by Odette Stone
Oh, my. Did they teach Navy SEALs to read minds? This was my fantasy. “What’s wrong with that?”
“Most women aren’t really into that.”
I wanted to raise my hand and shout, “Pick me!” Instead, I cleared my throat and said, “They don’t know what they’re missing.”
The moment was broken when the car halted, and the driver rounded the car to open my door.
We had arrived.
My entire body trembled as I stepped out of the car. It should have been from nerves, from my fear of fucking this up for Dad. But it wasn’t. It was Porter.
Always Porter.
Chapter 19
Bayswater’s ballroom had been transformed for the gala. In the foyer outside the ballroom, my parents held a reception line that would make the queen envious.
“Beth.” Mom scrutinized me. “You’re flushed. Is everything okay?” The woman had an amazing ability to pinpoint exactly what I tried to hide.
I glanced at Porter. His lips twitched.
I changed the subject. “Mom. You remember Porter.”
Her expression cooled as she shifted her gaze to him. “Of course.”
“Good evening, ma’am.”
“Porter,” Dad’s voice boomed, his smile huge. “So nice you could make it.”
“Thank you, sir.” Porter’s manners were the only genuine thing in a mile radius.
“I was just telling some of my colleagues that my daughter is dating a military man. Everyone here respects and appreciates your service.” Dad’s eyes shone. “I’d love to introduce you around later.”
Oh, boy.
Dad was in full-blown campaign mode.
“I’d be happy to, sir.”
“Fantastic.” Dad beamed at Porter, barely sparing me a glance. “That’s fantastic.”
“We’re going to find something to drink.” I nodded my head toward the ballroom.
Mom frowned at me. “Aren’t you going to join the reception line?”
No chance in hell.
“We’ll come back,” I lied, as I slipped my hand into Porter’s hand and tugged him away.
We stood on the sidelines of the ballroom. It was a monstrosity of a room, with a dozen chandeliers and elaborate pillars. French doors opened to the huge stone balcony. The room was filled with New York’s elite. Some people I recognized from the front of the society pages, other people I had grown up with.
A waiter handed us flutes of champagne as we assessed the party, trying to take it all in.
“So, what’s our endgame here?” Porter spoke into my ear.
I worked to not shudder at the feeling of his hot breath on my ear. “Our goal is to survive this night while keeping a low profile.”
Which wouldn’t be an easy task considering this was my father’s big night.
“Anything I should know?”
I paused, thinking. “Don’t commit to anything. If someone invites you out, politely deflect but don’t commit.”
He snorted. “Okay.”
We stood and silently watched as people milled around. I couldn’t get Porter’s words out of my head. He admitted that he loved to take control during sex. My kink was I loved to give up control. When I was between the sheets, I wanted to be bossed around.
I peered at Porter through my eyelashes. I needed to remember why it would be a bad idea to sleep with him. He was my houseguest, and he was nursing a broken heart.
He was best friends with Jackson and Emily, which meant I’d probably see him at family events until the end of time. And he didn’t seem interested in anything but a friendship with me. Plus, he was helping me out with the whole fake-fiancé thing.
Sleeping with this man would be a stupid move on so many levels, but that didn’t stop this intense physical longing I felt for him.
“What are you thinking about?” His low voice broke through my thoughts.
“Is that why you two broke up?” I couldn’t bring myself to say her name.
Grey eyes widened at my intrusive question. He knew exactly what I was asking. He took his time answering. “Those are my preferences, but by no means are they mandatory. Once I figured out that she wasn’t into that, I was fine with slow, meaningful sex and cuddles.” His tone held so much dry sarcasm, I almost choked on my champagne.
“Are you telling me you reined back all your kink?”
“It wasn’t that bad.”
I thought about my own past. It wasn’t like I had been super honest with Yates about my preferences between the sheets. “I get it.”
“You do?”
I nodded. “Oh yeah.”
Porter looked like he wanted to say something but the dinner gong sounded.
“You deserve a treat for putting up with this night.” I stared up at Porter’s face.
I’d downed more than my fair share of wine as I feigned interest in painful conversation with table mates I barely knew. The speeches were worse, and I was grateful when the tables were cleared.
Porter cocked a brow, interest brimming in his eyes. “Like what?”
“Maybe another episode of Grey’s Anatomy?”
“How soon can we leave?” A smile teased his lips.
“Soon.”
A woman in a pale blue dress caught my eye. She reminded me of Traci, but it couldn’t be. What would my former boss be doing at this gala? I strained my neck, struggling to see if it was her. I caught a glimpse of her profile. I was almost certain that was Traci, and if she was here, I wanted to know why.
I shifted my gaze to Porter. “Will you excuse me a moment?”
“Of course.”
I took off across the room, weaving around couples, catching and losing sight of the woman. She disappeared around the corner. I only caught a glimpse, but I swore that it was her.
I managed to weave my way through the crowd and reached the corner when a strong arm grabbed mine, spinning me around.
“Where are you rushing off to?” Yates’ voice drawled.
