Make-Believe Marriage

by CA Quigg

  "Thanks for the invite," he said. "I might just do that. Will your dad be there? I'm hoping to talk to him about the accident."

  "He's staying home. He's still not feeling great. I don't think he remembers anything yet."

  "I'm hoping as the days pass, something'll come back to him."

  "Me, too."

  "Well," Tom said and tipped his hat, "Good luck. You deserve some happiness."

  "Thanks, Sherriff."

  Darcy hooked her arm around mine, and another fist of guilt punched my stomach. I was a rotten liar and would rot in hell for betraying my family. And my dad would be by my side for eternity telling me how useless I was because I'd messed things up again.

  I held my wrist to my nose and inhaled deeply. Before I'd left the house this morning, I'd blended frankincense, blue tansy, and blue chamomile, but they weren't enough to quiet my racing mind or heart. I'd need a full bottle of Xanax to get me through this.

  "Let's go get you married," Darcy said.

  "Yes, let's."

  Arm in arm, Darcy and I walked into the town hall and made our way to the judge's chambers, but there was no sign of Caden. Maybe he'd gotten cold feet and had decided this was a bad idea. Another thing to add to my datingrésumé: One husband walked out. The other husband didn't even show up.

  "Where's Caden?" I asked Darcy.

  "He's already in there with Peter. Don't worry."

  I inhaled deeply and rolled back my shoulders.

  "This is it," Darcy said with a squeal in her voice. "'When you walk out of here, you'll be Mrs. Caden Gallagher. I'm so excited for you. I haven't seen you this happy ever."

  "Thanks." The guilt in my stomach kept stacking up. Pretty soon I wouldn't be able to breathe.

  Darcy opened the door to the judge's chambers, and the world around me swirled. I was getting married. The one thing I swore I would never do again. I was promising to love and cherish someone in sickness and in health.

  Darcy thought it was unromantic that we hadn't written our own vows, but I explained it away by saying Caden was a traditionalist at heart.

  I stepped over the threshold.

  Caden turned to face me, and the rest of the world melted away. He wore a dark suit and matching tie. A lock of hair fell over his forehead, and his jaw was clean-shaven. Maybe by tonight some of the stubble would have grown back, I loved how the roughness felt on the sensitive skin between my thighs.

  Not that I was sure we'd even consummate the marriage since we hadn't had sex since that night. Our night together was about getting it out of our systems more than anything. I didn't know about him, but it definitely wasn't out of mine.

  Chapter 16

  Caden

  Stunning.

  Absolutely fucking stunning.

  If I thought Lizzie was beautiful before, she was breathtaking now. The first thing I noticed was her hair. A bronzed wave draped over one of her shoulders and shone in the muted sun streaming through the stained glass windows.

  Despite the worried furrow on her brow, her eyes sparkled, and her lips were the color of ripe apples. I wanted to kiss her stupid, but after last weekend I'd made a promise to myself not to do that again.

  When she stood beside me, the familiar scent of citrus greeted me and my cock throbbed. Now wasn't the time to get a hard-on.

  Sweat prickled my forehead, and I dug a finger beneath the starched collar of my shirt. I was doing the one thing I swore I'd never do. In a few minutes, I'd say words I'd never said before and would never say again. But I had to. There was no other choice.

  The justice of the peace greeted everyone, stood in front of us and began the ceremony. The next twenty minutes passed in a blur and if anyone asked me about it later, I would be hard pushed to remember anything I'd said or done.

  When it was time for the rings, Darcy presented them on a small heart shaped pillow, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

  If I'd had my way, we would have used two strangers as witnesses because something about Peter rankled me. He was always in the background hovering and watching. And before Darcy and Lizzie arrived, he'd probed me with questions about why I was marrying someone as dull as Lizzie. If he wasn't engaged to her sister, I would have given him a bloody lip.

  We'd agreed to have them as our witnesses because we'd said no to so much. We'd said no to a huge reception. We'd said no to everyone coming to the ceremony, and we said no to Sean giving Lizzie away.

  "Repeat after me," the Justice of the Peace said. "With this ring..."

  A bead of sweat ran down my back. Lizzie's eyes widened in horror, and I couldn't figure out why.

  "With this ring..." the Justice of the Peace urged.

  "Sorry," I said, realizing I'd forgotten to repeat the words. "I'm more nervous than I thought."

