Fake Marriage (Contemporary Romance Box Set)

“I’ll walk you out,” I said to Mo.

Out on the porch, I asked, “What will you do?”

He stopped, wiping his brow and shaking his head. “I don’t know.” Then he looked at me. “It will be all right.” He pulled me into a hug. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”

The silly girl part of me took his words to heart, feeling like he was my knight in shining armor. But I knew he meant he’d protect my dad and me. It didn’t mean he loved me, at least not in a romantic way. To him, Dad, and me by extension, were family. Still, it was nice to have his support.

I tried to be strong, but at work the next day, the weight of our financial situation weighed heavily on me. I found it difficult to focus. It wasn’t only losing the home I’d grown up in, but the stress had aged my father, too. He was just a few years older than Mo, forty-four, but he looked much older. His skin was sallow, and he had dark circles under his eyes. I was afraid we’d not only had a financial crisis but a potential health crisis, as well.

I was carrying a large stack of files from the file cabinet to my office when they slipped and scattered, along with the contents, all over the floor. For a moment, I could only look at them, and then I burst out crying. Thank God Trina wasn’t there. I was sure she’d find it as an excuse to fire me, and I needed money now more than ever.

“Hey, Brooke, what’s wrong?” Sinclair asked as she appeared in the hall by her office.

I wiped my tears and dropped to the floor to gather the files. It would likely take me the rest of the week to re-sort the papers into the right folder.

“Let’s just pick it all up and sort it in the conference room? Okay?” Sinclair said, kneeling down and picking up folders and papers.

I nodded, unable to find my voice. We took the papers down to the conference room and started on the tedious task of sorting.

“We’ll get this right as rain. Trina won’t know anything happened,” she said brightly. “You know, I’ve been very impressed with your work. You remind me of me when I first started working here. Eager to learn. Wanting to advance. Do you have your sights set on being mayor?”

“No,” I said, trying to be social, but inside, I was trying to hold it together. “I’d like to run a department, though.”

“I could see that.” Sinclair chatted on, and I was happy for the distraction as we sorted and stacked files.

“Listen, it’s none of my business, but you’ve looked out of sorts all day. If you need to talk to someone, I’m here for you.”

I didn’t need the world knowing my business, but the only people I could talk to, Mo, my dad, and maybe Tucker, weren’t here. Unable to stop the floodgates of my worry and stress from opening, I started talking.

“My dad is having financial trouble and says he has to sell the ranch.”

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.”

“It sounds like he’s already had an offer from Mr. Stark.”

Sinclair made a sound. “No doubt.” Then cocked her head. “Your place butts up to Mo’s, right?”

I nodded.

She had a funny little smirk on her face. “I wonder how he feels now that it’s his land that is going to be affected.”

There was a tone to her comment that suggested a bitter undercurrent.

“He said he’d help my father, although I don’t know how. I mean, I know he’s well off, but I’m sure he doesn’t have the money we’d need.”

“I’m so sorry. But people in Salvation aren’t too thrilled about Mr. Stark. I’m sure the mayor will help if that’s what he said.”

I cocked my head. “You almost don’t sound so sure of that.”

She shrugged. “I know your dad and Mo are friends, so he’ll likely be more motivated to help.”

I frowned. “You don’t think he’d be motivated to help you or anyone else.” I found myself feeling annoyed at her attitude. Then again, I often saw them butt heads about things.

“At one time, the mayor was more on Stark’s side than with the farmers.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

She studied me, and I wondered if my infatuation with him was showing as Holly said it was.