From This Day Foward: Switched at Marriage Part 4 Read online

  A stoic, nerdy, skinny groom, cleanly shaved, again, held a flamboyant bride with a lush figure and beautiful breasts peeking out of a low-cut gown in his arms. She had one leg flung up in celebration, flashing leg and garter, pink flowers—I supposed they were pink, anyway—held to her hair. It was like she was saying, Look what I caught!

  The cake topper bride was kissing her nerdy groom, lips puckered, neck extended as she reached to press her lips to his chaste, closed lips. His eyes were shut. He looked as devoid of emotion as the statue he was. Passionless as he let her kiss him.

  Was this how they saw me? Vanilla? Without personality? And Kay throwing herself at me? Proud that she'd caught the billionaire?

  I thought this wedding topper was more offensive than Lazer's, which had been blatantly jocular. But that was me. And I was presumably the butt of this one.

  At some point, we were going to have to cut that gray cake. I wasn't looking forward to the scrutiny and all eyes on me. What would Britt, the emotional savant, see? What had she seen? A sexually frustrated guy with smoldering passion? With unrequited love shining in his eyes and a boner that wouldn't go away? A guy who was in love with a girl not just for her body, but for the whole package—her wit, her intelligence, her kindness?

  If Britt were as emotionally smart as she claimed to be, she would see all of that and more. But I wasn't going to make it easy for her. Why should I? Why would I?

  The view from the terrace was breathtaking, the Pacific Northwest at its finest. The sound sparkled, lit up by the sinking sun and silhouetting the mountains. The evening was warm and clear. From all outward appearance, Kayla seemed to be enjoying herself as she flashed her ring and her friends gushed over it. I was embarrassed by it. It should have been bigger. Showier. Damn it! Just more. The whole damn marriage should have been more.

  As the booze flowed, the talk grew louder. I tried to be good-natured about the ribbing I got from almost everyone. High school. Childhood. College friends. I could see the wheels turning in all of them—why the hell had she chosen him? He's not her type at all. Money aside, of course. Hard to resist that kind of cash. Very recently a billionaire. Too recent to have developed much emotional maturity. Poor douche. He must have business sense. He can't be completely stupid. But emotionally? He's been had. She'll leave him. Sooner, if not later. No, sooner. Indecently soon, probably. And take as much of his fortune with her as she can. I just hope she leaves him a piece of his heart.

  This could be one of those marriages measured in weeks. What has it been already? A week? Hmmm, that's pushing it.

  Kay had complained to me, upset about being seen as a gold-digging woman. Worried her friends would see things that way. Concerned about the story we'd made up to explain our sudden passion.

  I didn't blame her. But she hadn't thought through the other side of the equation. My side. That people saw me as an idiot. That when she left I'd be the fool.

  A year gave me some credibility, some plausible deniability. She hadn't married me just for my money. There'd been something else. A spark. An ID thief. I laughed inwardly. I could deny being a fool. Things just hadn't worked out. Love fades and fails sometimes. That's just the way it is. She wanted to be the one who left me. Wanted me to be the bad guy so she could save her dignity.

  Like hell. I was going to fight to keep her to the bitter end. She didn't know it yet, but she was going to have to be the villain. She was going to have to leave me. I wasn't going to make it easy for her. She'd have to walk out on me. And I would play that broken heart for all it was worth. In public. Anywhere I could. It wouldn't be hard. I'd simply have to let my true emotions show. The brokenhearted billionaire. I hoped I didn't have to be that guy.

  Currently, I may have been the baby billionaire. But in the business world I was confident and commanded respect. I was as in control as the wild ride of the business world allowed. I felt insecure as hell among Kay's friends and blond sorority sisters from college. Kay had been in the most prestigious sorority at the university. The one with the hottest girls. And I'd been…a dweeb.

  At the same time, I was tripping on the power of being a billionaire. It was still new to me. I hadn't grown into the role. But with the newness came excitement. Everything glowed. The novelty of a billionaire in their midst created a stir. People were reverent toward me now. Polite. Sycophantic. It amused me. And was disturbing, at the same time, that money could change every perception.

