A Wedding to Remember: Switched at Marriage Part 1 Read online

  "No, Mom." Kayla glanced at me guiltily. "We're not getting divorced."

  I shouldn't have done it, but I caught Kayla's free hand in mine and squeezed it.

  "We'll have to throw a reception," her mom said, as if that settled things. "As soon as possible. People will expect a reception. And, of course, we want to meet Justin."

  "You've met him before, Mom."

  "You know what I mean. As someone special. A member of the family." Debbie's voice trembled. "We want to see this great love for ourselves. Come for dinner. When's good? How about tonight? I can throw something together in a jiffy."

  Kayla glanced at me for confirmation as I pulled up my calendar and made a show of looking at it. I knew full well I had a commitment. "Can't tonight. Sorry. Meeting I can't miss."

  "You can't get out of it?" She pouted prettily.

  I shook my head. "Afraid not." It was unfortunate timing, but I'd been looking forward to this for a while. I couldn't bail. I tried to look apologetic.

  What the hell? Kayla shot me a look of relief. "Not tonight, Mom."

  Her mom sighed. "That's too bad. I suppose billionaires are busy people." She sounded ticked off. "And Wednesday's out. We have a dinner that night we can't get out of."

  I didn't know. Was she trying to one up me? Show me that they were busy, important people, too? She'd always seemed pleasant enough the few times I'd met her.

  Kayla eyed me. "Thursday?"

  I nodded and gave her a thumbs-up.

  "Thursday is no good. Bunko," Debbie said. "If I miss it this time, the girls will fillet me. Friday?"

  Kayla looked to me again. "Justin?"

  I nodded.

  "Friday works," Kayla said to her mom.

  Just then Data woke up and barked happily.

  "Is that a dog?" Debbie asked.

  Kayla scratched Data behind her ears. "Yep. Justin's."

  "It sounds like a small dog." Debbie's voice dripped accusation. The way she said it was almost an affront to my masculinity.

  "It's a Pomsky!" Kayla's eyes lit up, like this was a most wonderful thing.

  I loved her excitement about it.

  "Oh, heavens!" Debbie didn't sound happy. "A Pomsky! You've always wanted one." She muttered something about underhanded dealings and tempting her daughter with a dog.

  As if my billions had been nothing at all. Or my lovable, hot self. But the dog, she was the instrument of all temptation.

  "She's incredibly cute," Kayla cooed to the dog, the way I wished she would coo to me, while she stroked Data's chin. "You'll love her. She's small, even for a Pomsky. Completely huggable. I think I'll put her in a purse." She grinned at me.

  "You will not put her in a purse. She's not all that small. She's still growing. She'll get bigger," I whispered to Kayla. "The breeder assured me she'd be on the large side. For a Pomsky." I was defensive as hell. As if my manhood had been attacked. I'd really thought she'd be bigger.

  Kayla raised an eyebrow and whispered back to me, "Size issues? Really?"

  "Size matters," I muttered. I didn't want her thinking I didn't, cough, have a manly dog.

  "We'll see you Friday," Debbie said.

  * * *

  Kayla

  I stared at Justin. "Impressive acting skills. Nice delivery on the professions of love. Even I almost believed them. My parents were fighting it, but I think they were a little taken in, too. Just don't overdo it. We don't want my parents loving you too much. Or things to have to go too sour in a year. We want an amicable divorce. That was the agreement.

  "The less explaining we have to do then, the better. If a man loved me as much as you just professed to, why would I ever leave you? See my point?"

  His face was a mask. "Sorry. I got caught up in the moment. I'm used to saying what I have to in order to get what I want. You learn a thing or two from running a business—mainly, tell your clients what they want to hear."

  "You mean lie?" I pointed at him.

  "Lie? Everything I said was the truth—I will be a good husband to you. For as long as we last."

  I tilted my head and shook it. "And all that about love?"

  He looked uncomfortable. "Just a stretch of the truth. My gut said to do this fake marriage."

  "Whatever you say. But now that I've seen what a smooth liar you are, I'm not going to trust a thing that you say." I gave him a playful punch in the arm and hit rock-solid muscle.

