TWENTY-THREE
AND THE BOTTOM fell out of her gusto. Had she had gusto? Apparently so, and now it was gone. If this was how she felt, imagine what was going through Holly’s head. It wasn’t shame, but the whole point was to forgo the judgment of not having stable relationships. Their partners were hired. The plan only worked if the others in their party weren’t aware of that. And if Nickson recognized them…
“Wait, what do you mean?” Holly asked, the words reeking of the same desperation that bubbled in her. “How could he know you from Squires?”
“Because he’s from Squires too.”
Oh, she…
“He’s from Squires? Squires?” The wildness of Holly’s eyes didn’t scream sanity. “You’re saying my sister hired herself a fake fiancé? Why? Why would she do that?”
Okay, that was the pot calling the kettle black, but it wasn’t exactly the time to call Holly on specifics.
And, oddly, that hadn’t occurred to her. Her first thought was their ruse being uncovered, she hadn’t considered why her other cousin would’ve set hers up at all.
“He’s not Squires now,” Donoghue explained. “He was Squires. Quit last year. Think he’s gone out on his own?”
Nothing made sense, she hadn’t seen this coming. How could any of them have seen this coming?
“Even if he has, why would Kelly be paying him to do this?”
“It’s possible for a guy like him to fall in love.” Baer’s words felt like they were for her. “Just because you sell sex for a while, doesn’t mean you give up all emotion yourself.”
He was right. Nickson once sold sex, that didn’t mean he would forever or that every partner in his life paid him.
“You think they met and fell in love?” Unable to miss the parallel with her own situation, her desperation morphed into hope that maybe it could be true. If Nickson could do it with Kelly, she could do it with Baer. “If you ask him to stay quiet, will he?”
“Depends.”
Oh, good, that was helpful. “Depends on what?”
“Their relationship,” he said. “Think I’d lie to you if another guy asked me?”
If it was real, Kelly and Nickson would, should, share everything.
“So what do we do?”
And that was the sixty-four-million-dollar question. What did they do? They needed a plan in the thirty seconds it would take the couple to finish crossing the grass and hit the gravel. There were a few other cars parked in the parking lot but no other limos. Kelly knew her just as well as Holly, therefore knew this was her typical ride.
“Shit, shit, shit.” Yep, Holly’s anxiety had become full-blown panic. “This is the worst thing that could possibly happen ever. What are we supposed to do?”
“We could leave,” Baer said. “You two go in, say there was an issue that kept us in the city.”
“Both of you?” Holly snapped. “Wouldn’t we have known that before today? Unless you’re running away together, why would both of our boyfriends miraculously have emergencies crop up at the same time?”
“Maybe they’re family,” she suggested. “Or they’re best friends and they need to be around to support each other.”
“Then why wouldn’t we be there too? If it was such a terrible disaster, why would we abandon the men we’re supposed to love?”
Maybe instead of crapping on everyone else’s suggestions, Holly could come up with some of her own. She wouldn’t say that, not out loud. It would just live in her head.
“We can’t sit in here forever. We’re here now.” A quick glance back at the window confirmed Kelly was indeed heading their way. “You wanted us to bring boyfriends, we brought boyfriends. So we go in and act natural.”
“There’s a good chance your folks don’t know Nickson’s past,” Donoghue offered. “Squires doesn’t come up much when you’re trying to impress the parents of a girl you’re really into.”
More proof that men in their line of work had real lives beyond it. Donoghue could have his own family. Yes, he could be abrasive, and forward, that didn’t mean he couldn’t be a father. Maybe he was playing up those qualities, working off a prep sheet. Maybe in his real life he was quieter and more reserved. She had to stop making assumptions; these men were more than their job.
“You think?” Holly shook her head fast, eyes squeezed shut. When they burst open, her cousin’s tone changed hue. “You’re right! You’re right! There is no way Kelly told Mom about this. No way!”
She didn’t like Holly’s exuberance, like it was so blatantly obvious anyone would be ashamed of such a line of work. Though it wasn’t like she was without sin on that score. Hadn’t she feared Truman finding out for basically the same reason?
“We’re going in?”
“You think you guys could separate Nickson, speak to him before he tells Kelly of your connection?”
“We can,” Baer said. “Won’t stop him telling her the truth… if he’s really into her.”
And if he wasn’t, maybe the guys could find out and put Holly’s mind at ease.
“We can offer him money.” Holly’s optimism bloomed. “Freya has money. Lots of it. We can pay him to keep quiet.”
“My resources are at your disposal, as always, but I don’t like the suggestion.”
“Why not? We could pay him more than he’d make it a month.”
“I don’t like the suggestion that money should triumph over love. Regardless of what he’s done in the past, he can still have integrity. Squires men aren’t just money whores.”
Did she know that for sure for each and every one of them? No, of course not. And even people not in Squires line of work would take bundles of cash for many things, integrity or not. But she knew the man sitting next to her holding her hand, and he wouldn’t lie to her, he wouldn’t. Tarring all escorts with that brush, male and female, tarred her guy too, and she wouldn’t have that.
