Finn had to take a phone call, and Brian left to grab Faith another glass of wine.
I lean in closer, lowering my voice in case Finn comes back. “We are friends. That’s it.”
“Mm-hmm.” Sarcasm coats her tone.
I don’t know why I was nervous about Finn meeting Faith and Brian. They get along with nearly everyone. While I helped Faith with dinner, Finn and Brian made small talk. It was comfortable, and I wish I hadn’t realized I could’ve had this sooner before getting involved with Gavin. We could’ve had this if we weren’t too terrified of commitment with each other.
Gavin has never met my family.
I’ve never met his … for obvious reasons I now know.
Now, after discovering the real Gavin, I know Faith would’ve probably hated him.
It’s different with Finn—the stakes are higher.
We’re not just friends anymore.
Us playing pretend will create more attachment to each other.
It’s a dangerous game we’re playing—the game of everything we’ve ever wanted.
And no doubt, our feelings will grow as this plays out. I’ll discover what it’s like to be his girlfriend, but eventually, he’ll pull away at the end, and I’ll be left broken. I need to start preparing myself for when that day comes.
“Now, it’s planning time,” Faith says, snapping me out of my thoughts.
I raise a brow. “What do you mean?”
She flips her long hair over her slender shoulder. “Mom and Dad will ask questions—lots of them. They’ll drill you on every detail, so you need to be prepared. You and Finn need to be on the same page—how you met, how you got pregnant—”
“That one is fairly obvious,” I interrupt.
She swats my shoulder. “You know what I mean. They’ll ask Finn how he plans to support you and the baby, if he’s ready to become a father, why he didn’t pop the question before knocking you up—all that personal shit.”
The thought of my father’s interrogation sends a chill up my spine.
“Jesus,” I hiss. “Did they cross-examine Brian like that?”
She shakes her head. “Brian and I were married, though. Dad had already interrogated him when we started dating. Our pregnancy wasn’t a shocker … wasn’t with a man they’d never even heard of.” She levels her eyes on me, her expression turning stern. “Therefore, tie those loose ends before they unravel in front of Mom and Dad.”
“I guess we’ll”—I scrunch up my nose—“tie stuff up.”
I haven’t even planned on when I’m telling my parents, and I’m already stressed.
I have to train myself on being a better liar before I enter that rabbit hole.
“You need a clear, concise plan,” Faith continues. “That starts with you moving in together.”
I picked the perfect time to take a sip of water and spit it out at her words. “Excuse me?”
Her face is serious. “You are dating, having a baby, but not living together? That screams suspicious.”
“I’ll blame it on them not wanting me to move in with a guy before marriage.”
“You’re knocked up. They’ll at least expect that.”
“Easier said than done. I live in a two-bedroom and have a roommate I can’t exactly kick out.”
“Share a room with Finn then.” She throws out the suggestion so casually as if it were sharing ice cream, not a bed.
“You’ve had too much wine.” I snatch her glass and set it out of her reach. “You’re cut off.”
She stands up from her chair enough to confiscate her glass from me. “Think about it, okay?” She chugs it. “It’ll make your story much more believable. Mom and Dad will believe the relationship is serious and that you didn’t get knocked up by some rando.”
She makes a point there.
My parents will immediately think Finn and I aren’t serious if we’re living separately and we haven’t met each other’s parents, therefore not taking our relationship to the next level.
“We’ll lie about living together.” My mouth grows dry at the thought of another lie, and I wish I could yell for Brian to pour me a glass too. “There. Problem solved.”
“You’re racking up the lies there, dear sister.” She shifts in her chair, relaxing against the back. “On another note, while you’re hiding from Mom and Dad, where are you going to crash when Lincoln and Cassidy work at night? You either need to come clean to them soon, sleep here, or be alone.” All playfulness in her tone has vanished. “If they find out Finn works late nights at the bar, they won’t believe you live together. They know you’d never be with someone who couldn’t be with you at night.”
Crap.
She has a point.
A big freaking point.
I thought I was figuring it out, and then she had to throw a wrench in that plan.
“He works at night, and I can’t ask him to quit his job,” I say, my voice strained. I grip the arms of my chair. “Not to mention, I can’t ask my roommates to move out.”
She stares at me intently. “You said before that Lincoln and Cassidy have another place, but they haven’t moved out because they don’t want to bail on you. Can you ask them to stay there until you get stuff figured out? You also need to talk to them about plans for when you have the baby. Will the baby sleep in your room?”
“I hate when you ask all the questions,” I grumble.
“That’s what a big sister is for.” She brushes her hand along my arm. “Look, everything will be okay.”
“All right, sorry about that,” Finn says, strolling toward us and sliding his phone into his pocket.
He arrives at the same time Brian returns with a beer in one hand.
I offer Finn a smile that fails to reach my eyes. “Totally fine.”
Faith locks her fingers together and rests them on the table. “Finn, how do you feel about moving in with Grace?”
Finn stops mid-step.
Chapter Twelve
Finn
There were things I expected from meeting Grace’s sister.
Questions regarding my job.
Asking if I was good at faking being someone’s boyfriend.
What I’d do when the charade was over.
None of those questions came to the surface.
What I got instead was …
“How do you feel about moving in with Grace?”
Faith said it casually as if she asked me if I wanted dessert.
“What?” I stutter, my mouth dropping open.
The idea never occurred to me. I assumed Grace and I were only playing our game around her parents, but moving in together? That makes it more real. It’d be more than faking it. We’d be living it.
All eyes are on me.
Grace’s panicked.
Faith’s in expectation.
Brian’s unsurprised.
“You don’t … you don’t have to do that,” Grace rushes out. “As you can see, my sister loves wine, and it’s made her come up with crazy ideas.”
Faith holds up a finger. “Your first statement is true. The second isn’t crazy.” She waves her hands toward the table. “Take a few breaths. I’m sure my question was a shocker, but now, let’s talk about it.”