The Dating Series

by L. P. Dover

  There are people milling about, mostly the caterers as they set up the large dining room for the rehearsal dinner. I can smell the food and it makes my stomach growl. After last night with Kellan, it’s definitely made me have an appetite. I don’t think I’ve burnt that many calories in a long time.

  With no one around, I use the time to sneak off undetected. Instead of going up the stairs, I hurry down the side hallway away from the dining room. I remember there being a library that Stewart said no one ever used, but I can’t remember which room it is. Luckily, all the doors are open. I hurry down the hall, past a couple of guest bedrooms and bathrooms until I reach the last door on the left. Found it.

  Inside the library, the walls are stacked high with shelves, full of old and new books. I love the smell and breathe it in; it’s relaxing. There’s an alcove in the corner that overlooks the backyard. I sit down by the window on the plush, burgundy cushions and pull out my laptop. Once it’s fired up, I log into my accounts and get started. There’s so much work I have to do it’s insane. Just taking a weekend off will put me about a week behind.

  About an hour passes without interruption, but then I hear her voice echoing down the hall. Shit. I save my work and shut my laptop as fast as I can, shoving it into my computer bag just as my mother walks into the library. She spent the day with us at the spa as well, along with my Aunt Beth. I swear, my mother could seriously pass for a woman in her thirties with her sleek, platinum blonde hair and perfect skin. Everyone says I’ll look just as youthful when I’m her age. I can only hope so. If only she didn’t like to hound me about my life choices.

  “There you are,” she calls out, sounding exasperated. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

  I stand and straighten my dress. “Just been in here taking a break from the crowd.”

  She stares at me, clearly not believing any of it. “Uh-huh, I bet. Were you working?” Her gaze averts to my computer bag sitting on the floor and then back up to me. “You were, weren’t you?”

  Groaning, I roll my eyes. “I can’t help it. I’m so behind right now. You have no idea how much work piles up on me this time of year.”

  Pursing her lips, she shakes her head. “And what does this new boyfriend of yours say about you working all the time?”

  I shrug. “He understands.”

  Her eyes narrow. “I’m starting to think you’re lying to me about this guy.”

  Grabbing my computer bag, I huff. “Jesus, Mom. You’re killing me. No wonder I don’t like to come home. All you do is rag on me about finding the right man and getting married. Why can’t you be happy that I’m successful all on my own?”

  Her lips do the little pouty thing she always does when she doesn’t get her way. “Honey, I’m very proud of how successful you are. I just want you to be happy.”

  I walk toward her. “I am.”

  Her pout disappears and is replaced with a sly smile. “Good. Then you’ll be even more happy when your date gets on a plane and comes here. I want to meet him. Not unless he doesn’t exist. If that’s the case, then I should probably get on the phone and get my friend’s son here. You remember Joshua Buchman, right?”

  Oh, dear God, not Josh. He was the biggest douche bag in high school. Not to me, since our mothers were friends, but to a lot of other people he was entitled and a complete jackass. He graduated two years prior to me and was captain of the water polo team. I have no doubt his parents paid his way into Harvard because there’s no way in hell he got there on his own with his grades. Now he was in politics and probably even more of an insufferable tool than before.

  Anger overcomes me and I’m about to tell my mother exactly what I think of her plan when Kellan saunters into the room. “There you are, sweetheart.”

  My mother turns to him and then to me, her brows furrowed. “Is he talking to you?”

  Kellan winks at me behind her back and gives me a look to play along, but I have no clue what to do so just smile and nod. “Yep. Right on time,” I say.

  He comes up to me and drapes his arm over my shoulders. My mother stares at us, her eyes lit with excitement. “What’s going on here?”

  “Yeah, Kellan,” I say a little nervously. “What’s going on?”

  He kisses the side of my head. “I think it’s time we tell your mom the truth. She deserves to know. There’s no reason to keep her in suspense any longer.”

