Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 80562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80562 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 403(@200wpm)___ 322(@250wpm)___ 269(@300wpm)
Liam: Congrats, man. I have to admit I had no clue. It’s big of you to step up for that kid. I’m happy he’ll have a dad in his life, even if it’s not his own. Also, there’s something I want to tell you in person. Most of us are heading to Frosty Harbor tonight to celebrate with you guys. Maybe we can meet for a beer tomorrow if you have time?
I’m guessing he wants to discuss the retirement announcement. Just thinking about it sours my mood again.
Carter: Broooo! That baby isn’t even yours! Big dick energy, FR FR.
Carter simply follows his text with dead-faced, crying emojis. I’m not really sure what that means.
Maddox: Hear me out… She’s a cancer, and you’re an aries. I’m not saying it can never work, but I AM saying it might not be the best idea. You sure about this?
I roll my eyes at that one. Maddox is always on about some superstitious thing or the other.
Nolan: Nice, dude. I’ve been rooting for you two to figure it out and admit you’re crazy about each other forever. Welcome to the club. I’ll make you guys a badass cake with Mia to celebrate. Tell me when you two can make it to Taste, and we’ll set you up with a five-course meal on the house.
I look over and see Caroline is reading texts, too.
The elevator dings, and we step out into the hallway.
“What are you going to say?” I ask, assuming it’s her friends bombarding her like my teammates.
“What should I say?” she asks. She looks a little frazzled, which isn’t like her. “Andi sounds like she’s about to die of excitement. She texted me like eight paragraphs about everything she wants to do now that we will be married to each other’s brothers. Mia’s talking about all the meals she wants to make for the wedding. Paisley has apparently already started baking up a storm for us.”
I nod. “The guys seem kind of excited, too.” I don’t mention that Maddox is worried about our star signs not lining up. I’m sure he’ll come around.
“Are we really going to tell them it’s all a lie?”
“What else would we do?” I ask.
“We could… just let them enjoy it for a little bit?”
I stop outside the door to our room and gently set Walker’s carrier down beside me. He’s awake now but happily sucking on his pacifier and looking around at everything with wide-eyed curiosity. “That seems like a bad idea.”
“Is it, though?” Caroline squints and tilts her head as she asks.
“Yes,” I laugh.
“But is it?” she repeats.
I push the room door open, pick up Walker, and wait for Caroline to go in. “Yes. It’s a bad idea. We pretend it’s real, and everybody is happy at first. But what happens after the wedding when we split? We’re just putting off the bad part until the end.”
“I thought that was the plan the whole time?” she asks.
“Well, sort of,” I admit. “But seeing their reactions and how excited they are… it feels different.”
“You said yourself that the team needs to think it’s real. Can we really tell all our friends and hope it never gets out to anybody? Even if they keep the secret, don’t you think it will be a little obvious that they’re all faking being happy for us? Can you picture Carter trying to act?”
“No,” I admit. “He can’t even act like an adult half the time.”
“See?”
I give her a long look as she sits down and idly runs her palms over the plush white comforter. The room is beautiful, with huge windows and views of downtown, but she hardly seems to be paying attention right now. I can’t say I blame her. We sort of just dropped a nuclear bomb on our social circles.
“You sure you’re not pushing so hard for this because you’re enjoying pretending we’re engaged?” I ask. I mean it to come out as a tease, but part of me honestly wonders. Part of me is enjoying it, too, if I’m being totally honest.
I know I’m not the kind of guy to settle down with a woman. But I can’t lie. There’s something I enjoy about pampering Caroline and going through the motions I’m enjoying. We picked out a huge ass ring at Tiffany’s. It wasn’t the biggest, but she seemed to take the selection process very seriously despite trying to act like it was stupid. Ultimately, she seemed to love what she picked, and I was surprised by how much I liked letting her get exactly what she wanted. I’m even looking forward to being the one to slide the ring on her finger when it comes in. As part of the act, of course.
Caroline is giving me a dirty look.
“What?” I ask.
“I’m just trying to think about what’s best for everyone,” she says, sounding defensive. “I don’t want us to go through all this trouble for nothing. If the secret gets out and Peter catches word, maybe it screws up the contract. If your people find out, maybe it screws up your contract. I know it’s not perfect, but maybe it’s a secret we need to keep. For now.”