Page 12 of Marrying My Brother's Best Friend

His curious eyes remain level on me as he awaits my reply.

“She was pretty shocked,” I reveal with a smile. “But she’s taking it well.”

“That’s good to know,” he says, tapping his fingers on the table while smiling. “So, why do you have that look on your face?”

“What look?”

“The kind that says you’re guilty of something? I’ve known you a long time, Hawkins. I know what you look like when you’ve done something stupid. So tell me, did you do something stupid?”

I lift a hand to rub the back of my neck as he eyes me suspiciously with a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. Jace will definitely not take this in good stride. But he needs to know.

“I need Gracie’s help, Jace, and I think you should know about it.”

Jace leans back on his chair, lifting his shoulders in a carefree shrug. “What do you need Gracie for?”

It takes a second, but I summon the courage to tell my friend the truth when he looks up at me. “I asked her to marry me,” I announce, then hold my breath and wait for Jace’s reaction.

“You did what?” he rages as he gets on his feet. His anger is evident on his face as his chin hardens and his brows tug closely together.

“I need her to be my wife, Jace, but only until this media frenzy blows over.”

As expected, Jace loses his cool at that moment and is about to aim his fist at me when Gracie yells from the corner of the café in a shrill voice. “Stop it!”

She gets everyone’s attention with ease, and we both turn around to look at her. Gracie is livid, her eyes round into wide saucers, her full lips poised into a tight line as she adds through clenched teeth. “I need to speak to both of you right now!”

Chapter 7

Gracie

They both turn to me, their eyes wide with the shocked look etched into their faces. My chest heaves with the force of my breathing, and I nearly forget to breathe when Trevor’s eyes narrow down on mine.

“You!” I continue, sucking in a deep breath to keep my chest from caving. I point at Trevor and don’t bother hiding the grimace on my face. “You know there’s no way I’m getting married to you,” I say to him, then tilt my head to one side. “Keep your proposal.” I face Jace next and wag a finger at him. “Come with me.”

Jace follows me into Espresso Books' inner office. He slams the door after him, then levels me with his furious look.

“What are you thinking, Gracie?” Jace questions as he closes the distance between us in quick strides. “You know Trevor. He’s not the kind to ever take anything seriously. I love him, but we both know he’s crazy sometimes, and a fake marriage with him will only end in disaster for you. So what are you thinking?”

My brother’s brows furrow together in worry as he questions me. I can’t think of the best way to explain to him that I’m not considering Trevor’s proposal, because the truth is that I am.

Trevor might be a lot of things, but the one thing I know is that he’s not a total jerk. Unlike the sides of him everyone else knows, I know he has a good heart, and he hides behind his hard exterior to protect himself.

He’s a jerk sometimes though, I think, remembering one time in high school when he tricked me into jumping into an icy pool after lying it was a warm one. I grit my teeth as the memory of his mean prank slashes through my mind.

Trevor and I have had our moments. Both sweet and annoying. Most times I choose to remember the annoying because that way I can keep my heart from bursting in two each time he’s near.

“Gracie…” Jace calls insistently and pulls me out of the path my thoughts travel down.

“I know, I know,” I chant. “I’m not accepting his proposal, Jace. It’s a stupid one,” I say with a laugh. “I’d be crazy to think I can fool anyone into believing Trevor is in love with me. The man’s a known playboy all over the country. He has the attention of like a million women all at once, and every week, there’s a new scandal of him in the papers with some new model or female sports player. He’s not going to fool anyone? Not even the blind.”

My eyes flicker over to the doorway as I speak, and I spot Trevor standing there, his eyes wide as he stares at me and Jace. He has a broken expression that falls over his face as his hand falls from the doorknob.

“Why, because I’m damaged goods?” Trevor asks in a shaky voice that instantly makes my heart snag with the whiplash of guilt.

“Trevor,” Jace and I chorus, moving towards the door at the same time.

“You believe those articles about me? You really think the media cares about the truth when they write those articles? You really think it’d be so terrible to convince anyone that I’m a good guy simply because I don’t believe in the concept of love and fairytale romances?”

Jace shrugs a little and I shove my elbow into his side to keep him from saying anything stupid.

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