Needing Happily Ever After

by Elena Aitken

  Maybe more so because in the last few days since their wedding, everything had changed.

  It was so much more than a game to get ElkView. It was way more than a deal to get the startup capital for the Hub. Things between Damon and her were…real. Well, mostly real. They hadn’t actually discussed their relationship beyond that one time after they exchanged vows, but something between them had definitely shifted. And it wasn’t just the sex. Although the sex was pretty damn amazing.

  Things with Damon felt both easy and complicated at the same time. They’d largely spent the last few days hidden away from everyone, having what they called a honeymoon, alone in the cottage. But Katie couldn’t shake the feeling that they’d been hiding. If they weren’t around other people, it would be easier to believe that their wedding had been real. And maybe their feelings as well. Would it be different around other people?

  She didn’t know what to expect. Everything was starting to feel more and more out of control. Katie had hoped that a few days’ distance from the actual wedding would give her clarity, and a way to justify what they’d done and the giant lie that she’d been telling everyone she cared about.

  Of course, now with the lines between fact and fiction blurred even more, things had only become more confusing. And easier than trying to figure it out had been for her to stick her head in the sand by immersing herself into a business plan for the Hub, the store she wanted to open as soon as possible. If everything went according to plan, she might even be able to close on the space she’d found on Main Street in a day or two. Damon was handling the purchase negotiations at the same time as the paperwork for ElkView.

  The same flicker of guilt that she felt every time she thought about how she’d gotten the capital to open her store flashed through her body. And just as she always did, she pushed it away. After all, did it really matter how she got the money, as long as no one was getting hurt? And no one was getting hurt.

  Except maybe you.

  The thought slammed into her so hard, Katie took a step back and plopped on the edge of the bed.

  Only a week ago, Katie would have felt very differently. The plan had been a marriage of convenience. Nothing more. No feelings beyond friendship. Sex had a way of changing things.

  But it wasn’t just the sex, and she knew it.

  No one is going to get hurt.

  She squeezed her eyes as she repeated the thought to herself one more time, willing herself to believe it. But no matter what she told herself, Katie could not help but shake the ominous feeling that had taken hold.

  “You look nice.”

  Her eyes flew open when Damon walked into the room.

  “Sorry.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Did I interrupt something?”

  Katie forced a smile to her face and stood. She glanced in the mirror at her simple white sundress. She hadn’t intended it to look so bridal, but she was out of time to change.

  “Nothing at all,” she said with a brightness she wasn’t sure she felt. “Are you ready to go?”

  “Cheers to the happy couple.” Sarah raised a glass in yet another toast and everyone followed suit. They clinked glasses and drank deeply once again.

  “I don’t know if we need to keep doing that.” Katie shook her head and pushed her glass away. “I’m out. Someone needs to drive home.”

  Under the table, Damon slipped his hand over her thigh and squeezed gently. She offered him a smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. She’d been acting a little off all night, and Damon couldn’t quite put his finger on what was going on with her. She seemed to be having fun, but whenever the conversation turned to their recent nuptials, she got quiet.

  As if to prove his point, Sarah, who’d had a few drinks, tried again to discuss it. “I wish I could have seen you in your dress, Katie. I bet you looked stunning.”

  “She did.” Faith jumped in. “In fact, I totally should have gotten more pictures. I can’t believe I didn’t. I mean—”

  “You were a little busy.” Katie shrugged. “But it wasn’t a big deal, Sarah. I’m sure someone has a picture.”

  Damon could tell she was trying to blow it off and change the subject, but the other woman was not taking the hint.

  “Didn’t you want a bigger party?” she asked. “I mean, I’m not going to lie, it sounds very romantic that there were only a few of you there, but the whole first dance and the cake and—”

  “Not really.”

  It was a lie and Damon knew it.

  “What about you?” Damon turned the questioning around, to get the attention off Katie. “Would you ever want the big wedding again?” He realized the moment the question came out of his mouth that it probably wasn’t a good one.