  My legs urged me to run, and my mind begged me to say I'd changed my mind. That Lizzie could keep the money. That the work would continue on the club, and I'd find another way to get a green card. But then I looked at her face, her eyes. She'd sacrificed so much for this-for me. I wouldn't humiliate her.

  I cleared my throat and said,"With this ring…"

  The justice of the peace continued, "I thee wed…"

  "I thee wed." With a shaking hand, I slid the ring onto Lizzie's finger.

  She didn't look elated. If anything, she looked as terrified as I did. At least we could be terrified together.

  It was Lizzie's turn. She repeated her vows, and when she slid the white-gold ring onto my finger, she might as well have tied a noose around my neck.

  "I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

  Darcy cheered, and Peter smirked.

  I leaned down and pressed a chaste and fast kiss on Lizzie's lips.

  "You can do better than that," Darcy goaded, who filmed every move on her phone. "This is the woman you love, show the world."

  I cupped Lizzie's cheeks and mouthed the word sorry before placing my lips on hers. I didn't know if I'd said sorry because I was kissing her or because I'd given her no choice but to marry me.

  Chapter 17

  Elizabeth

  People packed O'Halloran's, and there was more than the promised close family and friends. Exactly what I didn't want or need. Most of these people had been at my first wedding, and I could already hear the "I knew it wouldn't last" comments when Caden and I divorced.

  From the second we walked into the bar, he held my hand, and when everyone clinked their glasses and chanted for us to kiss, we obliged, which sent them chanting for more. It wasn't a hardship, and if this had been my real wedding day, it would have been perfect.

  My dad's larger than life absence was noticeable, but no one asked where he was. They all knew he was at home recuperating from the accident. What would everyone say if they knew he'd practically promised me to Caden in exchange for money? And what would they say if they knew I went along with it not exactly kicking and screaming.

  Sean, who acted as DJ for the day, tapped the microphone. "Everyone, for the first time, please welcome onto the dance floor, Mr. and Mrs. Caden Gallagher."

  I'd forgotten about the first dance. Crap . I wasn't much of a dancer and hated being the center of attention.

  Caden squeezed my hand and led me onto the makeshift dance floor. Unforgettable blasted from the speakers. It was one of my favorites, and one I'd listened to constantly as a teenager. Sean once threatened to break the CD because I'd listened to it so much.

  Caden placed his hands on my hips, and I put mine on his shoulders. We moved like two kids at a middle-grade dance and not like two people in love. He leaned down and pressed his lips to the shell of my ear, and shivers spiraled down my back.

  "Relax," he said. "The worst part is over."

  "I'm trying, but I feel like everyone knows we're lying."

  "If you don't act like we're in love, they're going to su
spect something is wrong."

  He pressed kisses to my cheeks, and when he reached my lips, I parted them, inviting him in.

  The kiss wasn't sexy or sensuous. It was tender and sweet and brought tears to my eyes. His performance of doting husband was so good he could win awards, but his kiss did what he wanted it to do, and some of my tension melted away.

  "I didn't tell you how much I love your hair," he said. "You look beautiful. I'm lucky to have you by my side."

  I beamed. Changing my hair color had taken Anna, the town's only hairdresser, a full afternoon at the salon. I would have to use super strength conditioner for the rest of my life to compensate for the chemicals used to strip away the old color, but being my natural color was worth it.

  "Thanks. I wasn't sure. I was dark for so long. I didn't recognize myself when I looked in the mirror."

  "It suits you. Makes you look even more kissable." As if to make his point, he pressed a kiss to my neck.

  "Why are you doing this?" I asked. "You don't have to compliment me. We're married now. You don't have to be nice to me ever again."

  "Why wouldn't I be nice to you? I mean every word. You look stunning, Lizzie."

  I believed him.

  The song ended, and he guided me off the dance floor.

  "Do you think we could sneak away a wee bit early?" he asked, pressing himself against my back.

  "Why?" I didn't need him to answer because his answer pressed into the base of my back.

  He wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled his nose into the crook of my neck.

  "Because I want to fuck you senseless."

  The edge in his words stole my breath, and the dark want I heard there stunned me.

  "Ever since the night I took you against the wall," he continued, "I haven't stopped wanting you."

  What was he up to? I wanted him too, but his hot and cold routine was too much to keep up with. Giving myself to him again would be so easy, but I was afraid that every time I gave in and slept with him, he would take another piece of my heart until pretty soon I'd have nothing left because he would own all of me. But the idea of sleeping with him again felt so right. It was sex pure and simple, and if I kept reminding myself of that, my heart would stay intact.

