47. Mother Knows Best
mother knows best
. . .
Ellie
Cade and I didn’t go back to our cabin that night. Instead, we cuddled under a blanket of stars—and another incredibly plush blanket a crewmember had brought us—on the deck. Whiskey curled up in my lap, mostly dry but still pouting, before all three of us drifted off to sleep.
It was cozy and warm, and I never wanted to leave.
I woke up sprawled across a furnace made of smooth muscle.
Raising a hand to block the bright sun overhead, I blinked down at a sleeping Cade underneath me.
He lay on his back with his arms wrapped around my waist—and Whiskey was curled up in the spot between Cade’s shoulder and the cushion.
His tail twitched in his sleep, brushing Cade’s cheek and earning a quiet grumble.
My heart melted into a puddle of goo at the sight.
Not one to turn down a good opportunity, I traced Cade’s strong jaw with the tip of my finger, admiring the light scrape of his stubble.
A pointed throat-clearing interrupted my lazy perusal, and I jerked back in alarm, looking for the culprit.
To my horror, Cade’s mom sat on the couch across from us. Her legs were primly crossed, a gold-rimmed teacup in her hand. She didn’t speak—not out loud, at least—but the appraising way her gaze shifted between me and Cade spoke volumes.
Mortified, I quickly wiped my face to check for drool. All clear.
“Oh. Hello,” I croaked, pushing myself up and off her son. I pulled the robe tighter around myself and straightened to sit next to Cade. He shifted in his sleep, moving a hand as if reaching for me, and I shoved the blanket over him while blushing. Luckily, he settled back into sleep.
When I looked at his mom again, she was watching him with a soft smile. “I haven’t watched him sleep since he was a little boy. Even then, he never rested this well.”
I stared. That was… not at all what I’d expected her to say. Maybe a catty comment instead? A withering barb or two?
I kept my lips sealed, unsure what to say.
Mrs. Westbrook wasn’t affected by the same awkwardness that’d seeped into my bones, and she sipped her tea before setting it on its saucer. “My son looks at you the way Everett used to look at me.”
I blinked, not following. “… Everett?”
“Caden’s father. I haven’t been the same since he died. I know that.” Her smile turned sad, and it felt like the first real emotion I’d seen from her. She sighed. “Nobody tells you how to cope with losing the love of your life.”
Okay. I officially had no idea what was happening or what to say, so I moved to get up. “Um, if you’d like to talk to Cade, I can go—”
“No, no.” She waved me back down. “You’re the one I came to speak with.”
“Me?” I froze halfway off the couch and glanced at Cade. How much lying would this conversation need? But I reluctantly sat back down. “About what?”
“Well, about my actions since I arrived on The Valencia.” She cleared her throat again. “I may have been a little hard on you.”
I snorted before I could stop myself. “A little?”
Her lips twitched. “I assumed Caden had been lying about the engagement as some cruel prank to mess with us. But then… there you were. It was a shock, but I shouldn’t have taken my feelings of betrayal out on you.”
I fought down a nervous laugh, because her assumption wasn’t far off. The engagement was meant to trick them.
And even though she hadn’t said the words, it hit me that she was apologizing. I hadn’t expected that at all.
I narrowed my eyes, wary of how genuine she actually was. “Why the sudden change of heart?”
“Because I was wrong,” she answered matter-of-factly, tossing in a little shrug that only called more attention to her pearl necklace. “It’s clear my son adores you. Caden has always been indifferent to animals, but I heard he didn’t hesitate to jump in after your cat.”
I bit my lip, fidgeting with the edge of the blanket and glancing at Whiskey curled up in a ball. She was right. Cade hadn’t hesitated. But that didn’t mean he adored me.
Mrs. Westbrook sniffed and sipped her tea once more.
“He dotes on you, too. I saw it last night and thought he’d foolishly let himself be seduced by some common gold digger.” She took in Cade’s sleeping form, and her voice softened. “Now I see it was love.”
I immediately felt like trash, and I scratched my ankle underneath the blanket. “There definitely wasn’t any nefarious seduction.”
She shook her head. “Can you blame me for being cautious? Billionaires attract all sorts of opportunists.”
I paused midscratch, because I must’ve heard her wrong. “Billionaires?”
Her gaze flicked back to me, quietly assessing.
“My son is worth billions,” she said, making my jaw drop further. She lifted a single brow. “You honestly didn’t know?”
I numbly shook my head. “I mean, I knew he was loaded. But billions? That’s like…
” My mouth went dry, and swallowing didn’t help as my gaze slid back to Cade peacefully sleeping through my mental breakdown.
No wonder he’d offered me a million dollars like it was pocket change.
For him, it was. “I can’t even wrap my mind around that. He doesn’t look like a billionaire.”
