Fake Marriage Box Set

“That she'd make a nice addition to the family!” I snapped. “You basically just implied that I was going to marry her.”

“And?” Katherine asked. She shrugged. “You're the happiest that I've ever seen you. And I've never seen you this charming and thoughtful with a woman before. Anyway, there's Emma to think of. You and Lexi have a child. Don't you think it would be best for everyone involved if the two of you tied the knot?”

I stared at her. “I can't believe you,” I finally said in disgust. “I invited you over here so that you could meet the woman that I'm dating. Dating. Not planning an engagement to.”

“I can't believe you,” Katherine retorted. “What, are you holding out for something better? Or are you still just so afraid of becoming Mom and Dad that you're not even willing to give Lexi a chance?”

“I am giving her a chance,” I snapped. “But we're not at the point where we're swearing undying love to one another or anything even remotely close to that. Just watch what you say around her.”

“If you were going to get rid of her, you missed your chance,” Katherine told me. “You know you can't just kick them out now, not now that Emma's grown attached to you.”

“No one said anything about kicking anyone out,” I said peevishly. “Not that any of this is any of your business. You're here to meet Lexi and Emma. Not to give me opinions about how to handle my relationships and live my life.”

Katherine rolled her eyes, but she didn't say anything else. Instead, she stomped off to the kitchen. I closed my eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. I loved Katherine, and I knew she wasn't really trying to meddle. She just wanted to see me happy.

For a second, I allowed myself to entertain the thought of it: a wedding with Lexi. Emma would make the most adorable flower girl, and I could already picture Lexi in her dress, a simple but elegant affair that did nothing to hide her curves. She'd grin demurely at me, and when we kissed–

I shook my head, breaking off the thought. I couldn't think about that now. As I'd said to Katherine, Lexi and I were still a long way off from marriage. Anyway, I should get back to the kitchen, before Katherine let slip some other meddling line.

But throughout the meal, despite the fact that the conversation moved miles away from my relationship with Lexi, I couldn't help tossing the idea around in my mind.

A springtime wedding to Lexi. It was an idea, anyway.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Lexi

Dinner with Katherine had gone well. There had been a couple weird comments here and there, but that was to be expected. It had been fun. I liked Katherine. She reminded me of Misty in a lot of ways. I could see us becoming friends.

If Andrew let us, that was. Katherine had mentioned that she'd originally planned to take Emma and I out to brunch one morning but that Andrew had changed the plan to dinner at his place at the last minute. She hadn't said it in a pointed way. She'd just wanted to invite us to do that some other time.

But it made me wonder why Andrew hadn't said anything about that plan. Was there a reason he wanted to be present while Emma and I hung out with his sister?

Of course, it was one thing for Andrew to commit to dating me. It was another thing entirely for him to introduce me to his family. That was a much bigger step. Maybe he was suddenly getting cold feet about this whole thing.

Whatever this thing between me and Andrew was. No one seemed to know what Andrew and my relationship was, and that was part of the uncertainty at dinner.

I watched Andrew wipe down the already-clean countertops in the kitchen. My brow furrowed. “Are you okay?” I asked.

He glanced up at me and smiled, but the expression didn't quite reach his eyes. “Why wouldn't I be?” he asked, a little extra vigor in his cleaning.

I stared at him for a long moment and then shrugged carefully. “You just seem tense,” I said. “Just figured I'd ask if you were all right.”

“I'm fine,” he said in a clipped tone.

“Okay,” I said. I finished putting away the leftover food and then paused in the doorway of the kitchen. “Tonight was fun, but I guess I'm going to go to bed, then. Have a good night.”

“Wait,” Andrew said, as I started to retreat. He tossed the rag in the sink and turned towards me, raking a hand back through his hair. “I'm sorry. I'm just distracted.” He paused. “What did you think of Katherine?”

“I liked her,” I assured him. “She's very nice, just like you said. I'm not sure that I'll take her up on the admin job because it's probably better suited to someone with experience in the non-profit field, but it was nice of her to offer. And the doll she brought for Emma is gorgeous.” I smiled. “Actually, Katherine reminds me a lot of my friend Misty.”

“Good,” Andrew said, but he still seemed distracted. I waited, wondering if he'd say anything else. But when he spoke again, his words caught me off guard. “Come to bed with me.”

I blinked. We'd had sex a couple t

imes now, but I still spent most nights alone in the guest bedroom. I knew he was probably horny, having gone from sleeping with multiple women per week to sleeping with nobody after he broke up with Renée, but he'd been very good about keeping his hands to himself.

The fact that we'd just had dinner with his sister made this seem like something more, maybe. Like he wasn't just asking for sex.