Page 11 of The Maverick (WaterFyre Rising #7)
CHAPTER TEN
VANESSA
“Well, hello there!” A woman with a friendly smile beamed at me and Attikus. “Come in.”
She gripped Attikus’s arm, dragging him into the marble foyer.
She smiled at me and reached out her hand. “I’m Ellen, Attikus’s sister. You are . . .?” Her voice trailed off as she looked at our joined hands. Then she whipped a look at Attikus. “Have you been hiding your gorgeous girlfriend from Mom and me?”
I studied the siblings and didn’t see any resemblance. Attikus had dark hair and brown eyes, whereas Ellen had fiery hair and ocean-blue eyes.
“Ellen, this is Nessa Lambert, my fiancée.”
“What?” Her mouth dropped as she looked at me. “Nessa Lambert, the artist?”
I nodded.
“Oh, my God!” She embraced me, then drew back. “I love your work. I have the Dive into Hope painting.”
I’d sold that abstract painting at an auction years ago.
“Thank you. I’m glad you love it. It was one of my favorites.”
Ellen smiled, inhaled a deep breath, pouted,and slapped Attikus on the arm. “What the hell? You have a fiancée and didn’t tell me?”
“I’m telling you now.” He looked at me. “Would you like anything to drink?”
I wasn’t thirsty, but I needed to hold something in my hand. “Water would be great. Thank you.”
Ellen lifted a hand. “Let me get her the water. This is my house.”
“That I paid for,”he retorted calmly.
“Because you love your big sister and your mom so much.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Don’t make me look like a poor host.”
She opened the fridge and took out two bottles of water, gesturing for us to sit at the kitchen table with six chairs. “Let’s chat.”
“We won’t stay long.” Attikus pulled out a chair for me to sit on. “I’m here to pick up dinner.”
“I’ll give you dinner after I introduce myself to my future sister-in-law.” Ellen sat downbeside me. “So, how did you guys meet?”
Attikus knew this was going to happen. I sipped my water and placed it on the table. “We met on a dating app called Heartstrings.”
Attikus flicked me a look, probably wondering how I knew about it.
Vivian told me that her sister, Kaylee, had developed the app while attending Whiz Kidz.
It was a program by her husband, Arrow Holt.
Arrow was one of Attikus’s billionaire friends.
He had taken over the dating app since it was first developed.
“I can’t believe this.” Ellen’s eyes flashed. “If I had known you were actively looking for someone, I would’ve backed off. I’ll tell Mom Gig to cancel the blind date with Mary’s daughter.”
Attikus rolled his eyes. “It’s only a blind date if I didn’t already know Daisy. Now you can stop trying to be the matchmaker.”
I couldn’t imagine him being with someone named Daisy.
When his mother entered the kitchen with groceries, the mystery around Attikus Mount ballooned. Unlike Ellen, who had red hair and fair skin, Gigi possessed olive skin and blonde hair. Even if she had dyed her hair black or red, I couldn’t see any resemblance to Attikus.
She entered, saw us sitting at the kitchen table, lifted a perfect eyebrow, and pinned her gaze on Attikus. “Did I miss something? I didn’t know we were expecting guests today.”
Attikus got out of his seat, walked over to his mother, and took the bags of groceries from her hand, placing them onto the marble kitchen island. “I want you to meet my fiancée, Nessa Lambert.”
The shock on his mother’s face was more prominent than Ellen’s. She almost looked pissed. Maybe she was but didn’t want to show her disappointment in front of me.
Awkwardness set in, and I wanted to leave. Guilt nibbled at me as I tried to imagine doing this to my mother. How would she react? It would devastate her.
Wanting to ease the tension, I rose from my seat, walked over to Gigi, and offered my hand.
“We met online, and I couldn’t stay away from his serious and boring self.” I shrugged. “I guess the alias ‘boring as hell’ intrigued me.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” Gigi took my hand in hers. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say. It’s going to take me some time to adjust.”
“Of course. I understand.”
Attikus looked at me across the counter, but I couldn’t read him. Did he want time alone with his family to inform them of our marriage?
He turned to his sister. “Do you have the spaghetti ready? We have to get going.”
“Already?” Gigi asked. “You can’t just barge in here, inform your mother you’re engaged, and leave .”
He walked over and embraced her. This was a softer side of Attikus I didn’t expect. Not that I knew a lot of billionaires or how they conducted themselves with their families. But I sensed Attikus was close to his family—protective of them.
“I’ll be back to chat with you.” He kissed his mom on the side of her head. “Nessa experienced a horrific event at her grand opening today. I’m sure she’ll need some rest.”
“Oh, I heard about that on the news,” Ellen said as she opened the refrigerator door and pulled out a container.
“What happened?” Gigi looked at me.
“Someone sent her a severed finger to the grand opening,” Attikus replied.
“What?” Concern and disdain flashed over her face. “Who would do something like that? What did the police say?”
“They’re looking into it. Maybe it’s from a competitor gallery. Or another artist.” I shrugged. “People can be cruel.”
“Here you go. I gave you an extra container for Nessa.” Ellen handed him a bag and looked at me. “Come back so we can get to know each other. Do you need help with wedding planning?”
I looked at Attikus. “We haven’t thought about that yet.”
I couldn’t crush his sister’s heart. We’d have to ease her and his mom into our eloping plan. This entire scenario was becoming more complicated.
Gigi and Ellen walked us to the door.
“Go home and rest.” Gigi hugged me. “We’ll make a trip to your gallery soon. Welcome to the family.”
“Thank you. I look forward to getting to know you.”
My chest constricted as guilt rose in me. These people seemed so genuine, and I didn’t know how they’d react when Attikus and I had to part ways.
Think about that later.
Inside the car, Attikus said, “You should move in with me.”
“What?”
He turned to me. “What kind of married couple lives separately?”
I blew out a breath. “I’ll move a few things to your place to make it believable. But I’m keeping my apartment so I can return to it after six months.”
“I’ll pick youup in a few days.” He pulled into a parking spot in front of my apartment and glanced around. It was in a quiet neighborhood near downtown Providence. The apartment came with a studio space where I could paint my oversized canvases.
“You still want to go through with this?” I asked.
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Your family seems . . . disturbed by this announcement.”
“They’ve been more disturbed.” He looked me in the eye. “I think you’re more unsettled about this situation than I am.”
“And that disturbs me.”
The corner of his lips tilted. “I’m used to adapting to abrupt changes. You’re an artist. Go with the flow.”
Easier said than done, smart ass.
I grabbed my purse, getting ready to leave.
“Nice addition about Heartstrings. Have you tried the app?”
“No,” I lied and didn’t care if he knew it. “We need to make this relationship believable. Online dating is how people meet these days. Thanks for the ride home.”
When I got into my apartment on the fourth floor, I rushed to the window and glanced down. Attikus was still parked on the street.
“What is he doing?”
After ten minutes, he left. I didn’t even know why I was watching him.
Scrubbing a hand down my face, I dropped onto my couch and released a stressful sigh.
I wanted to scream, cry, and curl into a ball that would roll me somewhere away from this reality.
I wanted time to stop so I could catch up with life.
Needing comfort, I reached for a throw pillow and placed it in front of me. It became a barrier between me and the new life I’d created for myself.
You’re doing the right thing. M? will be out of prison soon .
I desperately needed a hot shower to clear my head so I could research Attikus. I had to know everything I could about my future husband. Then I had to make sure I wrote down all the things I wanted from the marriage. Six months would give me enough time to get rid of Emmanuel.