Chapter 18 Lucy
EIGHTEEN
Lucy
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Miles asks as he stands in my bedroom doorway.
I’ve never even seen him at this end of the house before. He’s been careful to respect my privacy and give me space, even though it’s his house.
He looks uncomfortable, standing there, staring at the rumpled bedcover in my room. He’s wearing a white button-up shirt, the top three buttons still undone, and a tie hangs loosely around his neck.
“I’m ready,” I say as I step out of the open closet.
His eyes travel up and down me. I found a cute cream-colored dress from an online boutique. It’s a one-shoulder dress and ends just above my knees. There’s a lace overlay that gives it character.
“I hope it’s okay,” I say as I pull at the hem. It’s shorter than I expected, and now I’m questioning my choice to wear a white dress.
“You look beautiful,” he says as he tugs at his tie. He fumbles around with it as he tries to tie it into a proper knot, but he forgot to button up his shirt.
I step forward and reach for the buttons. He freezes as I try to hurry and help him. For some strange reason, my hands are shaking, and it’s difficult to get that small button through the hole.
“Are you sure about this?” I ask him.
I guess I’m scared. This seemed like a good idea when we were talking about it a week ago. But now that we’re about to actually do it, it seems like the worst idea we’ve ever had.
“Well, anytime I’m second-guessing my decision, I always think about why I’m doing it. It helps me follow through—or realize it’s not worth it.”
I stare at Miles, studying that perfectly handsome face.
“So, is your why am I getting married reason strong enough?” I ask him.
“Oh, you mean petty revenge?” he says. He quirks a brow.
I fight a smile and answer. “Yes. Is that enough of a reason to get married?”
He grins, and his dimple pops out. “It’s the perfect reason to get married.”
“You’re right. You have a reason, and I have a reason. Seventy percent of the prize is a pretty good reason.” I try to keep it lighthearted.
Miles winks. “Besides, it’s not like it’s going to change anything between us. We’re having a great time together, aren’t we?”
Something clenches in my stomach, and it won’t let go.
“We’ve been having a great time,” I agree.
Unfortunately, that’s what I’m worried about. Because I’ve been concerned about falling for my roommate.
How much easier will it be to fall for him when he’s my husband?
He nods. “This is mutually beneficial, right?”
I nod as I move to the next button. “Yes, but I can find other ways to pay off my student loan. I was thinking about selling feet pictures online.”
That gets a chuckle out of him.
“And we can help Ainsley get even with Preston in another way. I can be very creative…”
I move to the last button and am careful to avoid looking at Miles’s face.
When I finish, he grasps my chin and tips my head back so that I’m forced to look at him. “I’m not having second thoughts, but I will never hold this against you if you back out. Even if we make it to the courthouse and are about to say I do.”
His eyes are warm and genuine as he stares down at me. If I felt any amount of pressure, I would walk away. Instead, I find myself wanting to walk down that aisle with him. So to speak. Since there won’t actually be an aisle.
“I haven’t even met Preston yet, and I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he finds out you’re already married.” I smile up at him.
“Lucy, you’re the best roommate I’ve ever had.”
And then he does something surprising and grasps the sides of my face and plants a kiss on my forehead. It’s quick and obviously platonic, but it still leaves my skin warm as we walk down the hallway together, ready to face Ainsley, who’s waiting for us in the kitchen.
“I’ve always wanted to be a best man,” Ainsley announces as Miles pulls the car into the parking lot in front of the courthouse.
The old courthouse is rather picturesque. As far as a wedding venue goes, it's beautiful. If this were a real wedding, then I would want all the pictures taken on the courthouse steps with the beautiful columns in the background.
Ainsley seems to read my mind, because she says, “I’ll take some cute wedding pictures of the two of you at the top of the steps. I brought my camera. We need to make this look real.”
I glance back to see that she really does have a camera draped around her neck. Ainsley is wearing a white blouse with a black bowtie and a pair of matching black trouser-pants.
The thought of taking wedding photos on those steps feels surreal. I’m more nervous looking at the courthouse now that I’m on the verge of actually getting married.
“What do you think the judge will look like?” Ainsley asks excitedly as we climb out of the car. “You guys are the best—you know that, right?”
“We don’t have another witness!” Miles exclaims. He looks at me with raised eyebrows. “Are we supposed to have two of them?
I hold up a hand. “Don’t worry. I have the perfect person. She’s meeting us there.”
He glances at the street as we walk toward the steps. “Did you tell Willa?”
“No, I chickened out. So I visited someone else, who I knew would be happy to help.”
Miles slowly smiles when he sees the woman walking down the sidewalk toward us.
“What an excellent choice,” he says.
“Yep. No better person to keep your secrets.” I smile at Margaret as she approaches us.
