Fake It: A Fake Fiancé Romance

by Allie Hayden

  “Jeez, fine.” Jesse gives me a smug look. “But you owe me big time.”

  I look back over at Xander, who gives me a thumbs-up. I see Jesse go up to our dad and sit with him. They are already bonding. Ever since Mom passed, Dad has been wanting to bond more. I hate to say it, but it’s become his weakness. You can’t blame his children for not wanting to deal with his smothering.

  It looks like everyone is starting to take their assigned seats at their tables as they fill the auditorium. From the corner of my eye, I can see Dad eyeballing me. He glances down at the seat next to me where Carlyle should be. Xander is supposed to be here with us as well. But he’s not. It looks like he’s training his focus between what’s happening on the floor, and the family affairs on stage.

  Tonight’s schedule is in front of me. There’s a time slot that reads “Big Announcement by Stanley and Cartier Corp.” I figure that spot’s reserved for me to announce my engagement to Carlyle and make our debut. This doesn’t look good. The more people piling in, the more my heart beats faster, and I know this isn’t going to end well.

  Then it looks like my dad can’t take anymore of Jesse’s gossip and gets up mid- sentence to make conversation with the DJ. Dad hasn’t said a single word to me yet, but it looks like he’s starting to get worried. I need a miracle for this to all work out. The current act is a celloist and vocal couple who take the stage. I sneak off, excusing myself to use the restroom. As I walk toward the back of the room, I look for Xander without trying to look fishy.

  As I duck behind a plant, I’m pulled in by a hush. It’s Xander—he’s standing right up next to the wall. He must’ve been waiting for me. He puts a finger over his mouth, waving me to come follow him. I walk with him to the back of the room, where the door of the entrance is.

  When we exit the hall, it’s quiet in the foyer. Besides a few stragglers, it just seems to be me and Xander. He looks back and forth again. He clearly has something he wants to tell me, because he looks ridiculous looking around so suspiciously.

  “Molly,” he says, leaning down, “I have to tell you something. I didn’t want to have to tell you in a room full of people. I know why we haven’t been able to get in touch with Carlyle.”

  His voice falls to a deep whisper, and I have to get really close to him to hear what he’s about to say next.

  “His father passed away. Last night.”

  The news hits me like a brick in front of a fan. I’m completely shattered. That’s right—his father was in the hospital, and I never thought to ask. I didn’t know it was life or death. And here I was, selfishly wondering if he’d show up for some dumb event.

  I look up at Xander in a look of plea. He may be insensitive, but he’s my brother, and he knows what I’m about to do in this situation.

  He nods and throws me his car keys. “I’ll cover for you, Moll. Take my car. I think he’s at home. You should be able to catch him. That’s the latest I’ve heard about him, anyway.”

  I turn around and grab my jacket at the coat check and run outside to the parking lot in front of the hotel. It starts to rain, and I pull my jacket over the top of my head before getting into Xander’s Lamborghini. Good thing this is a fast car because I need to get to Carlyle’s place ASAP.

  I need to be there for him. It’s my fault we’re in this convoluted mess in the first place. He needs someone to tell him everything’s going to be okay. I went through all of this when my mom passed away. If anyone should comfort him, I know it has to be me.

  The ring on my left hand taps the steering wheel, reminding me what a wife would do for her husband. She would be there for him, especially in a time like this, especially in his time of need. When I get close enough to Carlyle’s driveway, I notice his car in the front. That’s a good sign. He’s home. I turn off the car and run up to the door and start pounding away, ringing the doorbell a few times. No answer. I ring again. No answer.

  This time, I bang on the door.

  “Carlyle,” I yell. “Carlyle!”

  On the tenth bang, the door flings open and I almost hit him in the chest with my fist. By the looks of it, he doesn’t look like he’s been getting much sleep. The bags under his eyes are prominent.

  We stand staring at each other for a while. I had this whole speech prepared for when I saw him. I rehearsed it over and over in the car on my way here. But now that I’m in front of him, I don’t know what to say.

