Page 79 of Beautiful Storm

“She doesn’t know.”

“Obviously. But I’ll bet she’s asked.”

“I’m sure she would if I answered her calls.”

“What?” Luke’s eyes widen before he schools his features. “But—”

“Do your parents know?”

“Not yet, but they will. Soon. I haven’t spoken to them, but it’s better to ask for forgiveness after I’m married than explain why they're not invited.”

I nod as guilt threatens to darken my mind, but I refuse to let it. I know what will happen if I tell my mom. She was shocked about my pregnancy, and not happy that it wasn’t Preston’s. But discovering I’m also getting married, when she’s still hoping I’ll fix things with him…that’s another story. True, she’ll find out eventually, but as with Luke’s family, it’s better for that to happen after-the-fact. She’ll just stress me out, and I don’t need that while I’m pregnant. She already tried when I mentioned the baby.

“Next topic,” I say with a grimace and pray that he lets me off the hook.

Luke shakes his head with a laugh but thankfully moves on, and I’m once again grateful for his kindness. “Let’s talk about the actual ceremony. We have to make it real for the officiant.”

“Of course. I don’t have any plans to give the game away.”

“I know, but what about vows, etc.?”

Vows? Jesus.Why does that make me squirm?“The standard ones are fine. I’m sure we can find something online.” Luke’s lips lift into a cocky smile and I cringe. “Don’t tell me you wrote something?”

“I haven’t.” He shakes his head before looking away in thought. “But I bet I could think of something. What about—I promise to be open and honest. To never keep secrets. To protect you and any future children we might have. I promise to…” He continues on but I zone out. He’s trying to be funny but his words bring up memories from the past, and I’m struggling to separate the man he is now from the boy he was then.

He promises to behonest.No secrets. Toprotect me. But it’s all fake.

What am I doing?This is a mistake. God, what happens when I’m ready to find true love? I’m going to be doing it as a twice-divorced woman. Twice. In my thirties. Marriage is supposed to be about love, but instead I marry the guy who pretends to care. My body numbs as all the emotions from the past come rushing back.

“Amelia, what’s going on?”

I curl my hands around my knees as Luke stands in my peripheral vision. I try to suck a deep breath to calm myself but struggle to take in air as the reality of it all sets in.I know it’s fake.That’s what it’s supposed to be, but it’s not that easy. Luke’s not just some guy I’m having a baby with. We share a history. And the baggage between us is weighing me down.

“Amelia.” Luke rushes to my side and drops to his knees in front of me before grabbing my legs, the warmth of his hands pulling me back to the present. “What happened?”

I suck in another deep breath before pinning him with my gaze, shaking my head. “It’s not right.”

“What’s not right? The baby?” I shake my head again at the sheer panic in his eyes and he calms a little. “The wedding then? We’re doing it for Jelly Bean. Think about—”

“Marriage means something to me, Luke. I know it meansnothingto you, but it means…well, it used to meaneverythingto me.”

Luke’s gaze softens as though he gets it, but he doesn’t. “Don’t think of it as a marriage. I promise, you can still have the perfect marriage one day. This is just for now. Until the baby is born and—”

“Did you ever care about me?” I blurt out and instantly regret it. Talking about our past and our feelings makes it harder to pretend it’s all meaningless between us.

Luke rears back as though I slapped him, his eyes wide as he responds, “What?”

“Sorry, don’t worry. Forget—”

“No, I’m not going to forget it, but that’s a complicated question.”

“And it has no place in this discussion. We are talking about our present situation. Not the past.”

“But you brought it up, so we need to talk about it.”

“Nope.” Now is not the time for us to be arguing, and I know how this ends.

“Amelia.”

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