One Night Bride: Sisters From Hell # 2, page 9
Something within me withered at the censure in his tone. I hated that my refusal of this sham marriage put him in that mood. If I was being honest with myself, the idea of staying married to him had definitely crossed my mind and it had sounded lovely. Better than lovely. More like a dream I was afraid to even think about because it was so far out of reach.
My business would implode if I suddenly showed up with a husband. Maybe, after years of cultivating a different tone, I could introduce a man in my life and have it go over smoothly with my clients and social media following. But to show up with a husband from a drunken night on vacation? Career suicide.
When the plane landed back in California, we were both quiet, too lost in our own heads to gripe at each other. It was dark by the time we got back to my house, the clouds rolling in from the ocean, perfectly fitting our mood.
“I’ll bring your bag upstairs,” Remington grumbled as I tried to reach for it once we entered the house. The damn man had refused to let me lift a finger the whole day. Made it quite hard to stay mad at him.
The lights flipped on, blinding us both. We blinked and turned to find Izzy standing in the entryway, a look on her face I’d never seen.
“What the hell is this?”
She held a single sheet of paper in her hands. The same one that had turned my life upside down. The same one I thought Remington had in his possession, not lying about the house I shared with my sister. Our marriage license.
“Oops,” Remington said under his breath behind me.
I was going to kill him.
12
Esme
* * *
“Okay, first of all, you need to calm down. It’s not what you think.”
I held my hands up, placating the wild anger I saw on my twin’s face. I didn’t blame her. We shared the same tight bond all twins did, telling each other everything. But this had been different. This was just a mistake. One that would be righted shortly—if we ever got that damn annulment filed. Somehow that idea didn’t make me feel any better about things.
“So, you aren’t married?” Izzy asked, her eyes skewering me with accusation.
I cringed. “Well…”
Izzy huffed and slammed the paper down on the table in the entry. “How about you both explain how my twin sister got married, and this is the way I found out about it?”
“I think I can help,” Remington said, stepping forward finally, our bags still in his hands. He set them down against the wall and put his hand on my back. “Let’s all have a seat, shall we?”
Izzy gave him a death glare, but she stepped into the living room and sat, tapping her foot while Remington and I had a seat on the couch. I felt slightly nauseous over the whole thing. I didn’t think for one second Izzy would out me to my clients, but the more people who knew about this sham marriage, the more I worried it would get leaked somehow.
“So, you know how we met in Tahoe. All that was true. I just sort of left out the part where we were so drunk we went to a drive-through chapel and got married. Accidentally. Regrettably.” I twisted my fingers in my lap.
Remington grabbed my hand in his and squeezed. “Not so regrettably on my part.”
My head looked over so fast my hair whipped me in the mouth. “What?”
He shrugged. “I don’t regret it anymore. I think it’s a brilliant situation.”
I tried to pull my hand away, but he wouldn’t let me. “Well, of course you would, because it’s advantageous for your business. Meanwhile, it could tank mine.”
“Actually, it’s got nothing to do with the ranch. I think if you and I had dated like normal people, we would have eventually ended up with a marriage license.”
My mouth dropped open, even as a ball of something unidentifiable warmed in my gut. “What?”
“Um, hello? Still here.” Izzy’s voice held a heavy dose of humor.
I’d forgotten she was sitting right there. I gave her a weak smile of apology. “Sorry, sis. But do you see what I’m dealing with here? He’s impossible!”
Izzy’s gaze darted to Remington and back to me. “I actually kind of like him. I mean, I’m angry you didn’t tell me what was going on with you, but if you had to pick a husband, I think you did a bang-up job.”
I stared at her. “A bang-up job?” Since when did Izzy talk like that?
She grinned sheepishly. “I’ve been watching too many episodes of the Great British Bake Off.”
Remington chuckled silently beside me, vibrating the couch. A car door slammed outside, followed by another.
