Page 27 of The Wedding Wrecker

"Lily!" I hissed, grateful James was out of earshot. Though my traitorous mind immediately flashed to exactly how good those hands were.

"What? I'm engaged, not dead. I can root for my big sister to get some satisfaction, can’t I?”

“Use your imagination,” I said.

“Already there,” Lily said with a smirk.

I couldn’t help smiling as I whacked her arm. “Behave,” I laughed softly.

James returned with our drinks just as Richard started telling some story about his college days. I was only half listening,too aware of James settling back beside me, his thigh pressed against mine.

"Cold?" he whispered when I shivered.

"I'm fine."

He pulled me closer anyway, his scent and presence making my head spin. Or maybe that was the alcohol.

The night stretched on, a blur of fake smiles and careful touches and stories we made up about our relationship. James was surprisingly good at weaving truth with fiction—like how he claimed our first kiss was in a wine cellar.

Every time his stories skipped across the truth, I felt the confusing blur of our lie mingling with truth. By the end of the night, I had to keep pinching myself to remember thiswasfake. We were just playing the part—selling the lie.

Finally, people started drifting off to bed. My mother left without saying goodbye, but I caught her watching us again as she went.

"Ready to turn in, sweetheart?" James asked, his voice carrying just enough for others to hear. “We should get you to bed before you get too tired. You know how you snore when you stay up too late.”

What?

I forced a smile, wincing at the amused and confused expressions of the others watching me. “Yep,” I managed in a small voice. “Wouldn’t want to snore tonight! We should get going.”

James wore a shit-eating smile as we walked out of view. As soon as we were alone, I punched him hard on the arm. “Whatwas that for?” I demanded. “And is that even a thing? Snoring because you’re tired?”

“No idea,” he said. “But it was funny. And it’s the kind of weird detail real couples know about each other. I’m just trying to make sure nobody has any reason to doubt how deeply in love we are.”

I thought about arguing more, but I frankly didn’t trust myself to speak anymore. The reality of our sleeping arrangement was starting to sink in.

The elevator ride was silent. So was the walk down the hall. James opened our door.

I stared at the bed like it was a snake. At first, I’d been nervous about this, but the truth hadn’t fully hit. Was Ireallygoing to sleep next to him? What if he tried something?What if I let him?

"Are you alright, Em?” James asked as his hand easily slid across my lower back.

“Rule number one,” I muttered.

James let his hand fall, features dancing with amusement. “Right. I forgot for a moment.”

“And don’t call me pet names when we’re alone.”

“You’d prefer I use your full, proper name, then?” he asked.

“Yes…”

“Alright,Emma…”

I swallowed hard.How the hell did he make my goddamn name sound so erotic?Just hearing it on his mouth made me feel likehe’d slipped the strap of my dress down and pressed his lips to my neck, like?—

I cleared my throat. "I'm going to change."

The bathroom was tiny, because of course it was. I changed into my pajamas—silk shorts and a matching camisole that suddenly felt way too revealing—and tried to give myself a pep talk in the mirror.

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