by Gina Azzi
“You forgot about Marissa’s bachelorette? Don’t worry, I’ll —”
“I forgot about the engagement party!” It’s next weekend in Martha’s Vineyard. After my relationship imploded, Marissa begged me to stay on as a bridesmaid, despite the awkward tension between Brittney and me. Not wanting to sacrifice another friend, I agreed and now I am majorly regretting that decision. “I need a date.”
“You need a hot, hulking, sexy —”
“Where do I find one of those?” I cut Abbi off, panic edging my tone. How did I forget about Marissa’s engagement party? My entire summer pretty much revolves around her wedding festivities.
When the daughter of a hotel tycoon and the son of a New York City hedgefund CEO decide they don’t want to wait for their marital bliss, people spring into action. In a mere week, venues magically become available and designers personally called Marissa about her wedding dress. At first, when I was still engaged to Steve, I found my friend’s ability to cram an engagement party, a bachelorette bash, and a high profile wedding into ten weeks, exciting and romantic.
Now that I’m painfully single, I’m furious with Marissa for forcing me to find a date to two separate events — her engagement party next week and her wedding at the end of the summer. How am I going to face Steve and Brittney not once, but twice?
“We can rent one,” Abbi tosses out.
I roll my eyes. “I doubt that. Besides, I’d need to rent the same one twice if I want people to think I have a real relationship and not a pity date.”
“Do you want people to think you’re in a real relationship?”
“More than I want them to think it’s a pity date,” I say, exasperated.
“Fair enough.” Abbi is silent for a long moment. “Drew?”
“I’m not taking my brother to a wedding.”
“He’s hot.”
“You’re making this worse, not better,” I say impatiently.
“Too bad he lives in Texas,” Abbi continues as if I haven’t spoken at all. If she keeps up, I’ll need bleach for my eyes and ears.
A knock at my bedroom door draws my attention as Dad pops his head in. His smile is gentle, his eyes warm and I have the sudden urge to hug my dad tightly and cry into his strong chest the same way I did as a little girl. The same way I did two months ago after chucking my engagement ring at Steve’s head.
“We’re heading to the Merrick’s in an hour,” Dad reminds me.
I nod, pointing to the phone.
He nods and dips out of my room.
“Abbi, I gotta go. We’re heading to a family friend’s house for dinner tonight.”
“Oh, see! You have a social life,” she says way too excitedly.
I snort. Dinner at the Merricks is hardly a social event but considering I’ve barely interacted with the human species in the past two months, I’m not an accurate judge. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Have fun tonight.”
“‘Bye, Abs.”
“‘Bye.”
I disconnect the call and drag myself to my closet. Sliding open the door, I glance at my meager selection of clothing options. I really need to unpack my shit but doing so would mean I’m staying in Boston and my life in Hoboken, everything Steve and I built over the past five years, is really over. Massive sigh.
I flip through some hangers, wondering what to wear. Mary and Joe Merrick were my parents closest friends when we lived in Boston. Drew and their eldest daughter, Savannah, were in the same grade as school just like me and their son Austin. As kids, Austin and his sisters, Savannah and Claire, were more like mine and Drew’s cousins. We pretty much grew up around their kitchen island and in their backyard. Summer nights catching fireflies with Claire and her cousin Indy, winter mornings sledding with Austin and Drew, and a very memorable shopping experience with Savannah, round out some of my favorite childhood memories.
Austin Merrick was once my closest friend but always in the-boy-next-door kind of way. If something was truly wrong, I could count on him for advice. But in our daily interactions, he was often more annoying than Drew. He made fun of me the first time I shaved my legs, cut the colorful, glitter tassels off the handlebars of my bike, and hid my rock collection for an entire weekend.
As we grew older and Austin became a hockey star, we drifted apart. In high school, he ran with the cool kid crowd while I was more of the bookish, geeky set. Even though he was crazy popular, with girls flocking to hang off his shoulders or get a ride home in his souped up Infiniti G35, I still looked at him and saw the boy who pantsed me at a family vacation in Martha’s Vineyard.
Despite the vast difference in our social stratas, Austin was always nice to me at school. It was me who added the final distance to our friendship. Halfway through our freshman year, I stopped getting rides home from him because it drew too much ire from his fan club. After that, I rarely saw Austin close-up unless it was a family gathering and he often missed those due to hockey. By the time my family relocated to New York at the end of my sophomore year, Austin and I were acquaintances at best. Afterwards, we lost touch completely, and my only updates about his life came via my mom or Savannah when our paths crossed in New York.
Now, he’s the captain of the NHL Boston Hawks, something my dad shares with every single hockey fan he encounters. My parents pride for Austin knows no bounds.
Will he be at dinner tonight?
Probably not. He must be way too busy with his career, his team just won the Stanley Cup for crying out loud, to have dinner with me and my parents.
I finger a simple, summer dress.
Does it matter if he’s there?
