Chapter Eleven Lorenzo
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Lorenzo
L ily volunteering to be my fake fiancée was never an option, and it isn’t about to become one now, so I shut down the idea fast.
“No.”
Lily’s brows hike toward her hairline. “No, you don’t want a fiancée? Or no, you’re still against me stepping in for the job?”
“Both.”
“It’s not like I want to do this either after everything you’ve done, but if it means helping you win the election, then I’ll do it.”
“Why?” I ask.
She keeps her face emotionless. “I don’t like the Ludlows.”
“You don’t like me either, so that can’t be the only reason.”
“It’s personal.”
I wasn’t expecting that, or the reply that follows it.
“I don’t want to talk about it, but trust me. I want you to absolutely decimate them in the election.”
I can’t get a word in because she keeps speaking. “You’re not going to see some massive jump in the polls because you were seen with me.”
My ironclad will is crumbling because I know she is right. I need more , and I need it now before the gap between Trevor and me becomes insurmountable.
She continues, “Our backstory would make sense. We’re two star-crossed lovers who hid our relationship because my family doesn’t like you. Plus we have…” She flicks her hand between us like I’m supposed to understand her version of sign language. “You know.”
I don’t. “Spell it out for me.”
“I’d rather demonstrate.” She brushes her hand over the front of my shirt instead, sending a blazing path of warmth down my body.
I bite my tongue. “Was something supposed to happen?”
To torment me some more, she runs a single finger back up my chest, and I fail to suppress my shiver.
“I can tell we’re going to have fun together.” Her voice has a husky rasp to it.
“This isn’t supposed to be fun,” I hiss, thinking of why I’m doing all of this to begin with.
My parents’ lives were cut short by Trevor Ludlow, so I need to focus on winning. If she can put personal feelings aside, why am I struggling with her logic?
My eyes drop to her mouth and the tiny beauty mark she has—
That’s why.
I glance away, hating myself for being so damn… enamored with her. “I can find another fiancée.”
She unleashes a noise of frustration. “You can’t come out of nowhere and announce you’re suddenly engaged—at least not to a random someone. People here are smart. There’s a huge chance they’ll see through the lie and lose whatever trust they had in you.”
I hate to admit it, but she has a valid point.
“In fact…” She pauses. “I bet that’s why you haven’t picked someone to play the part yet. You think it could backfire, so you’re not willing to take the risk.”
I’m impressed and annoyed, which are two feelings that muddle my brain, along with the entrancing way the corner of her lip pulls up in the sexiest smirk I’ve ever seen.
I force myself to look into her eyes instead. “I’m confused why you’re offering to be my fiancée when you think my plan is stupid.”
“I never said it was stupid. Is it poorly thought-out and risky? Yeah, but stupid…eh. I think there’s merit to you being in a fake relationship with someone. It makes you seem…likeable.”
“Didn’t realize I wasn’t.”
Her nose scrunches. “Moving on… Unlike some woman you’d pay to be your fiancée, I’m a sure thing.
People here know me, and even better, I know them , which makes me an asset.
As you said earlier, they like me, to the point of being invested in who I’m dating and why, and best of all, they trust me.
” Her eyes sparkle with a confidence I find irresistible.
“Of course they do.” She has had twenty-eight years to establish herself as a trustworthy person, and it shows.
“And most importantly, I want you to win.”
“Because you don’t like the Ludlows,” I reply, my tone riddled with skepticism.
She keeps her emotions in check, making it hard to get a clear read on her, which only verifies my doubts.
What did the Ludlows do that made Lily switch to my side, and how do I get her to tell me?
So long as you two have the same goal, who cares?
I hesitate—a rarity in itself—before speaking. “If I agree…”
“Which you will, because my plan is the best.” The way she beams at her own idea should be off-putting, but I like her confidence.
Her strong sense of self drew me into her orbit the first time, and it’s the same trait that could threaten the protective barrier I placed around myself after she blew a hole through it months ago.
Reluctantly, I reply, “In theory, yes, your plan is better.”
“There are already some whisperings about us, especially after the sheriff’s station visit and my drunken episode, so planting additional clues won’t be difficult. They’ll have no choice but to believe it because the signs have been there all along.”
It’s alarming how perfect this all sounds.
Dare I say too perfect.
“So the official storyline is that we’ve secretly been in love this whole time but we hid it?”
She nods. “Ever since we met on a dating app last year.”
“And we kept quiet all because your family doesn’t like me?” Disbelief bleeds into the question. “Doesn’t that seem extreme to you?”
“Anyone who has met my family will understand.”
“So all of Lake Wisteria?”
“You got it.”
“And what changed for us?” I ask. “Why did we decide to go public now versus months ago?”
“I couldn’t stand the idea of keeping our love a secret anymore,” she says dramatically.
“But I think to sell our engagement, we should give everyone at least two months to adjust to the idea of us being a couple before we hit them with a proposal. Because if we come on too strong, too fast, it could be suspicious.”
“Why bother getting engaged at all? We could fake a relationship and save ourselves from a future headache.”
She pauses to think it out before shaking her head. “No. We need something more…permanent. Something that tells the town you’re all-in.”
I stroke my stubbled chin. “Couples call off engagements all the time.”
“Then we’d better do a good job of convincing people that we won’t.”
Her idea does sound far superior to mine, and it could help revitalize my campaign. But the voice of reason questions what will become of me if I agree to work closely with the one person I swore to avoid.
You can’t become obsessed with someone if you stay away , the voice I fight daily speaks up.
Well, I can’t become mayor if I’m ten points behind my competitor, so there’s that.
I can take careful measures to prevent becoming emotionally attached. It’ll require effort on my end to remind Lily of our arrangement, but I’ve never been afraid of a little hard work.
So, without further delay, I decide to take fate into my own hands.
“Fine. Let’s do this.”
She’s about to open her mouth, but a fire alarm goes off inside the bar, drowning out the noise.
“How do you feel about starting right now?” She fists the loose material of my T-shirt and tugs until my mouth is within striking distance.
It happens so fast, I don’t fully process what Lily is doing until her mouth is pressing against mine, making me forget about the chaos ensuing around us.
All I can think about is how this kiss, along with everything else we do from this point on, will be nothing but a lie .