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I reach across the breakfast bar and take her hand. “And Ella, we might be manipulating him, but we’re right. Kendra and I don’t belong together. I shouldn’t have to give him years of my life or ten percent of my company. When you and I don’t make it to the altar on Shaw’s timetable, well…I’ll hope that he’s willing to fall back to standard business practices and simply lend me money in exchange for a small but temporary chunk of Sweet Darlin’. If he won’t give me the money, I’ll deal with it then.”
“That’s all you can do. So, if we’re going to pretend to be engaged, what do we do first?”
“Let me call Kendra and give her the news. Then I’ll contact her father and tell him that we intend to take that free wedding he offered. After that, we’ll start playing the happy bride and groom. And we’ll hope for the best in the end—for all of us.”
As Ella whips up another omelet for herself, she gives me an absent nod, clearly still pondering the situation. I can’t help but suspect she’s thinking what I am: What happens to us after the ruse is over?
I don’t have the answer to that question. I’m aware that our remaining time together probably isn’t enough to make her want to give up everything she’s built for herself in California and move here with me. But I have to try.
What other choice do I have that doesn’t end in abject, miserable loneliness?
Chapter Eight
ELLA
After our discussion over breakfast, Carson and I both agreed we had tasks to accomplish if we intend to pull this ruse off successfully. He’s stepped into his home office to call Kendra. They deserve the privacy of a quiet end to their ill-fated engagement. I clean the dishes, even though he told me he’d help me as soon as he made his fiancée his ex. It gives me something to do…other than call my younger sisters.
I hate lying to them, and I’ll take a lot of crap for it later. But right now, I can’t tell them I’m getting fake married. Eryn might be a mere two years younger than me, but she’s about a billion years more cynical. I don’t know if it’s middle-child syndrome, her given personality, or the breakup she never recovered from. Either way, if I clue her in on what’s happening, she’ll tell me I’m crazy, that Carson is using me, and that the whole thing will only end badly. The baby of the family, Echo, is fun and bubbly and always has a smile. She’s the sunshine to Eryn’s rain cloud. I love her to pieces, but she can’t keep a secret worth a damn.
I wouldn’t go to the pretense of dragging them across the country for a wedding that will never happen, except that Gregory Shaw knows my background. He knows I have sisters. He probably even knows we’re close. I’ll never convince the man I’m serious about getting married without them.
“Here goes nothing,” I mutter to myself, plopping down on a barstool in the kitchen and dialing Eryn’s number. She’s far more likely to pick up since Echo misplaces her phone all the time.
“Hey!” she answers. “How’s the hush-hush job you couldn’t discuss? Got a southern accent yet?”
“Seriously? After four days, you think I’ve picked up a twang?”
“Maybe you should try harder to acquire one. It would be cute at your auditions. Besides, it would give me something to poke at you about. Because you’re otherwise practically perfect.”
“Hardly true. The job is…” Good? Fine? “Complicated.”
Eryn pauses, her tone shifting to serious. “That doesn’t sound good. Tell me what’s up. You okay?”
I grope for something to say. I should have planned this speech a bit better, somehow eased her into it. Hindsight is awesome, but I’ve already stepped in it too deep to climb out now. “Is Echo there?”
“Right beside me, downing a bowl of Raisin Bran.”
“I need to talk to you both. Put me on speaker so she can hear, too, okay?”
“Now you’re really scaring me.”
“It’s actually a good thing.” I try to sound convincing.
“Uh-huh,” Eryn drawls. “Hold on.” A moment passes, and the background has a slight hiss that wasn’t there before. “Okay. We’re both here.”
“Hi!” Echo’s higher, happier voice chimes in, sounding half-full of food. “Can I call you Elly May now?”
“As in Clampett?” I have to smile. “Um…no.”
Echo’s laugh is something approaching a snort. “You’ve got to admit, that was funny.”
“I don’t have to admit that any more than you have to admit the remark was juvenile,” I tease.
“Spoilsport.” I can picture her sticking her tongue out at me.
“Whiny brat,” I jab back because that’s what older sisters do.
“Whatever…” She scoffs at me. “So how are the wilds of North Carolina?”
“Nice, but hardly wild. Charlotte has, like, almost a million people, so it’s not a rural middle-of-nowhere. It looks like a city, but it has a different sort of charm than home.”
“Any Gone with the Wind mansions or cowboy hats?” She sounds as if she’s eagerly waiting for me to say yes.
I roll my eyes. “Not that I’ve seen. But maybe you can look for yourself.”
“What do you mean?” Eryn cuts in. “Do you need us to come there and help you?”
“I was hoping you’d hold my hand,” I say in my calmest big-sister voice. “I’m getting married in two weeks.”
“What? Are you fucking kidding me?” Eryn spits out.
“That’s so romantic! It must have been love at first sight.” Echo sighs.
“Actually, we met six months ago.” I don’t say more. What are the odds that my cautious response will prevent Eryn from asking more questions?
“If you were seeing someone seriously, why is this the first we’re hearing of this?” Eryn asks suspiciously. “How did we not know about him?”
“When we met, I was on a date with a friend of his. He moved out here soon after that. But he called me recently to tell me he’d never forgotten me…and here we are.” That’s as booby-trap free as I can make that explanation, but I rattle on, mostly to shut Eryn up. “His name is Carson Frost. He inherited a candy company called Sweet Darlin’.”
“Oh, my god! They make the Eversweet Chewy Pop.” Echo sounds excited. “It’s literally my favorite.”
“There’s so much sugar in those,” Eryn points out, sounding just shy of scolding. “Focus, Echo. What’s the hurry to get married, El? If you’ve only been with him for a few days, it’s even too soon for you to know if you’re pregnant.”
“That’s not why we’re getting married. It’s a long story, and I’ll tell you all when you get here. Carson and I are sending you tickets to fly here for the wedding, so—”
“Wait,” Eryn cuts in.
“Yeah, hold up. He lives in North Carolina?” Echo jumps in. “You’re going to be moving there?”
“I’ll explain when I see you. Just make sure you both clear the time off with work. Echo, you might miss a day or two of school.”
“For you, that’s nothing,” she assures me. “I just want you to be happy. Are you sure this is what you want?”
No. But Gregory Shaw is a shark who came baring his teeth today, and I can’t leave Carson out in the water, bleeding like chum, without a life raft. I love him too much.
I don’t know what will become of us. If we want to be together, one of us is going to have to sacrifice something deeply meaningful. If we part ways, my sisters will be taking me home with them, most likely brokenhearted.
Maybe I should have stepped back and not gotten so involved with Carson. But holding in my feelings isn’t in my nature. I’m so drawn to him that I looked at the man, saw his smile…and fell.
