Page 35 of A Chance for Us
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I’m sitting in the lobby, waiting for Patrick to make his way down. He asked me to meet him here—without Maren.
She owes me so damn big for this.
Josh plops down beside me.
“How are things going?” I ask.
“Hectic, but thank God for Stella and her schedule.”
I nod once. “She’s a pain in the ass, but she’s great at getting things done. Odette really stepped up too.”
“Seriously, she saved our asses by contracting all these crews for a fraction of what we would have paid without her help.”
My siblings hate me. Well, they love me, but they’re none too happy. If we hadn’t had this wedding booked, then the weather delays for construction wouldn’t have been that big of a deal. But I did book it, and it left us scrambling to get the resort ready. It’s a small part of why I am not fighting everyone about this wedding. I owe them. I know it. They know it. So, it’s happening.
“How is Delia?” I ask, moving onto lighter topics.
“Still refusing to marry me,” Josh muses, resting his head on the wall.
“You can marry Maren.”
“I think you’ve got that one covered.”
“This is what I get for being a nice guy,” I muse.
“Can’t argue with you there. However, you can say no, Ollie. No one would do this other than you. You know that, right?”
My brothers like to talk a big game, but if Delia or Jessica asked either of them to fake marry them to make their parent happy, they would’ve done the same shit. Jessica has always had a hold on Grayson. Fuck, he bought a huge piece of land because they shared a kiss or some shit there. And Josh? He moved into Delia’s house, pretending it was to keep her safe from the kid who was breaking into cars. They’re so quick to paint me one way while failing to see their own crap.
“You know you’re full of shit, right?” I toss back.
“How?”
“Because if this were Delia, you’d do anything.”
“So, you’re in love with your fiancée?” Josh asks without missing a beat.
I roll my eyes. “That’s not even possible.”
“That’s my point. Yeah, I’d do it for Deals because I love her. I love her more than any man can love another woman. What’s your reason?”
I don’t love Maren. She’s a friend who needs help and also happens to be really fucking hot and a great kisser. That part’s a nice bonus. Yeah, I’m attracted to her, which any man would be. That doesn’t mean anything.
It’s lust. Pure and simple lust.
My desire to help her comes from my being a good fucking human. I may not understand it, but it matters to her.
Plus, it’s not like I’m ever going to actually marry anyone. I have zero desire to go through this bullshit in real life, so I might as well do it for pretend. However, I’m not telling that to my brother, who used to think love is a lie we feed ourselves to now thinking everything is awesome.
“Oh, I don’t know. Our psychotic sister threatened my life by offering me as a midnight snack to the monster she thinks lives in the woods.”
“I think it was more murder, but the end goal would be the same.”
“I’m so glad you’re able to remember her threats so easily. I can’t keep up.”
Josh smirks. “Usually I can’t between her and Delia, I’m usually fearful of my life. However, Stella isn’t the real reason and we both know it. So, what gives?”