  I recognized many of the guests. Kelly, the former house president. Morgan, who'd been the bitch of the sorority house, and her guy, frat boy Dakota. Alexis, who was a pledge when I met her. Zach, the houseboy who caused her fall from grace. Seth, another houseboy friend of Kay's. And Maddie. Kay had a habit of slumming with the underdogs. Like houseboys. And me. And treating them with kindness and respect. In other words, like regular people.

  Our wedding reception with her friends was like a college class reunion. Kay was the princess. I vowed to treat her like one, too. Lazer may have made her an exaggerated video game character. But I could give her the royal treatment in real life. I could one up him and make her my queen.

  I was the guy no one recognized. Time and again people told me the same thing: "I can't believe how much you've changed! I wouldn't have recognized you. Of course, I've seen your picture in the media in recent years. But it's hard to believe you're the same Justin we knew in college."

  Their tone, their wonder, wasn't exactly flattering. But I think they meant to be complimentary.

  Eventually, I excused myself to use the restroom. When I returned, I stood on the edge of the crowd, watching. I didn't belong in this world. For a second I wondered if Kay belonged in mine.

  I wasn't good at one-on-one chitchat with strangers. At breaking into intimate, small groups. Kayla was in her element. Dressed in a lacy white sundress and looped with pearls, she looked every inch a bride as she floated through the crowd, chatting with her friends. Laughing. Enjoying herself. If I could have stopped time and held on to her forever, I would have.

  She was stunning to look at. No one would ever believe me, but her looks weren't the main attraction for me. Yeah, sure, my body reacted to her. But it was her personality, her mind, that intrigued me and turned me on. She hid behind her looks, like I did behind mine. Mine made me invisible, made people discount me as a threat. Made me the butt of jokes. Kay's drew attention. Drew the eye. People assumed because she was pretty, she wasn't smart. We were more alike than she thought. If only she'd step back and take the time to see it.

  Someone slapped a hand on my back. I jumped.

  "Dude! You got it bad." Dex, Kayla's cousin, and my buddy from college, had clapped a hand on my shoulder.

  I'd been engrossed in my thoughts. I hadn't heard him approach.

  He squeezed my shoulder. "If it isn't the blushing bridegroom."

  "I never blush." I broke into a smile.

  "You're full of shit. You're the blushingest guy I know."

  I looked over my shoulder at him. "Finally! A friendly face. Where the hell have you been? You're late."

  Dex laughed. "Traffic. I had to park half the city away." He studied me. "What are you doing lurking in the shadows? Shouldn't you be front and center?"

  I shrugged. "Preserving my sanity. Grooms are just an accessory at wedding functions these days anyway. A necessary evil."

  Dex comically cocked an eyebrow. He was a good four or five inches shorter than I was. In college, he'd been taller than me. He hadn't had the advantage of an unexpected late growth spurt. He was still the same, but better dressed than usual. Typically Dex dressed like most of the geek techies you saw around Seattle, in jeans and a T-shirt. Kayla's fashion sense, and owning Flash, must have been rubbing off on me. Before I wouldn't have noticed.

  Dex studied me. "You look…nice. Lala's making you over already?" He laughed. "Never thought my cousin would marry a fixer-upper like you, dude. She's slumming it."

  I grinned. Damn, it was good to see Dex. "Look at you,
too, man. You look halfway styling. Your mom pick out your clothes?"

  He grinned and squirmed. He was wearing a sport coat and jeans. "Shows what you know. Mom's an engineer, not a fashion plate. My nerdiness is genetic. If I look good, it's purely accidental." He winked.

  Kayla spotted us and hurried over to hug her cousin, saving me from a response. "You're late!"

  "Is there an echo in here?" Dex grinned at me. "Your better half just said the same thing. Traffic." He shrugged again.

  "Better half, is he?" Kay slid her arm through mine and smiled that world-lighting smile at me, as if I made her dreams come true.

  The smile was genuine enough. The magnitude of emotion behind it was faked. But damn, I'd take it anyway.

  She squeezed my arm and put a tease in her voice. "He's been hiding out here on the periphery since I introduced him around."

  "Smart choice," Dex said. "A guy can only take so much small talk. What do you expect? A pound of flesh?" He made a gun with his hand and pointed it to his head. "Pwhoooo."