It all boiled down to whether the relationship was real. Otherwise, surely, there would be some standard operating procedure, something in the Squires employee handbook that would cover this eventuality. The men wouldn’t out each other if they were working, but Nickson had left Squires. If he was out on his own, maybe his silence could be bought.
She doubted it. There was just no logical reason for Kelly to go through this theater if the relationship wasn’t real.
“Okay, we can’t sit here all day.”
Baer took the cue and got out his own side of the car. She smoothed her skirt and cleared her throat. This was it. Showtime. How well would she hold up? There was no way to know, she’d never done this before.
Her one saving grace? Baer. If she was doing this with someone she had no feelings for, she’d fail miserably. That became abundantly clear when the door opened and Baer stood there, hand outstretched for hers. Just his presence was security. That man; her man. This wasn’t a farce, nor theater, not for her. Whether the Pivens found out about Squires, or Truman did, this was real in her heart, that was what counted.
She slid her hand into his and went with his motion to help her to her feet. He backed them off a few steps, giving the other couple space to get out of the car.
Her chin grazed his shirt. “Are you okay?” she murmured.
With her back to the clearing, she couldn’t see how close Kelly and Nickson were, but they couldn’t be far away.
“Me?” The groove between his brows deepened. “I’m used to this kind of thing.”
“No, you’re not.” Pretending to be someone’s date? Sure. Pretending to be someone’s true love whilst also possibly falling for them for real…? Did anyone have experience with that? “If you’re uncomfortable, at any time, you can call a family emergency and leave whenever you want. The money is yours no matter what.”
His fingertip grazed her jaw. “You think I’m here for the money?”
She didn’t doubt it sure helped, but it wouldn’t be enough for him to betray or abandon her.
“Just know I won’t hold it over you.” She smiled. “Thank you for being here. I couldn’t be here with anyone else, and I’m sorry my family are a little crazy.”
Or a lot crazy if she included Roxie as family.
He laughed. “Makes things interesting.”
“Hey! You made it!” Kelly exclaimed from behind. “Let me introduce everyone!”
Oh, little did she know. Her cousin’s beaming grin was matched by the man at her side, for a few seconds. Curious, she scrutinized Nickson, and there it was, the exact moment he recognized the men in their party. It only lasted a second; he pulled the mask back on fast. Names were exchanged, handshakes and cheek kisses too, everyone played their role in the performance impeccably.
“When are your parents getting here?” she asked Kelly with a few subtle sidesteps that Holly matched, giving the men a chance to split away.
Intrigued though she was, she wasn’t sad to miss out on the particulars of that conversation. Baer would relay them later anyway, in a safer, less stressful, environment. No need to eavesdrop.
Kelly did glance around, probably looking for her fiancé but Holly caught her sister’s hand.
“He’s hot,” Holly whispered wearing a saucy grin. “You never told me he was so yummy. Doesn’t look like your usual type.”
Was that sister sniping? He was hot, and Kelly didn’t usually date hot men? Was that the implication?
If it was, Kelly let the semi-insult roll right off. “I know, right?”
The woman’s excitement was understandable. Shrugging off her discombobulation, she read Kelly’s glittering eyes. That glow was love. That was more than just excitement for the moment, or the vacation, Kelly’s whole future was mapped out in her eager smile.
Did she know about Nickson’s previous line of work? Did it matter? Kinda, yeah. Keeping their own secret inadvertently meant keeping Nickson’s too, if he had one. If Kelly knew, great! If she didn’t, was it their responsibility to tell her? Judging people by their past was a slippery slope. It shouldn’t matter, not if they were really in love, but how true could that love be if Nickson was keeping secrets?
She tried her question again. “When is everyone else arriving?”
“Mom and Dad are here, they’re upstairs. They met my guy already and want to meet yours too. Alan had a thing at work, so he’s not coming until tomorrow night.” The sisters’ sibling. Okay, maybe it was better to do this in stages. “How great is this? We’re all hooked up and settled down at the same time!”
Hooked up? Yes. Settled down? Maybe not so much. Her heart rate hadn’t slowed, but at least it wasn’t climbing. She’d calm down once the introductions were over. Baer would pull it off. No doubt. He’d charm the Pivens and deflect any awkward questions. Thank God for him, she wouldn’t be able to do it alone.
Except now there were more variables, more secrets. How did she feel about discussing it openly, even just amongst the six of them? What would she do if Nickson said something to her about it? Challenged her on paying for love? Maybe he’d threaten her to keep his secret. In that scenario, she’d tell Baer what happened at the first available opportunity. As to what she’d say in the specific moment…
Okay, so the key would be sticking with Baer, at all times. The guy would be sick of looking at her by the end of this vacation. So much for taking the chance to get to know each other in peace and without pressure. Neither was looking likely.
“Let’s go inside,” Kelly said, taking both their hands then calling back over her shoulder. “We’re going inside!”
Baer better be on her heels. Had the men had enough time for their conversation? Yes or no, there was no way to delay. Opening night was upon them. Each had to be at their best and give the performance of a lifetime.