My mother’s voice sounds a little strangled. “We are! We are happy, Leo. Of course we are.”
“Yeah,” my dad says, sounding just as shocked and not a little skeptical. “This is amazing. Of course we’re happy. And as soon as we meet your new fiancée, I’ll tell Jerry to wire over the money.”
“Oh, I’m going to make plans!” My mom says and I hear her steps walking away quickly.
“Bye, Leo,” my dad says. He’s way happier than when he picked up the phone. “We’ll see you soon.”
“Wait—” I try to catch him, but the line is already dead.
I stare at the phone for a minute, trying to process everything that just happened. I can’t believe I told them that I’m getting married. And I can’t believe that they’re blackmailing me into it in order to get the money. But worse than that, they need to meet her. That means I need someone to pretend to marry me until the payment comes through.
After that, I’ll figure out the rest of the money on my own. The problem now is finding someone willing to do this.
Fuck.
7
Diana
Almost dying will really take it out of you. Even after sleeping the rest of the day and through the night, I’m exhausted. And instead of going on the hike with the rest of the girls and Hudson—one of the other owners of Blue Mountain—I opt to stay in bed and rest.
But by the time noon rolls around, I’m fully awake and restless. A hike would be too much for me, but I don’t want to stay in the cabin.
It’s actually perfect, because the grounds of Blue Mountain are beautiful. The green of the trees is still fresh and just turning into the deep shades of summer. The grounds run all the way to the river, but given yesterday, I don’t really feel like going down there. Between the stables and the archery range, there are large swaths of grass and woods with nothing but the sound of the wind moving through them. That’s where I spend my time walking.
This is nice. If all nature were like this, I would sign up. Usually I’m more than happy to stay holed up in my office with nature safely on the other side of the windows. Nature from a distance is nice. But here, without the pressure of adventuring and the space to breathe, I get it.
I find a row of large trees, and behind them a row of cabins. They’re beautiful and well-made, but intentionally tucked away. This must be where the owners live, and definitely not where I should be wandering as a guest.
I’m turning away to explore elsewhere when I hear my name behind me.
My breath is suddenly shallow in my chest, because Leo is sitting on the porch of the cabin closest to the river. Just seeing him makes my heart kick up into high gear and my temperature rise. All because I’m remembering that kiss. Less than a day ago this man had his hands all over me. And I would love for him to do it again.
I’m walking over to him without consciously deciding to do it, but I don’t really know what to say to him. He stands and meets me at the bottom of his stairs. I can’t help but notice how he looks today. No rugged sports gear, just shorts and a t-shirt, and he looks damn good in them.
“How are you feeling?”
I stretch a little. “Good. Still tired, but the girls are on a hike and I didn’t want to stay in the cabin. So I’ve just been…walking.”
“Enjoying it?”
“It really is beautiful here,” I say. “And quiet nature seems to be more my speed.”
Leo chuckles. “After yesterday, can’t say I blame you. You want a cup of coffee?”
My only hesitation is that if I go inside his house with him, it’s going to be a real temptation. But a little temptation never hurt anyone, right? My attraction to him is off the fucking charts, and just being in his vicinity has me shaking. I want to know him better, wherever that leads. Emily would be proud. “Sure.”
He leads me into the house, and I perch on a stool while he pours me coffee. “I’m surprised your friends didn’t try to drag you out on the hike.”
I roll my eyes. “Are you kidding? The minute I said I was tired they practically buried me in blankets trying to get me to stay back. They might try to drag me back to bed if they knew that I was here.”
His low chuckle does dangerous things to my insides. But I notice that it doesn’t quite meet his eyes. When I look closer, I see that he looks tired. Drawn almost, like there’s a weight on his shoulders that I can’t quite explain. “You have the day off today?”