here for the wedding, I came home early from work. I wasn’t supposed to be home. There were—clothes on the stairs. I heard a woman’s voice, a giggle, and I just remember my whole body going cold. I knew what he’d done—what they were doing upstairs. But I still followed the trail of clothing anyway. Then…”
And then she saw her fiancé balls deep in another woman. She doesn’t have to say anything else. The truth is all over her face. What a fucking moron. A fresh wave of hatred for Mark rises inside me.
“Fuck him. Imagine being called Mrs. Cranberry for the rest of your life.”
Her lips curve into a small smile, the first one she’s given me. “It—it wasn’t working for a long time, but I never thought he’d do something like this. I don’t know what to do. He’s going to find where I’m staying.” She closes her eyes, suppressing a shudder. “He’ll demand we go to the wedding together.”
“I’ve got the perfect solution for that.”
Curious, she looks at me. “What?”
“Tell him you’re going with me.”
Three
Olivia
I think I’m dreaming.
This must be some kind of illusion or a trick of my sleep-addled brain. Because this shit just doesn’t happen. Hot guys don’t strut into backyards unannounced and demand to cook food for me. I can’t even remember the last time anyone made me lunch.
It’s hard to take him in. He’s wearing a simple white t-shirt, his haphazardly combed hair fluttering in the wind. To complete this perfect image, there’s a plate of steak and perfectly charred corn sitting in front of me. The plastic knives and forks sit beside the plates, over a floral tablecloth.
Now he’s asking to be my date.
“Are you serious? You want to be my plus one?”
He tries to hide his smirk. “Sure. Could be fun. And it’d be really nice to stick it to that asshole, wouldn’t it?”
Yes, it would. “It’s petty.”
“Hardly. You’re not rubbing it in his face. He’s not even going to the wedding, right?”
I suck in my lip, worrying it. “I don’t know. He could just show up. Mark’s not the type who backs down easily.”
He shrugs, looking unconcerned. “Neither am I. Come on. It’ll be fun. Drinking, dancing, good food.”
It’s a pretty picture, but what does he want from me?
“Why would you do something like that?”
“You think I’m helping you to get into your pants, but that’s only partly true. You need my help. I can give it to you. It’s that simple.”
“I find that hard to believe considering you had no interest in helping me at the auto shop.”
“That was before I found out you’re on the run from a complete and utter tool.”
My body flushes with warmth as I watch his eyes, reading nothing but unabashed honesty. “I can handle him.”
“You’re living in fantasy land if you think you got this under control. He’s still convinced you’re his fiancée.”
“He’ll figure it out soon enough, and I’m not a damsel in distress who needs a man to save her.”
“You don’t need saving yet, but you could use help.”
Accepting help goes against every instinct of mine. “Anything else you think I need, smartass?”
He gives me a look. I already know what he'll say. A smile staggers across his handsome face, his blue eyes filled with lust. “I can think of a thing or two.”
Don’t go there.
Shut up, I tell the voice. “Like what?”
“Like having my mouth between your legs, my tongue flicking your clit. I’m no gentleman, but I’d give you exactly what your body needs.”
Fuck me. The napkin in my hands is steadily ripped to shreds as I stare back at him, heart hammering at what he just said. I’m aghast. Did he just say he wanted to lick my pussy? I should slap him, but what I want to do is lean over the table, grab the collar of his shirt, and crush my mouth against his dirty one.
“I’ve never heard anything so filthy.”
“That’s probably why you can’t tear your eyes away from me.”
Cocky bastard.
The wine slips down my throat, and the warmth spreads to the tips of my toes. My heart pounds harder as I get closer to saying yes, even though it’s a stupid idea. Mark will find out, and he’ll make my life a living hell. No one-night stand is worth that.
“Fuck him. Be my date to the wedding.”
Be my date. It would be so easy to say yes and fuck the consequences. “Do you always get what you want?”