Fortune's Surprise Engagement

by Nancy Robards Thompson

  Yes, she just might be able to secure Alejandro’s vineyard purchase. She would talk to her dad after the brides and grooms had each said I do and the wedding was over.

  In the meantime, she was going to make sure she played her role of Cupid-struck lover to the hilt, to make sure Sophie didn’t have any reason to back out at the last moment.

  Matteo, Mason and Joaquin were talking about the eighteen holes they’d played that morning. Alejandro had begged off on the round of golf because he’d needed to make some phone calls.

  The guys talked about bogeys and birdies and the difficulty of the fifteenth hole, but Olivia wasn’t a golfer and the conversation didn’t hold her interest. Alejandro seemed to be in his own world, too. She wondered where that world might be and who he might be thinking about.

  Olivia leaned over so that her arm rested flush against Alejandro’s. She let her hand fall onto his thigh. Granted, his leg was hidden by the table and no one could see it, but it helped her get into character.

  Following suit, Alejandro did the same thing, letting his hand wander over to her thigh. It happened so naturally. His thumb and forefinger toyed with the hem of her dress. The feel of his thumb on her bare leg sent shivers coiling outward from her belly.

  In response, she traced tiny circles over his pant leg, on the inside of his thigh, going high, but not too high. This was for their own entertainment, of course, but it was just for play. He was teasing her and he was blurring the line between pretend romance and giving in to the attraction that they were both feeling. Last night’s kiss had confirmed that. It had been filled with curiosity and longing and pent-up desire.

  For a crazy moment she wondered what would happen if they just gave in to their feelings...

  She thought it through, making a crazy attempt at justification. By making love with Alejandro, this act they had been putting on for Sophie’s benefit wouldn’t be a complete farce. It wouldn’t be a total lie. Of course they wouldn’t be in love as they claimed, but they would be involved. Even if she’d made love with Alejandro, they would still break up right on schedule and move on with their lives.

  But in the end, common sense won because the thought of rendering herself so vulnerable to Alejandro, making love to him knowing that they would say goodbye, made her heart ache.

  She laced her fingers through his and took his hand off her leg, putting it on the table, where everyone could see.

  This was just another act in the play. A play that was for her sister’s benefit.

  “May I have your attention, please,” said Gerald Robinson. The room quieted down at the sound of her father’s commanding voice. “Sophie and Mason, Dana and Kieran, please come up here. Join me. I’d like to say a few words. Even though the Montgomerys are cohosting this evening with me, I hope they won’t mind me proposing a toast to the four kids whose lives will change forever tomorrow night.”

  Olivia flinched, suddenly wishing she could muzzle her father, because he was a man who spoke his mind and she could never be sure exactly what was going through that head of his. She squeezed Alejandro’s hand as she watched the foursome join him at the front of the room.

  “You okay?” he said, looking at her with eyes so dark and soulful it made Olivia’s breath hitch.

  “I’m fine. Or at least I hope I will be—or everything will be—” She gave an almost imperceptible nod toward her father and leaned in closer to whisper to Alejandro. He smelled good—like citrus and something grassy and clean. It instantly calmed her nerves. “I hope he doesn’t decide to unload his ideas about love and marriage. I did that and we saw where that got us.”

  Alejandro smiled that lazy, hypnotizing smile of his. For a split second Olivia wanted to lean in and kiss him.

  “If he does,” Alejandro whispered, “we will just have to put in some overtime.”

  His gaze dropped to her lips and lingered for a moment before he freed his hand from hers and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close in a display so convincing that Olivia wanted to believe it was real.

  Good grief. What the hell is wrong with me?

  She inhaled, trying to clear her mind, but all she managed to accomplish was filling her senses with the scent of him. She needed to get some air.

  Her father was in the middle of giving his toast. He hadn’t said anything offensive yet—then again, Olivia had only been listening with half an ear—but there was still time.

  She sat forward in her seat. “Will you excuse me for a moment, please?”

