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“Any idea where we get these animals from?” I’m assuming it’s not as easy as walking into a store and purchasing them.
“I know a labradoodle breeder. I’ll need to do research for a British-shorthair breeder.” Her eyes light up at the mention of the animals.
“Are you positive you want to do this?” I don’t want Simone to regret her decision down the line. “What will people think if they find out the man in your social media photos is facing felony charges? That won’t do much for your image.” Simone’s image has always been important to her. Even in high school.
“That’s true. But this is different. I believe in you, Lucas. I believe you’re innocent. And I’m doing this in memory of my brother. That’s the most important reason of all.”
I nod. “Okay. So does that mean you’ll marry me?”
The emotion of a dozen thoughts flicker on her face. She holds her hand out to me. “Yes. You have yourself a deal.”
The tightness in my muscles loosens. My lungs inflate. I can finally breathe, can finally scale the mountain of hope.
I shake her hand, even though I’d rather kiss her to seal the deal. Something tells me we’re not quite there. There’s a reserve to her that wasn’t there ten years ago.
There is one thing I do need to know before we figure out how we’re going to announce our engagement to everyone. “Can we get married first? Or do we have to wait until after we’ve adopted the animals?”
“After we’re married is fine. I’m guessing you want to get married sooner rather than later.” She turns back to the view, the mountain barely more than a looming shadow cutting into the night sky. “So what are we telling everyone? I haven’t lived in Maple Ridge for over ten years. Everyone knows we weren’t having a long-distance relationship. Won’t Tuuli and Robert be suspicious when you’re suddenly engaged shortly after they tell you they’re leaning toward selling the land to the couple who wants to build a lodge for romantic getaways?”
“You and I aren’t strangers. We’ve known each other for a long time. So us wanting to get married won’t sound so farfetched. The best thing we can do is keep as close to the truth as possible.”
“You mean that you asked me to marry you for business purposes?” A one-sided smile lifts her lips, and damn if she doesn’t look as sexy as sin.
Focus.
“No—that we were involved in college.” Since Aiden can no longer kill me for having sex with his sister, it’s okay to admit that truth. He can haunt me, perhaps.
But definitely not kill me.
Her brows raise, dark against her pale skin glowing softly in the light spilling from the living room. I don’t dare to turn to see if anyone in the apartment is watching us.
“You actually want us to admit to that?”
“Sure, why not? We’re in our thirties now. We’re adults.”
She nods, understanding the message beneath the words. “Do you think people will believe that? I didn’t tell anyone—not even Zara, Kim, or Emily—that we were sneaking around.”
I kind of figured that at the time. The three of them weren’t very subtle back then. It would’ve been obvious if she had told them. “They will if they see how we are together.”
She frowns. It’s a good thing her expression isn’t visible to everyone in the living room. “How we are?”
“We have to show them we’re in love and have been for years, but your job in Portland kept us from making things official.”
“Wow, you’ve really thought this out, haven’t you?”
“I have.” Ever since Troy suggested this afternoon that I marry her, I’ve been thinking about how she and I could make this work. Because sure, the idea was farfetched, a little ridiculous, perhaps, but I couldn’t let it go. Just like I haven’t been able to let her go. Troy has no clue that I had considered asking Simone after I told him she wasn’t the solution to our problem. Even Garrett and Kellan have no idea what I’m doing on the balcony. They only know about the conversation I had with the Wakefields this afternoon.
“But we should start with telling my brothers and our friends in there first.” I nod at the apartment. “If we can convince them we’re getting married because we’re in love, we can convince everyone. Because the fewer people who know the truth, the less likely things will go wrong with the plan.”
“How are we going to convince your brothers and our friends?”
I shift my body slightly, gazing into those beautiful hazel eyes of hers, and lower my mouth. It’s just the brushing of lips. Nothing X-rated. But my body responds like it always did when I kissed her. My skin zings. My breath quickens. My heart trips over itself. I’ve kissed many women over the years. None have left my body feeling this way. This exhilarated.
Simone releases a small gasp, but she doesn’t pull away or slap me.
Always a good sign.
I step back in time to see her expression shift from surprised to satisfied. Not just the satisfaction that comes from a great kiss. She also believes we can pull this off.
