Page 39 of Close to My Heart

Daphne lowered her voice. “Dad’s wondering if they’re staying.”

Fiona’s gaze swung from the celebration to Daphne. “What are you talking about?”

“I thought you knew. Ryder put in for a transfer at work and got it.”

Fiona’s voice raised. “A transfer to where? Here?”

Daphne met Fiona’s hard gaze. “The Baltimore office. Apparently, he has to supervise a smaller office before he can get a promotion.”

Fiona shifted in the chair to face Daphne. “What about Stacy? I thought she wanted to live close to her family in Virginia.”

“I don’t know. I wouldn’t be surprised if she stays down there and expects him to commute back and forth.”

Fiona grimaced. “She’s such a bitch. I shouldn’t say that, but?—”

“It feels like she keeps us from seeing Ryder and Faith. I don’t know if that’s what’s really going on. But I can’t help but think this might be the beginning of the end for them.”

Fiona tipped her head back. “One can only hope. I’d love to have Ryder and Faith around more often.”

“What if Stacy insists on keeping Faith in Virginia?”

Fiona frowned. “That’s a bad situation for everyone.”

At least my fake engagement to Wes wasn’t the only gossip.

Daphne nudged me with her elbow. “Tell us more about this fake marriage. Will you be sharing a bed?”

Fiona grinned and winked. “You have to consummate the marriage to make it official. I’ve read enough romantic comedies to understand how it works.”

My face heated. “We’re friends. It’s not like that.”

“Friends. Right. I fake marry all my friends,” Daphne mocked, and Fiona laughed.

When Fiona recovered, she said, “It’s not a bad idea. My relationship started out as a friendship. We talked about everything, what was going on with our families, school, and friends.”

That’s how it felt for me and Wes. We even talked about bad dates minus the intimate details. It would have been weird talking about those details with Wes, which should have been my first sign that he wasn’t just a friend. But I couldn’t tell his sisters any of what I was feeling. I had to pretend it was fake in front of Wes’s family and real in front of mine. This situation wasn’t going to mess with my head. “I wish I didn’t need Wes to do this. But he’s the best option. I trust him. I feel safe with him.”

“Mmm,” Daphne said.

“This should be interesting to watch. Are we going to get to plan a wedding?” Fiona asked.

“I was thinking of something at the estate. Probably inside. There’s a room behind the house that’s all windows. We could hold the ceremony and the reception there.”

“Do you already have a planner? We just planned our own weddings and would love to do one that wasn’t ours.”

“My mom wanted to hire someone, but I thought I could do it myself.”

Fiona inclined her head. “Trust me. You’re going to need help.”

“Sure. Why not?” I’d never had sisters, and it would be nice to have someone help that wasn’t family. “The only problem is that you’re going to have to deal with my mother.”

Fiona waved her hand. “I used to deal with hotel customers and administration. I can handle your mother.”

I laughed. “That’s good because I haven’t done the best job of it.”

“Weren’t you dating the guys she put in front of you?” Fiona asked.

“She was vetting them for me. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But the guys were all the same. They went to the same schools, have trust funds, and work at their daddy’s businesses. No thanks.”

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