  As she stood, she caught Zoe’s eye.

  Out in the hall both Rachel and Zoe fell into step with her as she made her way toward the ladies’ bathroom.

  The restroom was decorated with dainty pink flowered wallpaper and gold fixtures. It was divided into two sections: a sitting area with a love seat and a vanity where guests could freshen up makeup or wait for friends to finish in the second area, which contained the toilets and lavatories. The two areas were separated by old-fashioned swinging doors.

  “What’s going on?” Zoe said, once they were inside the restroom.

  Olivia considered making a sarcastic quip about being in here because nature called, but she was tired of pretending. That wasn’t why she was here.

  “For a moment, I was afraid our father was going to single-handedly undo all the hard work we’ve accomplished this week bringing Sophie and Mason back together. It’s one thing for Sophie to get upset over my indiscretion—that’s fixable, as evidenced by the events of this week. But if Dad is in one of his moods and he starts going to town and giving a dissertation on his views of the institution of marriage, I don’t know if I’ll be able to fix it.”

  “You can’t worry about that,” said Rachel. “She seems fine. I really doubt anything could sway her now. She loves Mason. I think if she did have another episode like she had last weekend, maybe it would be a good idea to question whether or not she was ready to get married.”

  “You’re right,” Olivia said. “It’s just that we’ve come this far. I don’t want anything to go wrong.”

  “I have something sticky on my fingers,” Rachel said. “Come in here so I can wash my hands.” She pushed through the double doors into the area with the sinks and stalls. Olivia and Zoe followed her.

  “You are still blaming yourself and you need to stop,” said Zoe. “You have done everything you can to ensure that Sophie makes it down the aisle. I mean, not many sisters would go to the lengths that you’ve gone to, pretending to be in love—although getting to cozy up to Alejandro Mendoza isn’t really a hardship.”

  Rachel and Zoe laughed.

  “I must admit you two have put on a pretty convincing performance this week,” Zoe said. “There were times that even I believed you. I don’t think anyone suspects that your relationship is anything but real. Certainly not Sophie. She’ll be fine.”

  Rachel turned off the water and reached for a paper towel just as Sophie pushed through the double doors. Her smile was gone and so was her rosy glow. “So it was all an act? You and Alejandro have only been pretending to be in love with each other?”

  Olivia’s heart stopped. Rachel and Zoe stood frozen in place with huge eyes and gaping mouths.

  “You lied to me.” Sophie’s voice was laced with hysteria and kept getting higher with each word. “Why would you do something like that, Olivia?”

  * * *

  Alejandro looked up at the feel of someone tapping him on the shoulder.

  Rachel leaned down and whispered, “We have a situation. Can you help me, please?”

  A feeling of dread spread over him as he glanced around the ballroom and realized that the other three Fortune Robinson sisters weren’t in the room. He had no idea what was up. Had Sophie changed her mind again? She had looked perfectly happy a few moments ago when she had joined her father at the front of the
room for the toast. Gerald Robinson had seemed uncharacteristically sentimental and Sophie had seemed to bubble over as she leaned in and kissed her father on the cheek. But Alejandro was quickly learning that the Fortune Robinson family was strangely complex. Just when he thought he had them figured out they left him guessing.

  He followed Rachel to another room near the one where the rehearsal dinner was taking place and found Sophie reading Olivia the riot act.

  “So this was all a horrible trick?” she asked.

  “Sophie, I can explain if you’ll just let me,” Olivia said. She reached out to take hold of Sophie’s hand, but Sophie pulled away.

  “Don’t. Don’t touch me.”

  “Sophie, I did this for you. You were getting ready to make the biggest mistake of your life deciding not to marry Mason, and I felt like I’d caused it. I wanted to fix it. There’s no reason for you to be mad—”

  “No reason to be mad? You lied to me, Olivia. I suppose this has all been one big joke to you?”

  “Calm down, Sophie,” Zoe said. “You’re acting like she stole your fiancé rather than try to help you make things right.”

