Page 46 of Faking It with my Small Town Billionaire

I lift my eyebrows. “You’re going to laugh.”

“No, I’m not.”

I give her a knowing look and then shrug. “I wanted to join the circus.”

I can see her struggling to hold her face straight. She’s biting down on her bottom lip, and her eyebrows are high on her head.

“I told you, you’d laugh.”

“I’m not laughing,” she says, seriously struggling to hold back a giggle. “So, what was it about the circus that enticed you?” she splutters. “Was it the big-footed clowns, or the huge elephants? I mean, we all know how much you like your huge elephants.”

At this point, Lily can’t stop herself, and she bursts into laughter. I mean, full-on hysterics, which, in my opinion, is far better than her tears earlier. I don’t want to tell her now that it was the thought of escape. That I wanted to join the circus to run away from my life. It’ll ruin the moment and bring down the mood. I like hearing her laughter, so I make a quip that will keep her entertained.

“Actually, it was the bearded lady. I like a woman with a full face of hair.”

This only makes her laugh more, and a second later, I’m laughing with her. If anyone saw us, they’d think we’d gone mad, but I don’t care. Lily is happy, and that’s all that matters.

Eventually, we go back inside. I don’t want to, and I’m not sure Lily does, either. We’re having far too much fun on our own. But I suppose I have to show my face, given that it is my family home.

We don’t rush back, though, and I take her on a tour of the house first. I show her the library, the family dining room, the drawing rooms—in fact, all the places where we can still be alone. The truth is, I don’t want to share her with anyone. I want her all to myself.

Eventually, we meander back into the ballroom, where the music is still playing, and the sound of conversation and laughter carries on the air.

I turn to her and say, “My grandfather took the privilege before I got a chance to ask, but would you like to dance with your husband?”

“I would love to dance with my husband,” she replies, beaming up at me.

I lead her to the dance floor, and wrapping my arm around her waist, I pull her in close. We sway gently from side to side, and I feel like the proudest man in the room. I’ve seen the glances Lily has gotten from other men, but she’s with me, and it makes me feel happy.

Lily gazes up at me with a contemplative look.

“What is it?” I ask.

“I’m just thinking. This is our first dance as a married couple.”

How ironic that it’s in my family home, of all places.

“Indeed, it is.”

I gaze down at her with a strange realization. It suddenly occurs to me that I don’t want this to be fake anymore. But this isn’t the time or place to say it, so instead, I say, “I hope it won’t be our last.”

18

Lily

I don’t know what happened last night. The tears came from nowhere. But then I realized Orson was right. The pressure of meeting his grandfather and knowing how much was on the line for us both had overwhelmed me.

That, and I was angry at Orson’s family for what they had done to him.

I always have been. Clearly, all that stuff has stuck with me over the years, and Arthur Donovan’s words were the catalyst for my meltdown. But as I currently shower in the ensuite bathroom, I’m not reliving the tears I shed. I’m thinking about that kiss.

Yes, it was our second kiss, but the first one didn’t really count. Last night, there was no goading or pressure; it just happened spontaneously. I’m still trying to figure out why.

You know why.

I think I know why, but I’ve been rationalizing it ever since.

I’ve told myself that it was Orson’s way of comforting me. Or that we’ve both been under so much pressure that there needed to be a release. Or that we just got caught up in the moment. In fact, anything other than the chance that the goalposts have moved.

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