“Looks to be going pretty well,” Lincoln said, looking around.
Ethan snorted. “You’re doing fantastic, baby. Stop feeling like you aren’t.” He kissed Lincoln’s cheek, and Madison warmed at the affection. The three of them looked at each other like they were the only people in the world, warmth and perfection surrounding them.
She was only a little bit jealous. Madison wanted a serious relationship, wanted marriage and babies and everything that came with that. She was a baker, a homemaker, and a businesswoman all in one. She wanted a traditional life, even if some of her life wasn’t at all conventional.
However, that wouldn’t be happening anytime soon, considering that she didn’t have time to date, and the men that she did go out with were not up to par.
The last one she had dated had droned on and on about his butterfly collection to the point that it had worried her that he might have dead carcasses all over his house. She had been right. They had been everywhere. Staring at her, pinned to the walls, just waiting to gouge out her eyes in her nightmares or something.
While she appreciated hobbies, he had just gotten creepier and creepier over time. After three dates, she called it off.
Much to her parents’ disappointment. They had liked the man.
“I’m so proud of you,” Madison repeated.
“Thanks for coming, cousin. I know it’s not easy for you to take time off since you’re the owner of Sin in a Cup.”
“We only stay open until eight. And my staff is taking care of things. I just feel like I sometimes need to be there from open to close, no matter what.”
“Delegating is the hardest part of owning a business,” Holland said, and Madison knew that she understood. Holland owned a small boutique shop in downtown Boulder and did pretty well for herself.
“Anyway, I’m taking up far too much of your time already,” Madison said, taking a step back. Lincoln frowned. “Why would you say that?”
Madison shook her head. “You can see me anytime. Go sell some art. Become even more famous.” Madison and Holland rolled their eyes, knowing that Lincoln would stay near and not mingle despite his fame.
Lincoln snorted. “Whatever you say.”
“I am proud of you. Later, we will celebrate this amazing show.”
“With cupcakes?” Ethan asked, his voice sounding as giddy as Aaron’s had earlier.
“With cupcakes. I baked you a special batch for your afterparty.”
“Yay, something to look forward to,” Ethan said.
“I assumed we already had something to look forward to,” Lincoln said, his voice low.
Madison blushed to the tips of her ears. “On that note, I’m going to walk away.”
Holland laughed, blushing just as hard as Madison.
She made her way through the throngs of people, enjoying the warmth and happiness emanating from the room. So many people loved her cousin’s art, and it made her ecstatic. He worked so hard. He might have an immeasurable amount of talent, but he also worked hours and hours for his business and put his blood, sweat, and tears into his art.
And now, people were here to purchase it and talk about it in reverent tones.
She was so damned proud of him.
“Madison,” a sharp voice said from behind her. “What do you think you are wearing?”
Madison turned on her heels, steeling herself. Goosebumps pebbled her flesh, and she cursed her natural instincts to run and hide. She was not afraid of the woman in front of her. She couldn’t be. And yet, fear coated her.
“Mother.”
“What is that atrocity on you? It is hugging your hips and makes you look even wider than you are. Than you could possibly be. The number of cupcakes you eat makes you wide enough. You don’t need to accentuate it.”
They were in a corner with Madison’s father blocking the two of them. Nobody could really overhear, but she was still embarrassed.
“This isn’t the place, Mother.”
“Don’t you dare talk back to me. And how dare you force Lincoln to invite us when you should have been the one to invite us?”
“What? This isn’t even my event. Of course, Lincoln should have invited you. This is his night.”
“We are family,” Mother snapped. “That is not how things work. You are our daughter. You were the one that was supposed to get us here. Instead, your cousin had to take time out of his precious day with his deviants in order to invite us when we should have already been on the guest list.”
“First, you’re not making any sense. You’re contradicting yourself. Second? Don’t use that word.”
“What? Deviants? We are talking about his proclivities,” her mother snipped. “I don’t understand why people are so accepting.”
“It’s not your place to understand. It is not your place to talk about it.”
“What did I say about talking back to me? You’re lucky we’re in public, or I would wipe that smile right off your face.”
Madison let out a sigh. She stood up to her mother often, but Mother didn’t care. She had only gotten worse the older she got, and as Madison remained unmarried.
“Anyway, since you’re here and you won’t bother to come over for dinner so we can talk to you, we’re just going to have to deal with this now.”
“I’ve been busy. It’s a very busy time for my store.”
“Yes, your precious little store. Where you just have to indulge in everything you bake.”
“Stop it,” Madison snapped.
“Whatever.” Her mother waved her hand again before she snapped her fingers. “Guy.”
Guy? What? Who the hell was she talking about? A guy?
A man wearing a custom-cut suit and a winning smile came over, his bright green eyes flashing. He had perfectly coiffed hair. A single strand delicately flopped over his forehead before he whipped it back, a careless gesture that could have been sexy in any other case.
All Madison felt was meh.
Meh because she had a horrible feeling about this.
“What’s going on?” Madison asked, worried.