  Sarah got quiet and sat back in her seat with a small shake of her head.

  “The wedding we had last Saturday was a huge one.” Faith jumped in, clearly able to read the mood of the room. She shot Damon a look. “Everyone came from the city and they were a total party group.” Faith started to regale the table with tales of drunk guests coming on to Logan and after a few minutes, everyone seemed to have forgotten about the awkwardness.

  Damon snuck a look at Katie, and even though she looked to be smiling and laughing, she still seemed quite distracted.

  “Hey,” he whispered into her ear. “Want to—”

  “I just need to go to the bathroom.” She interrupted him. “Excuse me for a minute?”

  “Of course.”

  Damon stood and pulled her chair out for her while she grabbed her purse and made her escape to the ladies’ room.

  He watched her go for a moment and then turned to his friends. “I’ll grab another round. Be right back.”

  The moment he was at the bar, he gestured for the bartender, ordered a round, and an additional shot of whisky for himself. It was supposed to have been a fun night, but he couldn’t help but wish he and Katie were back in the cottage, tucked away from reality, alone from the outside world again. Things had seemed a lot simpler then. Maybe she was second-guessing their decision to stay married? Was she regretting her choice? Damned if he knew. She wasn’t talking.

  Damon took the shot the moment the bartender poured it and downed it in an easy swallow. He gestured for another.

  “Shots, huh?” a voice behind him said, followed by a slap on the back. “I’ll take one, too.”

  Damon turned to face the voice and immediately broke out into a massive smile. “Nick.” He hugged his buddy, clapping him on his back. “You made it. Thank God.”

  “Is it that bad?” Nick turned to survey the room. “I mean, it’s a small town, but I’m impressed. This place is packed.”

  “It is. I’m glad you made it. You were supposed to text when you got in. I would have met you.”

  Nick laughed. “I’m a big boy. And meeting at a bar seemed pretty perfect to me.”

  The bartender slid two glasses of whisky toward them and they clinked glasses in a mini toast.

  “I am glad to see you, though. It’s been stranger than I thought, coming back to town after so long.”

  “Strange how?”

  Damon sipped, rather than shoot his whisky this time, and contemplated telling Nick the truth that he hadn’t even told Katie—that he’d expected life in Glacier Falls to freeze in time when he left. He’d expected to come back and have everything be exactly how he’d left things. But his friends had moved on. So many of them had moved completely, and the ones who had stayed, their lives had all changed. He couldn’t help but think of Jeremy. And Jeremy with Katie. He didn’t want to, and he’d been doing his best to not think of Jeremy with Katie, especially considering their own relationship had progressed.

  But he couldn’t help it. That was definitely one thing that had changed since he’d left. They obviously had a relationship of some kind, and no matter what Katie had said, Damon couldn’t shake the feeling that there’d been more to whatever had gone on between them than Katie had said. Had he interrupted something between them
when he came to town? Had Katie settled by staying with Damon? Was it Jeremy she really wanted but she’d felt forced into a relationship with him because of their deal?

  He didn’t want to think about it. And he was definitely not going to ask her about it. That certainly hadn’t gone well the last time he’d tried.

  “Hello? Damon? Did I lose you there for a minute?” Nick stared at him with a half-smile. “The only thing strange here is you. Maybe you’ve been back in this place too long.”

  Damon didn’t like the way Nick said this place, but he didn’t bother to say anything.

  “Strange like, nothing stays the same.”

  Nick nodded. “That’s true.” He raised his glass and drank what was likely whisky, deeply. “Just like you moving off to some backwoods town to marry the local sweetheart and leaving me high and dry.”

  “Hey.” Damon spun to face him. There was nothing distinctly offensive about the way he’d referred to Katie, but it was definitely implied. Or did he just think it was implied?

  “I don’t mean any offense.” Nick held up his hands. “I’m just saying, we had a good thing going in the city. Bars, women, parties, more women.” Nick grinned and lifted his drink in a silent cheers. “It’s been a good run.”

