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“No, it wasn’t.”
Mrs. Lowe took a deep breath, her nostrils flaring as she closed her eyes for a second and nodded her head, seemingly coming to terms with something. She opened her eyes again and looked back at me.
“Do you know why my son would want to lie to me about being in a relationship with you?”
“I don’t know the specifics of it. Now, what he did mention was you knew he was lonely and looking for somebody. That you felt he needed help with Tommy and Sophie and only had his best interests in mind. And as much as he loved that you felt that way, he did want to get you off his back, so he lied. Then he realized he’d backed himself into a corner, so he asked me to help.”
Mrs. Lowe took another slow breath and nodded her head again. “And how did you meet? Why did he pick you?”
I lifted my shoulders slowly and then dropped them. “I wish I had an answer for you, but I have no idea. All I know is from the first time we saw each other, we both felt things that felt impossible to believe for the other. And yet they were there. The first night we met, Bastian told me he was all-in. At the time, I thought it was crazy. He barely knew me. How could we even have anything in common? And yet here we are, six days later, and it feels like I’ve known him my entire life, and I’m all-in too.”
Mrs. Lowe nodded again, but she still wasn’t smiling. There was a frown marring her face. “So, knowing all that, you understand how I feel when I learned my very successful, very celebrity son is fake dating a girl who, by all rights, is looking to make her own career. Who may have seen an opportunity with a man who could make that career happen for her. You can understand my hesitancy in believing you are all-in and that you’re not just here to profit off something you saw as an opportunity.”
Horror washed through me, turning me cold. “Mrs. Lowe, this isn’t an opportunity—” I paused. That wasn’t entirely the truth, though, was it? My first thought upon seeing him was taking advantage of who he was, deciding to use his clout to make my career. And then he gave me an opportunity by asking me to be his fake girlfriend, and I took it, imagining having sex with him would further cement his “owing” me something.
I swallowed hard as doubt suddenly rushed through me. What I was feeling—it was real, wasn’t it? Or had I tricked myself into believing a long con?
“I’m just saying, Bexley, I like you. I do, but I worry about my son and grandkids. He loved Eleanor. If you’d seen them together, you would know that. And losing her destroyed him. He threw himself into work—thank God—instead of other things that are far too easily accessible for a man like him and distracted himself away from his grief. And those kids … Well, they lost a mother. And maybe one day she’ll be a memory in a picture, but for Tommy, he still remembers her occasionally. He’ll ask about her or tell me a story about her, so she’s still there, and he’s still trying to figure out why she hasn’t come back. I can’t risk them falling in love with a girl who isn’t truly there for the right reasons. So, I need you to decide, are you in it for love, or are you in it for what he can do for your career?”
I swallowed hard, doubt swirling faster in my stomach and nauseating me.
“You’re a good girl, Bexley. If you’ve made a mistake, I know you’ll make the right choice.”
Chapter15
Bastian
“Mom’s on to you,”Julian said as he leaned against the door frame, watching as I folded Sophie’s dresses and carefully laid them into the suitcase.
I looked over at him in surprise. “Onto me?”
My brother’s head bobbed before he smirked. “Oh, yeah. She’s caught onto this whole thing with Bexley.”
“What whole thing?” I asked again. Julian stared at me like I was being obtuse, and I sighed, putting down the dress. I looked over at him once more. “Maybe it started as fake dating, but what we have is real, and I’ll explain that to Mom if she wants to come speak to me. Bexley is going to be in our lives for a while. You all said you liked her, so I don’t see how this is going to be a problem.”
Julian lifted one shoulder and then dropped it. “You know what Mom’s like. She’s super protective of us, and if she thinks this whole fake thing was Bexley’s idea and not yours for one second, she will make sure Bexley knows.”
I looked back at the suitcase sitting on the bed, thinking about what my brother was saying. I guess I needed to talk to my mom—to my parents. To make sure that everybody understood what was going on here.
I glanced back at Jules. “What time is your flight tomorrow?”
“I’m leaving tonight,” he said with a sigh. “A couple of things came up. I must head back early need to be there in the morning to deal with it.”
I nodded my head in understanding and then cracked a grin. “Hey, once Mom knows what Bexley and I have is real and serious, she will be on your case next. What a relief!”
Julian groaned and tilted his head back dramatically. “God, don’t tell me that. I’m not ready.”
I laughed, “yeah, the perpetual playboy who is more content to live the bachelor lifestyle than anyone I’ve ever known.”
He gave me a shit-eating grin. “You know it.”
There was a chorus of squeals behind him as the two kids rushed up, shoving through the door. Tommy slid to stop and looked over the packed suitcases.
“We’re going home?” he asked, pushing his bottom lip out in a dramatic pout.
“Yeah, but I told you that. Unfortunately, our little holiday is over. Don’t worry, though. We’re going to Germany for Christmas.”
Julian shook his head subtly. “Can’t do it.”
