‘How is she?’
‘Gloating,’ Laurel said, with bitterness in the word. ‘Did you hear about Noah and Eloise?’
Dan nodded. ‘It was all everyone was talking about at breakfast.’
‘Poor Eloise.’ She shook her head. ‘I’m going back out to the gatehouse now, to try to protect her from Melissa’s gleeful barbs.’
‘I can’t believe she’s going through with being maid of honour. I’m assuming the whole photo thing was a Melissa set-up?’
‘Of course.’ She looked up at him, her expression serious. ‘Are you sure you don’t want to try to talk your brother out of marrying her?’
Dan pulled a face. ‘I’ve been trying to get him alone all week, but somehow I keep getting distracted... Not to talk him out of it, exactly, but to check he’s sure about this. That he knows what he’s letting himself in for.’
‘If he knew that I can’t believe he’d really marry her,’ Laurel said bluntly. ‘I always thought...I knew she wasn’t always a nice person to me, but I always figured that she had her reasons. That our relationship would always have to bear that strain. But to do this to Eloise...’ She shook her head, as if the magnitude of Melissa’s cruelty rendered her speechless.
‘I might be able to manage a quiet word with Riley this morning,’ he said. ‘Won’t that ruin all your hard work, though? If he decides not to go through with it?’
‘At this point I’m not sure I even care.’ She checked her watch and gave him an apologetic smile. ‘I’ve got to get back out there. Sorry.’
‘I’ll walk you,’ Dan said easily.
They were into their last hours now. He couldn’t waste a moment of them.
‘Great.’ Her phone started to ring. ‘Sorry—I just need to take this...’
Her call—something to do with the exact placement of various table centrepieces, as far as he could tell—lasted long enough for them to leave the hotel and walk across the gravel drive to the honeymoon suite in the former gatehouse. They were almost at the front door of the suite before Dan had a chance to talk to Laurel alone again. But somehow, he found himself just enjoying the sensation of being near her.
‘I’m sorry,’ she said, one hand on the door handle as the winter wind ruffled her hair. ‘I wasn’t much company for that walk, was I?’
‘Never mind. We’ll still have tonight. Once this is all over.’
‘Before your flight tomorrow.’ Laurel’s smile faded as she spoke. ‘Unless...I could always look at changing your flight. Put it back a couple of days. If you don’t have anything to rush back for...? We could maybe enjoy ourselves a little longer—without the whole wedding party thing going on.’
He could hear the nerves in her voice as she suggested it, and he wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and tell her it was a great idea.
Except it wasn’t. He’d already made his decision. He couldn’t go back on that now. Couldn’t give her expectations that he couldn’t live up to.
His silence made her smile wobble even more as she chatted on, obviously trying to fill the gap where he hadn’t responded.
‘I know we said that this was just for the week. But I wondered if maybe that might change? I mean, it’s been kind of wonderful, these last couple of days. It seems a shame to limit it, don’t you think? Perhaps we could just...see where things go?’
She was trying to keep it casual, he could tell. Trying not to spook him. But she didn’t get it—how could she? He’d thought she might understand—she of all people. But apparently even Laurel couldn’t see that it was always better to get out before things went bad.
‘That’s not...’ Letting his arms drop, he stepped back from her, trying to harden himself against the disappointment in her eyes. ‘I don’t think it would be a good idea.’
‘But why?’ Frustration leaked out of Laurel’s voice. ‘Why not try? We’ve got a good thing going on here.’
The worst thing was, she was right. And it still didn’t change anything.
Because a good thing could go bad in a heartbeat, the moment her prince came riding by. He couldn’t take that. Not from her.
‘We have a fake thing going on here. A pretend relationship, Laurel—that was the deal. And, yes, it’s been fun. And, sure, I’d like a couple more nights in your bed before I go. But that’s all. This isn’t love, it isn’t for ever, and it isn’t happy-ever-after. That’s not what we agreed. You’re waiting for your prince, remember? All I said was that I’d pretend to be your boyfriend for the week to give you some sort of moral support against your ex. That’s it. The rest was just...fringe benefits.’
