Chapter 7
“It’s Monday. The show’s about to start. And I have pizza with goat cheese, Kalamata olives, and hot honey,” Ankita said from outside Meghna’s apartment.
Meghna looked at the door and sighed. She should have suspected something like this was coming. She’d been dodging Ankita’s calls for too long. And last week had been the first time one of them had skipped out on their weekly reality show watch night in years. She shot the door another wary glance. She was dreading this confrontation, and part of her was tempted to just pretend she wasn’t home.
“You have to let me in,” Ankita called out. “The pizza’s getting cold.”
Meghna was quiet for a second, then shouted back, “I like cold pizza.”
“I know. And I think it’s disgusting!”
Meghna rolled her eyes, but got up to let her in. Even though she was still upset with Ankita, it was probably time for them to have it out. Besides, Ankita hated olives. Her ordering them for Meghna was a true peace offering.
She swung the door open. Ankita held a large pizza box, a slightly nervous expression on her face. Meghna took the box from her hands and gestured for her to come in.
“I didn’t mean to just show up like this, but you weren’t returning my calls. Or my texts and—”
“I needed some space.”
Ankita swallowed. “Right. Of course.”
They stood there for a moment, awkwardly facing each other, until Meghna put the pizza down on the coffee table and spread a blanket on the floor. They sat down, but neither of them moved to turn the television on.
“I don’t know what to say. I don’t know how to explain what …” Ankita stopped, letting out a loud breath.
“How long has this been going on?” Meghna asked. She thought that was as good a place to start as any.
“Nothing’s going on. We didn’t plan this. I haven’t talked to Samir in … in years. Not since he moved to India.”
“Then how did it happen?”
Ankita shook her head. “I don’t even know. I saw him at your parents’ table and that was … fine. He came up and congratulated me and Rishi on the engagement. I thanked him. Rishi thanked him. It was all very civil. And then I went to the bathroom and he just … He followed me inside and said he needed to talk to me. And then … I mean, it was Samir, and he was kissing me, and so … I kissed him back.”
Meghna went still. “What do you mean it was Samir?”
Ankita shifted uneasily. “You know I’ve always liked Samir.”
“Yeah, sure. But I also thought you were in love with your fiancé. I mean, seriously, Ankita, this is your explanation? You kissed my brother even though you are engaged to someone else because you had a crush on him as a kid?”
“It wasn’t a crush. I was in love with him!”
Meghna snorted. “What? When you were five?”
“No. In college. And he said he was too, but he must have been lying because he literally left for India the next week and I—”
“In college?” Surprise jolted through her, and Ankita snapped her mouth shut, guilt spreading across her face.
Meghna closed her eyes, realizing what this meant. Ankita had lied to her. Something had happened between Ankita and Samir that summer.
“I wanted to tell you about it,” Ankita said. “I wanted to tell you everything, but Samir didn’t want anyone to know. And then it was over and it seemed pointless to bring it up. And embarrassing. And too much time had passed and I …”
Hurt blossomed in Meghna’s chest. They’d both lied to her. For years.
“I’m sorry,” Ankita said. “I am. I mean, I could tell you all about it now and we could talk and—”
“Does Rishi know?” Meghna interrupted. “Have you told him?”
“No, I … I don’t think I’m going to. It was one kiss. And Samir’s back in India and we’re never going to … It’s never going to happen again.”
Meghna stared at her in disbelief. “So, that’s it? You’re going to lie to him too?”
“I love Rishi. I just … lost my head for a moment. It was a mistake.”
“Yeah. Obviously. But don’t you think keeping all of this a secret from your fiancé would be another one?”
Ankita paled, but offered only an anemic shrug.
Meghna sighed, pulling out two slices of pizza and handing one to Ankita. Ankita picked off the olives one by one, tossing them back into the box.
Meghna was still upset, but things between the two of them were tense enough right now. And she was too tired. Too confused. Too hurt. She didn’t want to say anything she’d regret later. She needed time to process all of this.
They ate their pizza in silence until Ankita asked about the trip to New York. Meghna filled her in on what had happened and told her about the upcoming bachelor party.
“How is that going to work?” Ankita asked. “He’s going to party with you and Seth and the guys?”
“I can’t really picture Karthik partying, but yeah, that’s the general idea. It’s going to be so awkward. I tried to convince him it was a bad idea, but he’s right. It’d be weird if he didn’t come now, after he told Seth he would.”