  Just then my phone buzzed in my hand. I glanced at the screen. "It's Britt! She's trying to FaceTime me. You remember Britt? My best friend? I have to get this. Just stay out of the picture." I handed him the dog and slid to the far side of the sofa away from him. I picked up the call with a smile plastered on my face.

  Britt's face smiled back at me. "About time!" Excitement made her even more animated than usual. "How could you run off and get married without me! I can't believe you broke the deal we made when we were freshman. In high school. You remember the one—maids of honor at each other's weddings."

  I grimaced. Guilty as charged. "Yeah, I know. Sorry. That was crappy of me. Things moved"—I slid a sideways look at Justin—"too fast to get you there in time. If it's any consolation, I missed you!"

  "I certainly hope so! We didn't even get to do a wedding Pinterest board together." Britt studied me, looking like she was trying to figure out what to say. "Did you really marry geeky Justin Green?" She sounded more concerned than judgmental.

  Beside me, Justin pointed to himself and whispered, "I'm right here. Let her know I'm here."

  Out of view of the camera, I made a cutting motion, meaning for him to shut up.

  "I knew you were upset about Eric moving in with Jessica. I can see how you'd want to spite him. But, Kay, you've dated some really hot guys. Including Eric. He was a douche, but he was still hot. Money aside, Justin Green? Really? That just doesn't seem like you. He's not your type." Her brow furrowed, like she was worried about me. "Do you love him?" She sounded as if she couldn't believe I did.

  Justin slid up behind me and tried to get into the picture. I blocked him and scooted so he was out of the frame. I had to convince Britt that this sham marriage was what I wanted. Which wasn't easy. I hated lying to her.

  "Of course I do!" In a platonic way. "He's…" I glanced at him again, trying to come up with some good points.

  He looked too hopeful as he waited for me to rattle off his many wonderful attributes like a happy, besotted bride should. But I was still drawing a blank. He made that rolling motion with his hand that meant, Get on with it.

  "He's hotter than he looked, Britt."

  That got Justin to back off. He pulled back and grinned at me when I gave him a sidelong look. Then he did that peacock guy thing of making a muscle again.

  "Hotter than he looks?" Britt's furrow deepened. "What is that supposed to mean? I was expecting something…a little less superficial."

  I blushed and my heart raced. Sweet Britt. She always wanted the best for me. "Looked. Hotter than he looked. It means he's gotten hotter since college."

  "Or you've gotten more desperate."

  "He's definitely gotten hotter. You wouldn't recognize him now." Damn, I was going to have to work a makeover miracle now.

  Justin tried to angle his way into the picture again. "Give her a chance to see my hotness." He tried to peek around my shoulder. When I wouldn't let him, he lifted the hair on the back of my neck and nuzzled his bearded face into it, tickling me.

  I laughed involuntarily and scrunched my shoulders to fend him off. At the same time, my skin prickled with awareness of him.

  "Is he there?" Britt gave me a dark look. "Why didn't you tell me?"

  "Sorry. He's not supposed to be here." I glared at him and pushed him away.

  He laughed in response.

  "I heard that laughter. Put him on!" Britt pointed into the phone. "I want to see this hotter-than-he-looked billionaire husband of yours."

  "He can't come to the phone right now."

  "He's indispose
d, is he? He's sitting right behind you. I got a glimpse of the top of his head."

  "He can't come to the phone," I repeated.

  She gave me her piercing, thin eyes. "Is he naked? Did I interrupt something?" She gave me a knowing, lewd look.

  I sighed. "He's not naked. He's busy minding his own business." I brushed him away with my hand.

  "He'd better not be too busy to meet me and the rest of the gang. Soon." She pointed into the phone again. "Hear that, Justin? I know you're listening. Put me on the calendar.

  "And you." She pointed directly at me. "I'm going to get all the down and dirty details. When he isn't listening in." She laughed and glanced to the side suddenly. "Oh, crap! Here comes my boss. Gotta run. See you two glowing newlyweds soon. Newlyweds! That's so crazy." She shook her head and she was gone.