  “It has.” Damon agreed, but he didn’t see it the same way Nick did. Not really. Sure, he’d enjoyed the party lifestyle for a while. Who wouldn’t? They were young and had money to burn. It was every young man’s dream come true.

  At least for a little while.

  After a few months of waking up next to a different woman every Sunday morning, Damon had started to get tired. Tired of pretending he was something he wasn’t. Tired of the women he was picking up, taking out on the town, and sleeping with. Tired of pretending that they were something that they weren’t. It’s not that they weren’t nice women. Maybe they were. But they weren’t the right woman.

  His eyes traveled across the room to land on Katie, who’d reappeared from the washroom.

  They weren’t Katie.

  Was she the right woman?

  It was a ridiculous question, and if he hadn’t been standing with Nick, he might have laughed out loud at himself. Katie was Katie.

  She was a fabulous woman. And she was his wife.

  He shook his head clear of the thoughts and the questions that he shouldn’t even be asking himself. “But that time is over now,” he said to Nick. “I’m all settled down now.”

  Damon tipped his glass back and drank the rest of the amber liquid in one swallow. The alcohol was starting to dull the edges a little and relax him.

  He reached backward to tap on the bar. He needed another drink.

  “Well, I can’t say I’m super excited for you, man.” Nick shook his head. “But if that’s your new wife, she’s pretty damn hot.”

  Jealousy, anger, and something else he couldn’t pinpoint flared up inside him at Nick’s words. But as soon as the feeling rose, he squashed it. Nick was his friend. Possibly his best friend with the exception of Katie. She’d been part of his life for so long that he couldn’t imagine her not being there. And maybe that was what was bothering him. If this whole marriage of convenience thing blew up… No. His eyes settled on her, dressed in a gauzy white sundress, looking absolutely gorgeous, and he knew in an instant—he’d be destroyed if she ever turned her back on him. He didn’t know how he’d live through one day on earth if Katie wasn’t there. Maybe he never should have crossed that line with her and put their entire relationship in jeopardy. But he had. They had. So the one thing he did know was, no matter what, it was all going to work out. It had to. There was no back-up plan.

  “That is Katie, right?” Damon was jarred back into the moment with Nick’s question. “Because if she’s your wife, she sure looks pretty close with that guy.” He followed his friend’s gaze and it didn’t take long to see what Nick was referring to.

  Damon’s blood ran hot. Blood pounded in his ears and for a moment he had trouble seeing straight.

  That was Katie.

  And Nick was right. She did look pretty close to that guy. To Jeremy. With his arms on either side of her, blocking her in as if he were having an intense conversation. He couldn’t see Katie’s face, but he could see the way Jeremy leaned in toward her. He could see the proximity that the other man stood to her. He could see him with her. And she wasn’t trying to get away.

  “Fuck.” He muttered under his breath, but Nick heard and chuckled with a shake of his head.

  “Looks like you have your work cut out for you. A firecracker, is she?”

  Damon’s vision clouded and any hope in hell that he had for keeping his jealousy in check went straight out the window as Jeremy leaned in to kiss his wife.

  “What are you doing?” Katie squirmed out of Jeremy’s arms, just a little because he was standing too close to get away completely. But enough to stop his lips from touching hers, which seemed to be the most pressing matter. His arms caged her in against the wall. “Jeremy,” she hissed. “I’m married.”

  “No.”

  He pulled away enough to look in her eyes. They were full of hurt, and Katie felt a rush of sympathy for him. But also a rush of anger. What exactly did he think he was doing?

  “This is crazy, Katie. This…whatever it is.”

  “It’s a wedding, Jeremy. My wedding. Well, not today but…” Katie tripped over her words, flustered by his presence or his words, or both. She didn’t know. “A few days ago, Jeremy. You can’t do this. I’m married to Damon.” She tried to look over his shoulder to see whether Damon was nearby. She both wanted him to see what was happening so he could put a stop to it, and at the same time, she desperately hoped he hadn’t seen anything because the last thing she wanted was to make a scene or have Damon misconstrue anything.