  My mother gasps and claps her hands. “Are you two together?”

  Kellan and I look at each other and I can see that he’s loving every minute of it. At least with his plan, I don’t have to worry about Josh Buchman showing up as my date. I plaster on a huge smile and turn to my mother. “Surprise. We were going to wait and tell everyone tomorrow at the wedding, but you kept hounding me.”

  Kellan cleared his throat. “And when I heard you saying something about another guy being Hope’s date, I couldn’t have that,” he said to my mother.

  Her face paled. “Oh, Kellan, dear I’m so sorry. If I’d known you two were together, the mention of someone else wouldn’t have even come up.”

  “So, are you happy then?” I ask, regarding her curiously.

  She opens her arms to hug me and Kellan lets me go so she can. “Honey, I’m ecstatic. You and Kellan make an adorable couple. I can’t wait to tell everyone.” When she lets me go, she hugs Kellan and he winks at me again. “All right, you two, I have work to do.” She steps away from Kellan and smiles happily at us both. “Your Aunt Beth has me putting the fancy Godiva chocolates together for the wedding favors.”

  She hurries out of the room and I groan. “You do realize that in a matter of minutes all of our friends are going to think we’re together.”

  Kellan chuckles. “Hey, from what I heard I saved your ass. You should be thanking me.”

  He’s right. With a heavy sigh, I stand in front of him and look right in his crystal blue eyes. “Thank you.”

  His smile fades slightly. “Seems your mother likes to hound you just as much as mine does to me. I can’t go through one family dinner without mine complaining about me finding a good woman to settle down with.”

  I snort. “Welcome to the club. It pisses me off every time I come home.”

  Kellan reaches for my hands and I let him. “Tell me about this guy you’re supposedly seeing. Is there really someone else?”

  “No,” I answer with a sigh. “It was just to get my mom off my back.” Seeing the serious expression on his face makes me smile. “Were you eavesdropping the whole time?”

  There’s a twinkle in his eyes when he smiles. “Maybe. But then when I heard your mom threatening to get you a date, I couldn’t have that. If anyone’s going to be with you, it’s going to be me.”

  The way he says it makes me shiver, and definitely in a good way. “I can’t believe we’re doing this.”

  Kellan shrugs. “We’re helping each other out. That’s what friends do.” Then he leans in close, his lips right by my ear. “Who knows? Might have a little fun in the process.”

  “Oh my God, it’s true,” a voice squeals from the door.

  I jerk around to see Hallie and Stewart standing there, along with Hannah and her boyfriend. Kellan lets me go and stands behind me, his hands on my hips. Hallie shakes her head and laughs as she hurries toward me, reaching out her hands for mine. “Your mom shouted it to everyone,” she adds. I hold out a hand and she pulls me toward her.

  Stewart goes over to Kellan and claps him on the back. “Keeping secrets from me now, man.”

  Kellan laughs. “Sorry. Can’t tell you everything.”

  Hallie goes over to stand beside Stewart. “Now that the secret’s out and we can all celebrate, it’s time for dinner.” She waggles her brows at me. “I, for one, would like to hear all about how you two got together.”

  Still standing by the door, Hannah raises her hand. “So would I.”

  Once they’re all gone, Kellan and I hang back. “I’m pretty sure my mother will want to hear the story too,�
� I say, wondering what the hell we’re going to tell her.

  Kellan stops me in the hall and pulls me into his arms. He leans down to kiss me, all soft and gentle, and it feels right, but I know it can’t mean anything. “Don’t worry, lassie. We got this.”

  I sure hope he’s right.

  Six

  Kellan

  Hope and I walk toward the dining room, holding hands. We stand side by side while we wait in line for food. Neither of us saying anything. I’m tempted to ask what’s going on in her head but under the circumstances I may not like the answer. I saw an opportunity and took it. I was truthful when I said I wouldn’t be able to handle seeing her with another guy and relieved in fact, there isn’t anyone out there keeping her company at night. At least for the rest of the weekend, I can play the doting boyfriend, while trying desperately not to fall any deeper than I already am for this girl. It’s going to be hard. The way she makes me feel, just by standing next to me, is something I’ve never felt before.