“Who’s that?” Ainsley asks.
“She’s the woman who keeps everybody’s secrets. I love her!” I exclaim the last part and realize I mean it as I watch her make her way slowly up the steps to the front of the courthouse.
“Yeah, she knows all of the secrets, but she doesn’t tell any of them, which is a very important distinction,” Miles says with a laugh as he parks the car.
We climb out and march up the sidewalk as though we’re on a time crunch.
“You know, now that I think about it, I’ve never heard her say a word about someone else unless it was just a casual update,” Miles says.
God bless Margaret Eventhall. She really knows how to show up for someone when they need her.
I wave and smile at her as I climb the steps. “I hear you’ve agreed to be my maid of honor!”
“Matron of honor, but, yes, dear. Do you like purple?” she asks as she brushes a hand against the fabric hugging her hips.
I glance down at her purple floral dress. “I love it. You look wonderful.”
I reach out and squeeze her hand. Maybe some of Margaret’s natural confidence will flow through to me.
She pulls me into a hug and whispers in my ear, “I knew you two would be perfect for each other.”
I freeze. I wonder if she thinks we’re in love. Miles is standing behind her, and I look at him with wide eyes. He just shrugs and looks as confused as I do.
When I step out of her embrace, I ask her, “Did I remember to tell you that we’re keeping this a secret?”
“Oh, yes, I won’t say anything, but we’d better hurry inside so that no one you know drives by and wonders why you’re on the court steps wearing a white dress, with a handsome man in a tie.”
Ainsley steps forward to introduce herself to Margaret, and I’m not surprised to see them hit it off. They loop arms and walk into the courthouse. No two greater conspirators ever existed before.
Miles shoves his hands in his pockets and rocks back on his heels. “Ready? It’s not too late. We could get in the car and go eat sushi.”
“If I decide to ditch a wedding, it’s not going to be for sushi. It’s going to be for a big, fat burger with greasy fries and a milkshake.”
“No, it’s got to be fried mozzarella sticks,” Miles interjects. “Those are so much better than fries.”
His teasing puts me at ease, and I grin at him. “After the wedding, let’s celebrate with mozzarella sticks.”
“Solid plan. Shall we?” He holds out his arm to me and winks.
I suck in a breath and grin up at him. “We shall.” I hook my arm through his, and we walk into the side room. Margaret and Ainsley are busy chatting away, which doesn’t surprise me. Neither one of them knows a stranger.
In no time at all, we become Mr. and Mrs. Granger.
Really, it’s not a bad last name. Lucy Granger. It has a nice ring to it.
Speaking of rings, I glance down at the one now on my ring finger. It’s a beautiful, oval-cut diamond ring.
While Ainsley and Margaret sign the guest book, I lean over to whisper to Miles, “Please tell me this ring is fake.”
Miles bends down to whisper back, “It’s not.” His cheek brushes against my forehead as he straightens.
“It’s not?” I squeak.
He leans close. “Lucy, you’re the only person in the world I would do a pretend marriage with. I want you to have something nice.”
Well, dang it. Now he’s going to make me cry. I look up at him as I fight a sneaky lip quiver. “That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said or done for me.”
“You may kiss the bride!” the judge says with a bright smile.
I look up at Miles with wide eyes. I forgot about this part of the ceremony. Miles’ eyes sparkle as he turns to face me.
Before I know what he’s about, he grabs me in his arms, dipping me backwards.
Reflexively, I wrap my arms around his neck.
His face is so close to mine that his nose brushes my cheek.
Just as quickly, he stands me back up, and I realize he made it look like he dipped me and kissed me at the same time.
The man should try acting—he’s got a talent for it.
Miles’s eyes warm, and then he wraps an arm around my shoulders, planting a warm kiss on the top of my head.
This is getting dangerous. If he’s not careful, I’ll want to keep him.
“I just love seeing young love,” the judge says warmly as Ainsley and Margaret hand him the paper. “I hope you two have a long, happy life together.”
Miles smiles at him and steps forward to shake his hand. “Thank you. And thank you for doing the wedding ceremony for us. We really appreciate it.”
I echo his sentiments, and then we’re on our way out of the building. Margaret is hot on our heels, blowing giant bubbles at us.
“They’re going to think you’re trying to mop these floors,” Miles mumbles over his shoulder as we reach the large foyer of the courthouse.
“I’ve never been a maid of honor before. I plan on getting it right,” Margaret says as she dunks the wand back into the bottle of bubbles and pulls it out to blow again. Thbbbbbt.
Ainsley is shaking with laughter as she watches Margaret, and I watch as she gets sucked into the orbit the rest of us are happy to be a part of—Margaret’s circle.