  "Dex!" She laughed at his antics. "You're horrible. Play nice. These are my friends."

  Their mothers were twins, but they didn't look anything like cousins. Kay was slender and willowy, freaking gorgeous. And Dex was…well, Dex. Short, skinny, and geeky. He had a certain charm, though.

  "Hey! I wouldn't even be here, but Mom made me. She was all, 'You have to support your cousin. You don't want to hurt her feelings, do you?'" He spoke in a high-pitched voice, mimicking his mom. "I told her you wouldn't even miss me. You'd be too busy with your crowd."

  Kay shook her head. "Misguided fool! I certainly would have noticed the lack of grief I was getting. You're always such a soothing presence." She leaned toward him. "I'm glad Auntie made you come." She hitched a thumb at me. "You can keep this antisocial one company." She smiled up at me and stroked my beard before tipping her face up and kissing me. Her lips were soft and moist and gently parted for effect.

  I called her bluff and pressed her to me, taking advantage of her open lips and darting my tongue in. She didn't expect a French kiss. Or the way I playfully tickled the roof of her mouth with my tongue, daring her to squirm or laugh when she was so obviously putting on a romantic show.

  "Bastard!" she whispered in my ear, laughing, when she pulled away.

  Dex was staring at us with narrow eyes, the picture of suspicion.

  "Go!" I squeezed her ass, playfully. Because I could get away with it here. Because I wanted so much more. "Mingle with your friends. Dex and I will be outcasts together."

  "Get him something to drink immediately, will you? Booze takes the edge off his sharp tongue." She blew us both a quick kiss.

  I watched her float away, her lacy skirt blowing around her in the gentle breeze.

  "Sharp tongue? I don't know what she's talking about. It's not just sharp. It's lethal." Dex grinned. "She's right, though. If I'm going to make it through the two hours I promised Mom I'd stay, I need a drink."

  I escorted Dex to the bar, meaning table full of buckets filled with ice and alcohol, and waited while he grabbed a locally made beer and a plate of appetizers. We found an empty table on the outskirts of the crowd and sat, watching the sunset.

  As soon as we were settled, he turned to me. "How the hell did you pull this one off?"

  I stared at him. "Pull what off?"

  I played innocent. But I knew full well what he meant. I'd been concerned about fooling Britt. Now Dex was hitting me with the surprise attack. He knew both of us too well and was too damned smart to be in the dark long. He didn't need emotional intelligence. He was logical and as observant as hell. Half the time I wondered if he'd already been recruited by the CIA. If not, they were missing out.

  "The hell you don't. How did you get my hot cousin to marry you? What prank did you use to pull it off?"

  I continued the innocent act. "What makes you think she didn't marry me for my lovable self?" I looked past him, toward the sunset.

  "Or your piles of money?" He set his beer down. "Cut the shit. She's not in love with you. That's plain enough to see."

  I swallowed hard. Dex never pulled his punches. He wasn't cruel. Just brutally honest in the bluntest way possible.

  He was right. But hearing it from him still felt like a blow to the gut.

  "I've seen her in love," he said before I could respond. "And this ain't it. I'm not trying to hurt your feelings, dude. Just honestly reporting what I see."

  I turned my gaze on him.

  "Don't give me those hurt puppy eyes, Green. Save them for you wife."

  "Puppy eyes?" I snorted. "You're full of it."

  He laughed. "Hey, I'm on your side here. I actually like you. That's a first. Trust me. Lala has terrible taste in men. Always has. Since elementary school when she had her first crush on the bully who was the school's best jock."

  He leaned toward me. "You're not her type, Green. Not at all. You, the two of you, are very convincing tonight, though. I'll give you that much. You should think about trying out for community theater." He laughed. "It's too bad for you that I'm completely unfoolable. How did you pull it off?"

  I stared at him. "You're full of shit."

  He shook his head, clearly amused by my denial. "Cut the crap. Here's the deal. I'm an only child. Lala's an only. Our moms are twin sisters and thick as thieves. Especially given they're just fraternal twins. Enough said.