  “You need to talk to me about this, Katie.” Before she could object to what he was saying, Jeremy grabbed her hand and pulled her through a door into the kitchen. “You need to help me understand.”

  As soon as they were alone, or at least out of sight from their friends, Katie spun to face him. “Understand what?” He’d clearly had a few drinks, but Jeremy had never been the type of guy to drink much. In all the years they’d been friends and dated, Katie had never seen him drunk. “You can’t do this, Jeremy. I’m with Damon.”

  He laughed. Jeremy took a step back from her, dropped his head back and laughed. It was so unexpected that, at first, Katie didn’t know how to react. She stood and watched as humorless laughter overtook him. When Jeremy showed no signs of stopping, Katie turned to leave and rejoin the party. The very last thing she needed was to deal with this. Not now.

  “Stop.” The laughter cut off abruptly. “Don’t go.”

  Katie froze in place but didn’t turn around.

  “Katie, please.” Jeremy’s voice dropped. “You need to explain this to me because I just don’t understand how this happened.”

  He sounded so sad and confused that Katie’s heart broke a little bit. She hadn’t led him on. Not really. And definitely not intentionally. But they hadn’t been dating. They’d been… “Jeremy.” She reached out to touch his arm. “I’m sorry if this is confusing for you or if it’s unexpected—”

  “Unexpected?” He pulled back and gave her such a harsh look that it hurt her heart a little bit. “I’d say it’s unexpected, Katie. You’ve known Damon for how long?”

  She shrugged. It wasn’t a question she needed to answer.

  “And for all that time, were you ever interested in him? Like even a little bit?”

  She couldn’t answer that. Not honestly. Because the truth was that there had been a few times in the past where she’d considered the idea of Damon as more than a friend. Truthfully, they’d been short-lived and definitely nothing that stuck around as a real thought, but still…there had been times. But if she told Jeremy that, it would hurt him even more and that was the last thing she wanted.

  “This is…” He ran his hands through his hair and turned in
a slow circle before stopping in front of her. “Is it because of the money?”

  Her back stiffened. “Pardon me?”

  “It is, isn’t it?” He nodded, as if he’d figured everything out. “I mean, I get it. He’s richer than…well, he’s richer than anyone I know. I get how that would be appealing. I get how—”

  “Screw you, Jeremy.” She pulled her arm back, ready to slap him into silence. How dare he insult her in that way.

  But before she could make contact with his cheek, Jeremy’s hand clasped down on her wrist and he pulled her close so she was pressed up against his body. His arms wrapped around her tightly and a second later, his lips were on hers.

  The kiss was messy and hard and not at all welcomed. Katie squirmed in his grip and was just about to bite down on his tongue when it was over.

  “I’m sorry.” Jeremy sobbed and dropped his head onto her shoulder.

  It took Katie a second to realize that he was crying. Actually crying. Her bare shoulder was wet with his tears as he released his emotions. Confused and not really sure how to react to his outburst of completely confusing emotions, she brought her hands up to his back and patted it in a way she hoped was comforting. “Jeremy, I don’t really know what to tell you…”

  “It’s okay, Katie.” He shook his head but didn’t lift it. “I mean, no, it’s not okay. None of this is okay. I thought we had something. I thought that maybe you just needed a little bit of time and then we’d be able to take it to the next level. I didn’t think that…well, shit, I didn’t think that you’d marry Damon. It’s just such a…”

  Finally, he lifted his head and looked at her. Tears streamed down his cheek and the sight of him, his heart breaking right in front of her, caused tears to well up in her own eyes.

  Were things more serious with Jeremy than she’d thought? Seeing the pain in his eyes caused Katie to question everything. Had she broken his heart? Had she misread everything?

  No. She knew in her heart that she hadn’t misread anything. She wasn’t wrong. They were casual. They’d always been. They’d even discussed it and together they’d agreed that they were never going to be anything more to each other than a casual thing.