“This is Guy. Guy, this is the daughter we were telling you about. I wish she had worn the dress I sent over, but there’s nothing we can do about that now. This is going to be the woman you’ll marry.”
Guy smiled, and Madison just blinked, grateful that she wasn’t drinking anything or she would have likely choked.
“Excuse me?” Madison asked, confused, angry, and really fucking worried.
“Honey, you’re fat. No one is going to love you. Or even want you. And while I understand that that is a curse on our family now, we have found a way to get you to the next stage of your life. As I said, this is Guy. He comes from good, respected family stock, has a great job, and will take you in hand. He is going to be the man you marry.”
Madison just blinked, confused, horror sliding over her. Her mother had called her those things before. But marriage?
What. The. Fuck?
“What?” Madison gasped.
“Don’t worry. It happens all the time. There are still arranged marriages these days. We found you the perfect match because, apparently, you’ve been spending too much time on whatever you’ve been baking,”—baking being code for eating, no doubt. After all, her mother was never subtle—“to find yourself a man.”
“No. You can’t just tell me who I’m going to marry.”
“Do not embarrass me,” her mother whispered.
“You’re the one who’s embarrassing me.”
“You will do this. For once in your life, you will do what I tell you and make us proud. Do not be such a disappointment.”
Before Madison could say anything, before she could truly understand what was happening, an arm slid around her waist and squeezed her hip. She froze, knowing that touch.
Remembering that touch.
“Madison, baby, there you are.” And then Aaron Montgomery kissed the side of her temple and grinned down at her.
Madison blin
ked up at him, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
“Excuse me,” her mother snapped. “This is a private conversation.”
Madison looked up as Aaron raised a single brow. “Not too private, considering I could overhear you,” he growled. Although his voice sounded completely pleasant, Madison heard the warning there.
“Aaron,” she whispered.
“No, no, Madison. I think it’s time we stop holding our secrets back.”
Confused, she just looked up at him.
“Secret?” her mother snapped. Like always, her father simply stood there, quiet.
Madison felt like she should hate them both. But they were her parents. She had tried for so long to be good for them. To understand why they hated her so much.
But it was a lost cause.
“I wanted to talk to you both first,” Aaron began. “But I asked, and she said yes. Madison and I are getting married.”
Madison blinked, her brain going blank. Her mother gasped, and her father looked nonplussed.
“Married?” her mother whispered, her tone incredulous.
“Married.” Aaron looked down at Madison and grinned.
He was such a good actor. Madison saw the warmth in his eyes, even slightly doused by the anger that was also there. “I’m going to marry your daughter, Mrs. McClard. And that means that guy over there? He’s not needed.”
“Madison, this can’t be true.”
Madison heard the anger in her mother’s tone. Knew her mom thought that Aaron could never want a girl like Madison. She braced for the words.
“Yes, yes we are.”
The lie came out of nowhere, and yet it felt right. And also like a horrible mistake. But she kept her gaze steady.
“That can’t be true,” her mother continued. “Who would want a girl like you?”
And there it was. Aaron’s jaw tightened at those words, and Madison looked over to her mother and raised her chin. “Aaron did. And, yes, he’s my fiancé.”
And on that note, with that lie, she knew for certain it had been a horrible mistake. However, the look of pure astonishment and hatred in her mother’s eyes made it all worth it.
At least she hoped to hell it had been a lie.
Chapter 2
Aaron Montgomery squeezed Madison’s hip again and wondered what the hell he was doing. Had he lost his mind?
Undeniably.
He hadn’t even realized that he was saying the words until he was suddenly lying to Madison’s family as if he did it all the time.
“Oh, really? Convenient,” Madison’s mother said, her eyes narrowing to cat-like slits.
He did not like this woman. He tried to give most people the benefit of the doubt because he didn’t always know the situations behind some people’s attitudes or words, but this woman? He hated her.
From what he had heard her say to Madison, she deserved his hatred and more.
“Yes,” he said, leaning over to kiss the top of Madison’s head. She was wearing heels and yet felt so tiny compared to him.
What would that mean in bed?
He held back a curse. No way would that be happening. Ever. A fake engagement, even if it might not last for more than this conversation, didn’t mean they would end up in bed. In fact, because of this fake announcement, they’d most likely never end up in bed—even if he’d had thoughts about it in the past.
No, thank you, he wasn’t going to let his thoughts go down that path yet again.
“And you’ve been hiding this all along?” Madison’s mother snapped. “I don’t believe this for a second.”
“Believe what?” Lincoln asked, coming over to their little corner. Aaron knew the charade would be over now. He’d earned any incriminating looks and yells he received for acting without thinking.
People were starting to stare. Thankfully, some of Aaron’s other family members began pulling people’s attention away as if they knew that Madison needed a little privacy, even if nothing was private right now. Then his parents began talking to a large group, and Aaron’s siblings subtly made their way over.
“Ah, you don’t even know?” Madison’s mother asked. Aaron thought her name was Maeve, but he couldn’t be sure. All he remembered was that she had always been Mother, not Mom, not Mommy, not Ma.
Mother.
