Page 28 of Tangled Vows

“Time’s up,” he announced. “How was it, guys?” he asked, striding into the room, oblivious to the turmoil in the air.

“It was great,” Shayla replied, offering a forced smile that didn’t reach her red-rimmed eyes.

“Nope. Huh uh. Absolutely freaking not.”The pitch of my sister’s frantic voice rose with each word. “Are you crazy?” she shrieked, and I could picture her pacing, running a frustrated hand down her face.

“This gives us a chance to control the narrative. It will distract everyone from all the speculation that nobody can prove.”

“I told you to fake date her, notmarryher! Marriage is sacred, E, not to mention a whole lot harder to get out of than dating.”

“I know,” I offered placatingly.

“Plus, it’s going to be a lot harder to sell. No one is going to believe you two are in love when you’ve never even been seen together.”

“Can we spin it like we met earlier and she was the reason I came to Richmond?” I asked hopefully.

“That won’t work. Too many holes. Besides, to make it believable, we need to stick as close to the truth as possible.”

“Okay.” I blew out a breath, placing my hands on my hips as I thought over the possibilities. “Some of my teammates already suspect there’s something going on.”

“That doesn’t surprise me,” she grumbled. She’d suspected it too after seeing us interact. “Look, I think this is a bad idea. Marriage is a big deal. And if the press even suspects this is a publicity stunt, they’ll start looking for reasons why, and if they uncover the truth, your career and all those big fancy endorsements will go bye, bye.”

“I know,” I said, rubbing a frustrated hand over my face.

“You would have to beveryconvincing.”

“That won’t be a problem,” I assured her. I already could barely keep my hands off Shayla. If we had to kiss and hold hands in public, I wouldn’t have to fake it. I already wanted to do those things with her.

Plus a whole lot more.

Roni released an exasperated sigh. “You’re going to do this with or without my stamp of approval, aren’t you?”

“Probably.”

“Have you even talked to her about this? She may tell you to go to Hell.”

I’d considered that. But once she realized this was her best chance at getting what she wanted, it wouldn’t be hard to convince her to go along with it.

“Let me worry about that. I can handle Shayla.”

22

SHAYLA

The last thing I expected to see first thing Monday morning was Easton Walker waiting outside my office. He was fidgeting like he was nervous, his hand running through his hair before he gripped the back of his neck. At the sound of my approach, he whipped around, and his widened gaze softened as he took me in, as though he expected to see someone else. I quirked a brow, eyeing him speculatively.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, stopping outside my door.

“I, uh, wanted to check on you,” he replied, and I winced. I wasn’t proud of the little breakdown I’d had in front of him the other night. It wasn’t one of my finer moments, and I hoped we could simply forget about it and move on. But, of course, he couldn’t grant me the courtesy of pretending it hadn’t happened.

“I’m fine,” I declared, sticking my key into the lock, my tone more harsh than I’d intended. I opened the door and pushed inside my office. Not taking the hint, he followed me inside and gently shut the door behind him. I released a frustrated breath and crossed my arms. Why was he still here?

“I also wanted to run something by you,” he continued, taking a tentative step toward me. “I think I might have a solution to your…” he glanced away and cleared his throat as he shifted on his feet awkwardly, “problem.” He looked at me pointedly then, and I realized what he was referring to. I tried to hide my surprise, but my eyes widened and my face flushed with embarrassment.

“I don’t need your money, Mr. Walker,” I hissed, my spine straightening as my defenses went up.

“Please, call me Easton,” he said, his voice and eyes softening. It was startling and made my stomach do a little somersault. I steeled myself against his charms as he continued. “And that's not what I’m proposing.”

“Oh?” I asked, unable to hide my intrigue. “Then whatareyou proposing?” I asked. A sly grin tipped up one side of his lips, and he stepped closer. The energy in the room shifted, and a shiver ran down my spine. I was in trouble. So much trouble.

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