Page 26 of Alpha-Ex Wedding Ruse
I tried to smile, but it came out crooked. There was only so much I could fake.
“Elena—”
“Scroll back to the third photo you showed us.”
That voice—low, rough, commanding—was Luca’s. His first words since he got here.
“Huh?” I blinked at him.
He gave me a lazy, knowing smile, leaned forward, and took my laptop like he owned both it and the oxygen in the room. His fingers tapped swiftly on the keyboard before he turned the screen toward me.
“That venue is perfect.”
It was Villa Barone Manor.
Elegant. Regal. Breathtaking.
But apparently not flashy enough for Her Royal Highness Elena.
“I see no reason why we should have three thousand guests for the wedding ceremony,” Luca said, clearly to Elena, but his eyes didn’t leave mine.
And there was something in the way he said “wedding ceremony”. Tight-lipped. Controlled. Like the very phrase left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Elena gave a short laugh, high-pitched and hollow. “You must be kidding me, Luca.”
Luca finally looked at her with an expression that said, I’m not fucking kidding.
“I need more than a thousand guests if we want the kind of buzzI’m aiming for,” Elena whined. “I mean, the world should know the daughter of the Alpha of the Bronx pack is getting married.”
I cringed internally. If pride had a face…
Luca turned back to me.
“How about I take you to a few locations?”
My spine straightened so fast I nearly gave myself whiplash.
No.
“How does Friday evening sound?” he added, that stupid, smug smile curling up his face. The man knew exactly what he was doing.
Alone? With Luca Vaughn?
God, no.
I could barely keep it together with Elena between us.
“I, um—” I stammered, looking for excuses I didn’t have. “I have plans.”
He raised an eyebrow. “What plans?”
I blinked at him.
Was it appropriate for a groom to ask his wedding planner what she was doing Friday night?
Elena folded her arms. “Yes, Leila. What plans? What could possibly be more important than planning my wedding?”
I was cornered.