“Who would be here at this time of night?” I muttered, standing up to go look out the window.
Izzy put her thumbnail in her mouth and chewed on it. “Yeah. So. I may have texted the girls when I saw the marriage license.”
I whirled on her, my voice coming out scary deep. “You texted them?”
Remington groaned and scrubbed a hand across his face, knowing exactly who them were. “I’m never getting to sleep tonight, am I?”
“You can just be quiet, Mr. I Don’t Regret It,” I snapped. I stepped out of my heels and got the door before Amelia banged it down, went into preterm labor, and blamed me for it.
“What a lovely surprise,” I said sarcastically, right before I was practically mowed over by Vee, Amelia, and Oakley, barging into my house like they belonged there.
“Remington!” I heard Vee shout. The little hussy already plopped down on the couch next to him, despite knowing he was my husband.
On paper only, of course.
Amelia took the chair Izzy vacated for her. It was the only one she could still get out of on her own with her distended belly. “So, you went and got hitched, huh?”
I folded my arms across my chest, knowing the interrogation from all four of my sisters wouldn’t be fun. “Like I was explaining to Izzy, it was a mistake. A drunken decision that shall be righted shortly when we file for an annulment.”
Izzy frowned. “But you went back to the hotel and had sex afterward, so how can you claim an annulment? Shouldn’t it be a divorce?”
I rolled my eyes. “Okay, first of all, you need to stop reading so many historical romances. It’s not like fucking seals the deal anymore, Iz.”
“Sex afterward is definitely not a factor in being able to obtain an annulment,” Oakley helpfully piped up.
Vee snaked her arm through Remington’s and leaned into him. “I don’t know. You look like you’re of sound mind. And body.” She gave him a saucy wink.
My vision went wavy, and by the time I blinked, I was shoving Vee further down the couch and gluing myself to his side instead. He put his arm around my shoulders and I instantly felt calmer.
Vee and Amelia looked at each other and burst out laughing. Izzy just shook her head with a smile on her face. Oakley studied us like if she just watched us closely enough, she’d find the secret to all of life’s mysteries.
“What?” I finally asked when they’d calmed down.
That sent them into another peal of laughter, Izzy and Oakley joining in this time. I looked to Remington. He just gazed down at me with a smile. He leaned down, nuzzled behind my ear and whispered, “I love it when you get jealous, wife.”
My body froze and my brain finally pondered what had come over me the second I saw Vee touching Remington. I’d been jealous. Plain and simple, and I hadn’t even recognized it. Shit. Being jealous implied I cared.
Vee put her hand on my knee. “I’m sorry for laughing. And I’m sorry for flirting with your man, but sometimes you need a shove to see what’s right in front of you, Esme.”
I scrunched my nose at her, but leaned forward to grip her hand, anyway.
“You two clearly have something between you that’s real. All of us can see it, feel it. Why don’t you explore it?” Amelia said kindly, rubbing her baby belly.
A flutter of nerves crowded out what they were saying. How could I take a chance when so much hung in the balance?
“It was just supposed to be a vacation fling, you guys. You know my business. If they catch wind of a husband, they’ll freak out. It would only take one ugly comment from some keyboard warrior about being a fraud, and I could lose everything.”
Remington’s arm came off the back of the couch, his hand rubbing my back. Which was sweet. And comforting. And what I so badly wanted when I thought about my life outside of my business. He acted way too sweet for a guy who was only my fake husband.
“And I need a wife to get out of running the family ranch. If I’m married, I’m free to run the nonprofit I’ve started and want to put all my time and attention into. I vote for staying married.” Remington’s deep voice illustrated our dilemma.
Oakley, the newlywed of the group, cleared her throat. “How about you pause on the annulment and take some time to just date each other? That would give you time, Esme, to see if being with Remington is worth making a pivot in your business. It would give you time to put together a plan to slowly introduce the idea to your audience.”
