Page 55 of Falling for your Fake Boyfriend

“Mom, how could ask such a thing?” Luke snapped. “Grandma lent them to Isla.”

“I certainly did,” Hazel said from behind. “How dare you interrupt their dance, Maggie? And accusing this young woman of stealing that necklace—why that’s low, even for you.”

“You do these things just to irritate me, Hazel.” Margaret shot me one more murderous look before marching off the dance floor in the same angry manner she marched onto it.

I felt physically sick from the encounter. I expected Margaret to shoot me an angry glare or two, but I never expected her to accuse me of stealing the jewelry. And in front of everyone in the room.

Luke took my hand.

“You know, I think I need a little air, Luke,” I said. “I’ll be fine on my own. Really.” I smiled weakly at Hazel as I left the room. I found my way to the veranda and pushed through the door, inhaling deeply as if the only oxygen on Earth was waiting for me past the French doors. I was relieved to find myself alone.

The moon shone its weak glow down over the immaculate gardens. They looked even more regal and pompous under the night sky. I longed for my coastal view, the moon glowing with gold streaks over a glassy navy-blue sea. A slight breeze helped clear my head even more. I walked along the path, and despite the tight dress, managed to fill my lungs with fresh, cool air. The chandelier glow and the noise from the ball spilled out onto the side yard. I could see into the room through the floor-to-ceiling windows. Margaret was easy to spot in her plum-colored dress. Rachel stood near one of the windows, staring out at the darkness with a look of pure agony on her face. She’d ended up in a match that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. How could she go through with it? After my eldest sister, Aria, called off her wedding at the last minute, she felt so relieved, she hardly minded all the mean, threatening texts from her ex-fiancé’s family and friends. Eventually, she managed to block all of them. Their bitterness only reminded her that she’d made the right choice. But we all instantly supported Aria’s decision to call it off. I doubted Rachel would get any kind of support—the opposite in fact—if she decided not to go through with the wedding. My biggest question was how on earth could her own mother not see that she was truly miserable about this wedding? Margaret was so selfish, she hadn’t paid attention to or cared about her daughter’s feelings at all. Margaret Greyson made Cinderella’s wicked stepmother look like a perfectly sweet angel.

I walked a few more paces down the path and looked back toward the ballroom again. I was trying to decide if I would bother to go back inside or just head to my room. As I stared absently at the big windows and the activity inside, a familiar silhouette came into view. I already knew him just by the way he held himself, by the way he moved. Another figure stepped into the frame. She was easy to recognize, too. Alex and Luke stood close to each other, talking. She lifted her arm and placed it around his neck. She leaned forward, as if for a kiss.

I spun around and hurried farther down the path. The lights grew dimmer the farther into the garden I got. I liked the shadowy solitude. I sat on one of the benches, but the darn dress was too snug to get comfortable. I couldn’t wait to go upstairs and unzip the silly thing. I no longer wanted the jewels around my neck either. I should never have agreed to wear them, and I felt a pang of sadness thinking that Hazel might have used me as a pawn. She knew seeing the necklace would anger Margaret. Did she offer them purposely to irritate her daughter-in-law, or was she genuinely excited to offer them to me for the night? I decided not to think about it further because I might not like the answer.

I stared up at the night sky. A few nocturnal insects buzzed near the low lights along the pathway. They crashed into the light numerous times before flying off. Watching them made me realize that it was time for me to fly off, too. I had no intention of attending the ill-conceived wedding as Luke’s date. I didn’t even care about the money anymore. I’d go back home, work hard and find my way to that dream no matter what it took. Luke had his match, his date for the wedding. Even if this was all fake, I wasn’t going to sit around like a sap and have everyone look at me with pity, knowing that I wasn’t the one Luke wanted. I would order an Uber ride for the morning, and I’d flee this place with both glass slippers attached. I didn’t need the rest of the story—the prince trying to track me down. He’d already found his princess, and this humble baker would go back to her marvelous beach cottage and her even more marvelous sisters and start back where she left off before this whole horrid scheme began.

However, I didn’t want to just disappear. It might make people think badly of Luke, that he coldly left his girlfriend for another woman in the middle of the weekend. Despite how this weekend had played out, I thought highly of the man. He was a good person, and those weren’t always easy to find. The guests didn’t know this was fake. I knew exactly what I needed to do. I was only sad that it would fill Margaret Greyson with joy. I could never find a reason to wish her happiness.

ChapterTwenty-Six

Luke

“Lucas, go out there and find her,” Hazel commanded as she reached the window where I stood.

I nodded. “Right.” I looked at her. “Did you do that on purpose? Did you give her the jewels just to make Mom mad?” It wasn’t easy to make my feisty grandmother look hurt, but I’d managed it with just one question.

“I thought she deserved to feel special for an evening. She saved your brother’s life, and she’s a kind, intelligent girl who deserved better than this charade you dreamt up.” I hadn’t been chastised like that in a long while, and I deserved it.

“I’ll go look for her.” I could see Alex and her mother watching me as I walked through the room. I ignored them and headed outside. Isla was just crossing the veranda back toward the house when I opened the door. Her shiny blonde hair was swept up behind her head, leaving her long, smooth neck in full view. Just like with the bare shoulder, I found myself thinking about leaving a trail of kisses along that neck. I swallowed hard and stepped outside.

“I wondered if you went back to your room. I’m sorry about my mom. I don’t even know what to say.”

Isla smiled up at me. “No more apologies, remember? And your mom means nothing to me, so I’ve already forgotten it. I’m coming in. Just give me a second.”

I stayed.

“Really, Luke. I’ll be right in.”

I nodded and turned back to the door.

“And don’t worry. I’ve figured out an easy solution to all of this, so you don’t lose face in front of all your family and friends.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“It’s all right. This was fake, remember? I’ll be in soon. Just gathering my courage.”

Again, I hesitated. I had no idea what she was talking about.

“See you in a few minutes.” She waved me inside.

Reluctantly, I went back into the house.

Ispotted my mom, Patricia and Alexandria with a few of the other guests, so I took the opportunity to slip into the room unnoticed. They all seemed to have their radar set to Lucas Greyson. Wherever I went, one of them was sure to show up.

I was still trying to decipher Isla’s last few words as I kept my head down and headed to the bar for a beer. I’d had enough meaningless small talk with people I hardly knew, or cared to see, to last me a lifetime. Rachel left her own dance early, claiming she needed her beauty rest for tomorrow. David was busy talking to all the same meaningless small-talk pros I’d been stuck with earlier. He fit right in with them.

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