Page 26 of One Night Bride
A steady stream of people stopped by our table throughout lunch, both men and women, to congratulate Remington and to meet me. I heard stories of him and Ruger growing up, tales of good deeds, and even some flat-out ass kissing about how wonderful it was for him to take Killam under his wing. By the time we headed out of there, with Remington’s hand on my back, I was exhausted.
On the sidewalk, he took my hand again. “Sorry about all that. Didn’t realize it would get that out of hand.”
I shook my head. “It’s okay. I guess that’s what happens when everybody loves you, huh?”
His face turned that tan-red color again.
“Are you blushing, Mr. Roth?” I teased him.
His lips quirked up on one side and he got more red than tan. He let go of my hand and pulled me into a side hug that felt more like a head lock. He kissed the side of my head and then pressed my back against his truck. At least I hoped it was his truck. I wasn’t exactly looking. Not when the hulking form of my fake husband pressed up against my front. Not when I knew we were drawing stares from everyone walking by.
“I figured it’s only fair since I’ve seen you blushing quite a bit lately. Or should I say especially this morning in my bed?” he whispered smoothly.
My whole body began to quake with the need that rushed through me all at once. A simple hooded stare and a question was all it took to go from zero to take me right now against your truck out in public. Bejesus.
The clip-clop of hooves sounded to my right, the sound so foreign I looked away from Remington. A horse-drawn carriage was coming down the street. Two brown horses with white manes huffed out their huge nostrils.
“Shall I take my bride on a romantic carriage ride?” Remington asked, seeing what had drawn my attention.
I shivered, this time because the idea was repulsive. “Nope. I’m good right here on land.” Looking away quickly, I tried to focus on anything other than the advancement of those beasts in my direction.
Remington cocked his head. “Is my wife afraid of horses?”
I lifted my nose in the air. “Not afraid, per se. I just have a healthy respect.”
Remington threw back his head and laughed. Now I knew everyone was looking at us. He even wiped at his eyes as he tried to calm down.
“What is so damn funny?” I asked, a little annoyed he’d laugh at my fear.
He looked at me with wide eyes. “I’m a cowboy. A rancher in Wyoming. And I married a girl afraid of horses.”
I bit my lip to keep from smiling. Yeah, I had to admit he was right. That was a bit funny.
The goodbyes with Remington’s family had been surprisingly almost tearful. On my end, not theirs. All I thought about was never cooking another meal with Julie or seeing the way Grant looked at his three boys. Or seeing the way Killam hung on every word out of Remington’s mouth. Even thinking about never seeing Remington play with Ol’ Red made me rethink my stance on this whole fake business. I’d miss this family that might have been mine.
They, of course, probably thought I was crazy. Julie reminded me we’d be spending lots of time in Wyoming, despite Remington’s new house in Tahoe—which he’d found out this morning was going to be his after the sellers signed off on his offer—or my house in Auburn Hill. We were on Remington’s private jet right this second, headed back to my house. We could fly to see family any time we wanted.
If we stayed married, that is.
“Will you hold on to this for me?” I held my wedding ring out to Remington, who stared at it before taking it from my hand and putting it in his pocket with a scowl. “If Izzy finds me with it, I wouldn’t be able to come up with a plausible story. If you have it, she’ll just think you’re about to propose.”
“So, we’re married in Glenrock, but just fucking in Auburn Hill?” Remington asked crudely.
Something within me withered at the censure in his tone. I hated that my refusal of this sham marriage put him in that mood. If I was being honest with myself, the idea of staying married to him had definitely crossed my mind and it had sounded lovely. Better than lovely. More like a dream I was afraid to even think about because it was so far out of reach.
My business would implode if I suddenly showed up with a husband. Maybe, after years of cultivating a different tone, I could introduce a man in my life and have it go over smoothly with my clients and social media following. But to show up with a husband from a drunken night on vacation? Career suicide.
When the plane landed back in California, we were both quiet, too lost in our own heads to gripe at each other. It was dark by the time we got back to my house, the clouds rolling in from the ocean, perfectly fitting our mood.
“I’ll bring your bag upstairs,” Remington grumbled as I tried to reach for it once we entered the house. The damn man had refused to let me lift a finger the whole day. Made it quite hard to stay mad at him.
The lights flipped on, blinding us both. We blinked and turned to find Izzy standing in the entryway, a look on her face I’d never seen.
“What the hell is this?”
She held a single sheet of paper in her hands. The same one that had turned my life upside down. The same one I thought Remington had in his possession, not lying about the house I shared with my sister. Our marriage license.
“Oops,” Remington said under his breath behind me.
