Page 6 of A Dark Mafia Christmas

She takes my hand and leads me back inside, and I wish that it had been anyone else but Mary Chrysler I was dealing with rightnow. Before I can get her into an elevator, she drags me in the direction of the party, the floor thumping with the footsteps of people dancing along to ‘Step into Christmas’.

“Mary, we’re leaving.” I stand my ground.

“Oh no.” She shakes her head. “You don’t get to propose to me, Emmett O’Hara, and then whisk me away without celebrating the good news.”

“Mary!” I grip her hand tightly as she reaches the open doorway.

“Smile, Emmett. They’re still watching, remember?”

She disappears through the doorway, and I have no choice but to follow her. Damage limitation. The fewer people who know about the fake proposal the better—less questions to deal with in the New Year when I announce that I’m single again.

I catch Dave’s eye on my way in and give a brief shake of my head. No one else notices. Mary is heading towards the dance floor, and my stomach sinks when I realize that she is going to dance.

I dash after her, wrap my arms around her from behind, and gesture to the DJ to slow it down a bit. A ripple of disappointment follows when Joni Mitchell’s voice fills the room. “It’s coming on Christmas, they’re cutting down trees…” I turn Mary around, slide one arm around her waist, and start moving slowly.

I don’t dance. Much to my mom’s chagrin, I’ve never had the natural rhythm of the Irish, and this is all Mary’s going to get. One slow dance, and then we’re leaving.

“Don’t you think it will look odd if we leave without telling anyone that we’re going to be married?” Mary’s hushed voicepenetrates my thoughts, jerks me away from the sensation of her body so close to mine.

“I’m a very private person.”

“Emmett!” Sonia is on the dance floor too in the arms of the Head of HR. “I thought you’d gone home without saying goodbye.” Her gaze slides across to Mary, faint lines appearing between her eyebrows and quickly disappearing, and I pray that Mary will keep her mouth shut.

“We’re getting married.” Mary flashes the ring in front of Sonia’s face.

I obviously didn’t pray hard enough.

“Married?” Sonia stops dancing and collides with her partner’s chest. She extricates herself from his arms distractedly, her eyes fixated on the ring. “Who to?”

Mary laughs, the kind of laugh that could be infectious when you’re not trying to stay alive. “Emmett. He proposed to me on the roof. Isn’t it exciting?”

Sonia licks her lips, trying to process the news, probably wishing she hadn’t drunk the last cocktail someone offered her. Finally, she gathers her senses enough to say, “Yes. Oh, my goodness. That is exciting. Emmett, you kept this quiet.”

“Spur of the moment.” I shrug. “When you know, you know.”

“Come here.” She pulls me into a hug, rubbing my back like she’s trying to keep me warm. Then it’s Mary’s turn. “I don’t even know your name.”

“Mary.”

“Mary.” Sonia holds her hand and studies the diamond. The crease lines between her eyebrows are back. She’s no doubt already on Mary’s side, thinking what a cheapskate her boss has turned out to be. “Congratulations.”

“Thank you. I literally had no idea that tonight would be the night.” Mary is enjoying her role a little too much for my liking.

“I think champagne is in order.” I pull her away from Sonia and I don’t let her go until we reach the bar. “What are you doing?”

“I’m keeping up the pretense like you told me to. What are you doing?”

More hair has escaped from her ponytail, and I get a glimpse of how she would look in bed with her hair all messed up. My cock immediately twitches at the mental image, and I take a deep breath.

“Look, I just want to get you home safely, then we say goodbye, go our separate ways, and enjoy the holidays knowing that we’re still in one piece. I don’t want anyone else involved.”

The smile fades and her eyes grow large with tears. “Are you… Are you calling the wedding off, Emmett? We only just got engaged.”

The girl can act, I’ll give her that. Maybe she missed her calling, working in IT or whichever department it is that she sits in.

“We’re leaving.”

“I’m not ready to leave. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never been engaged before, and I want to enjoy it while I can.”

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