Chapter 12
JULES
“Did we really need to start with telling our moms?” I peer up at Lincoln as he opens my door and helps me out of the front passenger side of his car.
“Huh?” he mutters, his attention fixed on Cameron who’s already hopped out of the back seat and is wandering up the parking lot sidewalk ahead of us.
I stare at my fake fiancé hopefully. “I was thinking we could start with some low hanging fruit. Test out the waters by telling the neighborhood mailman our big news. Or maybe that tall, gangly teenager who bags groceries at the market downtown.”
But Mei Sasaki and Monica Raines? Together? Over lunch? Talk about nerve-wracking.
“I don’t think we can pull this off, Lincoln. Our meet cute is so not cute, and we don’t even have a proposal story to tell, and you know they’re going to ask.”
Lincoln sighs impatiently, his massive hand finding the small of my back, coaxing my steps forward. “They’re our mothers, Jules. They need to be the first to know.”
Admittedly, it’s hard to fight the logic in that. No matter how uncomfortable it makes me feel.
So we’ve invited my mother, Lincoln’s mother and Cameron to join us for a casual Saturday afternoon lunch at a restaurant in town. Not the one I just quit from, thank goodness. I had to put my foot down when Lincoln suggested La Trésor des Fées.
I paste on a wobbly grin as we step through the entrance of Matilda’s, a new seafood franchise that recently opened here in Fairy Bush. Cameron heads straight to the table where our mothers are already seated, lost in their own conversation even though they’ve just met.
I lean in to whisper in Lincoln’s ear as we walk over to meet them. “Sooo…we just tell them? Rip the bandaid off?”
He gives a little shrug, his grin as stiff as concrete on his handsome face. I realize for the first time that he looks just as nervous as I feel. That doesn’t comfort me one bit.
“We’ll, uh, test out the waters. See how it goes.”
I eyeball him murderously, still smiling through gritted teeth. “We’re winging this? You said you had a plan!”
“The plan is us not blowing this whole thing up within the first two minutes.” He politely pulls out my chair. “Now, smile big, Troublemaker,” he says into my ear before helping Cameron into his seat and then sitting beside me.
The server delivers our drinks and we all place our meal orders. We chat about nothing while we wait for lunch to be served.
After a while, my mom starts eyeballing me, silently asking what the heck this out-of-the-blue lunch date is all about.
I kick at Lincoln’s leg under the table.
“Ow!” he hisses, eye-poisoning me as he rubs at his injured shin.
I glare right back.
He lets out a heavy exhale. Then, he turns to the table with a brilliant smile that almost has me fooled.
“Mom. Ms. Sasaki. Cameron. As you’ve probably guessed, this isn’t just an ordinary lunch. Jules and I have invited you here today to announce that we”—he clears his throat and gives me a sidelong glimpse—“well, we’re getting married.”
My mother looks at me.
Lincoln’s mother looks at him.
In unison, they bark. “Married?!”
Lincoln yanks on the knot of his tie. “Yes, married. It took some convincing—”
I cup a hand around my mouth and lean toward my mom. “You should have seen him crawling around on the floor and begging.”
“—but I have agreed to make Jules the luckiest girl alive,” he finishes, his tone flat and dry as he reaches over and wraps his large hand around mine.
“It’s the other way around, sweetie. You’re lucky to have me.” I squeeze his fingers with all my strength. It pisses me off that the big, strong man doesn’t even flinch.
“Oh, the luckiest,” he says through a tight jaw.
I turn to Monica with a smile that I hope is at least somewhat convincing.
“That’s right. He really wore me down. You know me, I’m a stubborn girl, but your son is pretty persuasive when he wants something.
That something just happens to be me.” I giggle coyly and I can’t help but wonder if my cheesy joke sounds a little too rehearsed.
Monica offers a wide-eyed smile. “Oh, well this is the most unexpected news. Good news,” she adds quickly, “but unexpected nonetheless.”
“Yes,” my mother chimes in, her question-filled eyes bouncing between Lincoln and me. “Congratulations, you two…”
“Yes, congratulations.” Monica hops out of her seat, rounding the table to pull her son and me into a three-person hug.
My mom joins in, giving me a tight embrace before wrapping her arms around Lincoln for a squeeze.
The women’s chatter escalates, building off of each other’s excitement and resulting in another round of hugs. It gives me whiplash how quickly their initial shock wears off, giving way to pure unrestrained joy. Gazes around the restaurant are aimed in our direction and people are whispering.
I grin at Lincoln. So far, our scheme is holding up well. I find myself starting to relax a tad.
But then, I hear a tiny voice ask, “Dad…you’re getting married…?”
All eyes swing to Cameron. A hush falls over our corner of the room.
The little boy sits there in his chair, eyes swimming in confusion, bottom lip trembling. I feel a tiny stab inside my chest. Poor kid.
Lincoln leans down so he’s at eye level with his son. “Yeah, buddy. I’m getting married to Jules. But you don’t have to worry. That won’t change anything between you and me, okay?”
Cameron gives me a doubtful glance before his eyes return to his father’s. “O..okay.”
Smiling softly, my mom reaches across the table and puts a hand on top of Cameron’s. “And you get an extra grandma, if you want…”
The boy awards my mother with a shy grin. “Yeah. Okay. Having an extra grandma would be cool.”
We all laugh at that.
Eyebrows scrunched together, Cameron goes back to coloring the back of the kids menu. He’s not sold on this. He has questions. Crap.
Meanwhile, the moms instantly go into planning mode, asking a million questions and sharing ideas for the wedding. They’re getting along beautifully. No one would ever guess that this is their first time meeting one another.
