Marry Me for Money (27 page)

“My mother asked me to say a few words.”

Kent cleared his throat, and one by one, everyone turned to his direction.

“I’d like to take this time to thank everyone for coming. It means so very much to us that everyone we care for, who has impacted our lives in one way or another, is here to celebrate with us. I never thought I’d be up here, saying this speech, and about to get married. But then, I met Beth.”

I glanced at Mrs. Plack, and tears were in her eyes while Mr. Plack’s arms surrounded her.

“And to my beautiful fiancée and future wife…”

I looked to him as he continued to speak. His gaze raked my face with such intensity that it sent butterflies straight to the pit of my stomach.

“Thanks for being there for me and for being who you are—innocent, fun-loving, and honest.”

His voice dropped slightly, and when his eyes fixed upon me, I felt that undeniable connection, that electricity between us.

“You make me look at everything in a new light. You’re the reason I get up every morning and the reason I laugh every day.” He leaned into me and framed my face with both of his hands. “I will never care for anyone the way I do for you. My life began when I met you.”

His speech left me breathless. The intensity of his brown eyes consumed me. Absolutely consumed me. I was drowning deep into a sea of chestnut and for a moment, I forgot that we were surrounded by a mass of people. When he bent down, I held my breath, closed my eyes, and let his lips meet mine for the first time.

My body responded automatically, and I was free-falling into an empty space of bliss. I didn’t want it to stop—ever. My heart raced in my chest, and I couldn’t think of anything but this kiss and his lips, but I needed more. I wanted more. I gripped his shirt, fisting it with one hand and pulled him toward me until my body was flush against him. I heard myself moan against his mouth as I tasted mint on his lips. His masculine cologne filled my nose. I was engrossed by everything that was Kent Plack, and it was not enough. We were not close enough even though we were basically molded into one body.

His kiss was all-consuming, touching my whole mind, body, and soul and I swore, if he released me, I’d die.

I tilted my head, wanting more of him, because our nearness was not enough. I felt just the tip of his tongue against mine, and before I opened wider to let him in, his hands moved from my face to frame my shoulders. He began pushing me, moving away. My eyes were still closed as my brain screamed,
No!

His body was no longer flush against mine. He took a step back, and the only thing left touching was our lips. He slowed his movement to a few pecks, and he distanced himself slowly as if he didn’t want to break from our connection either.

Opening my eyes just confirmed my thoughts. His eyes told me that he wanted more, that he needed more of me and what I could give him. His look alone, a look of desire, transformed the butterflies in the pit of my stomach into something else—something deep, dark, and not so innocent. We stared intently at each other, his chestnut brown locked onto my emerald green. His breathing was hard and labored as if he had just run a race, and all I could feel was the pounding of my heart in my chest.

And then, I heard it all around me.

Applause.

The applause broke me from my trance. I blinked, noticing the consistent hollers around us, and I blushed pink, feeling as if everyone had interrupted something that passed between us. Immediately, my senses heightened. I realized where I was, and what I just did. My head flipped up to scan the crowd for Brian. I saw him standing next to Kendy. His mouth was set in a straight line, and his hands were fisted in front of him. Emotions rushed through me in that one instant. Confused, dazed, and angry with myself, I wanted to hit something.

Kent pulled me to his side. “Once again, thank you for coming,” he announced.

My arm wrapped around his waist, and I pressed my fingertips into his side. “Yes, thank you all for coming,” I said, facing the crowd.

I dug my fingers a little harder, and from the corner of my eye, I saw Kent’s teeth clench through his smile.

How dare he!
How dare he kiss me in front of this crowd and how dare I kiss him back.

It was the WTF moment, and I had absolutely no idea what had just happened or what had just passed between us. When the applause and commotion died down, I disengaged myself from Kent. I ignored him as he yelled out my name while I walked away before half-running through the crowd to look for Brian.

People stopped to congratulate me once again. My body went through the motions of nodding my head and accepting half-hugs, but my eyes were scanning the crowd for Brian.

I walked the grounds, but I couldn’t find him.

“He left.”

I wheeled around, and Kendy was standing behind me.

My stomach dropped as I took in the discouraged look on her face. “Where did he go?” My voice was barely a whisper.

“Probably home.”

“Okay.”

I made my way to leave, but Kendy reached for my arm, drawing me back.

“Beth, you can’t leave your party. He’s upset. Just let him be for now.”

“I’m not sure why Kent did that, but I have to apologize to Brian. I have to talk to him,” I said, clenching my dress with both fists.

Kendy shook her head and exhaled a heavy sigh. “You’re so blind. For someone who had straight As all through high school and college, you have no idea, do you?” she huffed, scanning my face. “Kent is in love with you, Beth.”

I reeled back as if her words had slapped me in the face. “He’s just that believable. He has more to lose than I do, so he has to be,” I contested.

“He’s believable because he’s living the truth,” she said, exasperated. “You should start living yours,” she said, taking a step closer. “I’ve known you all my life, Beth. No one knows you better than I do. I know how you are, how you think, how you’ve tried all your life to be perfect, to make the right decisions, so you don’t turn out like Jamie.” Her face was sympathetic. “You’re not her. You can’t control everything, and you especially can’t control who you fall in love with.”

