Page 58 of Taken By the Fake Fiancé

"You sound better, Father. When will you be free to visit?"

"Ask your mother. She seems to be in charge. I'm beginning to think she's been feeding the doctors with horse shit to convince them to keep me on bed rest."

I hold back a chuckle.

"Perhaps she's genuinely worried about you."

Dad scoffs.

"I know she cares about me, but what I don't understand is the fact that she keeps treating me like a toddler. She decides my meals, she cleans me up, she decides what I'm allowed to watch, she decides-- dammit, Son, your mother makes me sick."

I finally let out the laughter. Dad sounds like a whiny child. It's the way Eli sounds when I take his iPad away to punish him.

"Martin mentioned that you said it's urgent. Is everything okay, Father?"

"Yes. We didn't get the chance to talk after dinner on Friday."

He clears his throat, the sound sends a chill down my spine, I tense up.

God, I hope he's not detected the fact that my relationship with Felicity is a sham.

"I called to congratulate you, Son. Your mother and I haven't stopped talking about your girlfriend. I'm still surprised you got together with Ms. Goleman. She's always been at the top of the chart when it comes to staff that are quite productive. She's-- I've studied her, I realized she's the type to go all out when trying to achieve something. Focused…, determined, and confident. She's the perfect woman for you, Son."

That's quite a speech. Unfortunately, I wasn't prepared for this, so I have absolutely nothing to say. Instead, I sigh deeply and flex my fingers, trying to relax my tensed muscles.

"Doesn't it bother you that she's younger than me?"

"Age is just a number, Son. Besides, less than a handful of older women pale in comparison to her,"Dad deadpans and chuckles. "Has she moved in yet?"

Huh?

"Um, no Dad. Not yet."

"That's a silly thing not to at this point! You both should be under the same roof. It will help her bond with Eli and that way, you get to spend more time together as a couple. I want you to be happy, Son. And Eli, I want him to get used to the idea of having a stepmother as soon as possible."

I lean on the wall beside the window and listen half-heartedly to Father talk about how good he thinks Felicity and I are together-- that we're a force to reckon with, he couldn't miss the burning passion between us during dinner.

As he continues to speak, I allow my mind to wander, pondering on the things that can happen if Felicity moves into my house. It's been so hard keeping my hands to myself the few times we've been together. Now, Father is suggesting-- no, telling me to ask her to move into my home? That's extreme. Especially when there's the case of Amelia making a fuss over a trifle.

"Felicity is a good woman, Son. You both must learn to tolerate each other and stay in love. And Eli, I don't expect him to jump on the idea, but I expect him to come around and learn to accept her."

I rub the back of my neck.

"All right, Father."

I hear my mother's voice in the background asking Dad who he's on the phone with. Then there's a muffling sound, Dad hastily promises to visit my home as soon as he can before he drops the call.

I wrinkle my face, trying not to think about the sounds I heard before he hung up. At forty-one, I shouldn't be freaked out by the thought of two people getting together. But that image isn't welcomed when the people involved are my parents.

I return the phone to my desk and pick up the file Jason has dropped this morning. I've not had time to read through it as my day has been jam-packed with appointments and more appointments. It's almost noon, I've had nothing all day except coffee.

I raise my head to see Felicity outside my door. She waves and then pushes the door open with her elbow. In her hand is a laptop. I stand up and hold the seat out for her, but she settles on the couch instead, placing her laptop beside her.

"I had no idea dating you would be this arduous. The stares, the gossip, the intrusive questions; heck, I almost broke someone's jaw," she yawns and closes her eyes.

I sit beside her and gently raise my hand to her face, stroking it with my thumb. She moans and leans into my touch. She looks so beautiful, her intoxicating scent is driving me wild. I tilt my head toward her, greedily sniff her neck and then kiss her ear.

"Are you hungry?"

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