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CHAPTER FOURTEEN

HARLOW

“ O kay, now that we are alone, tell me what the hell is going on with you two.” Molly said, closing the bathroom door and sliding the lock in place.

I spun around and grabbed one of the paper towels from the dispenser. “You already what’s going on. Brooks and I are engaged.”

She grinned. “I thought you were ‘fake’ engaged.”

I rolled my eyes. “Nothing has changed between us. It’s all for show.”

She stepped up next to me and propped her hip against the sink. “So, are you saying that you feel absolutely nothing for him?”

I sighed, knowing I wouldn’t get out of this conversation without giving her something.

“My feelings for Brooks are complicated. You know that.”

You would think, after all these years, I would be over him and that he would somehow manage to forgive me. But I’ve come to the conclusion that there was too much anger and resentment on his end.

She stared at my reflection in the mirror. “I think it’s kind of romantic that he stood up to your dad for you.”

I scoffed. “He did it because he can’t help himself.”

Her eyes softened. “No. He did it because he still cares about you.”

I wish she would stop putting ideas in my head. The last thing I needed was to get my hopes up.

“It doesn’t mean anything.”

She crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side, like I was in some type of denial. “Come on, Harlow. You’re not stupid. When is the last time someone went to bat for you like he did?”

“He has his own reasons for doing this.”

Her eyebrows shot up. “I don’t care what other reasons he has. He could have helped you find a rental. He could have told you to call someone else, but he didn’t. Why do you think that is?”

“I don’t know. Maybe he felt pressured, or sorry for me because I had nowhere else to go,” I said, even though my logic was weak.

Molly scoffed. “Brooks Dawson doesn’t do anything he doesn’t want to do. You know that.”

She was impossible. Even if there was some truth to her words, it wouldn’t change anything.

“Molly, I’m trying to be realistic about this. You and I both know I never stopped loving him. If I could go back in time and fix my mistakes, I would in a heartbeat, but he doesn’t love me like that anymore.”

“Okay, fine, believe whatever you want to believe. But I can assure you on everything I own that you are wrong.”

I stepped toward the door, thankful that she wasn’t going to push any further. “Can we get back out there now before your husband comes looking for us? I’m already on his bad side.”

She looped her arm through mine. “I think he’s softening up toward you.”

I laughed and gave her a side-eye. “Now, who is the one who is full of shit?”

I swung the bathroom door open as Molly fell into step beside me. We pushed our way through the crowd just as “Man I Feel Like a Woman” by Shania Twain started playing.

Molly nudged me with her elbow. “I love this song. Want to dance?”

I glanced down at the dress that I spent all day fussing over. When I picked it out, my only thought was getting Brooks to notice me. Dancing had never crossed my mind. Now, I wish I had worn something longer.

“Sure.”

The dance floor was small, so there wasn’t a lot of room to move around, but everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Molly and I found a spot and allowed our hips to move to the beat of the music.

I closed my eyes for a second, feeling the hem of my dress ride up my leg.

I had to keep fighting the urge to tug it down.

There was a guy off to the side who caught my eye. He raised his glass and smiled, but I pulled my gaze away, not wanting to give him the wrong idea.

“It looks like you have an admirer.” Molly grinned. I should have known she would pick up on it. She didn’t miss a thing.

“He’s just being friendly,” I said, looking over her shoulder. To my horror, the guy started walking my way. He had a confident swagger as he cut through the crowd. He was cute, but I wasn’t interested. My life already had enough drama.

“Hello, there,” he said, his voice loud enough to carry over the music. “Mind if I join you?”

Before I could answer, Molly cut in. “She doesn’t mind at all. I actually need to check in with my husband. Do you think you could keep her company for a minute?”

The man looked happy to be of service. “Of course.”

I shot her a glare, but she just winked back at me as she walked away. I was going to kill her.

This woman was not the sweet, shy Molly I grew up with. This new version of her was the exact opposite of how she used to be. Since she’s been with Finn, she’s changed. She was more confident and assertive, more like I used to be.

“I’m Danny.” He held his hand out, leaving me no choice but to take it.

“Harlow.” I glanced over at the table, where I could feel Brooks watching me. His jaw clenched, and his eyes narrowed into slits.

“Can I buy you a drink?” Danny asked, completely clueless about my lack of interest.

“I’m fine, thank you, though.”

He started to inch closer, so I took that as my cue to back away. “It was nice meeting you, but I should get back to my table.”

“Why are you leaving so soon? You got somebody waiting for you?”

“As a matter of fact, she does, Danny,” said the deep voice from behind me.

I turned to see Brooks standing there. His expression remained calm, but his eyes practically dared the man to take one step closer.

Danny hesitated, glancing between the two of us. He raised his hand in mock surrender. “Sorry, boss. I didn’t know she was with you.”

Brooks swung a hand along my waist, pulling me against his chest. “Danny, I’d like you to meet my fiancée, Harlow.”

He looked at my left finger and started to squirm. “I had no idea, boss. Congratulations.” He started backing away like he couldn’t get out of here fast enough. “Sorry for the misunderstanding.”

Brooks lifted my hand and ran his thumb over my ring. “Did you miss this rock on her finger?”

The poor guy looked one second away from wetting himself.

“Yeah, it’s pretty dark in here.” He looked around as if searching for an excuse to leave.

“Ahh, that explains it.”