“Well, just think of it like an opportunity,” Ankita said.
“An opportunity for what?”
“I just meant that if you ever wanted to make Seth jealous, now’s a good chance.”
“I don’t see how. He already knows I’m engaged.”
“Yeah, but you’re going to have to convince him and everyone else that the engagement is real.”
“Right.”
“So that involves stuff like holding hands, being touchy-feely, kissing …”
Meghna’s brain short-circuited. She hadn’t seriously thought about kissing Karthik before, but now a picture of it popped into her head. Him towering over her, his warm hand on her lower back, his other hand cradling her cheek. A wave of heat swept through her body. Whoa. She hadn’t expected that.
“Seems like it could be fun,” Ankita said.
Meghna shot her an annoyed look. They finished eating, but instead of turning on the show, Meghna said she wanted to have an early night. For the first time in her life, she wasn’t really in the mood for two hours of reality television. Ankita left quickly, and Meghna shut and locked the door behind her.
She was still so angry. And frustrated. And irritated by what Ankita had done. By what Ankita had said. She thought this trip could be fun? Fun for who, exactly? The whole thing sounded stressful. Pretending to be engaged to this confusing and irritating man, convincing her ex and his friends that their relationship was real, all while pretending she didn’t have any leftover feelings for Seth? What about that sounded fun?
The image of Karthik kissing her suddenly popped back into her head. His dark eyes staring intently at her, his stubble scratching her cheek, his body flush against hers. Nervous energy fluttered in her stomach, along with something that felt a lot like excitement. Who knew what could happen on this trip? Maybe there was a chance it would end up being a little fun after all.
“That’s not right,” Meghna said. “I called and confirmed this yesterday. They told me the room had two queen beds.”
“I’m sorry,” the man behind the front desk said. “Our system shows you booked a king bed suite. But it’s a great room. Much nicer than our two-queen standard.”
A breeze swept through the hotel lobby, carrying the scent of the beach toward them. Salt water, coconut sunscreen, and something floral. It blew quickly, disturbing Meghna’s hair, and Karthik watched with interest as she absently removed a hair tie from around her wrist, gathered her curls, and twisted them in one sharp movement into a bun.
“No. You need to move us back,” she told the hotel employee. “We don’t want the upgrade.” Meghna turned toward Karthik, an uneasy expression on her face. “I booked a room with two beds. I swear.”
“I believe you,” he said. Her panic seemed too real for it to be fake. He would almost be offended that she was so upset at the thought of sharing a bed with him, except the idea was making him equally panicky. A bead of sweat formed on his forehead. He wiped it away quickly.
“I can sleep on the floor,” he told her. “It’s not a big deal.”
“But you shouldn’t have to. Look,” she said, facing the front desk again. “You have to have some room with two beds available? Or at least a rollaway cot?”
The man looked at his computer screen and clacked his keyboard for a few seconds. “I’m sorry,” he finally said. “We don’t have anything else. I can go talk to our manager and see if there’s—”
“Please, yes. Anything you can do,” Meghna said hurriedly. The man walked away in a huff, and Meghna swiveled back to Karthik.
“Maybe we can get you another room,” she said.
He raised an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t that defeat the whole purpose of the trip? Convincing them we’re a real couple?”
“You’re right,” she said. “I’m not thinking straight.” She shook her head. “Honestly, I’m a little nervous about all of this.”
“Really?” he asked, trying to make his voice even more monotone than usual. “I had no idea.”
She stared at him for a moment. “Are you teasing me?”
The corners of his mouth tilted up.
“You are. You’re teasing me.” Her mouth stretched into that familiar, wide smile, and pride flared in Karthik’s chest. His words had produced that look on her face. She was directing that joy at him and him alone.
“Hello, lovebirds,” a voice called out behind them.
Meghna’s smile disappeared.
A sandy-haired man in a floral-print shirt, navy swim trunks, and Birkenstocks walked toward them. Once he was in front of Meghna, the man threw his arms around her and hugged her tightly, almost lifting her off the ground. “You’re here!” he exclaimed. He held her for what seemed like several minutes before finally letting go and shaking Karthik’s hand. “And you must be Karthik. I’ve heard so much about you.”
Can’t say the same. “It’s nice to meet you, Seth. Congratulations on your upcoming wedding.”