Even Mrs. Westbrook’s laugh sounded wealthy. Light and contained, but also velvety smooth. “What does one look like?”
My mind immediately conjured the image of a cartoon duck swimming through a vault filled with gold coins, but I wasn’t about to say that out loud. So, I shrugged. “More… wrinkly?”
Her answering laugh was a little less measured.
“I thought you may have targeted our family since Caden has a healthy share of stock in Westbrook Capital,” she said.
“He works for his grandfather because he’s grateful and wants to build on the legacy, but my son has been growing successful start-ups and side projects since high school. He built a fortune of his own.”
I swallowed thickly. In high school, I’d been crocheting lopsided scarves and volunteering at the cat shelter after school.
“I just came over to say it wasn’t about you,” she added, already moving on while I was still coming to terms with the whole billionaire thing.
“I was hurt Caden got engaged without telling me. My own son, yet I mean so little in his life these days that I had to hear he’s getting married from my assistant. ”
I tried not to cringe, because we weren’t actually engaged. But I couldn’t reassure her without breaking my NDA. So I settled for the next best thing—a measly “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize.” She immediately waved off the words and dusted off her skirt.
“I already feel bad enough for taking this out on you. I never thought I’d be that kind of mother-in-law.
But that’s another reason I’m here now. If you’ll allow me to make it up to you, I know a few very talented dress designers in France.
I’d love to take you and your mother to visit them if you haven’t already chosen a dress for the ceremony. ”
I stared at her, repeating the words in my head. She was truly on a roll with shocking me. Did people usually take others to France as an apology?
“That’s very kind of you,” I finally blurted.
Then I hesitated. I should probably just agree, since I’d never see this lady again after we stepped off the yacht.
There wouldn’t be any dress shopping, because my and Cade’s deal ended tomorrow.
But we were already tangled in a messy web of lies, and I didn’t want to lie about this.
I dropped my gaze to my lap. “But my mom passed away when I was in college.”
An uncomfortable silence—the kind that only happens when I bring up my dead mom—settled in. My entire body suddenly itched, even though it hadn’t been a lie.
“I’m so sorry to hear that,” Mrs. Westbrook said gently. “I’d still love to take you if you’d like. It’ll give us a chance to get to know each other properly, too.”
For the first time since I agreed to Cade’s plan, it actually hurt. Pretending felt too real. I was lying straight to his mom’s face, while she talked about France and dresses and getting to know me—
“Oh, Ellie,” she whispered, and my mortification only grew as my vision blurred with tears.
Oh, great. Now I was going to cry. Again.
Cade’s mom sat beside me in the next instant, taking my hand in both of hers. “It wouldn’t be the same as having your mother here, but I would be honored to assist with any wedding planning, as well. Anything you’d like help with.”
Laughing nervously, I hastily wiped at the tears with my free hand.
“I really wasn’t expecting this,” I whispered through a tight throat. It was the safest thing to say.
Maybe it was the guilt, or maybe I wanted to stop her from saying more nice things while I was a liar, or maybe I just missed my mom, but I threw myself at Cade’s mom and wrapped my arms around her in a tight hug before I could think better of it.
She immediately stiffened in my hold.
Like mother, like son, I guess.
And just like her eldest son, Mrs. Westbrook relaxed just enough to return the hug before she abruptly pulled back and cleared her throat. “Tobias has an office on board with a few old family photo albums. Why don’t I bring them out to show you Caden’s baby photos?”
That probably wasn’t a good idea with my frazzled emotions, but I forced myself to smile and nod. “I’d love that.”
She went off to hunt down the photos, and I fidgeted with the robe’s sash.
Gosh, what was wrong with me?
I was a horrible, no-good fraud. Here she was being so nice to me now, while I was exactly the sort of gold-digging opportunist she spoke of.
Scratching at a new patch of red bumps above my knee, I glanced at Cade’s sleeping face before looking away. Was this thing between us the start of something or just a little fling until the trip was over? How did it factor into our deal?
A boulder settled in my stomach.
I didn’t know how long I sat there staring into space, but a low murmur finally cut through my racing thoughts. “Morning, Darling.”
My attention snapped to Cade, who watched me from under hooded lids. He raised a hand to rub a sleeping Whiskey’s head, and my traitorous heart pounded like a drum in my chest.
“Hey, cuddle muffin,” I whispered back.
He snorted, but he only watched me a moment longer before his dark brows furrowed. “What’s wrong?”
The last thing I wanted to explain was my little chat with his mom. So, I mustered a smile. It felt flat.
“Nothing,” I said softly. “Absolutely nothing.”
Another lie to add to the list.
The truthful answer would’ve been everything.