How to Steal Your Best Friend's Fiancé - London Casey Page 0,43

man.”

I casually strolled toward Emily.

I stepped up next to her and looked around.

“What a view,” I said.

“Yeah.”

“Ready to get out of here?”

I looked at her and she looked at me.

“You really want to go?”

“No,” I said. “But I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable. And I’m sorry for what I said back there. It’s not my business or my place to tell a woman how she should feel about herself.”

“Do you really think I’m beautiful?”

“I do, Em. Believe me, I do.”

We both fell silent.

I heard the echoing sound of Glen’s voice as he was at the microphone. Introducing himself, the band, and asking how the food was. The guy loved the attention, that was for sure.

The entire time he spoke, Emily and I stared at each other.

I began to think about the last time I heard from Miranda. The quick texts that meant nothing. She was forever busy in Boston. I was actually feeling calm and collected with Emily.

It was all twisted up, and it was just beginning.

My only choice was to stop it.

I could throw together some wedding ideas and wait for Miranda to get back and talk to her. There was no need for Emily to be involved.

Damn me for going along with it.

Because now she was with me, in a romantic setting, and I was starting to think-

“We have two special people here tonight!” Glen’s voice boomed. “Liam! Where are you? Show off your beautiful fiancée!”

“Oh, shit,” I whispered.

“I take it that’s my cue?” Emily asked.

She turned and walked back toward the table, waving at Glen.

Glen pointed at her and waved back.

Emily then looked back at me and smiled.

This was really happening.

We were about to put our own show on tonight.

Chapter Twenty

Emily

The announcement of Liam and I there together brought on a round of applause I wasn’t expecting. I waited for Liam to catch up to me, my face feeling flush.

Every single person there looked at me.

Looked at Liam.

When Liam ended up next to me again, he gave a quick wave and then grabbed my chair so I would sit down.

My first reaction was shoot…

“What if there’s someone you know here?” I asked him.

He looked around. “I don’t know, Em. I didn’t really think this out. It kind of wasn’t my idea.”

“It wasn’t mine either,” I said.

My level of being annoyed moved up and down like an old wooden rollercoaster.

I appreciated what Liam had been trying to say to me earlier. It gave me butterflies when he said I was beautiful. But the truth was, he was too many years too late to make that kind of comment to me.

Then I went and made it worse by asking if he really meant it.

It wasn’t his job to tell me I was beautiful. And it wasn’t my job to accept his compliments and base my life on them.

William came to the rescue with a bottle of wine.

“Another bottle for the couple,” Glen yelled into the microphone. “Cheers to the happy couple!”

Everyone clapped and cheered for Liam and I.

I stared at him, my face redder than a red pepper.

Slowly, he started to smile.

“What’s so funny here?” I asked.

“This is fucking crazy, Em,” he said. “Do you want to leave?”

“No.”

“Neither do I.”

“If someone sees you and knows you…”

“Who cares, right? It’s not like we’re doing anything wrong. You were asked to come here. To be a stand-in.”

“A stand-in,” I said. “Ouch.”

“Fuck. Em. I suck at words tonight.”

I could tell Liam was basically chewing on his tongue. Hiding his words. Trying to mask them.

Was this entire thing a basket of emotions I wanted nothing to do with?

Yup.

But I was there for Liam. And Miranda.

I grabbed my wine glass and drank like it was water.

I drank it so fast that William came back to refill me right away.

“Getting drunk tonight?” Liam asked me.

“Why not? I don’t know how this works sober.”

Liam lifted his wineglass. “Cheers to my fiancée then.”

“Right back at you, Liam,” I said.

We clanked glasses together.

I drank more wine.

The lines of reality and whatever this was with Liam started to feel blurry.

I didn’t ask for this… right?

Glen’s band took a break just after the sun set.

There were giant poles in the ground with strands of globe-like white lights that were bright enough to light up the tables and the food.

“This never ends, does it?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” Liam said. “I’ve never been here before.”

“Maybe this should be our spot,” I teased. “Since it seems like nobody does know you.”

“Perfect,” he said. “When I need to escape the city and