Seth grinned. “And same to you.” He turned to Meghna. “And you! I can’t believe I didn’t find out about this sooner.”
Meghna snorted. “You’re one to talk. I didn’t find out until I got your invitation in the mail.”
“Well, we always were too similar for our own good,” Seth said, his grin taking on a new dimension, almost as if he was referring to some secret or joke between the two of them. Karthik gritted his teeth.
“Have you guys checked in?” Seth asked. “We got here about an hour ago and were thinking of going down to the beach for a bit—”
“I’m sorry about that, ma’am,” a voice from the front desk cut in. “We had an issue with our system, but we have a room with two queen beds available for you. I have your room keys ready and—”
“Oh, no,” Meghna said quickly. “You must have us confused with somebody else. We have the king suite.”
The manager furrowed his eyebrows. “I was told you needed two beds …”
Karthik placed an arm around Meghna’s shoulders, pulling her into his body. “Nope. Must have been a miscommunication.” Meghna’s entire face froze except for her eyes, which were growing wider than he’d ever seen them. He squeezed her shoulder.
“You can’t keep me away from this one,” he said, letting out a louder-than-normal laugh. Meghna seemed to get the hint. Her body relaxed slightly, and she let out a strained laugh of her own.
The manager looked puzzled, but apologized and handed them their room keys. Seth watched them oddly, his eyes glued to Karthik’s hand on Meghna’s shoulder. Karthik instinctively dropped his hand and tucked it into his pocket, which seemed to shake Seth from his thoughts.
“Glad that all got sorted out. Y’all take your time getting changed and stuff. We’ll be at the beach,” Seth said. “Text me if you have any problems, okay?”
After promising to meet up with everyone later, Meghna and Karthik headed toward the elevators. As soon as the doors slid shut, Meghna dropped her head into her palms.
“We can’t do this,” she said, her voice muffled by her hands. “We should just leave.”
No.Karthik started, surprised by how strong that thought had been. He didn’t even know where it had come from.
“What are you worried about?” he asked.
She lifted her head, disbelief etched across her features. “Are you kidding me? Were you not just there?”
He crossed his arms. “I think we handled that fairly well.”
She rolled her eyes.
“And we’ll keep getting better,” he continued. “This is new right now. We just need … practice.”
“Practice?” she asked skeptically.
Yes. That’s it. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of it before.
“This is a performance, right? To make it believable, we just need to rehearse.”
“Rehearse what?”
His throat went dry as his mind generously provided him with numerous suggestions. “Everything.”
She just stared at him.
“Like earlier,” he said. “You acted like we had never touched before.”
“Because we haven’t!”
“I know, but they need to believe we’re together, right? You need to act like it’s normal.”
“None of this is normal,” she muttered.
“No, but it’s what we agreed to.”
Her face remained blank. Inscrutable.
“I’m just being practical,” he insisted.
The elevator doors opened and they stepped out onto their floor, walking in silence to their room.
As the silence dragged on, he began to regret his words. Now she probably thought he was some slimeball trying to come on to her. Like that creep who’d approached her at Ankita’s party. He frowned. He should have offered to leave as soon as he’d noticed she was uncomfortable. Maybe that was what she wanted. He was about to suggest some excuse they could give the group about why he had to leave suddenly when her voice cut him off.
“Mind if I use the bathroom?” she asked. She grabbed a handful of things from her suitcase and stepped inside before he could respond.
A few minutes later she walked back out wearing a bright red bikini and a gauzy white cover-up, though Karthik thought the name was a misnomer. It covered nothing. She wasn’t particularly tall, but right now all he could see were her legs. Smooth and long, as if they went on forever. Whoa. All thoughts of leaving flew out of his head.
He realized he was staring and quickly looked away, fishing his swim trunks out of his bag. “Excuse me,” he said, going into the bathroom. He shut the door behind him and turned on the faucet. A faint buzzing rang in his ears.
What she wears is none of my business. I shouldn’t care. I shouldn’t even be looking. But for whatever reason, the image of her standing there in that swimsuit was burned into his mind.
His temperature skyrocketed. He splashed some water on his face, trying to erase the picture from his head and cool himself down. Maybe he was coming down with something. Maybe he was contagious. If he was, she’d been exposed to it too. To be on the safe side, they probably needed to quarantine. Lock themselves in this room and never leave. Then she wouldn’t go down to the beach looking like that with all those bozo groomsmen around.
