The Engagement Arrangement

by Jaci Burton

  Because she was worth it.

  CHAPTER

  • • • • • •

  twenty-eight

  BRENNA RUBBED HER temples where the headache had taken up permanent residence the entire day. This meeting with her sisters wasn’t helping. It especially wasn’t helping that Erin, freshly back from her honeymoon, was tanned and in a gloriously happy mood, while Brenna was still smarting from her not-so-fun outing with Finn a few days ago.

  She’d been avoiding him ever since, despite his efforts to get together with her for some one-on-one time. She’d begged off, claiming work or previous engagements with Honor or her mom, and even though she knew Finn wasn’t buying any of her excuses, she just wasn’t ready to deal with him.

  “Oh, and the Belgrave/Monticelli wedding this weekend wants four additional cases of the merlot, plus three additional cases of champagne. Did you get that, Brenna?”

  “Brenna? Did you hear what Honor said?” Erin asked.

  Brenna snapped her head up. “I got it, though I’m getting tired of all these last-minute order changes. Why can’t people just leave it alone? Why is everyone pushing at me?”

  Erin looked at Honor, then back at Brenna. “Somehow I don’t think we’re talking about wine orders anymore.”

  “What’s wrong, Brenna?” Honor asked.

  “It’s nothing.” She waved her hand, hoping they’d get back to business and away from her.

  “It’s not nothing,” Honor said. “You’ve been out of sorts for days.”

  Erin studied her. “You have? What happened?”

  Knowing her sisters, Brenna knew she wasn’t going to get out of this without an explanation. “Finn and I sort of had a fight.”

  “You did?” Honor looked shocked. “About what?”

  “He accused me of living in the past, of using my relationship with Mitchell to inform all of my decision making.”

  The room went quiet, and Erin and Honor started shuffling paperwork.

  She gaped at her sisters. “What? You two think the same thing?”

  Erin looked at her. “You’re the one who came up with the fake fiancé because you couldn’t stand the thought of facing Mitchell and Allison on your own.”

  “That’s different. That was more Allison than anything. You know how she is.”

  “And maybe some of it was proving to Mitchell that you’d moved on, that you were happy without him?”

  Brenna looked over at Honor. “I am happy without him.”

  “We both know that,” Erin said. “But your marriage left scars that you haven’t allowed to heal.”

  “Which was why you always found fault with men you dated,” Honor said.

  Erin nodded. “And maybe why you’re having so much trouble settling in with Finn, who’s the greatest guy I’ve ever known—short of my husband, of course.”

  “He really is, Bren,” Honor said. “He cares deeply for you. He would never do anything to hurt you.”

  “And he sure as hell is nothing like Mitchell. He doesn’t put work first, he goes above and beyond to spend time with you. I mean, what exactly is it that you’re looking for?”

  She wished she knew the answer to that question. “I don’t know. Maybe he and I just aren’t a match. This was what I was afraid of when everyone was pushing at me to have a relationship with him. That it wouldn’t work out.”

  “Why isn’t it working out, though?” Honor asked. “Is it because you don’t have the right feelings for him, or is it because you’re afraid you do?”

  That question sailed straight to her heart, shutting her down completely.

  “I don’t know. We haven’t discussed it.”

  “Which means you haven’t spoken to him,” Erin said. “Since when?”

  She stared at her laptop instead of her sisters. “I don’t know. A few days ago.”

  “Brenna,” Honor said. “That’s not like you.”

  She sighed. “I know. But it scares me. He scares me. My feelings scare me.”

  “Just . . . talk to him, Brenna,” Erin said. “Nothing gets resolved without a conversation.”

  “That’s true,” Honor said. “You have to deal with things head-on. Ignoring the situation only makes it worse.”

  “I will.” She looked up to find two pair of disbelieving eyes staring at her. “I will. I promise. Now can we get back to the meeting?”

  She’d deal with all things Finn later.

  Much later.

  Though much later turned out to be a lot sooner than she wanted it to be, because after she left the wine cellar that night she literally ran right into him on the walkway between the buildings and the main house. Finn had his head down and so did she, so neither of them saw it coming and she almost fell on her ass. Would have, actually, had Finn not caught her in his arms to steady her.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  “Yes, I’m fine.”

  Murphy ran circles around her in his excitement to see her, so she bent to pet him, then straightened.

  “What are you up to?” she asked.

  “Just putting things away for the night. You?”

  “Same.”

  “Working late.”

  She nodded. “I had a meeting, and then I needed to check on a few things.”

  “I see.”

  This conversation was painfully awkward—all because of her. She needed to do something to fix that.

  “Finn, look. About the other day. I was out of sorts and in my head. And I know there are things we need to talk about. Deep, important things. But I’m just not ready yet. I need some time to sort through it all in my head. I’m confused and just working through it gives me a headache. Can you give me some time? I promise I’m not blowing you off or trying to avoid a conversation. I just want to make sure I have coherent thoughts when we do have it.”

  He nodded. “That’s fair.”

  She hadn’t expected him to acquiesce so quickly. “Thanks.”