  I turned and made thin eyes at Justin, imitating Britt. "What was that about? I told you to let me handle this."

  "Henpecked already?" But he was grinning. "I did so well with your parents, I thought I'd help out with your friends." His eyes danced.

  I couldn't help smiling. "You're enjoying this way too much. You must not get out much."

  "A guy should enjoy his honeymoon."

  I shook my head and laughed. "Honeymoon! Is that what this is?" Then I had a pang of anxiety. "Everyone will expect a honeymoon. Why aren't we on one?"

  "Had to be postponed until after the latest bushfire with Flashionista."

  "You have an answer for everything."

  "This one's the truth. One thing you'll learn about me, Kayla. I'm a workaholic."

  "So that's why you haven't found anyone to spend your money on before." I smiled back at him and assessed him. Could I really make him hot?

  "Uh-oh!" he said.

  "What?"

  "You're biting your lip. You only bite your lip when you're thinking up some kind of trouble." He took a breath. "You did in college, anyway."

  "The things you notice about me are so sweet." I studied him some more and reached out and stroked his beard. "Huh. Surprisingly soft."

  "Does that mean I get to keep it?"

  "Not a chance." I took a deep breath. "Grab your phone. Your parents are up next."

  He pulled his phone out of his pocket, turned it on, and began typing, his thumbs flying.

  "What are you doing?" I tried to peek at his phone.

  "Telling my parents."

  "You're texting them?" I couldn't believe him. "You can't text them news like this." I reached for his phone.

  He was too quick. And I was too late. Damn those flying thumbs.

  He hit send before I could stop him. "Done." His winning grin was cute, though.

  His phone buzzed almost instantly. "Incoming! See? No problem. They're thrilled."

  "Or royally angry."

  He read the messages silently and smiled at me. "They're both out of the country on business. But even given the time zone differences, they responded immediately. Like I said. They're thrilled. They've heard the news. They appreciate me confirming the validity of the stories. And they send their congrats. They'll see us at the earliest convenience when they're both back in town."

  "When will that be?"

  He shrugged. "They're not around much. If we manage things right, we could conceivably go the entire year avoiding them." He grinned.

  "You're evil."

  "Only when I want to be."

  "And now I see where you get your stunning social skills."

  He looked a bit crestfallen.

  "Sorry," I said. "That was mean. Every family has their own behavioral standards. Yours are just a bit…different from most people's." I took a deep breath. "Well, that went well, then, right?"

  "It's pretty typical for them. They're used to me going my own way and doing what I want. They haven't been able to stop me since I was about two. We're grown people, Kay. We don't need our parents' approval."

  "True," I said. "But I love my family. It makes life easier if they're happy for us."

  I tapped the arm of the sofa. We had a lot to do and deal with. My com training was coming out. "Now that we've told our parents, we need to issue an official statement to get the press off our backs. After that, we both need to post the good news to our social media. It will look better for us if the official announcement comes first. Then my friends won't accuse me of making this up and faking it as a joke." I sighed. "This faking is exhausting."

  "I don't want you worn out around me." Sweet sincerity, thy name is Justin. "Let's make a deal—you never fake things with me." His eyes were dark and serious.

  "Never?"

  "Not even once."

  "May I remind you, never is a long time."

  "Not an issue." He sounded too supremely confident.

  Which got my hackles up. Me? Competitive? Never. Oh, wait. Never was a long time. "Not even to spare your feelings? Not even orgasms?"

  His eyes lit up. Why did I insist on flirting with him? He was so easy to be around and joke with. And I think I wanted to see a hint of that old spark he'd had for me in college. Maybe it was cruel of me. Maybe I was a jealous bitch for not wanting men, him, to forget me. Or maybe I was just human.

  "Especially not orgasms." Damn that sexy voice of his. He was flirting back. "If we ever sleep together"—he may as well have said when—"you won't have to fake it."

  "Braggart. That's too bad. I do a mean When Harry Met Sally imitation. Want me to show you?" I closed my eyes and tipped my head back. "Oh, oh, oh—"

  He covered my mouth with his hand. "No thank you."