None of my business,he reminded himself.
She’s your fiancée,the dumb half of his brain immediately replied.
She’s not. Not really. And even if she was, it still wouldn’t be any of my business. He splashed some more water on his face, his body returning to normal, his rationality slowly returning.
He was attracted to her. It was just biology. Inconvenient, but not an insurmountable problem. He would simply push it down. Suppress it. At least he was aware of it now. And thank goodness Meghna had rejected his pathetic idea to “rehearse.” If he had been forced to practice certain … things with her, well, he didn’t know what would happen exactly, but he worried it would jeopardize their deal. And he couldn’t allow that to happen. He stared at his reflection, watching his usual cool demeanor fall back into place. He could control this. He had to.
“I think you’re right,” Meghna said once Karthik walked out of the bathroom.
“About what?”
“About practicing.”
Karthik blanched, his face turning ashen.
“Are you okay?”
Karthik coughed. “I’m fine.”
He reached for the unopened bottle of water sitting on the dresser and gulped a good chunk of it down.
Meghna’s eyebrows rose. “Are you sure you’re fine? You just opened a five-dollar bottle of water.”
He reared his head back and looked at the bottle, seeing the fancy brand name and the hanging price tag the hotel had added to it. He coughed again.
“Here, come sit down,” Meghna said, guiding him to the edge of the bed. He took a seat and she moved to stand in front of him, placing the back of her hand on his forehead.
He shivered.
“Do you have chills? You don’t feel warm.”
“I’m fine,” he said, his eyes glued to the floor. She leaned back and gave him an assessing look. He didn’t have a fever, but his face was flushed.
“Are you sure? Maybe it’s the weather change. Sometimes the humidity can make it harder to breathe.”
“That must be it,” he said. “I’ll be fine once I get used to the difference.” He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths.
Meghna grabbed the water bottle and handed it back to him. He let out a thankful grunt, but his eyes remained closed. As he drank the water, her thoughts drifted to the conversation she had tried to start earlier.
Ever since Ankita had planted the idea of kissing Karthik in her brain, Meghna hadn’t been able to stop thinking about it. Images of “the kiss” kept popping into her head during inopportune times. While she was teaching. Or talking to her mother. Or trying to work on her play. On the flight to Miami, she’d decided that she just needed to get it out of her system. Just one kiss. And once it was over, she’d be able to put it out of her mind and continue her fake engagement in peace.
She’d started brainstorming ways to convince Karthik that a kiss would be necessary to keep up their charade, but she had never imagined that an opportunity would present itself this neatly. That he would be the one to suggest “practicing.” But of course, the second she brought it up, he became visibly sick. Her stomach sank. Had the idea of kissing her made him physically ill?
“Let’s go down,” Karthik suddenly said, standing up and making his way to the door.
“You sure you’re feeling up to it?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” He glanced back at the bed, his throat moving in a hard swallow. “I think it’ll get better once I’m out of this room.”
“Sure. I guess the fresh air could help.”
They took the elevator back down to the lobby, stopped at the front desk to grab some towels, then followed the signs to the resort beach.
It wasn’t too hard to find Seth and the rest of the guys. They had rented a cabana and were playing loud dance music on a portable speaker. She immediately spotted Eric and Mark, two of Seth’s groomsmen, playing beach volleyball a few feet away from everyone else. Back in college, everyone had affectionately referred to them as “the twins,” even though they weren’t related in any way.
The two of them still looked remarkably alike, standing at the same height, with dark-brown hair and deep-set dimples. Almost all of her friends had been in love with them at one point or another, but she’d never considered them anything more than Seth’s annoying roommates. She waved at the guys, and they headed over once they spotted her.
“Meghna!” Eric shouted, bumping his fist against hers. “We need to get you a shot. Mark, did you forget the Patrón in the room or did we bring it down with us?”
Meghna laughed. “Okay, guys, it’s still bright out. I’m not ready to get wild yet.”
Mark grinned goofily. “Hasn’t stopped us!”
She shook her head in mock disapproval. “Well, I’m going to need to pace myself.” She grabbed a soda out of a nearby cooler, then dropped her bag and towel on an open lounger. Karthik mirrored her movements, dropping his towel onto the lounger beside hers.