  The rain is still pouring down hard. My jacket is getting soaked. Carlyle steps forward and grabs me, swinging his arms around my shoulders. He rests his head on top of mine and I lace my hands behind his neck as we embrace.

  There isn’t a need to say anything.

  If it weren’t for the rain, I could’ve sworn he was crying.

  He brings me into the house and tells me to take off my soaking wet clothes. He takes me up the stairs where he undresses too. We’re naked under the covers with only the heat from our own bodies warming each other up. He holds me in his arms, and I hear the sound of his breath drifting away.

  I’m not sure who falls asleep first.

  20

  Carlyle

  Morning comes. Sweet Molly lays beside me when I wake up. The sunlight barely peeks through the blinds into the room. It’s a different day than the night before. The sunshine after the rain.

  My hands trail up Molly’s navel, gently gliding across her soft skin. She smells like flowers. Her hair wafts her morning scent into my face. She’s cuddled up inside my arms, and I feel her body awaken.

  Her voice is quiet, still getting used to the day.

  “Good morning,” I whisper into her ear.

  She moves the remainder of her hair to the side, exposing her shoulder. I kiss her there, not holding back any affection. She’s awake now and starts humming to herself. Her voice is sweet.

  I don’t remember much from last night. Molly showed up on my doorstep, and I let her in. The rest is a blur. I rock her in my arms, holding her close to my chest where she fits so effortlessly perfect.

  I pet her hair with my hand and whisper in her ear, “I’m sorry for not making it out to your charity event last night. Forgive me.”

  Molly turns over and faces me, planting her forehead on mine.

  “You don’t need to be sorry. I understand. You need to worry about you first.”

  I run through the things I need to do today. I have to check in with my mom and make sure she’s doing alright. The relationship between me and Molly’s family has to be mended. And I have to make sure everything is doing okay on the Cartier Corp. end of things. I must be showing it in my face because there’s a long awkward silence between me and Molly.

  Then she finally speaks. “What’re you up to today?”

  “I’m meeting my mom. She shouldn’t be alone right now.”

  “You’re going to go see her?”

  “Yeah, I’ve got a couple other things on the docket too.”

  Molly pushes my hair away from my forehead. “Why don’t I come with you to visit your mom? I’ve been through this kind of thing before, and I know how to deal with parents in this situation. And plus, I want to support you.”

  She places her hand on the side of my cheek, while I trail little kisses along her jawline. It is a tempting offer. Molly nods again, giving me her assurance that she wants to come with me.

  We get dressed and set out to my mom’s place. Outside is bright. The weather gives me a sense of bliss. I have to chuckle when I see a Lamborghini in the driveway. It must be Molly’s. She says she’ll leave it here and we’ll go together to my mom’s place across the city.

  Molly is sitting beside me in the car wearing the clothes she wore last night for the charity event. At least, I think that’s the case since they’re more formal than what I’ve usually seen her in. I feel terrible knowing I let her down like that last night. We’re on the same frequency right now, our minds are connected, and we can read each other’s emotions. She shoots me a look letting me know everything is oka
y right now.

  There’s no room for remorse or any kind of grudges.

  I call my mom on Bluetooth on the way there. It rings a few times. Instead of my mom picking up the phone, I hear a man’s voice.

  “Good morning, Carlyle.”

  I look over at Molly, who looks confused. I continue driving. I quiet my anger. It’s Phillip’s voice on the line. I don’t want to involve Molly in this, and she doesn’t deserve to be stuck in between the story of mine and my brother’s rivalry.

  “What’re you doing with Mom’s phone, Phillip?”

  “I heard the news about Dad. I came to see Mom as fast as I could.”

  He’s playing off his sweet and blameless tone of voice. He knows exactly how to work Mom so she believes everything he says.

  To me, it seems fishy. He’s a scumbag. And I don’t trust him with Mom, especially not now.