That sounded reasonable. Maybe even brilliant. My heart rate kicked up at the thought of actually dating Remington. We’d put everything backwards by getting married before we even knew each other. The prospect of dating him set everything to a warm simmer inside of me.
“All I know is Mom and Dad are going to freak out you eloped. They nearly disowned me for getting married in Vegas with Titus. And that was even when I promised them a reception in Auburn Hill afterward!” Amelia had a gleam in her eye, like she couldn’t wait to see me get my ass handed to me by our parents.
“That’s true. They weren’t happy for a long while,” Izzy said quietly.
“I think it’s super romantic! Imagine the story you’ll have for your grandkids,” Vee exclaimed.
“Hold up, you guys. No one is telling Mom and Dad anything. You have to keep this all a secret. Until we decide what we’re going to do, I don’t want it getting out that the marriage license even exists. Are we clear?”
Vee pouted. “I don’t know how long I can keep quiet about a thing like that.”
I gaped at her. “Seriously, Vee? You’re my sister. Surely you can keep your trap shut for a few weeks.”
“A few weeks?” Amelia asked loudly. “I can do a week. Tops. Besides, you know Poppy will sniff it out if you drag everything out too long. That woman is like a drug-sniffing hound for gossip.”
Remington grimaced. “This Poppy sounds awful, but just like our town’s dispatcher. She knows everything about everyone.”
“I think Poppy’s nice. She only shares because she cares,” Izzy said, always with a kind word for everyone.
I hopped off the couch. “Okay, enough about Poppy. I’m exhausted and I have another long day tomorrow. Don’t forget about the retreat here tomorrow night.”
All four of my sisters groaned.
“I really can’t commit. I could go into labor at any minute,” Amelia said with wide, innocent eyes.
I pointed my finger right at her face. “You’ll be here and you’ll be nice. This is my first in-person event. I’ve invited every woman in Auburn Hill, including the infamous Poppy. You need to support me.”
I spun to face Remington. “And you need to stay hidden away. I can’t let them see you or this whole thing will blow up in our faces before we’ve had a chance to figure things out.”
He put his hands up. “No problem. You won’t see me or hear me. That short trip to Wyoming put me behind. I’ve got a ton of work to do.”
I rubbed my hands together, already nervous about hosting a retreat for the ladies of Hell, having Remington hiding in the house, my sisters knowing my secret, and the potential for Remington and me to officially date.
My life had been so predictable before.
How did it come to this?
13
Remington
* * *
“Good evening, sir. Do you need the jet?” Wayne’s voice was as polite as a 17th-century English butler.
I cupped my hand over the cell phone as I hid in the closet of the guest bedroom and whispered. “I know you’re a pilot, but is there any way you can drive my truck down to me in Auburn Hill?”
There was a pause. “Pardon me for asking, but why are you whispering, sir?”
I tried to turn around, but my shoulders couldn’t quite fit and I hit a hanger that swung wildly and nearly clubbed me in the eye. Jesus. The things I’d do for my fake wife.
“There’s a houseful of women I’m hiding from,” I answered as I tried to untangle myself from a particularly clingy sweater that blocked my exit. The closet had been a bad idea, but I’d overheard the first client arriving downstairs and I’d panicked that my phone call would be too loud.
Another pause before he answered. “Interesting. Would Wednesday be acceptable?”
I closed my eyes and sighed. Great. Wayne probably thought I was into something bizarre when it was just a bunch of gossiping townsfolk I was trying to avoid.
“Wednesday would be great. Thank you, Wayne.” I hit the end button on my phone and the screen went dark.
I took a step to exit the closet, but my foot hit something on the floor I couldn’t see and I went flying forward. My forehead hit the door right before my chest, swinging the door open with a force that had it slamming against the wall. Of course, then I had nothing to break my fall, and the carpet loomed. I was no stranger to charging wild animals, so my natural instincts kicked in. Tucking and rolling, I finally got out of the closet in a spectacular manner that even impressed me. I’m sure the door hitting the wall like that wasn’t making Esme happy, but I’d never sequestered myself to a room and tried to stay hidden. I was doing the best I could.
