AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Sorry.” I pulled my gaze from him and back to Maeve and Tyson. “But yeah, they do. I think they’re better matched than I thought.”
“Yeah, maybe. She had to sign a prenup.”
I shrugged. “Doesn’t mean anything. It’s just formalities.”
“I wouldn’t make my wife sign a prenup.”
“Why?” I turned to him. “I thought you hated women.”
He made a face. “I don’t hate women, but yeah, I think they’re out to break men into a million pieces…but if I ever got married, she’d have to be some sort of anomaly.”
An anomaly.
“Well, maybe someday you’ll find her.”
He met my gaze. “Who knows.”
We stood there for a few beats, both clapping as the dance finished. Tyson and Maeve shared a sweet kiss, looking as in love as ever.
And I felt that all too familiar pang of jealousy.
“Wanna dance now?” Jackson’s voice cut into my thoughts, and I glanced down at his extended hand. “Only makes sense.”
“Yeah…” I eyed him, taking his hand and letting him lead me out onto the dance floor. My floor-length dark red dress swept across the black floors, my heels silenced by the beginning of a slow ballad.
“Gotta make them think we’re in love or some shit,” Jackson muttered, swinging me around in his arms. He pulled me to his chest, holding me tightly, his arm threading around my waist. I caught my breath, inhaling the now-familiar scent of him.
And instinctually, I leaned away.
“I’m not going to bite,” he murmured, his voice tinged with something that almost sounded like disappointment. “Just pretend like you don’t hate me…just for tonight.”
I met his eyes, studying the complexities in the hues of his deep forest-green irises. “I’ll do my best.”
“That’s good enough for me.” Jackson leaned in, his head pressing against the side of mine. “It’s just a show.”
Just a show.
I swallowed hard, trying to keep my breaths even as we swayed on the floor. The shutters of cameras around us were apparent, even over the live music, and Jackson held me tighter to him.
As the song ended, someone tapped on my shoulder, and I turned to see Maeve, holding out a microphone. “Ready?”
“Yep,” Jackson answered before I could.
“Can I have everyone’s attention?” Maeve’s voice boomed over the PA system, and the music faded to the background. As the crowd went silent and everyone turned to stare at us, she continued. “This is my maid of honor, and she’s an incredible person. Tonight, her special someone asked for permission to do something incredible for her, and I agreed to it. I think weddings are a place where we celebrate all love—not just mine and Tyson’s.”
My heart sank at the lies, and at just how real it sounded.
“And so, without further ado, here’s Jackson.” Maeve smiled at me and then passed the microphone to Jackson. “I know you can do this,” she leaned in and whispered before walking away.
Jackson cleared his throat, taking a step back from me but holding my hand. “So after some thought about tonight, I decided instead of drawing it out, I wanted to get straight to the point.” He let go of my hand, slipping his into the pocket of his tuxedo and pulling out a box.
It’s not real. It’s not real.
But the way my heart was pounding in my chest was real. My eyes searched Jackson’s face as he knelt to the ground. He flipped the box open, revealing a beautiful pear-shaped diamond on a rose-gold band.
It was stunning.
“So, Lena, you and I haven’t known each other very long in comparison to what some do—and our start was a little rocky. I think we disliked each other more than we liked each other.” He paused, everyone chuckling. “But I realized that maybe the best relationships are the ones that challenge us to be better—and that’s what you’ve done to me. You’ve made question a lot of things, and you give me a new perspective on life.”
