke, so she couldn’t help but be a little giddy. Okay, fine. She was petty. This whole situation had obviously caused her to override her common sense, but she couldn’t rein it back in at this point.

  “We actually just met,” one of the women said. “We didn’t know he was engaged.”

  “It’s still fairly new,” Cassandra explained. “We dated years ago and I just got back into town and we realized we couldn’t live without each other.”

  Luke’s arm slid around her and his hand came to rest on the curve of her hip.

  “So, you see, ladies, that’s why I couldn’t do the selfie,” he told them. “I have nothing but respect for my girl here.”

  His girl. At one time she’d loved when he called her that. And there was still a sliver of excitement and a little arousal that slid through her at the declaration.

  She really should have just stayed in her penthouse. Then she wouldn’t have been in the company of the Sutherland brothers’ crew, learned about the ring, or gotten jealous over two very young women talking to Luke.

  This was what he did, though. He mingled, chatted with the customers, flirted. He was just being typical charming Luke. How could she fault him for being in his natural state?

  “If you’ll excuse us, ladies. Please, continue to enjoy the show and the drinks.”

  Luke smiled to the duo and eased Cassandra away. She kept her arm around him as he guided her toward the back hallway behind the bar. He tapped in the code and the wall door slid open to reveal his hidden office.

  She had too many questions, not to mention the unwanted possessiveness she’d felt when she obviously had no real claim on Luke. There was nothing other than a superficial business deal going on between them and she would do well to remember that from here on out.

  The wall slid closed after they stepped inside and Luke came to stand in front of her. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jeans and stared down at her as if waiting on some explanation.

  The silence curled around them, the force of it almost magnetic as she found herself taking a step toward him. She really didn’t know where to start, but he finally broke the tension and saved her from opening up.

  “What happened to work?” he asked.

  “I needed a break.”

  “I heard you say that before, but what’s the real reason?”

  She had needed a break. She also wanted to see the bar and enjoy the atmosphere and the band, and maybe she wanted to see Luke again in his element. She couldn’t just turn off her attraction, nor could she turn off her curiosity.

  Cassandra pulled in a shaky breath and stepped back, away from those intense eyes and that powerful stare.

  “We need to get our story straight because your brother just asked about our engagement, which he read about online.”

  “Which one?” he asked.

  Cassandra stared. “Which one what?”

  “Which brother?”

  “Cash.” She shoved her hair behind her ears and laughed. “Does it matter? Now your family and your soon-to-be sisters-in-law believe we’re engaged. When they started talking about my bare ring finger, I had to excuse myself.”

  Luke continued to study her for another minute, then he shrugged. “Then we’ll find you a ring.”

  “Just like that? We’re going to move to that level?” she asked. “At what point do we stop? Are we going to have to actually get married? Maybe you should suggest a double wedding with Will.”

  Luke laughed as he took a step toward her and reached for her shoulders. “Take a breath and calm down.”

  Calm down? How could she? She was s
till reeling from the realization that at one point in time, Luke had thought about asking her to marry him. Or, he at least had gone to the trouble of getting the ring. Maybe he’d changed his mind or maybe he’d been waiting for a right time that never came—she didn’t know. At this point, bringing it up wouldn’t solve their issue at hand, and she didn’t want to dig back into a host of feelings that had taken a great deal of effort to bury.

  “We’ll get a ring,” Luke told her in that low, slow drawl of his. “We’ll pretend to be engaged, but right now the focus will be on Will and Hannah. Maybe we’ll flash your hand in a few of our social-media posts, but we don’t need to do anything more.”

  Cassandra shook her head. “I wasn’t prepared to be blindsided like that and then when those girls...”

  Damn it. She hadn’t meant to let that part slip. There was no reason she should let other women bother her. They were faking this relationship because of the women who’d been pestering him. He’d wanted this engagement to deter unwanted attention.

  “Don’t tell me you were jealous,” he said, smirking.

  Cassandra tipped up her chin. “That would be ridiculous. I can’t be jealous over something that’s not even real or a man who isn’t even mine.”

  Those hands slid over her shoulders and the rough pads of his thumbs grazed the side of her neck, then he tipped back her head just slightly as he stepped closer to her.

  Cassandra’s breath held as her heart beat faster, and nerves curled low in her belly as she waited for him to say something...or to close this gap and kiss her. Not that she wanted him to kiss her. There was no need since there was no audience, right?

  “You’re jealous,” he murmured.

  “I want you to stay in the role we discussed,” she snapped, refusing to let him see just how right he was. “How can we convince people we’re in love if you’re laughing and chatting it up with other women?”

  His lips quirked. “You want to be convincing?”

  “We have no choice.”

  “Sorry.”