I tried to yank my arm from his. “Yates, let me go. This isn’t funny.”
“I need to talk to you.” His voice was serious, but I didn’t care. He stopped being my problem when he cheated on me.
Speaking of, I needed to find Traci.
“Later.” I managed to yank my arm from his. “I’m in the middle of something.”
He stepped in front of me, blocking my path. “What are you doing?”
I peered around him. “Did you see Traci walk past here?”
Yates glanced over his shoulder. “Are you serious?”
“I saw her. She was wearing a light blue dress. Her hair was pinned up.”
A smug expression crossed his face. “When are you going to admit to yourself that you’re not over me?”
“What?” Displeasure wrapped itself around my vocal chords, seeping into my tone.
“You’re obsessed with Traci. You keep bringing her up. Now you’re seeing her like someone would see a ghost? You know this has nothing to do with her and everything to do with me.”
“Excuse me?”
He lowered his voice. “The fact that you can’t let her go tells me that you’re still stuck on me and what happened.”
“Don’t be an ass.”
“It’s true,” he insisted. “Even this whole charade with your military man. That’s your elaborate ruse to get me back.”
“You’re insane.”
“He’s all wrong for you.”
“At least he’s faithful to me.”
Two spots of color stained Yates’ cheekbones. “I’m not going to move on. You and I are destined to be together.”
“No.”
“Quit screwing up my life.”
“How am I screwing up your life? You have nothing to do with this.”
“I have everything to do with this.” The guy wasn’t making any sense.
I stepped back. “Good night, Yates.”
“Your father is going to put a stop to this nonsense.”
I froze. “Excuse me?”
He leaned down and hissed in my face. “Should have seen his face when I told him. You think he’s going to let you marry some common soldier? Think again.” Holy shit. Yates told my father I was engaged to Porter?
I glared up at him, infuriated beyond belief. “You told him? How dare you!”
He shrugged and put one hand in his pocket, already bored with this conversation. “You think I’m going to let you marry that guy?”
“Screw you, asshole.”
I turned and walked away, holding my head high, but I was rattled inside. Dad knew? And he hadn’t said anything? This fiancé ruse was supposed to be exclusive to Yates, but now that Dad knew, I felt the tethers between Porter and me tightened.
And I dreaded telling him.
Chapter 20
I found Porter outside, leaning against the huge stone railing of the balcony. He looked like a model in an expensive ad. He fit into this world better than I did.
“Find what you were looking for?”
“Porter…” I paused, trying to find the words.
“What is it?”
A voice spoke over the loudspeakers. “May I have everyone’s attention, please?”
Dad was about to announce his candidacy. We could listen to the announcement, then leave. I’d tell Porter that Dad knew about our fake engagement on the way home, but first, we needed to get through the speech.
I gave Porter an apologetic smile and promised, “Just one more event. Dad’s going to announce his candidacy, they’ll have their first dance, then we can go.”
Porter offered me his arm. I slid my hand onto it, and we entered the ballroom. Everyone had stopped talking and stared at my parents on the stage.
Dad looked out into the audience, spotted me, and said into the microphone, “Beth? Will you and Porter please join me on stage?”
Oh, boy.
Porter and I shared a glance. I felt like I was walking to a guillotine as the crowd parted for Porter and me to approach the stage.
“What’s this about?” he asked quietly against my hair.
“No idea,” I spoke through my fake smile.
Dad talked to the crowd about leadership and his background in business before he announced his plans to run for mayor. The clapping sounded like thunder.
He raised his hand, silencing the obedient group. “I have one more announcement. I wasn’t going to say anything, but I’m so damn proud, you’ll have to forgive me.” He glanced over at me and held my gaze. “Porter Lyons, my daughter’s boyfriend, is an esteemed member of the military. We all love the men and women that dedicate their lives to the service of this great country, so it’s with both pride and joy that I announce that wedding bells are in the near future for this happy couple.”
What. Just. Happened?
Flashes of cameras temporarily blinded me, but not before I saw the shock cross Porter’s face.
“Come here, my darling daughter.” Dad opened his arms, inviting me in for a hug.
With robotic legs, I moved to hug him while the crowd cheered and yelled.
He kissed both my cheeks. “I couldn’t be more happy for you, Beth.”
I moved to hug my mom, aware that Porter was shaking Dad’s hand.
Tears welled up in Mom’s eyes. “He’s not my first choice,” she whispered. “But this is going to be excellent for your father’s campaign. And I’m going to put my differences aside and plan the wedding of the century for you.”
Speechless. No words came out of me.
Dad approached the mic. “I invite you all to join us in our celebrations.”
On cue, the band started. I watched, numb, as Dad led Mom down to the dance floor. Porter moved to stand beside me, his expression carefully blank.
“I don’t know what to say,” I said through my pained smile.
He grabbed my hand and tugged me off the stage. I didn’t ask where we were going when he pulled me past the crowd that circled the dance floor. He led me out of the ballroom and searched for an empty room. I tripped behind him, terrified of what he would say. Whatever it was, I deserved it.