  It seemed like Zoe’s words didn’t even register with Sophie.

  “How many other people are in on this joke?” Sophie demanded. “How many? Tell me.”

  Olivia seemed to be stalling and stammering as Alejandro approached. She looked at him with desperation in her eyes, but she finally found her voice. “Only Zoe, Rachel and—”

  “There you are, querida,” Alejandro said. “I’ve been looking all over for you, my love. Is everything okay?”

  “You can drop the act, Alejandro,” Sophie said. “I know all about your little game and I don’t appreciate it one bit.”

  “Game?” Alejandro asked, lacing his right fingers through Olivia’s and putting a protective arm around her shoulder. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  Sophie wasn’t buying it. “This.” She gestured at Olivia and Alejandro with a dismissive wave of her hand. “This lovey-dovey act. Olivia isn’t in love with you. She doesn’t even believe in love. She’s made that perfectly clear too many times over the years. So just stop. Right now. Okay? This is insulting.”

  Olivia glanced up at him with a look that suggested she wished she could melt into the ground. He did his best to reassure her with his eyes. Don’t worry. I’ve got this.

  He dropped his arm from Olivia’s shoulder and pulled his fingers from her grasp. “Wow. Did I read this all wrong? I’m so embarrassed. I think we need to talk, because obviously I’ve gotten the wrong message.”

  Sophie snorted. “Please don’t tell me she used you. She concocted this elaborate scheme and didn’t even clue you in? Olivia?”

  “No,” Alejandro said. “I know it started out as a way to convince you, Sophie, that love was real. Olivia thought that the best way to do that was to make you think she had fallen in love with me. The funny thing is, somewhere along the way in the midst of all this craziness, we really did fall in love. Or at least I did, and I thought she felt the same way.”

  He turned back to Olivia. “After everything we’ve shared. I... I just don’t know how I could have been so wrong. I know you said you didn’t want to tell your sisters about how things have changed between us because you didn’t want to upstage the wedding. But all those kisses we shared felt so real. I’m in love with you, Olivia. Maybe we should leave and talk about this privately. I don’t want to ruin your sister’s night. However, I do need to know right now if this is just a game to you.”

  He was playing his part so convincingly that he almost believed himself. It wasn’t hard. Olivia Fortune Robinson would be a very easy woman to love. But then something flashed in her eyes that made him get ahold of himself and he knew she understood what she needed to do.

  “No, it’s not a game. I love you, too,” she replied.

  Sophie exhaled impatiently. Her mouth was tight and her dark eyes glistened with tears. Alejandro half expected her to stomp her foot. But she didn’t. She got right to the point.

  “Just knock it off, you guys. This really is getting to be insulting. The more you lie the more furious it’s making me.”

  Alejandro waited a beat, giving Olivia the opportunity to come clean. When she didn’t, he knew it was up to him to pull out the big guns. So he did the only logical thing he could do: he fell down on one knee and took Olivia’s hands in his.

  Zoe, Rachel and Sophie gasped in unison.

  “If you feel the same way I do,” he said, his gaze fixed on Olivia, “if you love me as much as I love you, then, Olivia Fortune Robinson, will you be my wife?”

  Chapter Seven

  Two hours before the wedding, Olivia watched as the stylist pinned a stunning cathedral-length veil to Sophie’s head. The salon was abuzz with late-day clients. Dana, Monica, Rachel and Zoe had already come and gone. Madison, the owner of the salon where Olivia and her sisters had been coming for years, had already worked her magic on the rest of the bridal party. Sophie was the last of the lot since placing her long veil proved a little tricky. Unfortunately, it did nothing to quell her curiosity.

  “When is Alejandro getting you a ring?” She turned to look at Olivia. Her expression promised she wasn’t going to let this go.

  “I need you to sit still and face forward, please,” said Madison.

