He laughs. “Let’s take whatever pictures we want and save the posting for when we’re back home.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Good call. Especially since your whole family will be here. Between you and your quarterback brother, there’d be a flood of sold-out flights heading toward Maui.”
“Don’t forget my dad. He coached college for years.”
“Where’d he coach?” I ask. I take another sip of my drink. This is my second, and I’m already feeling the buzzing effects.
“Michigan. And Jack played for USC.”
“So Wisconsin, Michigan, and USC? I don’t know anything about college football but it sounds like big school rivalries.”
He lifts a shoulder. “None are each other’s biggest rival, but I played Jack when I was in college. I played my dad, too.”
“Was that weird?”
He stares at his drink before he glances up to meet my eyes. “Not weird, exactly. But both Jack and I know a lot about my dad’s coaching style, just like he knows a lot about our playing styles, so in some ways there were advantages and in other ways there were disadvantages. You always study your opponent, though, no matter who it is.”
Our dinners are served, and a little food helps the buzzing in my head start to dissipate.
“What time do they get in tomorrow?” I ask.
“They’re all getting in at different times. Kaylee made reservations tomorrow night so we’ll just meet for dinner once everyone’s here,” he says. “I don’t want to tell them about the wedding until the night before. That way no one has time to fuck it up.”
I’m from the kind of family where I’d be waiting in the lobby with hugs for everyone’s arrival. Clearly Luke is not from the same type of family, and not for the first time I can’t help but wonder what, exactly, I’m marrying into.
Does it matter when it’s all for show? I guess time will tell.
CHAPTER 13
I check myself in the mirror one last time. My skin glows from a few days in the sun, and the yellow dress I chose for tonight just enhances that glow. I draw in a deep breath. I’m nervous. I want them to like me even though it doesn’t matter. I’m a people pleaser by nature, though, the kind of person who wants everybody to like her. And from the few snippets I’ve gotten about Luke’s family, I’m not feeling too confident that they’ll even care about me. Except maybe Kaylee.
I emerge from the bathroom and find Luke sitting on the chair in the corner, eyes trained on ESPN as usual. He wears jeans and a button-down shirt and even though he’s totally casual, he looks dressy and delicious. My mouth waters as I drink him in before his eyes flick to me. And when they do...well, it seems like ESPN just doesn’t matter anymore.
Something about the way he looks at me causes my knees to knock together. The heat in his gaze makes my stomach twist with even more nerves. It makes me wish this was all real...that he was feeling the same things I am.
He clicks off the television and stands. “Wow, Ellie,” he says, his eyes sweeping down my form.
“Is that a good wow?” I ask, clearly fishing for a compliment.
“It’s an incredible wow.” He takes another step toward me, and then it’s like he realizes what he’s doing and stops short. He blows out a breath and finally glances away from me and toward the clock. “Should we head down?”
I nod as I try to push away the disappointment. “You ready for all this?” I ask.
He chuckles. “Nope. Not even a little.”
“At least I won’t be alone, then.”
His mouth lifts in a small smile. “You’re not alone.”
I twist my lips and bite the inside of my cheek to keep the tears that seem to spring to my eyes at bay. That’s the problem, isn’t it? I’m very much alone in all this, and the thought is rather devastating.
We head toward the elevator, take it down to the lobby, and just before the doors open, he grabs my hand in his. My heart immediately lifts until my brain catches up. It’s for show. This is what we’ll do now. We’ll play the parts. We’ll put on the act. Meanwhile, my heart will take its beating and hopefully I’ll be able to recover it by the time this whole thing is over.
Why am I doing this to myself?
I didn’t allow that question to form in my mind until today. This moment. Right now.
Why am I putting myself through all this?
What am I getting out of it?
At first, it sounded fun. Marry the hot football guy, my older brother’s best friend. That was back when this was all some big crush. But that big crush has become actual feelings, and he’s been pretty clear that even though there’s definitely something there between us, he’s not going to act on it. This is nothing more than a business arrangement to him. To me, though, it’s more than that.
I clutch his hand in mine as we walk toward the restaurant, and he mutters something under his breath as we get closer.
“What?” I ask.
“Jack’s not here yet,” he says through gritted teeth, and when I glance up at him, a smile is plastered across his lips. I may not know him that well, but I can tell the difference between real and fake. This one’s fake. I force one of my own as we approach a party of three.
“Lu-Lu!” a gorgeous girl says. Long, dark hair cascades in pretty waves down to the middle of her back, and her blue eyes glow as they edge quickly to me. I see an immediate family resemblance between her and Luke.
His hand doesn’t leave mine as his fake smile turns a bit more genuine. “Hey, Kay-Kay,” he says, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as she tosses her arms around his neck. When he pulls back from their hug, he nods toward me. “I want to introduce you to someone,” he says to his sister. “This is my fiancée, Ellie.” He turns to me. “Ellie, Kaylee.”
“So nice to meet you,” I say, letting go of Luke’s hand as I reach over for a hug.
“You too,” she says. “I can’t wait to get to know my future sister-in-law.”
“This is the fiancée?” another female voice asks, and as I pull out of my hug with Kaylee, I’m faced with an older version of Kaylee except with a short, bob haircut and a few lines around her eyes. I smile as my eyes flick to the man who is obviously his dad. The resemblance is strong.
“Mom, Dad, this is Ellie,” Luke says. He doesn’t greet either of them with a hug, which surprises me.
“Carol Dalton,” the older version of Kaylee greets me with her hand extended out to shake. I take hers in mine, and hers is cold.
“Nice to meet you,” I say.
“Tim,” his dad says, and we shake hands, too, which is followed by an awkward beat.
“So this is the girl you’re marrying even though you got another girl pregnant?” Carol asks, her eyes appraising me shrewdly.
I choke on something at her question, and I glance over at my fiancé, who looks livid. “Mother,” he says sharply, his voice a clear warning.
She raises a brow and purses her lips, but she doesn’t say anything.
She doesn’t apologize, but her son does. “I’m sorry, Ellie. That was out of line.”