  The buffet style set-up makes it easy for us to look like a couple. Of course, the not so subtly finger pointing, smiles and happy wide-eyed stares are also a dead giveaway. I get the parental pressure about finding someone and settling down. There isn’t a day my mom doesn’t tell me about how so and so are now engaged or whatshername is pregnant. Sometimes she starts off with “do you remember blankity blank?” and when I say no, she comes back with “of course you do” when I really don’t. Still, she tells me whatever is going on in their lives, sighs heavily, and suggests I start dating the nice Irish girl down the hall. I get what Hope is going through and I completely understand why she would make someone up so her mother will leave her alone.

  I can smell the scent of Hope’s perfume as I wait beside her in the line. “You look beautiful,” I whisper in her ear. Might as well take advantage of the slow line. Plus, it gives me a chance to get closer to her.

  Hope blushes. “Thanks. You don’t look too shabby yourself.” Given the chance, I’d tell her how beautiful she is every day. I know it’s not conceivable. Our lives are in different places and there are thousands of miles between us. One of us would have to give up our jobs, our lives, to go be with the other. One night together and now a fake romance isn’t going to change either of us. It’ll be one weekend, hopefully memorable for us, and if possible, something to build on in the future.

  When it’s our turn in line, Hope steps forward. “Would you like chicken or steak?” she asks me. I smile, loving the fact that she’s playing along.

  “Steak,” I tell her. She places a piece of meat onto my plate and does the same to hers. Through the entire line, she asks me what I want. In a way, she’s making me a plate of food even though I’m standing next to her.

  “What do you want to drink?” she asks when we reach the drink station, which is really a full-fledged bar.

  “Water,” I tell her. “Give me your plate and I’ll go get us a spot at the table.” She does and I make my way outside where others are sitting. There’s a slight chill in the air but it is still really nice outside. There are two seats open across from Hallie and Stewart. I set the plates down and continue standing so Hope knows where to find me.

  “You and Hope, huh?” Stewart says.

  I nod and watch Hallie giggle. “Wouldn’t it be amazing if Hope caught the bouquet tomorrow. We’d be doing this all over again next year!” It’s really cute to see Hallie so excited, but her exuberance is sometimes a little much to take. When Hope steps out onto the deck, my hand goes up and I wave her over. She hands me a plastic cup filled with ice and a bottle of water and sits down.

  Hallie reaches across the table and squeezes her cousin’s hand. “I wish you would’ve told me about you and Kellan.”

  “We didn’t want to overshadow your weekend, sweetie,” Hope says. Hallie does this little pout smile thing and then holds her hand to heart.

  “Tell me,” Stewart starts before deciding he needs take a drink of his beer. “How did this come about?”

  I inhale deeply and open my mouth to start telling the tallest tale possible, but Hope starts speaking first. “Remember the email you guys sent out to the wedding party so we could discuss everything?” Both Hallie and Stewart nod. Hope smiles and continues, “Well, somehow, I replied only to Kellan one time and we started talking.”

  Fucking brilliant. I love how quick on her feet Hope is with this little charade. It also reminds me to go through my emails to make sure I save hers because regardless of this being for show, I fully intend to email, call, and text the crap out of her when she goes back to Arizona.

  Hallie claps her hands excitedly. “Stewie, we’re matchmakers.” The two of them kiss, making me and hopefully the rest of the table feel awkward because it’s not a peck on the lips. It’s a full on, I want you to give me a baby tonight kiss. The kind I want to give Hope later.

  Hope and I look at each other and then start eating. She leans into me and whispers, “I don’t know about you, but I expected fine china, foods I can’t pronounce and a violin quartet in the corner.”

