Fake Marriage (Contemporary Romance Box Set)

He arched a brow. “I do have a couple of big pieces that I’ll need help carrying up the stairs.”

I called to let Trina and Sinclair know I’d be out, maybe for the day, and then drove to meet Tucker at his new place. When I’d arrived, he’d done his walkthrough and was ready to move his things in. As I helped him, he yammered on about life in Chicago and looking forward to a slower pace here in Salvation and a potential love interest. I remembered Brooke saying something about his interest in Holly St. James, and I wondered if that was who he was talking about.

We got the large pieces of furniture into the space.

“What about a bed?” I asked as I looked into the truck after getting his couch, dresser, and a small dining table up, but I didn’t see any mattress.

“It’s in that box.”

I looked over at a box that, while large, was too small for a bed.

“New place, new bed,” He said. “When you open it, the bed like…inflates or something. It got great reviews. Want to take a break? Get a beer or something?”

“Sure.” I carried another box up behind him and then followed him to the little kitchen. He handed me a beer.

“This place isn’t much, but it’s bigger and cheaper than what I had in Chicago,” he said as he scanned the kitchen and eat-in area. “I guess you’ve always lived here, huh?”

“I lived away during college, but yes, I grew up here. I live in the same house I grew up in.” In some ways, that made my life feel small. Here was a young man who was venturing out, forging a new direction. Except for running for mayor, I was doing what my father had done and what his father had done.

“Hey, you started without me,” Brooke’s voice carried into the kitchen from the doorway.

I stilled as nerves shimmered inside me.

“You were right, Brooke. This town is nice. Look at the service I got. The mayor of Salvation helped me move.”

She stopped in the doorway, her eyes wide as she looked at me. “Mo.”

I nodded, not sure what to say. I’d spent hours wanting to talk to her, but now that she was here, I wasn’t sure what I should say.

“Did you get your phone?” Tucker asked her.

She shook her head.

Tucker looked from me then to Brooke. “Well, I think I’ll go down and get some boxes. There’s a beer in the fridge if you want one,” he said to Brooke as he walked out of the kitchen.

For a moment, Brooke and I just stood looking at each other. God, she was so beautiful. Her blue eyes stared at me, and I hoped to God I saw hope in them.

“What are you doing here?” she managed to ask.

“I was hoping to talk to you.”

“How’d you know I’d be here?”

My own hope started to falter a bit at her questions. I wondered if she was bothered that I was here. “I saw you the other day at Tucker’s hotel room. I tried to call you, but…”

“My dad took my phone.” She looked down.

“Why did you let him do that?” I don’t know why I asked that.

Her gaze shot to mine with anger. “I guess because I’m just a kid, after all. I guess you were right all this time.”

Wait. What? All of a sudden, this conversation was going off the rails.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were going out there to tell my father?” she demanded

Fair question. “I thought I owed it to Frank to tell him the truth. Stark beat me to it, though.” Concern filled me as I imagined the anger Frank had toward me directed at Brooke. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

She turned away. “He forbade me from seeing you like I was sixteen or something.”