Page 36 of Fake Fiancée for Dad's Best Friend
It’s a lame excuse, and Trisha doesn’t look like she buys it, but she nods nonetheless. “Will I be invited?”
“Of course,” says Alex as he glances at his watch and says to Trisha. “Time flies. I need to head back to my office.”
When he turns to leave, Trisha puts her hand on his arm. “So soon? You just got here!”
“I know. But I’ve seen what I wanted to see.”
She lets go of him reluctantly, pouting a bit. “Will you be at the charity show on Saturday?”
“The trunk show? Of course,” Alex says, turning toward me. “Would you like to go with me, honey?”
I’m taken aback by the way he addresses me but quickly understand he is back to pretending. I want very much to say yes. I love fashion shows. But I remember my dad is planning to go as the designer of Fusion, and we might be running into Alex’s other acquaintances. Besides, I simply don’t want to see Trisha again. So I say, “I… want to skip it. I’ve got other plans.”
He looks as if wanting to convince me to go with him, but he doesn’t speak.
Trisha is clearly happy with my answer, and she smiles at Alex. “We should revisit The Lake House afterward, too. We had our first date there, remember? I still miss the food and the view.”
Alex presses his lips together, clearly annoyed. “I’m afraid I can’t do that. I’m taking Vivian to dinner.”
He is?I’m thrill hearing that, but I don’t show my excitement. “Don’t worry about me,” I say to Alex. “I don’t mind. Like I said, I have plans.”
Trisha pouts but doesn’t give up. “Okay. You know what? I’ll go ahead and reserve a table just in case.”
I don’t speak on our way to Alex’s car. I’m just not in the mood. I keep thinking about how Trisha puts her hand on Alex’s arm and bats her eyelashes at him.
“Why are you so quiet?” Alex asks me once we’re on the road.
“I’m just thinking what a coincidence,” I say. “Meeting Trisha here.”
“Actually, I told her I was coming when she called, and she insisted she would meet me here.”
“Oh.” I’m not surprised. Clearly, Trisha is determined to have Alex back. “I hope you didn’t mean it when you mentioned the party?”
He chuckles. “Of course not. I can always postpone it. Anyway, you’ll be in Paris soon.”
“True,” I smile, although I feel a bit sad. For some reason, I’m not as thrilled about going there anymore. I change the topic back to Trisha. “I know you canceled the engagement with her because she didn’t want any kids, but why did you break up completely?”
He glances at me and grunts. “We weren’t right for each other.”
“But you look good together.”
“We do?” he chuckles. “Don’t let us fool you. With Trisha, half of the time is just acting. She likes to act like we’re still together.”
“Why does she do that? And why don’t you mind?”
“It’s just the way she is. As for me, I don’t have much to lose, do I? We’re business partners.”
“What about the women you go out with? Don’t they mind?”
“I’m not seeing anyone right now. And I haven’t had any serious relationship since her.”
Shit. Why do I want to smile? I shouldn’t. It’s none of my business. I need to get Alex out of my mind.
Chapter 15
Alex
“Let me take you to dinner,” I say to Vivian in my car. She’s been awfully quiet after we left the fabric show.