  “Give the phone to Mom.” My voice is serious. “Now.”

  “What’s the rush, Carlyle? Don’t you want to talk as brothers? Our father literally just…”

  I inhale, contemplating what I want to say so I didn’t regret my language in front of Molly. “You don’t have any right to be anywhere near Mom. I’m on my way to her house. You tell her that. And if you’re still there when I get there, I’m going to rip you apart.”

  I hang up.

  After so many years, he tries to come back into my life at full speed. I know Phillip is trying to take advantage of our mom. She’s vulnerable during this time. Whatever he wants, I can tell it’s not good. I rev the engine harder, speeding through the neighborhood.

  Her estate is the one at the end of the cul-de-sac, one with the view of the city. The house was Mom and Dad’s first buy together in the city. I park the car, and nothing seems out of the ordinary. Molly follows me to the front door, and I knock loudly. Mom answers it. She’s well dressed as always, and she looks between me and Molly.

  “Oh, darling. You’re here, sweetie. And I see you’ve brought your fiancée.” She goes in for a hug and then looks over at me. “Your brother’s here.”

  She has her guard up about exposing too much information about Phillip. She knows how I feel about him. My anger toward my brother has never subsided, even after all these years. I’ve let my guard down with him before, and he’s played me like a fiddle every single time.

  Phillip is the firstborn son, so Ma will always have a soft spot for him, no matter what he does. She’s always taken him in with open arms, no questions asked. I think I learned that weakness from her. A part of me will always have a soft spot for Phillip too. If it weren’t for Mom, I would’ve cut him off a long time ago.

  “Where is he?” I ask as I step into the house.

  “Honey—before you get upset. He has nowhere to go.”

  As soon as I see Phillip at the top of the stairs, I become livid. My fists clench into balls and all I want to do is sock him. My blood starts to boil. I’m starting to see red. All I want to do is run toward him and smack him. But then, I feel a soft hand on my wrist. It’s Molly. She starts to rub my arm to cool me down.

  “What’re you doing here?” I look up at Phillip. “You’re the last person who needs to be here.”

  “Please, you two, be civil,” Mom intervenes, noticing our tension.

  “Bro—chill.” Phillip raises his hands up.

  I just can’t trust him. Whatever he says, whatever words come out of his mouth, I can’t. It’s bad enough that our dad is no longer with us, that we’ll never hear his voice, or his lectures, or hear his guidance and voice of reason. Now, the only family I have left contains Phillip?

  He comes down a few steps, cautiously coming closer toward me. “I’m only here for support. I’m only here so Mom doesn’t have to be alone.”

  I square my shoulders and keep a watchful eye on him. “Where were you when we needed your support before? Why are you just showing up now?”

  “Now—boys—please,” Mom says, holding her hands up.

  “I’m being civil.” I grit my teeth. “He doesn’t get access to family information. He’s never cared before, why would he start now?”

  “I’ve always cared, Carlyle,” Phillip breaks in. “If I didn’t care, I’d burn everything down, but I haven’t. I know a lot, Carlyle.”

  He looks past me at Molly and looks down at my hand. With my teeth bared, I snarl at him. I know exactly what he’s talking about. He knows the truth about my engagement with Molly, and he’s threatening to tell my mom about it, right here and right now.

  Mom starts getting upset. “You boys need to work this stuff out. We’re family, we’re all we’ve got, you two can’t just start fights whenever you want to.”

  “You can say that to Phillip again.” I turn my head.

  He storms down the stairs and is now at the bottom. He gets right up close to me but doesn’t completely get in my face. We both look like we’re about to throw down any minute with neither of us wanting to back down.

  With a thud, he walks past me, bumping into my shoulder on the way out. Mom doesn’t try stopping him and neither do I. I keep my gaze straight.

  Without turning to Molly, I grab her hand. “I’m sorry you had to see that.”

  “It’s okay.” Molly rubs her thumb on the back of my hand. “It’s okay.”