  “In the meantime, I’m starving and Louise told me she was making lasagna for dinner. How about we go eat?”

  She smiled. “That sounds like a great idea.”

  He held his arm out for her and she slipped her arm in his, and all that tension she’d been holding inside suddenly melted away, along with her headache.

  They walked toward the house together.

  CHAPTER

  • • • • • •

  twenty-nine

  FINN KNEW THAT Brenna wasn’t looking forward to being around Mitchell and Allison again, but she was going to go through with seeing them tonight, because she’d agreed to go to Esther and Brock’s housewarming party. He knew she’d been happy when Esther had to delay the party because Brock had to take several out-of-town business trips, but now it was finally happening.

  She’d even obsessed over buying them a gift, dragging him out to shop with her so he could offer an opinion. Which was nice, but she was the one with taste, not him, so whatever she chose would have been fine. But she wanted to put both their names on the card since they were still supposed to be engaged, so she chose a decorative something or other for their living room and asked him what he thought.

  To Finn it looked like a curved bluish bowl, so he said it was fine. Apparently fine was the wrong word because she gave him a head tilt and a look. He offered up that it was pretty, and that seemed to satisfy her. When the salesperson rang it up, Finn nearly choked at the price.

  Damn, fancy bowls were expensive as hell. But he dug out half the cost from his wallet and handed her the cash.

  She looked down at the money. “What’s this?”

  “My share.”

  “Unnecessary.”

  “It’s from both of us, right?”

  “Yes, but it was my—”

  “No buts. I pay half.” He gave her a
firm look.

  She sighed. “Then you should have taken more of an interest in the decision making.”

  The salesperson handed him the bag and they walked away from the counter. “No shit. I wouldn’t have spent that much money.”

  She laughed and slipped her arm through his. “I guess I don’t have to ever worry about you spending all our money once we’re fake married, huh?”

  He gave her a curious look, but she didn’t seem to notice.

  It had been two weeks since their boat trip, and they still hadn’t had a deep conversation about the issues they needed to talk out.

  Finn wasn’t much for letting things hang unresolved, but Brenna didn’t seem to want to talk about it, and since they’d been getting along well and Brenna had seemed to move past whatever the problem had been that day, he hadn’t wanted to push it.

  People got moody. Hell, he got moody sometimes, all up in his head with thoughts and worries. He knew how that went. But that day when they’d been out on the water, there’d been something else going on besides just a mood. And at some point they’d have to hash that out. Until they cleared the air, it would never be resolved. And you couldn’t move forward in a relationship with issues that were left unsettled.

  After they left the store, they drove over to Esther and Brock’s house, a nice-looking white ranch-style with a big yard, a good-sized driveway and lots of space between neighbors. There were already several cars in the driveway, so Finn parked behind one of them and they got out. He grabbed the bag with the gift, then took Brenna’s hand as they walked up to the front door. He glanced over at her. She looked amazing tonight in a yellow dress with a coral sweater over it, her hair loose and flowing over her shoulders.

  “Did I mention how beautiful you look tonight?”

  Her cheeks brightened and her lips curved. “Thank you.”

  Brock opened the door and leaned against it, looking relaxed with a beer in his hand.

  “Hey, you two. Glad you made it. Come on in.”

  The inside of the house was open and spacious, with a vaulted ceiling in the living room that led to a good-sized kitchen where Esther was pouring wine for Allison, Hilary and Sabra, along with Brock’s mom, Greta, as well as several other people Finn didn’t know.

  Esther looked up as they entered. “Oh, hey, you’re here. I’m so glad you could make it.”

  Brenna went over to hug Esther. “Wouldn’t miss it.”

  “I thought you’d be busy doing your . . . whatever it is you do,” Allison said, her nose pointed so high in the air Finn thought she might get it stuck to the ceiling.

  Brenna didn’t take the bait. Instead, she listened as Esther introduced her to a few people they didn’t know.

  “Your house is fabulous, Esther,” Brenna said.

  “Thank you. We loved it on first sight. The owners had only lived in it for two years before they had to move due to a job transfer. It’s perfect for us. Four bedrooms. Plenty of space for any kids that come along, plus an office for Brock and me to share. Would you like a tour?”

  “I’d love one.”

  Greta took over wine duties and snack prep while Esther led them on a tour.

  The bedrooms were all good-sized, there was a bath in the hall and the main bedroom was killer huge with an attached bath that anyone would like. Finn watched Brenna’s eyes light up as she wandered the bathroom, her fingers lingering over the soaker tub.

  “It’s amazing,” Brenna said as they made their way back toward the kitchen. “You must be so happy.”

  “Incredibly. We saved for two years to get this house, living with Brock’s parents, who were so sweet to let us stay with them.”

  Greta gave Esther a smile. “We loved having you with us.”

  “At least they had a good reason to be living with their parents.” Allison shot Brenna a smirk.

  Finn knew better than to get in the middle of Brenna’s ongoing feud with her former friend, but it took everything in him not to say something.

  And again, Brenna didn’t take the bait. He admired her restraint.

  She picked up the bag they’d brought in and handed it to Esther. “We brought you and Brock a gift. Again, congratulations on your new home.”

