Page 58 of Single Dad's Fake Bride
"I wasn't finished talking." Margot's voice carried the authority she'd inherited from our father. "I want to know what Harrison is paying you for this charade."
"Margot." The warning in my voice was clear.
"It's a reasonable question," she continued, ignoring me completely. "How much is my brother offering you to pretend to love him? Because that's what this is, isn't it? A business arrangement disguised as romance."
Sadie set the coffee cups on the nearest table and faced Margot directly. "I don't know what kind of relationship you have with your brother, but it doesn't give you the right to insult either of us."
"I'm trying to protect him from making the biggest mistake of his life." Margot crossed her arms coolly while she pursed her lips.
"By attacking someone you've never met?"
Margot's eyes narrowed. "I know enough. You've no reason to be interested in Harrison except for what he can give you."
"That's enough," I said, but Sadie held up a hand to stop me.
"You're right," she said calmly. "I don't have family money or social connections. But I also don't need your approval to marry Harrison, and I don't owe you explanations about our relationship."
Margot stared at her for a moment, clearly surprised by the pushback. Then she turned back to me.
"This is what you're choosing? This is worth destroying our family over?" She flailed her arms out wildly and I almost snorted in laughter.
"This family destroyed itself long before I got engaged," I said. "You and Caroline made sure of that when you decided to contest the will."
"We're trying to save the school from your incompetence."
"You're trying to take control of something that was never meant to be yours."
Margot's face went white with rage. She grabbed her purse from where she'd dropped it near the door and headed for the exit.
"You're going to regret this," she said without turning around. "Both of you."
The door slammed behind her, leaving Sadie and me alone in the suddenly quiet office. I could feel my hands shaking, the familiar anxiety spiral beginning to build in my chest. The confrontation, the board's demands, the pressure of learning to run a school while my entire future hung in the balance—it all crashed together at once.
"Harrison?" Sadie's voice sounded distant. "Are you okay?"
I tried to answer, but my throat felt tight. The coffee cups sat forgotten on the table. Margot's words echoed in my head—reckless, selfish, going to regret this. Maybe she was right. Maybe I was dragging Sadie into a disaster that would hurt everyone involved.
"I can't—" I started, then stopped. My chest felt constricted, like I couldn't get enough air.
Sadie moved closer, her expression concerned. "Hey. Look at me."
I tried to focus on her face, but the anxiety was building too fast. My hands trembled as I reached for one of the coffee cups, needing something to do with the nervous energy.
"Harrison," Sadie said again, and then suddenly, she was right in front of me, her hands on my shoulders.
Before I could process what was happening, she rose up on her toes and kissed me.
The kiss was soft and unexpected, lasting maybe three seconds before we both jerked apart. Sadie's face went red immediately, her eyes wide with shock at her own actions.
"I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I just—you looked like you were about to have a panic attack, and I thought?—"
"It's okay." My voice came out a little shaky, but the anxiety spiral had stopped completely, replaced by something entirely different. "We're engaged. People expect that kind of thing."
"Right." She stepped back, wrapping her arms around herself. "Of course. It was just… for show."
"Just for show," I agreed, though neither of us sounded convinced.
We stood there for a moment, the air between us charged with something neither of us wanted to name. Sadie's lips were still slightly parted, and I could smell her perfume, something light and floral that I was beginning to associate with safety.