“Did you know that Madison and Aaron have been dating? And that they’re engaged? No, of course, you didn’t. Because it’s all a lie. She’s a sad, pathetic excuse for a McClard.”
Lincoln’s eyes narrowed, and Aaron resisted the urge to step forward, but his hand did fist on Madison’s waist. She reached around and squeezed his hip as if warning him.
Aaron tried not to think about what that touch meant. Or how much he liked it.
Madison’s cousin looked ready to commit murder before he blanked his expression, a sly smile spreading over his features. “Oh, I didn’t know we were announcing it,” Lincoln said. Aaron froze, his hand spasming on Madison’s side. Her hand did the same on him, and Aaron had to wonder what Lincoln would do next.
“You knew?” Madison’s mother rasped.
“Of course, I knew. I’m family.” Lincoln winked at the barb, and Madison made a little coughing sound that Aaron tried to cover with a laugh.
Aaron leaned forward, smiling. “We were keeping things a little on the down-low because of the new engagements in my family. However, the cat’s out of the bag. Considering that you were trying to set up my fiancée with someone else, I had to, you know, make sure my territory was claimed and all that.”
“Territory?” Madison asked, her voice so low that Aaron wasn’t even sure her mother had heard, despite being so close.
“You…what? A Montgomery?” Madison’s mother sputtered.
“Well, look at you, pumpkin.” Madison’s father spoke for the first time. “Good for you. I guess we don’t need Guy.” The elder McClard flicked his fingers as if the man should just walk away. Instead, Guy narrowed his eyes, his gaze calculating.
Aaron was pretty sure the man didn’t believe them.
He wasn’t sure anyone did.
It had been a stupid lie, not even a good ruse. But if it got Madison’s parents off her back, he would do it again in a heartbeat.
“Do all of the Montgomerys know?” Madison’s mother asked.
“Some do. Not everyone else does,” Lincoln lied for them all.
“We were waiting for the right time. Honestly, we just enjoy spending time together. Don’t we?” Aaron looked down at Madison, who blinked up at him, a smile on her face. Unfortunately, he couldn’t tell if it was real or not.
Considering that it was mostly frozen, he had a feeling there was nothing real about it.
“I guess we’ll have to make sure we do everything in our power to make this happen then, won’t we?” Madison’s mother said, and Aaron had no idea what she meant by that.
“If it’s all right with you, I’m going to take the couple away because I want to have Aaron speak to a few people. You know, being in the business and everything,” Lincoln said.
“In art?” Madison’s mother said slowly.
“Yes, he’s very successful. Probably even more so than Lincoln.” Madison winked at her cousin, and Lincoln threw his head back and laughed, even as Aaron’s smile dimmed a bit.
No, he wasn’t more successful than Lincoln. And that was fine, considering they didn’t move in the same art circles. But he did well for himself.
The fact that he was now the lamb out for slaughter worried him, though. However, he had put himself in this situation, so he would just have to deal with it.
Anything to help Madison get this woman off her back.
“Well, I’m sure we’ll have a lot to talk about,” Madison’s mother said, her eyes narrowing even further. She looked like a giant snake ready to strike at any moment, and Aaron wasn’t a fan.
“Okay,” Aaron said, moving his hand from Madison’s waist to link his fingers with hers. “We’ll
see you later.” Aaron tugged her away, Lincoln at Madison’s other side.
“I’ll warn the family,” Lincoln whispered.
“What just happened?” Madison asked.
“Let’s go outside and talk,” Aaron said, really worried that he had just fucked things up beyond recognition.
“The Montgomerys are behind you.”
Aaron looked over Madison‘s head at Lincoln and smiled. “Hell yeah, we are. You’re one of us, right?”
“I should say always, but it did take me a while to get here. However, we’ll keep up the ruse for as long as you need us to.”
“How can you be so sure?” Madison gasped.
“Because it’s what they do,” Lincoln said.
“He’s right,” Aaron said as Lincoln nodded and walked over to the rest of the Montgomerys.
Soon, the entire family would know that they were pretending to be engaged.
How long would it last? He didn’t know, but he had a feeling he would have to deal with at least some of the ramifications as soon as he stepped outside with Madison. Namely, the slap across the face he imagined would be coming. He deserved it.
And he’d take it. Anything to make her feel better.
It was either come up with this stupid ruse that had come out of nowhere or strangle her mother.
At least this would end up with less bloodshed.
Maybe.
Cool air slid over his face as they stepped out onto the back porch. A couple of people were smoking before they put out their cigarettes and returned to the gallery.
Aaron let out a breath and turned to Madison.
She had her arms folded over her chest and was practically shaking.
“Madison.”
She put her hand out in front of her. “I’m going to need a minute. Or like four. Can you do that for me?”
“I can do that,” Aaron said, holding back a wince.
Madison started to pace, her blond curls bouncing around her face, her hips swaying in that very provocative way that always went straight to his dick. Not that he’d ever let himself think about that. At least not a lot. And now, just because he was sort of fake engaged for the next thirty seconds didn’t mean he was allowed to think about Madison in any way but like a sister. A cousin.
Seduced in Ink Page 2
