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“Good looking. Tall. Sexy,” she said, avoiding going any further. He’d also been a good listener, at least during the short time she told him about Rory. Then they’d returned to Tulip, and he gave her a spacious guest room in his huge home. She hadn’t seen him much in the past two days—but she assumed this was what her marriage would be like. On paper only.
“Troy. What’s his last name?”
“Gallucci.”
Nikki looked up at the ceiling, thinking, as if she was trying to place his surname. “I feel like I’ve heard that name before. Do you have a picture?”
Lara scooped her phone from the table and flicked the pictures that the wedding planner had emailed her after the ceremony. She should have erased them—she didn’t need them. He was the one who’d insisted on that package to have some evidence to share with his family. But something felt wrong about not having a photo of her supposedly big day. She held it up to Nikki.
Nikki fanned herself and took the phone from her. “Whew. He’s hot. Damn.”
“That’s why I married him right away,” Lara said.
“No kidding. When can we meet him?”
Apprehension squeezed Lara’s heart. She hadn’t thought that far ahead. But she assumed if he’d introduce her to his people, she could do the same. There was no way she’d be married for months without her friends meeting her husband. “I’ll ask him when it’s a good time and set something up.”
“Great.”
Lara looked away. Shivers of fear ran up her spine. She hoped to God that Troy was a really good actor to convince her friends they were in love. He had to be, right? Otherwise he wouldn’t have suggested this to fool his own family. Why though? Maybe the reason as to why he needed a bride so bad lay in his personal life, and not professional.
“Is he at your place? Or are you in his?”
“I’ve moved to his,” she said, before adding the name of a prestigious home in Tulip. She herself had a nice place, a three-bedroom home a few blocks from the beach that she earned with her own money. But she’d agreed to move to his, as it’d be easier to move on without having any memories of him in her place.
Nikki whistled. “Niiice. I can’t wait to see it.”
“He’s renting it,” she said, remembering he’d told her. “It’s big and fancy, facing the ocean. Came furnished. He moved into town not long ago.”
“Oh. I get it. He’s lucky to have you now to add a feminine touch to the place then.”
Lara cleared her throat. She didn’t want to touch anything that could attach her to Troy Gallucci.
Lara glanced at her reflection in the mirror. She’d picked a dark red dress that was flattering but not too revealing. She added some jewelry and also hoped her stiletto heels would make her look more confident. She’d regretted not taking drama classes at school, for sure.
“Are you ready?” Troy asked from the other side of the door, knocking on it.
She drew in a breath, grabbed her rolling suitcase and walked to the door. The room she occupied was decorated in citrusy colors, different tones of orange from a more vibrant to a pale yellow. She’d think it would be too much, but like the rest of the house, it flowed nicely, and the end result was sophisticated.
He'd told her it was a rental, but she knew he had to be paying a small fortune a month. Would he consider buying a home in Tulip?
She opened the door to find him leaning on it. A bit too close for comfort, he wore dark jeans and a jacket tailor made for his broad shoulders and wide chest. But it was the crisp white shirt underneath that got her attention. Most specifically, the top button, casually opened and displaying the muscles of his neck, his tanned skin, and she wondered if hair dusted his chest.
“Lara?” he called her, pulling her from her trance of arousal. “Ready to go?”
She nodded violently. “Oh, yes… I just have a lot on my mind, got distracted.”
“I understand.”
“Do I look okay? I mean to meet your family?” she asked, then chastised herself mentally a second later. Get it together, girl. The last thing she wanted was to sound needy and insecure. This wasn’t a regular date—it was a performance. One that would ensure her brother’s safety.
“Yes,” he said simply.
“You look okay too,” she said, then lifted her chin and added a pep to her walk as she followed him down the stairs.
According to her ex, she wasn’t a goddess in bed, but she knew she could make men turn their heads. She’d been told enough times.
During the drive to his parents’ place in Los Angeles, she didn’t say much. For a couple hours, she put on her AirPods and listened to music. They should have driven earlier to miss traffic and get settled before dinner.