I tossed my phone on the bed and had a seat in the chair she’d given me so I could work all day on my laptop. The website was coming along nicely, and if I could get that final investor on board next week, I could officially open for business.
“What I’d like you all to do is close your eyes and think about what your heart desires for your life. What would your life look like if all your dreams came true?”
I could hear Esme’s muffled voice coming from downstairs. They must be getting into the session already. Hopping up, I pressed my ear to the door so I could hear them better. It wasn’t eavesdropping per se, I just wanted to see how Esme coached.
“I’d have a man in every sea cave in Auburn Hill!”
“That annoying Detective Yosemite would be fired and ran out of town.”
“My goats would roam free every single day.”
“I’d have this baby and my vajayjay would still be tight as a drum.”
“Ladies! Just keep your dreams to yourself for right now,” came Esme’s voice, a thick thread of annoyance clear in her tone. “When we’ve become crystal clear on what our hearts truly want, we’ll share with the group. For now, let’s get in alignment and just let yourself dream without judgement.”
I was grinning ear to ear by now, thinking maybe Esme needed to teach these women to dream a little bigger. Weren’t they supposed to want world peace or some shit?
“I can’t think of a damn thing I want that I don’t already have.”
“Okay. That happens sometimes,” came Esme’s patient voice. “What I like to do in those situations is think about past dreams or goals of mine that have come true. Remembering what it was like to stretch for something and then have it manifest. That rush of energy knowing you created something in your life. Deep dive into that feeling of energy and see if you can touch base with new dreams.”
“Like when I wished with all my heart for a job I loved and then Lucy hired me and now I get to play with sperm all day!”
I jammed my fist against my mouth to keep from laughing. What the hell? This was far more entertainment than I’d had in years.
“I kind of wish for a whole box of muzzles right now.”
Pretty sure that was Esme’s sister Oakley. Apparently, she didn’t like sharing dreams out loud.
“I have a box of those back at the Hardware Store. You can borrow them, if you want.”
“That’s really quite nice of you, Lenora, but Oakley won’t need those. She needs to learn to share her feelings. Why don’t we unpack that, Oakley?” Esme answered quickly.
I made a mental note to ask about the Hardware Store. My ear was starting to hurt from pressing it so hard against the damn door. Moving in slow motion, I reached for the door handle and turned. It didn’t make a sound, and I took that as a sign to continue. Inch by inch, I cracked the door open, the voices instantly easier to hear. I slid down to the carpet and had a seat in the open doorway.
“I don’t have any feelings to share,” Oakley said petulantly.
“I bet you do. We all do. Feelings are neither good nor bad, they just are. How about you tell us one feeling you have right now?” Esme wouldn’t let Oakley off the hook.
Oakley pushed out a big breath and then said, “Okay, fine. I’m feeling like I want to go home and eat ice cream.”
“And why would ice cream bring you joy?”
“Uh…because it’s got sugar in it? And sugar makes me happy?”
Esme tsked. “No, I think you want to go home and eat ice cream because then you won’t have to engage with all of us here. You’re avoiding. The ice cream is just a buffer. Something that feels safe to you.”
“Wow, Oakley. That’s so rude. How come you don’t want to chat with us?” That was definitely Vee’s voice.
“I didn’t say that!” Oakley’s voice was rising. “I just love ice cream because it’s one hundred percent guaranteed to not suck!”
Vee gasped.
“So, what you’re saying is that people aren’t dependable, so you’d prefer to surround yourself with inanimate objects you can count on,” Esme said in a firm voice. “We’ll circle back to that in a bit.”
A voice I didn’t recognize piped up. “You can have my ice cream, Oakley, and I’ll take all the people. Preferably the men. In the sea cave. Naked.”