  "Okay," I said. "Let's leave as soon as we can." I was a grown woman who could take charge of what she wanted without anxiety or guilt, and I wanted him. I wanted him to fuck me into next week, and I wanted orgasm after orgasm.

  He took my hand. "Let's get out of here. I can't wait any longer."

  "Where do you think you two love birds are slipping off too?" Sean asked stepping in front of the door.

  "I'm taking my wife home," Caden said.

  "Before you go, the wife and I have a little gift for you."

  "You've already done enough," I said. "The reception. All the food."

  "Nonsense." He spotted my mom and waved her over. "These two were about to sneak off. We should give them their gift now."

  My mom slid her arm around Sean and smiled. "Since none of Caden's family could make it, and because once work begins on the club, you won't have time to go on a honeymoon, we've bought you a long weekend in Ireland. You leave tomorrow."

  "We can't go to Ireland," I said. We can't-my dad."

  Caden squeezed my fingers so hard it hurt. I glanced at him and was surprised to see how pale he'd gotten. I don't think I'd ever met an Irishman who hated his country so much.

  "Thanks very much for the thoughtful gift, but really we can't accept it. Lizzie's right her dad needs us here."

  "Nonsense," my mom protested. "The old fool has a twenty-four-hour nurse." She placed a gentle hand on my bicep. "And I can check in on him as much as he'd hate it. Do this for yourself, honey. Make a life while you have the chance. Get from under his shadow."

  The plea in my mom's eyes was enough to break my heart. Over the years, I hadn't accepted much from her, and I didn't want to reject what she now offered.

  I wrapped my arms around her neck and hugged her tight. "Thank you so much. It means a lot to both of us. I'd love to meet Caden's family."

  I stepped back and didn't miss the thunder covering Caden's face. He clearly wasn't happy at the thought of going to Ireland tomorrow.

  "This is more than unexpected and too generous. Lizzie and I will chat about it at home. Maybe we can change it to another weekend?"

  "Not possible," Sean said. "There was an offer on air miles. If you change the dates, they're lost. You wouldn't want me to lose thousands of air miles, would you?"

  Chapter 18

  Caden

  Home. Somewhere I didn't want to go. Somewhere I hadn't been in years. And now, I was bringing my wife home. What the hell would I tell my mother? How would I explain landing home with Lizzie?

  Cait Gallagher was a woman to be reckoned with. I had no doubt she would like Lizzie, but now wasn't the right time for them to meet. Once she got over the shock, she would ask about babies and when we planned to start a family. Even if we were married for reasons other than a green card, I didn't want to be a father, and it was all because of Louise.

  We first kissed when we were twelve and were inseparable until six months after Charlotte's birth eight years later. Louise dropped the bomb that obliterated my world when she told me the baby I'd love from the first sonogram belonged to her boss.

  Maybe we could go to Ireland but not visit my family, but if word ever got back I'd been home, there would be war.

  I couldn't keep the news of our wedding quiet for long. I wasn't on social media, so there was no chance of my family finding out that way, but Lizzie was, and she and her sisters were bound to post pictures. This was a fucking mess, one I'd knowingly gotten myself into.

  I reached out and shook Sean's hand. "I'll call my mother and tell her to expect us. She'll be ecstatic to meet Lizzie." And she'd clip me around the ear for not giving her a day out and a chance to dress up, nevermind not introducing her to my fiancee--now wife.

  Cait Gallagher loved a wedding and the fact that she hadn't been able to attend her youngest son's wedding-the first wedding in the family-could send her to her sick bed. She wasn't unknown to play the martyr to get her own way. And she always got her own way. With six kids, she had to find a way to make them listen. Guilt being one of them.

  "If you don't mind, I think Lizzie and I will go home. It's a long flight, and we have to pack."

  "I want lots of pictures," her mother said. "Tell your family our door is open. They'll always have a place to stay if they ever decide to come visit."

  "I will." I interlaced my fingers with Lizzie's, and we walked toward the door. "Thanks again," I called back before leaving.

  "Fuck," I said once we were outside. "That was unexpected."

  Lizzie blew out a breath. "We don't have to go. We can spend the weekend in Manhattan. Say we missed our flight, so we decided to stay in your apartment and have a weekend to ourselves." She paced the parking lot. "But that wouldn't be fair. Sean has been saving those air miles for years. He wanted to take Mom somewhere exotic for her birthday."