Page 24 of One and Only

His chest expanded with a deep breath. “Sort of. Not the marriage, per se. But Micah has to relocate to the UK for a year to help set up an office for his company. They’re going global, and because he’s the chief operating officer, they want someone there to help get the new location up and running.”

“Wow.” I exhaled slowly. “And she’s going with him?”

“Yeah. And after meeting with Olive’s pediatrician and therapist, a lawyer to help us work through the legalities, we all decided that it made the most sense for Olive to stay here with me. She needs consistency. Uprooting her for a year in another country wouldn’t be good for her.” He held his hands out. “Buying my house is to make things easier for her when Josie is gone.”

I nodded. “That’s why you want the perfect room for her.”

The edge of his mouth ticked up in a tiny smile. “Yeah. I want her to love it. It won’t be easy, but anything I can do to help, I’ll do it.”

Well shit.

Forget poking at a bruise, Beckett was about to melt my heart into a gooey soft puddle.

I cleared my throat, straightened my backbone, and tried to keep my face professional. “Why did you need to meet with me? I don’t think it’s because of Olive’s bedroom.”

Beckett didn’t speak at first, he simply stared.

His jaw clenched, and so did the hands hanging between his legs.

“Beckett?”

He blew out a slow breath. “Josie is having second thoughts about leaving. She texted me a bit ago and told me she may stay back. Let Micah go to the UK, and she’ll just visit him a few times.”

I wasn’t sure what he was expecting to hear from me, but I kinda felt for Josie in all this too.

“It’s gotta be hard to think about leaving Olive,” I said slowly.

“It is.” He closed his eyes and took a long inhale. A steady exhale. “She’s planning to visit a few times. But I know she loves Micah and doesn’t want to start their marriage with a year of being apart. That would be hard on any newlyweds.”

My brows lowered as I tried—quite unsuccessfully—to figure out why he was telling me all this.

He must have seen the confusion on my face because his eyes sharpened.

“That’s why I asked you here,” he said.

I shifted on the seat. “Why?”

“I think we can help each other.” His eyes held mine meaningfully. “I can help you with your dad. You can help me convince Josie that she doesn’t need to stay back because I won’t be doing it alone.”

Oh.

Oh.

I covered my mouth with my hand as my mind fucking raced.

This wasnotwhat I expected.

“You want to …?”

When my voice trailed off, he nodded slowly. “Be your fake husband. If you’ll be my fake wife.”

“Holy shit,” I whispered. “Are youserious?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “I think so. I’ve never had the chance to be her full-time dad, not like I’ve always wanted. And Josie is a good mom. She’s a great mom. But she deserves a chance to start her marriage off in the right way too, you know?”

Did I nod?

Was I stillconscious?

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