He opened the door to a smaller banquet room and ushered me in. The room was dark, lit only by the streaming moonlight shining through glass windows. He walked away from me. And for a long, terrible moment, we didn’t speak.
He turned and looked at me. Like, really looked at me.
“I’m sorry,” I started.
“For what?”
“For all that.”
“Did you tell your dad?”
“No!”
“So, don’t apologize.”
Okay, then. More silence. This game had escalated beyond either of our expectations. Would he walk? My heart beat faster.
“So much for keeping this to ourselves.”
“Are you mad?”
“No.”
I looked around the room. If he wasn’t going to lecture me, what were we doing here?
“What do you want to do?” his voice was quiet but calm.
“What do you mean?”
That grey stare held my gaze. “This is your life, Beth. I’m only an actor in all of this. Eventually, I’m going to go back to my life, and this won’t impact me, but you’re going to have to deal with a wedding that doesn’t happen.”
The thought was sobering. I hadn’t considered that. As far as I'd been concerned, this was all about keeping Yates at arm's length. Now that this was public, it was an entirely different matter. Mom had just promised she was going to plan the wedding of the century. Telling my parents that this was just a joke on Yates was a conversation I didn’t want to have.
I swallowed. “You’re worried about me?”
“A little bit.”
“Mom is already planning the wedding. Dad announced this to the entire world.” I tried but failed to keep the panic out of my voice. “Why would Yates tell my dad about this?”
“Maybe he thought he’d put a stop to it?”
“If that was the case, it backfired.”
“Why don’t we get out of here? We don’t need to make any decisions tonight.”
“Yeah, good idea. I’ll quickly say goodnight to my parents.”
We found Dad at the bar, getting a drink. What could I say to him? This was his night. His moment.
He glanced at Porter before saying, “Sorry for springing that on you both. I wasn’t going to say anything, but I looked over at you, and I was so proud of my little girl.”
Tears blurred my eyes. I couldn’t remember the last time he’d said he was proud of me. The fact that he was proud of me over a lie, just made it worse. “It’s okay.”
He reached forward and warmly shook Porter’s hand. “Son, welcome to the family.”
“Thank you, Sir.”
“Are you two lovebirds heading out?”
I nodded because no words would escape. I was completely blank. At a total loss as to how to handle the magnitude of this lie. He winked broadly at Porter.
“Good night, Dad,” I managed, before turning to walk. It took half of the length of the ballroom to realize Porter wasn’t behind me.
He was shaking hands with Dad again. I should end this charade. Immediately. Tomorrow. I would deal with the entire mess tomorrow. I waited for Porter in the lobby, then he ushered me to the car.
We were halfway home, both silent. Lost in our own thoughts.
I turned to him. “What did my dad say to you on the way out?”
Porter sighed and reached into his jacket pocket. “He wanted me to give you this.”
It was a ring box. With trembling fingers, I lifted the lid. Grandma’s engagement ring. “He gave you this?”
Porter’s expression was hard to read. “He said this ring had always been your dream ring.”
Oh no.
I stared down at the jaw-dropping, five-carat, perfectly round diamond set in a platinum band, encrusted with smaller diamonds. As a child, I’d always grabbed Granny’s hand to stare at it.
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Even in the dim light of the car, the diamond caught the light and sparkled.
“What did you say?” My voice shook a bit.
“I told him I’d buy you my own damn ring, but he said this ring was part of your grandma’s will, and she wanted you to have it.”
I told him that I’d buy you my own damn ring.
I looked over at Porter. He was staring silently out the window, wearing a killer tux, looking like he had lived in this world his entire life.
“Are you upset?”
He gave me a wry smile. “Mildly affronted because I’d never let my fiancée wear a ring her father gave me.”
My fiancée.
I swallowed. “Sorry about that.”
“I guess it doesn’t matter, since this is a charade and everyone is going to expect a ring, and there’s no way I’d ever be able to afford a ring like that.”
It was easily worth six figures. When I was a girl, I had childish romantic dreams about this ring. I daydreamed about a handsome prince, sweeping me off my feet with a romantic proposal. Now I had the handsome prince, but he was only pretending to be mine, and there was no romantic proposal in sight.
It dawned on me that, in my haste to lie my way out of an uncomfortable situation, I was ruining future moments. If I ever had a real fiancé, would we still want to use this ring? If we did, would I think of Porter and this moment every time I glanced at my ring finger? The whole thing saddened me.
“I think I’m in over my head.”
Finally, a truth, but it didn’t make anything better.
Chapter 21
I stood, waiting for my Americano when I noted someone sitting at a table. Actually, it was the newspaper they were reading that I noticed.
There, on the front of the paper, was a photo of my parents, myself and Porter. We were on the stage from last night, and we were smiling. It was the headline that made my heart pound.
STIRLING HEIRESS SAYS, “YES!”
No, no, no! I grabbed my coffee and rushed to the corner store. I found four more major newspapers that announced my impending nuptials on the front page. I bought them all, and with my head bowed, headed back to my apartment.
