Page 83 of Fake Dating Mr. Prince

I shrugged. “I’m used to it. It barely even registers now.”

“I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to block them out like that. You kissing me helped.”

“Oh, did it?” I cupped her face in my hands. “Like this?”

Her eyes fluttered shut as I moved in closer. My lips pressed hard against hers, seeking entry. Ashlyn’s lips parted, and she tilted her head to give me better access. I was hungry for her kiss. Every part of me wanted to wipe the memory of Simone completely away and replace it with Ashlyn.

“Oh, break it up, you two.” My mother’s playful voice barely resonated.

Ashlyn jerked her mouth from mine. “Oh, Bethany, Dave. Hi. I ... we ...”

My mother waved one hand while she patted Dad’s arm and laughed. “Oh darling, we had our share of kisses in public places.”

“We sure did,” Dad answered and kissed Mom’s cheek.

“Now listen, Ashlyn, I hate to pull you away from Dean so soon, but there are some people you just have to meet.” She grabbed Ashlyn’s arm and maneuvered her away from me. Ashlyn looked like a deer caught in headlights. Before I could rescue her, they were swallowed up in the crowd.

Dad patted my back. “Oh, let her go. Your mom will take good care of her.”

“Ashlyn’s not used to events like this.”

“She’ll be all right.”

I hoped he was correct in his assumption. I’d hate it if Ashlyn thought I’d abandoned her.

“I heard from Jules D’Amboise today.”

I stared at my dad. My mouth grew dry, and sweat slicked my palms. I had a lot riding on one man’s opinion of me.

“He’d seen the photo of you and Ashlyn in the paper. He’s happy to see you settling down.”

My lips curled up into a smile. It was working. I couldn’t wait to tell Ashlyn. “What did you say to him?”

“That my son has impeccable taste, and you were ready to take over. That he was a fool if he decided not to sell to us.”

My dad was bold. He needed to be to build this empire. “From that grin, I’m guessing you were happy with his response?”

“He’s selling to us.” His eyes gleamed.

“Are you serious?” I couldn’t stop a similar smile from covering my face.

“You know I don’t joke about business.” A pleased, self-satisfied laugh fell from my father’s lips. “I’m already reaching out to their current employees to set up the executive team there. I’m very impressed with their Senior Vice-President, Damien Dupont.

I hugged my dad. This was important to him. Just as important as it was to me. He’d been talking about expanding into Paris’s market but hadn’t taken the leap, not sure how easy it would be to establish our company. Buying into one that was already an institution, one that brides sought out, made that transition much more accessible.

The night was looking up. Once we got the board on the same page as Jules D’Amboise, all of my dreams would come true, and I owed it all to Ashlyn.