Page 56 of Counterfeit Boyfriend
23Ethan
“Let her handle it,”Madison said, her grip turning iron. Not that I couldn’t break it, but damn, the girl must’ve worked out a lot before her wedding.
“I told her I’d be here for her, whatever she needed.”
“And right now she needs to know that she’s strong enough to stand up to him and speak her mind, even without you by her side.”
The smile Gwen gave me was clearly supposed to be reassuring, but I didn’t feel assured. Madison did have a point, though, one I’d tried to make on the drive here. I wanted Gwen to know that she’d be fine with or without me. Which was true.
I just wanted her to be fineandwith me.
I forced myself to keep swaying to the beat. “I know. I even told myself that once we got here, I’d let her work it out for herself, too. It’s just harder to watch it go down without interfering than I thought it’d be.”
“I get that.” Madison readjusted our dancing stance and blew her blond bangs out of her eyes. “You know, when Gwen first started talking to me about you, I kind of thought you sounded like one of those handsome, self-centered guys who wasn’t smart enough or good enough for her.”
“Oh, I’m sure I’m not good enough for her.”
A smile spread across her face, the pride in the curve seeming to say I’d given the right answer to a test I didn’t even know I’d been taking. “No one is, but honestly, I haven’t seen her so happy in a long time.” She bit her lip. “Look, I probably shouldn’t tell you this. I take girl code very seriously, but I’m super invested in Gwen’s happiness, and I’m the bride, so I get to do and say whatever I want today.”
“With a preamble like that, I gotta say I’m a little scared of what’s coming next.”
“As you should be,” Madison said with a laugh. Then her expression grew serious. “One, Gwen’s been hurt enough.”
A pang went through my chest. “I know.”
“Two, she thought about dumping you before bringing you to the wedding. She’d texted me and said she didn’t know if she should bring her ‘plus one’ anymore.”
Panic bound my lungs.She’s going to dump me.A second or so later, I realized she was going to dumpEvan, not me. There was something freeing about the knowledge, regardless of the fact that it didn’t let me off the hook for the mess I’d made. But I couldn’t stop obsessing about when she’d changed her mind.
Was it the instant I’d taken his place?
When she’d touched my hand at Sacred Grounds? Had she felt the jolt I had?
Madison tugged on the train of her dress to keep it from getting stomped on by the people dancing around us. “She wasn’t sure you were that into her, or that you guys had what it took to work long term…”
From the first moment Gwen and I met, electricity had crackled the air between us, coursing down my body and leaving me revved and ready for more. I’d never felt a connection so strong in my life.
Then we’d shared that kiss…Maybe that’d changed her mind. It’d definitely changed mine.
After the kiss we’d shared the first morning of our road trip, she’d asked me “Has it always been like this?”
That must mean she’d sensed the difference between me and my brother, and I wasn’t lying when I’d replied “It’s never been like this.” The same electric charge I’d felt during that kiss coursed through me as I glanced across the dance floor, my center of gravity shifting to all things Gwen.
“But I can see by the way that you look at her that you care about her,” Madison said, pulling my mind from the future I wanted and grounding me in the unsteady present. “So if you don’t want to lose her, you better step up your game.”
“I don’t want to lose her,” I said, my words filled with the resolve that’d set up residence inside of me.
“Good. Then don’t be stupid enough to take her for granted like that last idiot—I know, I know, I’m now part of his family, but I’ve called him an idiot to his face, so that makes it okay.”
I laughed, despite the weirdness of the situation. I could see why Gwen liked Madison so much. Also understood the fox thing. She’d orchestrated this whole thing, and I had no doubt it was partially so she could make her warnings and threats to me while Gwen could prove to herself that she was strong enough to deal with her ex-boyfriend.
“Consider this my way of repaying you for making sure she came to my wedding,” Madison said. “After the honeymoon and things settle down, I plan on coming down for a visit, so I’ll be checking in on you.”
“I’ll look forward to it.” I desperately hoped I’d be there for it, too. The song came to a close, and I quickly moved to collect my girl.
She met me halfway.
“Well?” I asked.