“Guys, this is Karthik,” she said, grabbing his hand and interlocking their fingers. “My fiancé.”
“Nice to meet you, man,” Mark said.
Eric groaned. “I can’t believe all of you are getting married. We’re not old enough for that yet.”
“You may have stopped maturing at twenty-one, but that doesn’t mean the rest of us did,” Mark replied. Eric shoved Mark’s shoulder, and the two of them bickered back and forth while Meghna and Karthik went off to greet the rest of the guys. Meghna hadn’t met the remaining two groomsmen before: Blake, a friend of Seth’s from work, and Seth’s cousin, Ralph, who looked up at them over the cover of his book, then went straight back to his reading.
Seth had already gone for a swim and was jogging back from the ocean, his hair flying in the wind like something out of a commercial.
“Hey, glad you guys are here!” he shouted to them. He joined them at the loungers, claiming the one to the right of Meghna, leaving her sandwiched in the middle between him and Karthik. He picked up a tube of sunscreen and started rubbing it onto his shoulders and face, though both had already turned an alarming shade of pink.
“I always forget that I need to reapply,” he said. “You want some?” He waved the sunscreen in her direction.
Meghna laughed, stretching her legs out in front of her, fully reclining in her chair. “When have I ever needed sunscreen?”
“You don’t wear sunscreen?” Karthik asked.
“Do you? I’ve never gotten sunburned.”
His brows snapped together. “Me either, but sunscreen is recommended even if you have a lot of melanin. You can still get serious skin damage. Even skin cancer. Dermatologists recommend …”
Gah. Why was she finding this lecture so cute? It should have been irritating. She didn’t understand it, but she couldn’t stop the wide smile spreading across her face. His voice suddenly trailed off.
“You … you should wear sunscreen,” he finished.
She threw her hands up in resignation. “Fine, fine.” She grabbed the sunscreen from Seth and started putting it on her arms and legs. Then she handed it to Karthik and turned around in her chair, presenting her back to him.
“Mind getting my back?” He’d made fun of her earlier for acting like they had never touched before, and she was tempted to give him a taste of his own medicine. See how calmly he reacted to having to put sunscreen on her bare skin.
Karthik took the sunscreen from her without complaint, poured it into his hands, and started rubbing it on her. Unexpected sparks of pleasure burst across her skin. They followed wherever his hands went: the backs of her arms, down her spine, her lower back. The pleasure grew, and it was almost as if all the bones in her body had disappeared, like she would melt into a puddle right there and then. But she wasn’t supposed to be the one so affected by this. And with her back to him, she couldn’t even see how he was reacting or if he was reacting at all. Her plan had been poorly thought out. Again, he seemed to have the upper hand in whatever strange game the two of them were playing.
His hands suddenly stopped. She turned, and he immediately averted his eyes, looking off toward the ocean.
“All done?” she asked, working hard to make her voice sound light and breezy.
“Yup. Here you go,” he said, handing the sunscreen back to her.
“What about you?”
He shook his head, getting up from the lounger. “Put some on earlier. I’m going to go for a swim.” He started walking toward the water, but glanced back at her with an odd expression. She frowned, hoping he wasn’t still feeling unwell.
“You two make quite the couple,” Seth remarked, his eyes following Karthik’s path down the beach.
“Thanks. And I know I’ve only seen pictures, but you and Julie look really great together.” As she said the words out loud, she was surprised to realize she actually meant them. She’d scoured their engagement pictures on the wedding website, feeling a bit nauseous as she went through them. Somehow each pose managed to be more lovey-dovey than the one before. But after she had finished her scrolling, she had to admit they looked like they went together. Like one of those couples in the black-and-white stock photos in brand-new picture frames. They seemed to just fit.
Seth put a hand behind his head, turning on his side to face her. “I think you’ll really like her.” He pulled his phone out and started swiping his finger across the screen. “Actually, I’ve been meaning to ask your advice about something.”
“Go for it.”
“I’m working on something to sing for her at the reception, but I’m worried it’s a little too sappy,” he said.
Meghna’s gut twisted, but she tried to ignore it.
“Could I send you the lyrics? Get your thoughts?”
“Sure,” she said. “I’d love to take a look.”
He smiled, his teeth unnaturally white and gleaming. Had he gotten them bleached recently? Meghna winced. They were almost blinding.