  "I know my cousin. I've been subjected to her fantasies of her ideal man practically since birth. You aren't it, Green. Not even close. Not even with your billions. My cousin likes money. Don't we all? But she's too romantic, and lusts after athletic bodies too much, to sell out love and physical chemistry for dollars." He sighed, like that was a real weakness of hers.

  True, I thought. But she could be convinced to help a friend in need out by taking a job as his wife. Provided there was an expiration date to the marriage.

  "Don't get me wrong." When Dex was on a roll you couldn't shut him up with a 6.9 magnitude earthquake. He said so himself. He actually did talk through the one we had when we were little and in elementary school.

  I didn't know him then. The quake bounced me right off the grass of the playground onto the dirt of the ball field and back. And was an exciting distraction from the pain of recess.

  Dex was answering a question in class and calmly got beneath his desk as the building shook. He didn't stop talking and expounding on his answer, even though everyone else was screaming and crying for Mommy. He answered correctly, too. According to him. And got an A, naturally. And a lasting interest in seismic activity.

  "She could do a whole hell of a lot worse than you." He pointed at me for emphasis, his eyes bright with excitement. Dex loved a good detective story. "I even told her that in college. I was putting in a good word for you, man, even then. You, at least, have a brain. And a heart, I think. If you'd get it out of your ass and actually use it to win her."

  My death stare didn't stop Dex.

  "You're not like that complete douche Eric. But she was in love with him. As recently as eight days ago." Again with the piercing stare. Dex would make a world-class interrogator. "Hung all over him as if she couldn't wait for him to touch her. Practically wiped his feet for him. It's a pity. And a joke. She has such good taste in everything else."

  Dex sighed again, resigned to Kay's fault. "It's her sense of physical aesthetics that's throwing her off. If she could get past wanting that physical perfection fantasy, she'd have a shot at happiness." He continued to hold my gaze.

  Dex was hypnotic that way. He knew how to arrest your attention.

  "There's none of that fiery lust and romantic longing here for you." He tipped his head side to side in that way people do when they're weighing pros and cons and kind of going, eh! And toggled his hand side to side, fingers spread to indicate his indecision. "She likes you. That's something. A small start. But she's faking the rest. There's no lust for you."

  He took another pull of beer and held it in his mouth f
or a second before swallowing. "Full-bodied." He read the label and raised a brow. "Smooth. Nice mouth feel. A good dark ale. I'll have to remember this one."

  "Glad to hear you're on my side." I couldn't keep the sarcasm out of my voice. "With friends like you—"

  "Who needs enemies?" he finished for me. "Original." He shook his head. "You can do better than that! Anyway, it's not like that at all. I just know a good piece of bullshit when I see it. And I'm seeing crap written all over this marriage."

  He leaned even closer to me and lowered his voice to almost a whisper. "Eight days ago, you weren't even in her vocabulary. She was crying her eyes out over Eric. Then, suddenly, you're married and she's madly in love with you?" He held his hand out palm up, like, Seriously? You expect me to believe that shit?

  "That's too farfetched even for a fairytale. Something smells here. And it isn't these horrible crab puffs." He laughed. "Remember the guide for getting girls we invented in college? You followed it to the letter when you created Flash. Target rich environment. Making yourself indispensible. Putting yourself in a position of power. I'm proud of you, dude." He paused, his eyes twinkling. "So. What prank are you running?"

  I stared at him, keeping my emotions masked. "There's no prank." I glanced across the room at Kay. My pulse roared at the sight of her, like it always did. I smiled involuntarily.

  Dex shook his head. "Damn, you have it bad for her. Always did."

  He paused to take another drink of beer. "Let's play the facts back. Kay went to Reno on business after Eric broke her heart. She returns home to her apartment. No mention of you. No mention of having met someone. No nothing on any of her social media accounts. She stays in, sick as a dog from food poisoning through Sunday. On Monday, a large black vehicle pulls up in front of her building and she's served with papers. A divorce summons. From you. The next day, your happy marriage is all over the news." He paused. Dex had a flair for the dramatic. "Tell me. How far off am I?"

  "Nice story. Ever thought of writing a novel?" I took a sip of beer to calm down and put on my poker face. I was good at poker. Too bad this wasn't a card game. How the hell had Dex discovered all this? The sneaky little bastard.