Page 27 of Beachside Kisses With My Best Friend

Terry clears his throat. “Hmm, well. All right, then. This would be the part where I announce you to your audience, but?—”

“But it’s just us,” Lucy teases from the side. She flashes me wide eyes filled with questions. My friend knows me well, and I’m guessing she can’t wait to get me alone and ask why I’m acting so strange. But how am I supposed to tell her, when I don’t understand it myself?

Terry gestures for us to walk back toward the church, but before we do, Jordan pulls me into a hug. “Did we just really do that?” His voice is muffled against my hair.

The familiarity of it calms me. Whatever insane attraction I just felt was just a result of the heightened emotions. It had to be. Because this is Jordan—myfriend. He didn’t sign up for a wife who’s attracted to him or for things to be awkward or complicated between us.

So I will take those emotions and stuff them far, far away, praying they are a one-time thing.

He pulls away from our embrace and smooths down my hair where his hug ruffled it. “All right, then. Let’s go home.”

Home.

How strange that my definition of that just shifted in a matter of seconds. Though as I stand here in the shelter of his arms, I can’t help but wonder if it’s been the same all along. That I just didn’t realize it until now.

Nope. Friends.

As it’s always been.

As it’s gotta stay.

seven

JORDAN

It’s just as unbelievable as it is official—I have a wife.

Even more unbelievable,Marileeis my wife.

Fakewife. I know that. But a wife all the same.

It’s several hours after our wedding ceremony, and all kinds of thoughts and memories swirl around me where I sit on the couch, my right knee bouncing as I attempt to watch a football game. The TV is on low, so I can hear Marilee banging around down the hall, presumably getting things arranged and situated in my bedroom.

Well, now it’sherbedroom for the next year.

I’ll keep my clothes and toiletries in there but made plenty of space in the dresser and closet for Lee’s things. But the bed… It’s all hers. Good thing I sprung for the extra comfy couch when I bought the leather number underneath me, because we are going to become fast friends each and every night. I don’t mind, though. Not if it means Marilee is comfortable.

The air feels sticky even though I peeled off my suit jacket the first chance I got, so I stand and crack open the back door, which leads to a small grassy yard littered with a scooter, a kid-sized basketball hoop, a tee and whiffle ball. The matching bat’s nowhere to be found. Probably buried somewhere in my son’s room. A breeze cools my face as I run my hands through my hair and take in the chaos of toys. My heart pinches at the sight—at the thought that I could have lost this. But now, thanks to Marilee, my attorney is confident that I won’t.

Sam was overjoyed when we called him this afternoon to relay the news of our marriage. He still thinks this is the ace in the pocket we need to convince the judge there are no legs to Constance and Larry’s petition. I sure hope he’s right.

There’s a noise behind me, and I turn to find Lee at the kitchen counter, grabbing a handful of popcorn. She’s dressed in a pair of red-checkered flannel pants, an oversized T-shirt that hangs slightly off one shoulder, and Rudolph slippers on her feet. Her hair is piled on top of her head, but for a moment, I’m returned to the memory of this afternoon, when it flowed freely down her back. When, so help me, I couldn’t resist allowing my fingers to graze the silken strands as I led her to the proverbial altar.

She just looked so beautiful. I mean, she always does—she does right now, in her pajamas—but there was just something about knowing she was there, all dressed up…for me.

Though actually, it was for Ryder. And that’s an important distinction. Something I need to remember.

Even if my son wasn’t there today—we didn’t want to create a core memory that would be confusing later when Marilee and I decide to go our separate ways, so my mom watched him all day, and he’s there overnight too—he’s the reason for all of this.

Though I swear, today, the way Marilee looked at me during the ceremony…

It was almost as if she sawmethe way I’ve always seen her.

Shoot. That’s some wishful thinking there. Wishful…and dangerous.

“Hey.” I leave the door open behind me as I join her in the kitchen. “You all settled in?”

Squeaking, she drops a few kernels of popcorn. “You scared me!”

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