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Gag. Gag. Gag. Faith resisted the urge to put her finger in her mouth and stimulate her glossophayngeal and vagus nerves. Instead, she glanced back toward Vale.
He’d been looking at her, an odd expression on his face. Not a bad expression, more a quizzical one. Then he smiled, dimples digging into his cheeks, tiny crinkles forming at the corners of his brilliant eyes.
Faith no longer wanted to gag. Instead she fought drooling. Vale Wakefield was one gorgeous man.
He winked and for the first time since they’d come outside she felt a smile tugging at her lips. How could he do that? Take her from misery to better with a mere wink?
“He really likes you.”
Reality kicked in as she turned to Vale’s mother and was once again slammed with guilt, her stomach roiling at the tumultuous ups and downs her emotions were taking. Deceiving this gracious woman just felt wrong. “We work well together.”
“Of course, you do, dear.” Virginia patted her arm and smiled graciously. “You must or he never would have invited you here. I’m so pleased that he did.”
A man setting up the dance floor beneath the pulled-back sides of the tent caught Vale’s mother’s eyes and, with another quick pat and smile, she went off to direct the worker.
“Enjoying yourself?” Vale asked, coming up behind her, pulling her from the chair and wrapping his arms around her waist.
“Vale, don’t,” she bit out. Why was he being so touchy-feely? She wasn’t sure how much more touchy-feely she could handle.
“Don’t?” He didn’t take the hint, didn’t let her go. “I have to keep you close. You’re here to protect me from my family.”
“Sure,” she snorted. “Because now that I’ve met them I see how scary they are.”
“They scare you, too? Now you understand why I need you to intervene.” His smile was contagious, and melted away the worry gnawing in her belly, melted her insides to silly feminine goop.
“They just want you to be happy.” She stepped back, unable to deal with what being in his arms did to her. “If you don’t want them matchmaking, just tell them.”
“I’m so glad you suggested that, because I’ve never thought about just telling my mother that I’m not interested in meeting a nice girl and settling down.”
She narrowed her gaze. “In case you’re wondering, sarcasm does not become you.”
“Haven’t you heard? Everything becomes me.” His movie-star white teeth flashed. Rather than saying anything, he took her hand and led her away from the wedding festivities and out toward the high gate that opened to the sand dunes behind the mansion. A private boardwalk led out to the billowing Atlantic.
Faith’s breath caught at the beauty of the white-capped waves rolling in, at how the almost set sun painted the sky with pinks, purples, and blues.
For just a moment she wanted to believe this was real, that Vale had invited her to his parents’ this weekend because he wanted to be with her, that he missed her as much as she missed him when they were apart. She wanted to believe that they were going for a walk on the beach, holding hands, sharing the moment when the sun dipped from the sky. Not for show, not as friends or colleagues, but as lovers.
And that when it was all over she wouldn’t have a broken heart. She definitely wanted to believe that because otherwise how could she allow herself to even indulge in the fantasy?
“Why haven’t you?” She slipped off her heels and wiggled her toes in the warm sand.
He glanced up from where he pulled off his shoes and socks, dropping them onto the sand, and rolled up the cuffs of his dark slacks. “Why haven’t I what?”
He was so gorgeous. More breathtaking than the sunset. More beautiful. More what she wanted, but shouldn’t.
She dropped her heels next to his shoes. “Met a nice girl and settled down.”
“Don’t start, Faith.” He grabbed her hand and headed toward the surf.
“What?” She stumbled, trying to keep up with his pace as he dragged her behind him, sand flying up at her ankles.
“Matchmaking,” he spat the word out. “I don’t need you fixing me up with friends any more than I need my family doing so.”
As if she’d fix Vale up with one of her friends. Besides, thanks to the long hours she worked, few of her friends would even claim her these days.
“I can assure you I’d never do that to any of my friends. I like them too much to introduce them to you.”
“Good, because if I ever marry, I’ll find the woman all by myself.”