  I pushed his hand away. "Too bad." I laughed. "The neighbors will be expecting to hear those kinds of noises. That and bed thumping. We're supposed to be young, horny newlyweds."

  "This place is sound insulated. The neighbors can't hear us."

  "Again. Too bad." I Googled "sample wedding announcement wording. Celebrities."

  Justin leaned over my shoulder. "What are you doing?"

  "Getting ideas for our announcement." I grimaced. "We love each other a lot so we finally tied the knot," I read aloud from a website that gave examples of wording. "Bad rhyming couplets. No." I shook my head and shuddered. "Just no."

  "I like it." He nudged me with his shoulder. "It's cute. It's perfect. It's concise." He wiped a fake tear away. "It brings tears to the eyes."

  I rolled my eyes. "It brings tears, all right. You'd better be teasing. If you aren't, I'm tearing up that document I just signed and the deal is off for lack of taste."

  His answering laugh was deep and rich. Sexy the way it rolled up from deep inside him. I ignored the way the sound of it made me smile and began composing.

  For Immediate Release

  Billionaire entrepreneur Justin Green—

  He was hanging on my shoulder, reading over it. "FYI. My middle name is…Arnold." Justin cleared his throat, obviously exaggerating his embarrassment.

  "What?" I stared blankly at him.

  "Are you going to make me say it again?" He sighed dramatically. "Arnold. My middle name is Arnold. Lame name, I know. I think my dad was a fan of the golfer. I was a tiny, sickly preemie. He didn't see me playing football, not even in the peewee league. He was hoping I could make it on the links." His last sentence was laced with innuendo.

  What was a girl to do? I flirted back. Because it was safe and easy. And kept the tension at bay. "Can you…make it on the links?"

  "I don't know. I haven't tried. We could try together."

  I laughed. "That was the worst come-on in the history of come-ons."

  He shrugged. "We're married now. The romance and the trying to impress is over, baby."

  "That's what you think." I didn't know why I said that.

  His eyes lit up.

  I hadn't meant to give him false hope. "So? Can you? Golf?"

  "Not well."

  "Too bad. I'm pretty good, actually." I winked.

  He cleared his throat and pointed to my phone, reverting to the original topic. "You saw my middle name on
the marriage license. It probably just slipped your mind. People will be expecting you to know it. It's standard to put it in wedding announcements and invitations, isn't it?"

  "How do you know that?" I stared at him in amazement. "Most men don't care, don't care, and don't care."

  "I'm a nerd." His grin was adorably self-deprecating. And a bit heartbreaking at the same time. The guy was one of the country's richest millenials. And he self-identified as a nerd.

  "This isn't a newspaper announcement," I said. "It's a press release from your office. If you don't want to list it, you don't have to put it in."

  "Okay. My mistake. Leave it out. Carry on."

  Billionaire entrepreneur Justin Green confirms that he eloped with his college sweetheart, and longtime love, fashion buyer Kayla Marie Lucas, over the weekend in Reno, Nevada. The nuptials took place on Friday, June 6th in a late-night ceremony at a twenty-four-hour wedding chapel. The couple recently reunited and has kept their relationship quiet. Family members and friends were surprised by the announcement, but pleased for the happy couple.

  Justin is very much in love with Kayla. He asks that you respect their privacy during this honeymoon period.

  "Think that will hold them off for a year?" I asked.

  Justin read over my shoulder. "College sweetheart?"

  "I'm trying to lend an air of…what's the word? An air of not getting drunk and getting married without remembering a thing to a classmate you haven't seen in years. On a whim. To reassure the market and your board that you took this commitment, and huge life step, seriously. As you take everything."

  "An air of relationship longevity." He nodded. "Of careful consideration. I see. I like it. But what about Eric? Anyone who knows you, us, will know I was a geek you'd never date. All any reporter has to do is ask any one of your friends, family, profs, sorority sisters, coworkers. The garbage man—"

  "Shut up!" I leaned my head back to look at him. And got mostly a face full of beard, ruining the sexy effect of his voice and laugh. And wit.