Page 86 of The Wedding Hoax

“Ruby seems excited, too. I think both of them are quite smitten with Simone—”

“Can we not talk about Simone right now?” I accidentally raised my voice, quickly bringing it back down to a normal tone. “It’s just—today isn’t about my marriage. Today is about the family business and securing its future.”

“Of course, Harry. Of course.” My mom softly patted me on the shoulder. “We can save the Simone talk for another time.”

I watched as she exchanged a glance with my father, both of them seeming concerned.

“We’re fine. Everything’s fine,” I lied. “Sorry. I’ve just been under a lot of stress lately. I didn’t mean to take it out on either of you.”

“These things happen,” Dad reassured me. “And even if there is something going on between you and Simone, I know how smart you both are. You’ll figure it out, all in due time.”

“Until then, let’s get that photo snapped, yes?” Mom beamed before she motioned for me to follow behind her. I did as I was told, even though my mind was somewhere else.

“Don’t lose her,” my dad whispered, so low that I almost didn’t hear him say anything.

“What?”

“Don’t lose her.” This time, my dad looked at me as he spoke. “That’s my advice. If you love her, don’t let her go. You might think that you can just replace people, that there’ll always be someone out there for you. But the truth of it, son? Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you only get the one. You don’t need to find anyone else when the right person for you is already in your life.”

“Thanks, Dad. I’ll try my best.” My tone was dismissive. “We’ll see what happens.”

“I’m not saying this to be cruel, son,” he continued. “And I understand things don’t always work out, even when we try our best. I just want you to be happy, and sometimes, happiness is something we have to fight for.”

I just want you to be happy.

The words sank into my skin as we moved into position to pose for the picture. I sat at a table holding a pen in my hand, pretending to sign the document in front of me, with my parents standing on either side of me.

Was that true?

Was that all my parents really wanted for me?

My dad hadn’t mentioned the business once, or what would happen if Simone and I got divorced too soon. It was almost like it wasn’t part of his calculations anymore, like he genuinely cared more about our relationship than the future of LA Now.

Maybe Simone had been right.

Maybe I didn’t need to completely shut my parents out or pull away from them so much. Maybe there was something we could salvage, somewhere down the line.

As a family.

* * *

My hotel room was lonely.

At first, I figured there was too much space for one person–the suite was more like an apartment with its full kitchen, living room, and private terrace.

Then it hit me. The suite felt too big because someone was missing.

Because I was missing Simone.

Shit.

I’d fucked up everything, hadn’t I?

Why the hell was I accusing Simon of being a gold digger? It was obvious that she didn’t care about my money. She’d never even asked me about how much money I had. She seemed to have no interest in learning the specifics of it.

Was it just a defense mechanism? Was I trying to protect myself from getting hurt by pushing her away with the worst kind of accusation?

I couldn’t pretend I wasn’t terrified of how things were going to change between us. Even if Simone and I decided to be in a real relationship now, how long would it last before things fizzled out? How much longer until it stopped being about her and me, and more about our family?

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