It was all the truth—every word of it. They’d never promised anything more—never expected it either.
So why did it hurt so much to say it out loud? Why did the pain in Laurel’s eyes burn through him?
‘I know what we agreed,’ Laurel said slowly, her face pale and determined. ‘But I thought... I hoped that things might have changed.’
Dan shook his head sadly. ‘I’m not your leading man, Laurel. And I definitely can’t be the prince you’re waiting for. I’m only here until your ex isn’t. I’m just a stand-in. The pretend boyfriend. That’s it.’
He was so focussed on her face, on making her understand why he couldn’t risk this, that he barely noticed the door behind her opening.
Until Melissa’s incredulous laugh echoed through the air.
‘Oh, my God! I was just coming to find out what all the shouting was about, but really! This is like the best wedding present ever!’
Laurel spun round to face her, and Dan took a step closer before he realised he shouldn’t. Melissa stood there, dressed from head to toe in white lace, her silk gloved hands on her hips.
‘This is none of your business, Melissa,’ Laurel said, more calmly than Dan though he could have managed. ‘Now, if you’ll just give me a moment—’
But Melissa shook her head. ‘Oh, no. This is far too good. So let me get this straight. You were so scared about being at this wedding dateless—especially since your ex was bringing the new fiancée he cheated on you with, right?—that you persuaded poor Dan, here, to pretend to be your boyfriend!’
She laughed again.
‘Well, that is just precious, honey. I mean, I can see why you’d be a tiny little bit intimidated, surrounded by all these wildly successful people, when all you’ve ever really done is arrange a few flowers and some cake. But, really, Laurel—lying to everybody? Trying to steal my thunder?’
‘That’s not what this is—’ Dan started to say, but Melissa just gave a low chuckle.
‘Oh, but it is. I heard the truth from your own mouth, Dan. There’s no point trying to protect her any more, you know.’
Melissa turned her attention back to her half-sister, and Dan braced himself for whatever vitriol she came out with next.
‘I should have known you couldn’t score a real date for the wedding. I mean, even for a fake boyfriend you could only manage to snare the lesser brother—the stand-in stunt man. Really, Laurel. You’re an embarrassment.’
Fury flooded through him at Melissa’s words, hot and all-encompassing, burning through his self-control. ‘You don’t speak to her like that—’
‘Dan.’ Laurel’s sharp tone pulled him up short. ‘This has nothing to do with you any more—you’ve made that perfectly clear. I’ll arrange for you to have Riley’s room tonight, once he moves down here to the honeymoon suite, and the hotel staff will move your stuff. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have a wedding to prepare for.’
With that she walked past Melissa, into the honeymoon suite, not looking back at him for a moment.
Melissa flashed him a satisfied grin and slammed the door in his face.
And Dan felt his whole world crumbling around him as he tried to tell himself it was for the
best...tried to find his famous control again.
* * *
‘Honestly, Laurel, I can’t believe you!’
Melissa gave Laurel what she imagined was supposed to look like a friendly pat on the back, but actually made her shoulder blade ache.
‘You lot won’t believe what this one has been up to! It’s almost as outrageous as Eloise’s fling with Noah!’
Laurel glanced around the room, looking for Eloise, but her friend seemed to have escaped the wedding prep somehow. Laurel was almost grateful; Eloise was having a bad enough day without having to deal with Laurel’s disastrous love-life.
Given the choice, even Laurel would opt out of this one, thanks.
Iona and Caitlin, however—the other two bridesmaids—were listening to Melissa with rapt attention.
‘Ooh, tell us!’ Iona cried. ‘You know how we love a bit of wedding gossip!’
‘Can you believe Laurel actually guilt-tripped Dan into pretending to be her boyfriend for the week? I mean, how funny!’