Page 18 of Faking it with the Cowboy

“Wish I could say the same.” I forced a half smile. There was no need to play nice with the asshole who’d hurt her, even though he’d done me a favor in a roundabout way. Jericho and I never would have crossed the line last weekend if they’d stayed together. Probably never would have even reconnected via the phone.

“Well, that’s not awkward.” He laughed like I’d just made a joke. “We’re headed to the bar. Do the two of you want anything before the ceremony starts?”

“No, I’m fine.” Jericho shook her head.

“Nothing for me, thanks,” I said.

“We’ll catch up with you later.” Scott put his arm around Tessa’s shoulder, and I waited until the crowd had swallowed them up before turning my attention back to Jericho.

“Why did you tell me not to come?” I lowered my voice. There was no reason for her co-workers to catch wind of what was going down between us. She had enough drama at the office already, with that jackass always hanging around.

She brushed a piece of lint off my lapel, refusing to meet my gaze. “What happened between us was a mistake. I got caught up in the moment and we both got carried away.”

“I don’t regret it.” Wrapping my fingers around hers, I took in a deep breath.

Staring straight at my chest, she shook her head. “It shouldn’t have happened.”

Just as I opened my mouth to argue, an announcement came over the speaker system asking everyone to move to the upper deck for the ceremony. The yacht had moved away from the dock while we’d been talking and soft strains of music from a stringed quartet came from a shaded area up above.

“Looks like you’re stuck with me for now. Should we go watch the bride and groom pledge their eternal love to each other?” I didn’t mean for my voice to carry the biting edge of sarcasm, but she’d wounded me with her lack of faith.

Jericho clenched her jaw and headed toward the small crowd of guests filing up the steps. I stayed close, shielding her from getting jostled along with the crowd until we reached the second level.

Huge planters full of white flowers flanked the area where the groom and officiant stood. We found a spot near the back and leaned against the railing as the bride walked herself down the short aisle.

“That could be us someday,” I whispered against Jericho’s ear.

She shivered, then shook her head. “It would never work.”

I set my hand on her waist and nudged my nose into her hair. “Never is just a state of mind, honeybee.”

A man sitting in front of us shot me a dirty look, so I stayed quiet through the rest of the ceremony. As soon as the bride and groom kissed, Jericho headed down the stairs with me right behind her.

12

JERICHO

“We need to talk.” I grabbed Birch’s hand and looked for somewhere to have a private conversation. There weren’t many options on an overcrowded yacht. A big potted palm next to a riser caught my attention, and I headed toward it. Looked like a band had set up their equipment, but no one else was around, at least at the moment. What I needed to say wouldn’t take more than a minute or two.

“Don’t shut me out.” Birch turned on me the second we stepped behind the palm. My back brushed against the wall and he looked down at me, his eyes pleading. “We can make it work.”

“How? You live four and a half hours away. You work eighty hours a week. We don’t make sense.” I shook my head, unwilling to hear him out.

“I’m working on getting my own place. Don’t you miss living in the country, honeybee? I can see it in your eyes. The city’s sucking the life out of you.”

He was right. I longed for the wide open spaces back in Broken Bend. “Yes, I miss it, but there’s no future for me there. This is all wrong. It’s not real. You were just supposed to be my fake date. Why couldn’t we stick to the plan?”

“I knew it!” Scott stomped across the empty dance floor, heading to our corner behind the palm. “What a joke. You were faking it all along.”

My heart stopped and dropped right out of my chest. How had he heard us?

He must have picked up on my confusion, because he stopped next to the mic at the edge of the stage. “You should probably make sure there’s not a mic on nearby when you decide to have a heart-to-heart with your fake boyfriend.”

Birch wrapped his arm around my waist and dipped me low. “There’s nothing fake about this, asshole.”

His lips crushed against mine, sending my whole world into a tailspin. Up became down, east became west, and wrong became right. I grabbed hold of the front of his suit jacket to keep from completely losing myself in his kiss.

The sound of applause brought me back. I cracked my eyelids open to see guests surrounding the dance floor, cheering us on. Ignoring the strangers, Birch gently set me upright. I gripped his arm, still unsteady on my feet.

---