  I choke on my food and she pats me on the back. “Sorry,” she mumbles.

  “Don’t be.” I laugh and cough again. “Honestly, I expected the same. His parents are showy so the fact that it’s self-serve food and we’re sitting on folding chairs is a little out of the norm.”

  “All the parents are inside. I think the moms and aunts are organizing something.”

  “They scare me,” I tell her.

  “Try living with one,” she replies.

  We continue to talk quietly, answering questions when asked, but mostly keep to ourselves. By the time this dinner is over, the wedding party is packing up what they need and heading to the hotel where the wedding is. Without asking her, I take Hope’s computer bag and put it into my car. I know it’s a risk, but one I’m willing to take.

  “How long have you been in love with her?” I turn to find Hannah standing behind me.

  I glance around to make sure no one heard her. “What are you talking about?”

  She purses her lips at me. “Funny. I see right through you, Kellan.” Hannah steps closer. “Don’t forget, she lives in Phoenix and she really likes it. Don’t ask her to move back here because she’d never be happy.”

  “We’re just dating,” I say, lying easily.

  Hannah nods and walks away.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Hope. “What was that about?” she asks as she approaches my car.

  “Just your cousin threatening to chop my balls off if I hurt you.”

  Hope chuckles. “How does one get hurt in a game meant to steer my mother in another direction?”

  “No idea,” I tell her knowing full well I’ll be the one hurting come Sunday when she leaves. “I took the liberty of putting your bag in my car.”

  “Gotta keep up the pretenses, right?”

  “In that case.” I reach for Hope, with one hand on her hip and the other cradling her face, I pull her until our lips meet. I kiss her deeply, tasting her. Her hand goes into my hair, tugging softly, and she moans. Miss-in-a-fake-relationship fucking moans and presses her body into mine. Yep, no broken hearts coming out of this made up romance.

  Someone whistles, and then someone else yells, “Get a room” which is exactly what I want to do, take her to my hotel room and make love to her all night. As soon as this idea pops into my head, something else rises to attention. I pull away but leave my hand on her face. My thumb moves across her cheekbone softly as I look into her green eyes. I really could use a little luck on my side right now.

  “Do you want—”

  “I should probably go—”

  We start speaking at the same time. Alas, any luck I thought I was going to have is out the window. I nod and step away, reminding myself this is all a game. “Do you want to ride with me over to the hotel?”

  She nods and I take to her to the passenger side of my car and hold the door for her. Once she’s in, I shut it and make my way
to the other side. I’m not in any hurry, that’s for damn sure. The wedding party follows each other on the drive over to the hotel. Hope and I don’t speak until I pull and give the valet my keys. She thanks me and heads off with the other bridesmaids, leaving me there to deal with Stewart and his drunk friends.

  Another night where I lay in bed and watch the ceiling above me. I’m thankful for the five-star hotel and the very nice accommodations because after a few rounds of shots, one of Stewart’s co-workers took one of the bridesmaids to his room, which is next door to mine, and by the way they were going at it in the elevator, I can only imagine what kind of porno they were trying to make all night long. Although, given the chance, I would’ve done the same thing with Hope.

  At breakfast, it’s the groomsmen as the women are back in the spa for their hair and make-up. The guys are quiet and likely hung over. Me, I’m ready to go. I didn’t drink much because I was too preoccupied with thoughts of Hope and answering the same question over and over—where was she? The answer was simple—working. Even I know the first quarter of the year is a nightmare for accountants. This morning when people ask, it’s another easy answer. She’s doing her bridal duties.

  After breakfast we all head to the suite Stewart’s parents rented. The wedding planners have hung up all of our tuxedos and had them pressed. When we get into the room, music is playing, there’s a bartender and trays of snacks, and someone there to assist us with our bowties. I swear, Stu must think we need to be drunk to have a good time. I grab a water and start getting dressed. An hour later, we’re standing together, posing for pictures. When those are done, the photographer hands the rings to me.