My eyes meet Lincoln’s. His hand covers mine again. The way his thumb is gently skimming back and forth over my palm is proving to be a beautiful distraction. For some freaking reason, I find myself blushing, even though I know that his affection is fake.
He’s a really good actor. Way better than I am.
But as I stare into those endless blue eyes of his, I find myself thinking, This might actually work. We might actually pull this off.
It’s not until after lunch arrives that I notice a shift in my mom. She falls quiet. My gut tightens at the expression on her face.
I know that expression. Her wheels are starting to turn, and questions are forming in her head.
Oh God. No questions, please. Please, no questions, I silently beg, stuffing my mouth with lobster lasagna and hoping to avoid her curious stare.
“You know,” Mom says, unfolding her napkin across her lap. “I didn’t even realize you two were dating. How long have you been together?”
Lincoln’s mom nods along. “Me neither, you sneaky foxes! Tell us how you started dating.”
“Oh. That’s a funny story, actually,” Lincoln starts, avoiding eye contact as he refills everyone’s water glasses.
“Well, it’s not all that funny really,” I interject. “We basically just reconnected through Alba and Easton.” I smirk. “Lincoln didn’t even like me when we first saw each other last summer.”
I think back to that day we first ran into each other.
He and his brothers were at The Whiskey Barrel, having a drink.
He gave me the brushoff at the bar. It was like the moment he looked at me, he decided I wasn’t good enough.
Even though I’m wearing his cheap, tacky engagement ring now, knowing that Lincoln has had a bad impression of me right from the get-go still stings.
He scoffs. “Not true. You were the one who didn’t like me.”
I feel our mother’s eyes bouncing off of us as we go back and forth. Even though I’d really, really like to keep going so I can win this ridiculous argument with Lincoln, I decide to forfeit.
“Nah, I was just playing hard to get.” I bat my lashes again, shamelessly lying my ass off.
“Okay then,” my mom says. “Well, what’s your favorite thing about each other? Was it his dreamy blue eyes you fell for?” She smiles at me.
Lincoln chuckles at the praise, and I notice the way his cheeks pinken slightly.
I stall, searching my brain for a compliment that won’t go straight to his arrogant head. “It was all those button-down shirts,” I say finally.
“His shirts?” Monica echoes, sounding confused.
“Uh, yes. Great fashion sense. And…and, I love his…commitment to organization,” I add, hoping no one catches the sarcasm. “This guy could organize his way out of a speeding ticket, if he had to.”
My mom nods, still looking uncertain. “Well, that’s…nice.”
Meanwhile, Monica chuckles. “My son certainly has a knack for being neat and organized. And what about you, Lincoln? What’s your favorite thing about your beautiful new fiancée?”
It’s his turn to start fumbling. “Well, I…uh…I truly admire Jules’s resourcefulness.”
My mother blinks. “Her resourcefulness?”
“Yeah. Let’s just say, your daughter is always full of clever ideas for getting herself out of sticky situations.”
“Um, anything else?” Monica prods, clearly growing skeptical herself.
Lincoln pauses for a moment. His intense gaze flits around my face like he’s looking for something profound to say. Then he inhales roughly from deep in his gut.
A look of resignation takes over his face as he speaks. “Well, Jules is absolutely gorgeous,” he says, as if it pains him to admit it. “And I’ve come to respect her confidence.”
My pulse flutters in my throat. Damn, as much as he seems to hate the words he’s saying, he nearly sounds genuine. Like he actually means it.
Meanwhile, I’m fighting back a cringe. I’d hardly say I’m confident. I just have a stubborn insistence when it comes to standing my ground, and I was pretty sure that Lincoln hated that about me.
Our moms ask us a couple more questions, and we fumble our way through them.
Then we go back to picking at our dessert.
The tension is so thick now that I know our mothers must be sensing it, too.
We may have answered all their questions, but not without friction and inconsistencies.
Lincoln and I are weird together, and awkward as hell.
I knew we should have practiced on the mailman.
If we can’t pull this off with our moms, we’re going to crash and burn before we even say ‘I do’.
There will be no trust fund. No fancy business partnership.
With these stakes in mind, I try to tap into my acting skills from my high school drama club. Dragging my chair closer to Lincoln’s, I make sure to send lots of giggles and googly eyes his way throughout the rest of the meal.
We have to make this work.
Cameron continues to be subdued as the meal draws on, but welcomes a hug from my mother as we’re leaving the building. When we’re all walking toward the restaurant’s parking lot, my mom politely pulls me aside.
“Jules, this is all happening really…fast. Are you sure you aren’t rushing into things with Lincoln?” she asks, her voice hushed.
“Of course not,” I answer way too quickly with a smile that’s way too big.
My mother stares at me for a long minute. I feel all itchy, afraid she’s going to see right through me. “I just don’t want you to make the mistakes I made and derail your life for a man.”
Mom’s vulnerability catches me off guard, sucking the breath out of my chest. I know all about the mess my father made of her life.
But it’s not something she brings up often.
I know she regrets a lot of the decisions she made in that season of her life, but she won’t fully admit it because those regrets led to me.
I pull my mom in for a hug, hating that I have to lie to her. But this is for the best. Once I have access to that trust fund, I can build up my business and take care of my mama the way she deserves.
“I know you love me, Mom. But believe me—I know what I’m doing.” As I speak the words out loud, I realize I’m also desperately trying to convince myself, too.
My mother sighs. “I hope you do, Julissa. I really hope you do.”