  “Sophie, are you five years old?” Olivia asked. “Quit looking at me and do what Madison needs you to do. Come on, the wedding is in two hours and we still need to get to the hotel so we can get dressed.”

  Olivia had appointed herself Sophie’s handmaiden for the day. After everything that had happened, she was doing her best to make sure her sister made it down the aisle on time. In the meantime, she needed to distract Sophie from the details of last night’s surprise engagement. Surprise being the key word. It was the last thing she had expected from Alejandro, but it had worked like a charm. Sophie’s mood had turned on a dime. One minute she had been furious with her for the deception—and frankly, Olivia had been at a loss for what to do—and the next minute she had been crying tears of happiness for her sister whom she thought would never find love.

  By the time she and Alejandro had left Sophie, she had seemed convinced. Today, not so much. She hadn’t outwardly questioned the sudden proposal, but she was full of questions.

  “Well, if you would just answer my question, I wouldn’t have to keep moving my head to look at you,” Sophie said. “If you would just tell me, I could close my eyes and relax. You don’t want to be the cause of the bride’s anxiety, do you?”

  Olivia walked over and stood in front of Sophie, and leaned her hip on the vanity in front of the chair. “I don’t know when he’s going to get me a ring, Sophie. His proposal was as much of a surprise for me as it was for you. I—”

  “Wait,” said Madison, stopping midpin. “You’re engaged? When she was talking about a ring, I didn’t realize she meant an engagement ring. I didn’t know you were even dating anyone, much less engaged. Oh, my gosh! Olivia! That’s fabulous news. Congratulations! Have you set a date?”

  Olivia cringed inwardly, but she dug deep, determined to keep up the happy, newly engaged charade. Really, all she wanted to do was change the subject. Last night, Sophie had been so upset. Even though Alejandro had shocked her with a fake proposal, in hindsight it really was just about the only thing that would’ve worked.

  Alejandro had indeed saved the night, but it was a temporary fix.

  Olivia couldn’t help but feel that they had dug themselves in deeper and wonder how she was going to mend things with her sister when she and Alejandro called off the engagement. They had a couple of weeks before they would have to deal with that. It wouldn’t be an issue until after everyone got home from their honeymoon. By that time Alejandro would be back in Miami and Olivia would be left w
ith the task of announcing the broken engagement. But that seemed worlds away.

  “Madison, today is Sophie and Dana’s wedding day,” she told the hairdresser. “I don’t want to steal their thunder by putting the spotlight on me. So let’s focus on them and I will give you all the details the next time I see you. Is that a deal?”

  “Of course,” Madison said, returning her focus to Sophie’s veil.

  “Hey,” said Sophie. “Dana’s gone to the hotel. I’m the only bride here and I say I want to talk about the engagement. Did you really not have any inkling? I mean, I’m so happy for you, but you guys met a week ago.” She turned her head slightly to look at Madison. “Well, actually, they didn’t just meet. They’ve seen each other at Zoe’s and Rachel’s weddings. Alejandro is the brother of their husbands. My sisters have a thing for Mendoza men, I guess. But I digress.” She turned back to Olivia. “Inkling. Did you really not have an inkling this was going to happen?

  “Come on, Soph,” Olivia said. “I mean it. I don’t want today to be about me. Let’s keep the proposal on the down-low for the time being. Okay?”

  Sophie shrugged. “I’m almost more excited about this news than I am to walk down the aisle.”

  “I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that,” Olivia said.

  Sophie rolled her eyes and turned her head away from her sister. Madison sighed and put both hands on either side of Sophie’s face and gently moved the bride back into position.

  “If you keep moving your head, I’m going to stick a bobby pin up your nose.”

  Sophie squinted at Madison. “How could you stick a bobby pin up my nose if I’m looking in the opposite direction?”

  Madison cocked a brow. “Obviously you don’t understand. If you don’t sit still, I’m going to stick a bobby pin up your nose on purpose. To get your attention. I really don’t want to do that to you on your wedding day. So, please?”