  “Oh, thank you.” Esther hugged her. “You didn’t have to do that. Brock, could you come here for a second?”

  Brock walked over and Esther pulled the bowl out of the bag, her eyes widening. “Oh, I love this bowl. I wanted it so much.”

  Brock smiled. “I remember you eyeing that at the store. I believe you squealed.”

  Esther laughed. “I did squeal. Thank you both so much.” She hugged Finn, then Brenna. “I’m going to put it on the table right now.”

  Finn didn’t get the appeal of a bowl, but he was happy Esther liked it. And Allison seemed to be irritated over how much everyone exclaimed over the bowl, so that part was good.

  He got a beer and sat with some of his friends to catch up with them but still kept one eye on Brenna, who sat in the kitchen with the women. Mitchell seemed quiet tonight, not engaging much in conversation. Then again, that was pretty much Mitch’s personality—aloof and above everyone else.

  Fortunately he had other people to talk to besides clammed-up Mitch, so tonight should be fun.

  * * *

  • • • • • •

  BRENNA HAD BEEN reluctant to come tonight, which was ridiculous because she loved Esther and Brock, and she’d be damned if Allison and Mitchell would keep her from seeing them. Besides, with all the delays in organizing this, it had been a while since she’d seen her friends.

  She was so glad she had, because she was having a great time. And it seemed as if Allison was having a not-so-great night, which put Brenna in an even better mood. As she was sitting in the group of women and catching up on their lives, she’d noticed Allison being silent, while also shooting glares at Mitchell. Something must be off with the two of them tonight.

  Maybe they’d had an argument. Brenna knew all about what it was like to have a fight with Mitchell. It could be exasperating.

  When Allison went into the kitchen, Brenna followed. She didn’t know why because getting in the middle of Allison and Mitchell was just asking for it.

  “Allison, is everything all right?”

  She swiveled and pasted on a fake smile. “Everything’s fine. Why would you ask?”

  “You’re quiet tonight. Not your normal vivacious self. You only threw two insults at me when I first walked in, and then you went dead silent.”

  “Oh. Well. Uh . . . no, everything’s perfect. Thank you for asking, though.” She took a swallow of her iced tea. “And I didn’t insult you.”

  Brenna laughed. “Of course you did. You always do. You have ever since high school.”

  “I have, haven’t I?” She sighed and swiped a finger across her brow. “I’m sorry. I’m such a bitch.”

  Allison apologizing? Okay, this was new. It took a minute for Brenna to gather her bearings before she replied. “You need to let it go, Allison. It was a long time ago. And I never meant to hurt you. I’m sorry, too.”

  Allison leaned against the kitchen counter, tears welling in her eyes.

  Was Brenna living in some alternate universe? Allison showing actual emotion?

  “Can we talk for a minute?” Allison asked. “Outside, maybe?”

  “Sure.” They stepped out back and took a seat on the patio chairs. Brenna waited while Allison took another few sips of water.

  “I’m pregnant, Brenna.”

  No wonder she was drinking iced tea. Allison did love her wine. “That’s wonderful. Congratulations.”

  “Thank you. I think it’s wonderful, too. But Mitchell isn’t happy about it.”

  Brenna frowned. “What? How can he not be?”

  “Because I screwed up his perfectly crafted tim
eline. He wanted to wait two more years and I guess I forgot one or two of my birth control pills a couple of months ago and now, here I am, having messed with his grand plan. He’s really upset with me.”

  What. A. Jackass. “Well. Shit happens, you know. But how exciting. A baby.”

  Allison tried for a smile but only made it halfway. “I was excited. I am excited. When I told him, I expected him to be happy about it. He gave me this stern look and accused me of getting pregnant on purpose just to screw him over.”

  That was so how Mitchell would think, making it all about him. “He’s an asshole.”

  Allison laughed. “At least we have a common frame of reference. I’m just so disappointed in him, Brenna. I don’t know what to do. We’re having a baby. He kind of has to get on board with this. And I want him to be happy about it. Like genuinely happy.”

  She reached over and grasped Allison’s hand. “He will. Just give him some time. Mitchell has his faults, but I’m sure once he realizes this is happening—timeline or not—he’ll be over-the-moon excited about it.”

  “I hope so.”

  “And try not to worry. Surround yourself with the people who are happy for you. That’ll help lift your mood.”

  “Thank you. I needed to hear that. And please keep this to yourself, if you would.”

  Brenna nodded. “Of course.”

  “And Brenna?”

  “Yes?”

  “Thank you. I’ve been an awful person to you for so long, over ancient history. You could have told me I deserved what I got. You didn’t. I appreciate that more than I can say.”

  She squeezed Allison’s hand. “Hey, whatever animosity was between us is over. Now we move forward, okay?”

  Allison nodded. “Okay.”

  Esther and a few of the other women wandered outside, and then some of the guys followed, so the conversation ended. Brenna went in to refill her glass. She poured wine, then noticed Mitchell in the living room on the phone.

  Of course he was on the phone. Brenna was surprised his phone wasn’t permanently fused to his ear by now.