Danny swallowed nervously. “Congrats on the engagement. I need to go make a call.”

He gave us a slight nod and slinked away into the crowd.

I spun around when he disappeared. “You didn’t need to scare him off. I was handling it.”

He crossed his arms. “It didn’t look like it to me.”

“He was just being friendly.”

His eyes squinted under the low lighting. “He can go be friendly somewhere else.”

Every inch of him was coiled tight.

I stared at him. “Are you jealous?”

“No,” he said way too quickly. His jaw tightened, and I couldn’t help but grin.

I trailed my fingers up his shirt, teasing the edge of his collar. “You are.”

He frowned at my hand, and somehow that made me feel less annoyed.

“Harlow, don’t.”

“Don’t what?” I teased, stepping closer. My conversation with Molly now played on repeat in my brain. Maybe she was on to something, or maybe it was the vodka.

“Don’t get any ideas in your head.” His eyes flicked to my mouth.

For a guy who was pretending not to care, he sure was doing a terrible job at convincing me he didn’t feel anything.

I tilted my face up to his. “You really think I don’t see how your jaw clenches every time another man looks at me?”

He didn’t answer me right away, but with the way his gaze burned into mine, I knew I had my answer. He didn’t need to say anything; the confirmation was written all over his face.

He shook his head. “You’re being ridiculous.”

“No, you are.” I pushed on his chest. Not hard, but enough for him to get the point. If he wanted to glower like a caveman, he could at least do it from across the room. “This is fake, remember? You don’t get to act like the jealous boyfriend.”

He hauled me in by the wrist. “Fiancé.”

“Fake Fiancé,” I corrected. He’s been sending me mixed signals all night. I was ready to lose my mind.

He closed the space between us and towered over me. “I figured you needed a reminder because you didn’t seem to mind the attention when he was flirting with you.”

He was the one who kept reminding me that this was only pretend. He was the one who asked me to come out tonight, and now he had the audacity to act jealous because some random stranger talked to me.

I rested my hand on his chest. “What does it matter? This is all for show, remember?”

The song changed to something slower. People started to walk off, but Brooks didn’t move. His hand slid along my back, anchoring me to him. “Just because this is fake doesn’t mean you can go messing around when you are supposed to be mine.”

“Wait… what?” I tilted my head up to meet his gaze. “I barely said two words to the guy. I was about to leave when you came storming over, acting like a guard dog.”

He gripped my waist. “You were going to let him touch you.”

I yanked my wrist free. “I most certainly wasn’t.”

I barely said a word to the guy.

His jaw ticked. “Looked like it to me.”

A short, humorous laugh escaped me. Not because it was funny, but because this entire situation was absurd. “I agreed to this arrangement, but I must have missed the part where you try to dictate what I do and who I talk to.”

“That’s not what I am doing.”

“Then what are you doing?”

He exhaled sharply and rubbed a hand over his jaw. I followed his gaze, and sure enough, our friends and his brothers were watching. They weren’t even trying to pretend that they weren’t. They were outright staring and smiling.

“Let them think we just had our first lovers’ quarrel.”

I tilted my head up slightly, catching the sharp line of his jaw. “That wasn’t really our first, though, was it?”

He glided his hand up to my face and leaned in. “Probably won’t be our last, either.” Then his lips were on mine.

This was such an alpha move by him. I should have resisted. Instead, I opened wider and melted into him. We were supposed to put on a show and play our parts, but this felt like something else.

His thumb brushed my cheek, like it had every right to be there. My fingers gripped the front of his shirt as if it was the only way for me to stay upright. I kissed him back like I needed this connection as much as he did.

Brooks moved his hands into my hair and tilted my head. He was going to take what he wanted, and everyone was going to watch. There would be no more questions after this about who I belonged to.

His soft lips were eager as they moved across my jaw and down my neck. I wound my arms along his shoulders and pressed my body against his.

This was the type of kiss that thundered in your ears and turned you inside out.

He let out a low chuckle. “You were always sensitive there,” he said, sinking his teeth into my bottom lip.

This was not an act. I don’t care what he said. This moment wasn’t about anything other than us. But I couldn’t push him to admit that because then he would stop kissing me, and that was the very last thing I wanted.

Someone bumped into us from behind, startling us both. Our lips parted, yet his hand remained in my hair.My heart was in my throat as he stared back at me. “Just so we are clear, that was just for show.”

He was such a liar.No matter how convincing he tried to sound, his face betrayed him. But he would rather swallow broken glass than admit how he truly felt.

“Are you sure about that?”

His gaze darted to my mouth. Yeah, that gave me all the confirmation I needed.

As if catching himself, he stepped back. “Harlow, don’t go looking for trouble. You know what that kiss was about.”

I swallowed hard. He was retreating. Pretending that the moment meant nothing. I could still taste him on my lips. Feel the warmth of his hands on my skin. Did he seriously plan to pretend the kiss meant nothing?

I forced my expression into something neutral. If he wanted to pretend, I’d let him.

“Well, then I guess the show is over.” I turned and slipped through the crowd.

My chest tightened with every step I took away from him. The music grew louder. People were laughing and dancing without a care in the world. It felt like my heart had been cracked wide open.

It seemed foolish to hope, to think that there might still be something left between us after all this time. Maybe that was the case, but he had no intention of acting on it.

Knowing that didn’t make it hurt any less, either.