For a blink, Austin’s piercing blue eyes, the color of the Atlantic in October, when winter’s creeping in, flare in my mind. Even as the girl-next-door, I can objectively admit that he was always devilishly handsome, with quick eyes, and a sly smirk. He was a notorious rule breaker although he was too charismatic to ever face discipline for the trouble he stirred up. He was popular, likable, and infuriatingly immature. Way back when, he used to wear spicy cologne and oversized hoodies. He asked me to dance at the Valentine’s Day dance my freshman year after my date kissed another girl.
I pull the summer dress off the hanger. Where did that thought even come from? This isn’t some trip down memory lane. I’m tagging along with my parents while they visit their friends. I’m not rekindling a friendship with Austin, a guy who is now larger than life. I probably don’t even register on his radar, save for a handful of childhood memories.
Man, Steve did a number on my head if I’m even thinking about Austin at all.
I shimmy into the summer dress. I slip into simple, strappy sandals and find a pair of earrings in my purse.
Austin’s not going to be at dinner tonight. Neither is Savannah, since she lives in New York City. We’d occasionally meet for lunch before my life turned upside down and I was too embarrassed to see friends, save for Abbi.
If anything, I should hope Claire or Indy make an appearance so I can reconnect with girlfriends. At least they may invite me out with them.
My phone buzzes with an incoming message and I swipe it up, assuming it’s Abbi.
Mimi: I hope your heart’s not too broken to notice Austin Merrick.
I snort. I swear, Mimi is more of a troublemaker than Austin. At eighty-four, she’s sharper than a whip and more meddlesome than Mom.
Me: I doubt he’ll even be there.
Mimi: He’s a good boy. Sees his Mom and Dad once a week for dinner. He’ll be there.
Eye roll.
Me: Even if he is, he won’t remember me.
My phone rings.
“Mimi, I regret ever teaching you to text,” I answer.
She chuckles, her warm laughter spreading through the line and right through me. As much as the reason why I’m back in Boston pains me, spending time with Mimi is a definite plus. “I would have learned without you.”
“I don’t doubt it.”
“Why don’t you
think Austin will remember you? You used to bathe together for crying out loud.”
I wince at the visual because imagining a man like Austin bathing now…well, I shouldn’t imagine that while on the phone with my octogenarian grandmother.
“I haven’t seen him in a decade.” I point out.
“He was at your parent’s Christmas party a few years ago.”
I squint, as if that will somehow help me recall the evening in question. It comes back slowly, the clink of glasses, the sparkle of tinsel on the tree, and I vaguely recall seeing the Merrick family, Austin included. But that Christmas, I only had eyes for Steve. I barely remember anything other than my intense feelings for him.
“Hmph. He’ll more than remember you, Chloe Ann. What I don’t like is you needing me to remind you of this. Steve deserves a good talking to after the way he treated you. In my day —”
“Mimi.”
She sighs. “I know, I know. It’s none of my concern how you squander your twenties.”
I wince at her honesty, feeling very much like I wasted the second half of the decade wrapped up in Steve’s life instead of cultivating my own.
“What are you wearing to dinner?” Mimi changes the subject.
I describe my sundress and she makes noncommittal sounds that make me laugh. “Get any ideas of playing matchmaker right out of your mind,” I say. “If Austin is there, he’ll be polite and charming, the way he always is.”
“I’ll say. That boy could charm the pants off of —”
“Goodnight, Mimi.”
“Bring me doughnuts tomorrow morning. I want to know how big his biceps are now. And how he’s handling all the pressure now that he’s won the Stanley Cup. Won it, Chloe! He always did carry the weight of the world on his shoulders.”
I roll my eyes because that’s a stretch if I’ve ever heard one. But Mimi has always had a soft spot for the reckless athlete.
She’s still muttering when I gently remind her that I need to get ready.
“Oh, yes. Don’t forget about your eyebrows. If you pencil them in neatly, you won’t have to do that micro blading that’s all the rage these days. Although, in my day we did tattooing too you know. I can still teach you —”
“Mimi.”
“Love you, Chloe girl. Have fun tonight. Real fun. With Aus—”
I disconnect the call, muttering to myself. Even though Mimi has an uncanny ability to predict my life, she’s wrong about this one.
I haven’t thought about Austin Merrick since high school. Dinner at his parent’s house isn’t going to change that.
I eat my words.
I eat them all so quickly I choke on them.
Because when the door to the Merrick home swings open, I’m greeted by the same intense blue eyes of my teenage years. My mouth drops open and the irrational thought of how the hell I ever forgot about Austin zips through my mind.
How does anyone forget a man who looks like, well, him?
“Chloe Crawford,” Austin murmurs, giving me a sly smirk before greeting my parents.
I can hardly process the fact that he’s here, looking like a sex god mated with a Roman one, as Mary and Joe pull me into their embraces and welcome me back to Boston. A whirlwind of exclaimed greetings and hugs unfolds in the foyer.