She’d joked once with him, after his first song had sold, about whether he’d have to change up his look. If he’d start wearing designer clothes or get some trendy new hairstyle. If he’d forget all about her once he became rich and famous. He’d laughed and promised he’d never do that. And she’d been pleasantly surprised that he’d meant it. He hadn’t forgotten about her. Not after his breakout hit. Or his second. Or his third.
He’d still been there for her. Still read everything she sent him. And he’d continued to send his songs over as well, showing her how much he valued her and her opinion. Even this last year, when he’d started churning out songs at an unprecedented rate, she’d discussed every one with him, making suggestions and workshopping ideas. It was just what they did. How their writing partnership worked. Though now that she thought about it, it had been a while since they’d had a similar conversation about her own words.
Her phone pinged, signaling he had emailed the lyrics over.
“I’ll read it this week,” she told him.
“Thanks, Meg. Your feedback on my last song is truly the only reason it sold.” He shook his head. “It was a mess before you looked at it.”
“Really, it’s fine. I like to do it.” In their college Intro to Creative Writing class, she and Seth had tried a little bit of everything. Poems, short stories, songs, and plays. He’d gravitated to songwriting, and she’d found her niche in theater, but both had dabbled a bit in the other’s craft. She’d written a handful of songs back then, and Seth had liked them just fine, but he’d been much more encouraging and supportive of her plays.
She’d secretly written a few more songs over the years, but never shared the new ones with Seth. His songs were amazing. And he was a professional. She was terrified to see what he would think of her amateur efforts. Plays were familiar. Safe. And she already knew he loved them. Something about songwriting felt more … intimate. And she wasn’t sure she wanted to subject her songs to Seth’s usual blunt feedback.
Seth rubbed the back of his neck, a sheepish expression crossing his face. “And I know I’m really behind on responding to that revised draft you sent me a while ago. I’m so sorry.”
“That’s okay,” she said, though she felt a touch of annoyance. He hadn’t responded to anything she’d sent in the last few months, and his comments from before then had been vague but critical. She didn’t mind criticism, but he hadn’t pointed out what he thought could be improved or how. He’d only said it wasn’t working. Though his instincts about these things were usually right. Maybe what she’d sent wasn’t working at all. Maybe he had meant that she should scrap it all and start over. What she’d written must have been unsalvageable. She made a mental note to go back and consider yet another rewrite.
“It’s just that wedding planning has been eating up all of my time,” he said, letting out a big sigh.
“Right,” she said, traces of annoyance returning. “And I wouldn’t know anything about that.”
“Hey, I didn’t mean it like that. I know you’re probably busy with wedding planning too.” His eyes traveled over her face. “Hard to believe we’re both engaged, huh?”
“I guess,” she said in a deliberately casual tone. “Though it was bound to happen sometime.”
“You’re right.” A strange look came over his face. “Did you ever think …” His voice trailed off into silence.
“What?” she asked, her heart beating faster than normal.
He shook his head. “Nothing. It’s just a little weird for me to think about both of us getting married. You know, I don’t think I’ve ever even met one of your boyfriends before?”
Meghna almost rolled her eyes. Of course he hadn’t. She’d ended things with a number of guys over the years, just so she could seem available around Seth.
“It’s going to take me a little while to get used to thinking about you as … someone’s wife,” he said.
She scrunched up her nose. “What does that mean?”
“Only that my little Meg is all grown up,” he said with a grin.
Okay, she was fully annoyed now. “I’m not your little anything.”
His eyebrows jumped. “Meg, what’s going on with you? I’m just joking.”
She forced out an exhale. This was Seth. He was just teasing her like always. And it was his trip. There was no need to fight over something so trivial. Especially when he didn’t mean anything by it. “Yeah, I know.”
“So,” he said, shrugging off their almost-argument. “Where should we go tonight? I’ve narrowed it down to three places ….”
Meghna listened as he described the options, but found her attention wandering. Sometimes her friendship with Seth felt so one-sided. Like he was constantly asking for her advice. Like she was giving and giving and giving without getting anything in return. But he was busier than usual right now. And stressed. Planning a real wedding had to be a lot more complicated and time-consuming than her fake one.
Things between the two of them would get back to normal after the wedding was over. They had to.
She refocused on their discussion, helping him pick a place for all of them to go tonight. She pasted a smile on her face when he clinked his drink against hers in celebration.