Page 83 of Faking It with the Firefighter

“Oh, fuck you.” I spun around and marched toward the exit.

“I know about your night in jail, by the way.”

I froze. Turned.

Gabe scoffed. “Is that ‘fine’ to you? Bryce came into Sullivan’s after it happened and told me about it. I wanted to see if you’d come clean about it, and instead you’re doing this.” He spun his finger in the air, obviously meaning me and Rex. “You ‘owed Rex a favor,’ right? A favor for bailing you out of jail. So if this is your idea of having it all together and being a raging success, then I guess we just have different worldviews.”

Shame burned through me. All this time—everything with Rex, with the wedding—was a waste. I’d been hiding the night in jail from Gabe, and he already knew. Was already judging me for it.

And hell, maybe he was right. I had screwed up, again and again. I’d gotten myself into this mess with Rex and got my feelings hurt. For what? For him to walk away from me and make me feel two feet tall?

The threads of my control were fraying, and I needed to get out of here before I did something reckless. I needed time awayfrom my brother. Away from Rex. Away from all thesepeople. I needed time to be alone so I could think and figure this out.

“I’m leaving,” I announced, then headed off to the coat check room at the front of the building, where I’d left my jacket and purse.

TWENTY-NINE

REX

Bryce finally leftme after he followed me to the groom’s room on the top floor of the winery, where I pulled the wristband out of my jacket’s breast pocket. I wrapped it around my wrist under his watchful eye, then sighed as he turned and strode back toward the staircase.

Panic nipped at my heels.

There were staff members everywhere. Through the vast windows looking out on the vineyard, I could see a woman run across the front of the driveway with a stack of flowers almost as tall as she was. Another rolled a cart toward the kitchen, dishes clattering over the concrete pathway. Three security guards watched from the corners of the driveway as vehicles approached; the first of the guests were arriving.

I was running out of time.

I pulled my phone out and dialed Donny—he rejected my call.

Swearing, I grabbed my tux jacketand checked the top floor for any sign of Donny. He wasn’t in the bridal suite, which was a mess of makeup and hair styling tools, discarded bathrobes, and stray bridesmaids.

“Where’s Donny?” I asked.

One of the bridesmaids shrugged almost like she couldn’t care less. “Probably being murdered by Blair after Tammy showed her that video of you and him planning to call off the wedding. She ran out of here a few minutes ago.”

“That’s not—” I growled, cut myself off, and spun to exit the room.

I wasn’t planning anything. I was just trying to help my brother make the right decision. We’d grown up with a father who was physically present, but absent in all the ways that mattered. Resentment had dripped down the walls of our family home and seeped into our bones.

I’d fought against that poison. I’d tried to keep everyone together. I’d done the Christmas stockings and Easter egg hunts for the family when my mother was too sad or too broken to try anymore. I’d held us together with thin traditions and the force of my will. I’d worked myself raw to make sure Mom and Donny had what they needed. I sacrificed—for them.

And I wouldn’t give up now. I wouldn’t let Donny make that mistake—if not for his sake, then for the sake of his future children. They deserved better than what we had, and I’d make sure he saw that. That he understood the burden I’d tried to shield him from.

I’d already checked all the rooms on the top floor, and the floor below was closed off. Which only left the ground floor of the vast vineyard estate. Too big to search, especially when I needed to talk to Donny before he confronted Blair.

I ran into my mother on the landing. “Oh, Rex!” she cried. “You need to talk to Donny.”

“I’m looking for him, Mom.”

She grabbed my lapels. “Don’t let him break up with her. I want at least one of my sons to be married.”

For the first time in my life, disgust trickled through me at the sight of my mother. I pulled away from her and frowned. “You care more about him being married than him being married to the right woman?”

She waved a hand. “Rex, stop it. Go find him and make sure he’s at that altar when the time comes. This wedding is going to be perfect. It has to be after that viral disaster yesterday.”

“Even if he doesn’t want to marry her?” I prodded.

“They’ll work it out,” she said, shooing me. “Your father and I did. But all these people… Rex, honey, what will they think if he calls it off? He’ll never find another Blair.”

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