  Ma’s quite shaken as well. She didn’t need to see that. She’s been through a lot and maybe I was just adding fuel to the fire. But my feelings took over me. I don’t take lightly to threats. My breath is heavy in my chest, and I realize that I need to calm myself down. We go into the sitting room. When we first walk in, there looks to be luggage and clothes all over the sofa. I look at the stuff and feel bad knowing it belongs to my brother. He must be crashing here with our mom.

  The three of us sit in silence. My mom is beside herself with a tissue in hand, still shaken up from earlier. I move a few piles of clothing from the couch to make room for both Molly and I.

  “So what did he want?” I ask Ma.

  “You have to promise you won’t get mad,” she pleads.

  I nod, looking over at Molly, who’s made a human turtle of herself. I’m sure the situation is very awkward for her right now, and things weren’t about to get any less awkward. But I have to get to the bottom of this.

  Ma braces herself, like she’s going to get yelled at by me. “He wanted to know what was written in your father’s trust.”

  “Okay.” I massage my forehead. “And did you tell him anything?”

  “Nothing more than he needs to know. I let him know what Dad left him and then told him the rest is none of his business.”

  I lean over, placing my elbows on my thighs. “Is there anything I should know?”

  “I would suggest you make a trip to New York sometime soon, dear. The sooner the better. The subsidiary you own there is still in your name. At the time of your father’s death, he’s passed on his companies to you and me. We need to meet with your exec, Lisa Evans, so she can get all the legal paperwork done. Your life is here in California now. We have to tie up loose ends.”

  None of this is adding up. If Phillip visited my mother because he needed a place to live, then he’s not secretly rolling in dough like I suspected. If he came to visit Mom to know what’s in the trust, then he didn’t have money in the first place either.

  “If I have to go to New York to meet with executives, I can do that. I can do that today, after this.”

  I feel a shimmy beside me. Molly comes out from her cocoon and looks up at me. I flash her a look that says she can’t come with me, not today. I have to deal with this myself. There’s no time to mourn over anything. The future of Cartier Corp. is my duty to ensure. And if I’m not preemptive, who knows what could happen to the company.

  21

  Molly

  This whole thing has turned into such a mess. I’m a traitor—there’s no positive way of spinning it. Running home to my family feels like I’m betraying Carlyle. But choosing him over them feels like the wrong thin
g to do too.

  I thought I could follow through until the end of this engagement arrangement. But, I had to catch feelings. Now, it doesn’t feel right to keep this lie going. It took me this long to realize it, but now I know for sure—I’m in love with Carlyle Cartier.

  I’m in love with him. I refuse to be someone who hurts him. After all he’s been through, having to go through this lie with me is the last thing he needs. The only way out of this agreement is consulting Xander about it first. He’ll know how to annul the agreement.

  After Carlyle leaves for the airport, I drive myself home.

  My plan is to march right up to Xander and just spit it out. I’m going to tell him how I feel and that I’m pulling out of this contract—no turning back. My hands are shaking on top of the steering wheel from the nervousness running through my body. At the pit of my stomach is the fear of what Xander’s reaction might be.

  Growing up, I was always a bit scared of him. I control my breathing, knowing that everything comes from the breath. I’m going to confront Xander no matter what. I have to put my foot down and tell him it’s over.

  I walk through the front door with renewed courage, with adrenaline as my fuel. There’s a quietness throughout the rest of the house. I’m not sure if Jesse or my dad are home. They might be at work, or at a girl’s house in my brother’s case.

  As I get closer to the end of the hall closer to the kitchen, I hear the faint sound of someone in the kitchen. There’s a jovial tune being hummed under the sounds of the hood fan. The aroma of roasted garlic and olive oil perfume the air.

  The stovetop and island slowly come into view as I inch closer. The sounds of frying veil my entrance, and Xander doesn’t seem to notice me entering. He fries some vegetables, flicking his wrist so they come flying out the pan then back down. He has a lot of cooking experience, so not a single piece of food drops to the floor.