“That’s fantastic,” Drew said. The relief threatened to make him lightheaded. “That’s absolutely fantastic.” It was all he could do to let go of Jack’s hand and not stand there pumping in gratitude forever. “I bet you’re on the way to the bar. Let’s share a toast.”
Now things would look up. Now, nothing could possibly go wrong.
The older man struck up a conversation with the bartender, and Drew took the opportunity to check on Penny, who had stayed behind to talk with Lisa.
She was utterly gorgeous.
After the night they’d finally given in to desire in his office, they’d spent the following Saturday shopping for a gown. The red one he’d had tailored for her by one of the best designers in the city was worth every cent.
The back dipped low, exposing the wings of her shoulder blades. She’d worn her hair swept back in a smooth chignon, which let the sweetheart neckline shine. It was her color. Against her tan skin and dark eyes, it was exquisite.
She was exquisite. He’d been irritated because of stress, not because of a few minor slip-ups. She wouldn’t do it again, he was sure.
Penny tipped back her head and laughed at something Lisa had said.
Jack was saying something.
Drew cleared his throat. “Sorry. What was that?”
“I see you’re quite taken with your new bride. I can’t blame you for that.” Jack let out a chuckle. “I hope you two have some downtime planned soon. A lady like that deserves a nice vacation.”
“Oh, yes. Aspen,” he said, choosing the first thing that came to mind. “A ski trip in a cozy lodge.”
Jack guffawed. “Are you sure you won’t take her to a woodland castle? That would fit your fairy tale.”
“We’ll see,” Drew hedged.
They went back to their wives, and the illusion took his breath away for the second time that evening. Penny’s fake wedding band and engagement ring glittered on her fingers. And he felt the way she leaned into him, as if on instinct, when he curved his hand over her hipbone. Was it so fake that she was struggling to keep up appearances?
“You’re back,” Penny said. “And you brought champagne.”
They handed off drinks to Lisa and Penny, and Jack took his place next to his wife. “Drew was just telling me about your upcoming trip to Aspen. Skiing is the most refreshing mountain pastime,” he said with a wink.
Beside him, Lisa raised her eyebrows. “Oh, you have that wrong, Jack. Penny told me they’re going to Hawaii.”
He felt her tense under his hand. “Oh,” Penny said, a false note ringing in her voice. “He always teases me about that. He knows I don’t ski. I’d end up spending more time falling down than actually standing on skis.”
Jack looked from Penny to Drew, the awkwardness filling the air between the foursome like a bad smell.
“Excuse us a minute.” Drew steered Penny away, and she looked up at him, stone-faced. “Okay, what was that?” he asked.
“I was just trying to cover. And it’s true: I don’t ski. I don’t know why everything has to be a lie.” So this was it. This was what had been nagging at her all this time. “Isn’t it ever enough for you? Honestly, I’ve been having second thoughts since that dinner at your mother’s house. Lying to her made me realize how far we’ve gone down this road. How much we’ve been lying. It’s a lot.”
“It’s temporary.”
“It’s too much.”
“You’re deciding this now?” He had to keep his voice in check so that this disaster didn’t get any larger. “This is a means to an end, and now we might not get to the end. Don’t forget, I gave you an out. More than one, but you said you were ready for this. Is this what you meant?” He looked over Penny’s head and saw Jack considering them with narrowed eyes. “Jack’s on to us.”
“Well, I’m sorry.” Penny’s shoulders slumped. “I didn’t mean to screw everything up. When it’s just us, it isn’t so overwhelming, but here, with all these people? It’s like I’m two people and the real me is screaming to get out. So I went with my own truth. I’d rather go to Hawaii. We’re both screwing up here.”
He bit back a retort and managed to keep his voice level. “I didn’t know anyone was going to bring up fake vacation plans. It’s hard to anticipate every possible pretend scenario.”
“That’s the thing, Drew.” Penny’s voice trembled. “Some parts of our relationship—of…being your wife…do seem real. And maybe it’s my fault for not having the courage to talk to you about it, but maybe you’re too blinded by your own business goals to see it.”
“Blinded by my business goals?” He clenched his jaw. “This is my family business, Penny. This is a future for my son. This isn’t just about business.”
She rolled her eyes. “So it’s only separate from your personal life when you want it to be. It’s good of you to admit that now, but maybe you should have come clean about it when you asked me to pretend to be your wife.”
Her voice rose until the last word.
Jack stepped up beside them. It was an effort to draw any breath into his lungs, but Drew forced himself to put on a smile. “What can I do for you, Mr. Holloway?”
Jack’s face did not feature his usual jovial expression. “I’m certain I wasn’t supposed to hear what I just did. Just to confirm: you’re not married?”
“No, we’re not.” Drew resisted the urge to hang his head. This had been a disastrous idea from the start, and now he was reaping what he’d sown. “I’m sorry.”
Jack stuck his hands in his pockets. “Me, too.”
Then he turned and walked away.
There was a long silence between Drew and Penny, every moment filled with chatter from the gala around them.
“I’m going to go,” she said finally. “I’ll see you in the morning.” Her voice held a hint of a question, but he didn’t have an answer.
“That’s probably for the best. I have a call to make.”
Before she could be the one who left, he pulled out his phone and strode away.
11
Tessa opened the door and her jaw dropped. “Oh, my god. That is a dress. I was not expecting this based on your text.”
Penny’s text had read, “Coming back from an event and I need ice cream. Can I come over?”
“I know.” Penny looked down and shrugged her shoulders. When she looked back up, Tessa was giving her the world’s most skeptical glare.
“You’re just going to shrug and say ‘I know’? Where did you get that?”
“My…” She didn’t even know what to call Drew in this moment. “My boyfriend? My boss? He’s some combination of those things, and he’s wealthy. Really, really wealthy.” Her throat tightened. “He bought it for me, because we had a gala to attend tonight.”
“Girl.” Tessa reached out and pulled Penny inside her apartment by the wrist. “You have left a lot out during class. I knew you had a new job, but the boyfriend thing?”