Page 34 of The Fiance Dilemma

CHAPTER EIGHT

“You look incredible.”

We did.

We also looked horny. Like two people who had incredible chemistry and who were ready to jump each other’s bones, simply put. Which was a little funny, in a way. Under normal circumstances I would have totally framed that picture and had it displayed somewhere in the house. But these weren’t normal circumstances, and it was hard to laugh at how my sister’s best friend had put that aroused look on my face when I felt so horrible for actively lying to her. Face-to-face. Even if through my phone.

“You don’t think so?” Adalyn asked. “Is that why you’re frowning? Or is it because the picture is on a page with two million followers?”

I forced my eyebrows to chill. “Well, seeing our picture on Page Nine makes me a little woozy. But it’s fine.” That wasn’t a lie. I wasn’t all that rattled by the photo. It was a great photo, even though it was a hoax. “I just… wish I’d thought out my outfit better, I guess.Am I showing too much cleavage? Grandpa Moe said I should have worn a scarf.”

“He’s sweet,” she answered with a chuckle that made her dark eyes spark with amusement. “But absolutely not. Your outfit is perfect and you are glowing. What did Matthew think? I’m sure he had plenty to say about that dress. Or the fence, really.”

Once more, I felt that gut instinct to switch topics. Deflect. And once again, I suppressed it. A week had passed since the game, and Adalyn and Cameron finding out. We’d talked to them separately, Matthew going first like he insisted. So this… feeling of betrayal would surely go away. I still believed it was best for Adalyn and Cameron not to know the truth. Adalyn would go bananas on the whole thing if she knew, and she’d probably try to become my personal bodyguard. Less involvement meant less stuff shoved on their plates. Her plate. Bobbi had been sent to deal with me, anyway. Not Adalyn. She’d had enough. Plus, neither Adalyn nor Cameron questioned my supposed relationship with Matthew anyway. I guessed that was based on my track record with relatively quick engagements and my tendency to get carried away by the moment.

“He… said we look great,” I lied. Lies, lies, lies. He hadn’t. Matthew hadn’t said anything about the picture. Nothing specific when Bobbi shared it with us. And nothing when I posted it to my socials. I didn’t even know for sure if he’d seen Page Nine using it too.

Adalyn’s brows arched for a moment. Then she sighed. “You can tell me what he really said. Even if it’ll gross me out, because you’re my sister and he’s… very unfiltered and inappropriate.”

I racked my head for a Matthew thing to say but came up empty.

Adalyn shook her head. “Is this why you thought you had to keep your relationship a secret? These kind of things? I won’t react in a weird way. We can talk about… private stuff.” She made a face. “Like sex, or… dirty talk.”

“Can we?” I asked her, genuinely surprised.

“Maybe not,” she said. “Not yet? Ugh, I don’t know.”

We both laughed, even if a little awkwardly.

“You…” she trailed off for an instant. “You make an incredible couple. And I love you both. I think I’ve already said that, but I don’t know how else I can reassure you that I’m okay with you two being together.” Her expression sobered and it was so hard to keep my arm up, holding the phone in place, when I felt there was abutcoming. “But I’m still disappointed that you felt the need to hide it. It’s not just directed at you or Matthew. I—” She sighed, and the sound was so sad it broke my heart a little more. “I’m sorry, I know we’ve gone through this already. It’s the stress of everything. Life has been a lot lately. Building the youth club from the ground up hasn’t been easy, and I think I need a vacation.”

That felt like a punch to the gut. All of it. Several punches I deserved. “I’m so sorry, Adalyn. It was never my—our—intention to hurt you. Or Cam. Do you believe me when I say that all I did and do is with the best of intentions? So you wouldn’t worry about unnecessary stuff?”

“Of course,” she said quickly. “I know that. And Cameron knows too. Even if he still gave Matthew the third degree.”

“He did?”I croaked. “When?”

“Matthew drove down here and came by the club the other day. He was dying to see the facilities after hearing us going on about it for months. We showed him around and before I knew what was happening, Cam had him sitting down in one of the meeting rooms.” She huffed out a laugh. “He got really graphic about how well he knew every muscle and bone in a body and all the ways he could inflict damage on them.” A snort left her. “With only a boot. Or a ball.He wouldn’t even need to get his hands dirty.”More laughter followed. “Wait. Matthew didn’t tell you?”

I blinked at the screen for a second before groaning, “Oh God. No. He didn’t, and now I feel… horrible. Awful.”

“Don’t,” Adalyn reassured me. “I’m sure Matthew was trying to spare you feeling bad. And honestly? I think he secretly enjoyed it. He kept trying not to smile, and Cam kept trying not to be aggravated by that. It was cute.”

I didn’t think it was. I also didn’t understand how Matthew hadn’t said a word. “Is Cam… angry at me?”

Her head tilted, shoulder-length dark waves moving with the gesture. “Cam’s just protective of you. I think because he was there when you were engaged to Ricky and because he knows enough of the rest. You’re also the reason he moved to Green Oak, and therefore, the reason why we met. So I think you’ll just have to deal with the fact he’s not going to back down. Once he makes up his mind, he’s immovable. And in this case, that’s promising retribution if you’re hurt.”

“Right,” I said, feeling my throat work around a lump. “I’m so…” Lucky to have them. So scared to lose them. So determined to spare them any unnecessary hardships. “Flattered. And I think I deserve the third degree too.”

“Are you going to break his heart?” Adalyn asked.

The question caught me so off guard I stumbled. “No.” Because no hearts were on the line. Only an engagement that wasn’t meant to last.

“Okay.”

Okay. That was it? “I’m…”

“You’re overwhelmed,” Adalyn finished for me. “And I get it. The attention is a lot. If anyone gets it, it’s me, I swear. I’ve been a meme in the past. And Cam has been in the spotlight enough time to get it too. That’s why we’re offering our support, from any distance you’re comfortable with, and in any way we can.” I frowned at her choice of words, but she was quick to add, “I just hope this doesn’t ruin the excitement of the engagement?”

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