“You didn’t have to bring anything,” Mary says, her eyes shining as she kisses Mom hello and thanks Dad for the two decorative wine sleeves he hands her.
“We’re so happy you’re back,” Joe chimes in, wrapping an arm around my shoulders.
I grin up at him, remembering the pep talks he used to give Savannah, Claire, and me when the neighborhood boys would exclude us from their hockey and basketball games.
Mary leads the adults into the kitchen but I hang back, my gaze finding Austin’s. He’s leaning against the closet door, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his jeans, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“You look different,” I blurt out, feeling my cheeks blaze.
He snickers. “It’s been a minute.”
“I didn’t think you’d be here.”
He winks. “But you’re happy to see me, right?”
I roll my eyes and he grins. He’s taller than I imagined and I have to crane my neck to look into his face. His smirk isn’t as sly as it once was but his eyes are sharper, bolder, scanning mine with an intensity I feel down to my toes.
Strong shoulders, a broad chest, a tapered waist. Stop checking him out! I drag my eyes back to Austin’s face, not missing the knowing glint in his eyes.
“It’s good to see you again, Chlo.” He straightens and holds his arms out for a hug like we’re old friends. I guess, technically, we are.
But this feels different. Awareness unfurls throughout my limbs, my heart rate ticks up, and my skin tingles under Austin’s gaze. I feel like a hesitant teenager again, like my skin is too tight for all of the emotions trying to break free.
I step into Austin’s embrace, my eyes closing of their own accord when he holds me close. His cologne wraps around me the way it always did but now, even that’s different. His chest is hard and warm under my ear, just like I remember. But the arms holding me now are the arms of a man and I want to sink into their strength more than I should.
A hell of a lot more than a woman with a broken heart and an uncertain future should think about.
Preorder The Rule Maker now!
Hey Reader
Hi lovely reader!
Thank you so much for reading The Faker! I’d love to know your thoughts on Torsten and Rielle. It would mean so much to me if you would please leave a review. If you’re loving Boston Hawks Hockey, don’t miss out on Austin Merrick’s book. The Rule Maker releases June 23.
If you’re interested in learning more about my books, please sign up for my monthly newsletter. It’s full of updates, sales, free reads, and a new romantic, military suspense serial, Protecting Amie. Or, come hang out in my Facebook Reader Group, Gina’s Group for Book Gossip.
Thank you so much for all of your support.
XO,
Gina
Also by Gina Azzi
Boston Hawks Hockey:
The Sweet Talker
The Risk Taker
The Faker
The Rule Maker (June 23)
The Defender (Aug 5)
The Heart Chaser (Sept 27)
Second Chance Chicago Series:
Broken Lies
Twisted Truths
Saving My Soul
Healing My Heart
The Kane Brothers Series:
Rescuing Broken (Jax’s Story)
Recovering Beauty (Carter’s Story)
Reclaiming Brave (Denver’s Story)
My Christmas Wish
(A Kane Family Christmas
+ One Last Chance FREE prequel)
Finding Love in Scotland Series:
My Christmas Wish
(A Kane Family Christmas
+ One Last Chance FREE prequel)
One Last Chance (Daisy and Finn)
This Time Around (Aaron and Everly)
One Great Love
The College Pact Series:
The Last First Game (Lila’s Story)
Kiss Me Goodnight in Rome (Mia’s Story)
All the While (Maura’s Story)
Me + You (Emma’s Story)
Standalone
Corner of Ocean and Bay
Acknowledgments
Rielle Carter and Torsten Hansen have been clamoring around in my mind for months. I spent so much time envisioning their romance that when it came time to write it, I could hardly stop! I wrote The Faker in three weeks and loved every second of it.
Of course, the finished product wouldn’t be complete without some super special women. All of my thanks and gratitude to Becca Mysoor, Erica Russikoff, Amy Vox Libris, and Virginia Carey for their support, advice, insight, and attention to detail!
A million thank you’s to Kate Farlow, Y’all. That Graphic. for designing an entire
series of covers that I adore.
To MPP for keeping everything going. I love working with you and I’m so grateful for all of your support.
Many thanks to the fabulous ladies at Give Me Books Promotions! Thank you for helping me launch Rielle and Torsten’s story into the world.
To all the incredible bloggers, reviewers, and readers, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for making my dream a reality! I hope you adore this book.
And to my family. T, A, R, L - love you to the moon and back.
About the Author
Gina Azzi writes Contemporary Romance with relatable, genuine characters experiencing real life, love, friendships, and obstacles. She is the author of Boston Hawks Hockey series, Second Chance Chicago series, Finding Love in Scotland series, The Kane Brothers series, The College Pact series, and Corner of Ocean and Bay.
A Jersey girl at heart, Gina has spent her twenties traveling the world, living and working abroad, before settling down in Ontario, Canada with her husband and three children. She's a voracious reader, daydreamer, and coffee enthusiast who loves meeting new people. Say hey to her on social media or through www.ginaazzi.com.
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