At her words, I blanched. Stepping back, I shook my head. “I’m not in love with Kent,” I whispered, staring at her in disbelief.

“Then, why did you kiss him back, Beth? Why, when you look at him, it’s as if he’s the only guy in the room? Why, whenever we are on the phone playing catch-up, you briefly mention Brian, but your voice hitches a tone higher when you talk about Kent?”

“Stop! Kendy, whose side are you on?” I yelled, pulling away from her.

She reached for my arm again. “Beth, I’m on your side. I’ve been on your side since you were six. I will forever be on your side. I just wish, instead of doing what you think is right, for once, you would do what’s going to make you happy. Follow your heart.”

“I’ll fix this,” I said mostly to myself.

I left Kendy and stomped back to the foyer. Kent was surrounded by a group of people when I walked up to him. Engrossed in the conversation, he barely noticed my arrival.

I tapped him on the shoulder. “Can I talk to you?”

He cast me a glance and smiled. “Sure, baby, one second.”

I waited the longest two seconds of my life, and I tapped him again. “Hey, can we talk now?”

“One sec.”

I widened my eyes. “Now,” I demanded.

The group of four stared in my direction. I didn’t care if I looked like the controlling psycho fiancée. We needed to talk and it needed to happen on my terms.

Kent smiled, entertained by my reaction. “Sure.”

I took hold of his hand, ignoring the warmth I felt, as I pulled him through the crowd, into the house and in the study. I shut the door and locked us in. “I’m sorry, but what was that?” I asked, exasperated, pointing to the door behind me. I was determined to get things back in control.

“What was what?”

When the dimple emerged on his face, I lost it. How Kendy could believe I would fall in love with a man who could possibly drive me to jump off a cliff was insane.

“That kiss!” I said. “What was that? You can’t do that. Why did you do that? You just can’t,” I said in one breath.

He scanned my face. “I had to make it believable, Beth,” he whispered.

“It was believable all right. Brian believed it, and he left.”

At Brian’s name, his eyes dropped to the ground. “I forgot about him,” he said, talking mostly to himself.

“Well, you can’t forget about him. In all of this, he’s been the most patient. He’s upset. I saw it on his face. He’s upset, and Brian never gets upset.” I shook my head. “I hope I haven’t lost him.”

He lowered his head, pinching the bridge of his nose, as he shut his eyes. “You haven’t. He’s not stupid enough to leave you.”

“You don’t know that! He’s the last person I want to hurt, okay?”

“I’m sorry.” Kent said, lifting his head to meet my eyes. “I don’t know what came over me. If you want, I’ll talk to him.”

“No, I’ll talk to him myself.” I turned to walk away as I heard Kent call my name from behind me.

I ran out of the room, down the hall, and straight outside. I rounded the corner where there wasn’t a person in sight and gripped my shoulders tightly as goose bumps formed on my arms from the brisk air. I looked up at the clear night sky and to the twinkle of stars that weren’t present in the city. I used the white brick of the house to support me as I slid down to the ground. I allowed my head to drop into my hands as I took three deep breaths, breathing deeply through my nose and exhaling through my lips.

I squeezed my eyes tightly, seeing only darkness. I was frustrated that Brian had left, confused as to why Kent had kissed me, and even more taken aback that I’d let him. I convinced myself that it had been because of this charade, the lie we were living, and that was the reason I had been so confused.

But Kendy’s words from earlier rang in my head, and I wasn’t sure of anything anymore. I couldn’t control how I felt or how Kent’s touch and the way he gazed at me made my heart stutter. Maybe I was in love with him. Maybe I wasn’t. I didn’t know anymore.

All I knew was that I couldn’t be with him. He lived his life on a whim. He loved the lavish lifestyle of being with different women all the time and he held no responsibilities. The one thing I valued most about myself was the fact that I was responsible.

I had met my other half. He was just like me. He was hardworking, we shared the same values, and he was someone who I had always pictured myself ending up with. That was Brian.

But why did I kiss Kent back?

I shook my head, continuing to take the deep breaths through my nose to try to calm my raging pulse.

The more I couldn’t control my feelings, the more frustrated I felt because in my whole twenty-three years of existence, I’d never felt so out of control.

The next morning and into the afternoon, I kept calling Brian. I left multiple messages. Although I was confused as hell about everything going on in my life, I knew I needed to do the right thing, which was to fix things. I always did the right thing.

After leaving my apartment at noon, I grabbed a sandwich from the deli. As I was eating lunch, I glanced at my phone for the hundredth time.
Still no missed calls.

As I headed back to my apartment, I spotted Brian leaning against the exterior door, looking lost in thought. His baseball cap was angled low, so I couldn’t see his eyes. As I approached closer, he glanced up. He looked so forlorn that I just wanted to give him a hug to console him, so I did.

Tiptoeing, I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my head in the nook of his neck. “You left,” I whispered.

His broad arms encompassed my lower back. “I’m sorry.” He squeezed me tighter. “I just didn’t want to ruin your night.”

I inhaled his masculine musky scent. “You ruined my night by leaving,” I said.

His chest expanded. “Would you be mad if I told you that hearing you say that makes me happy?” He released me and moved to grab my hand. “Let’s walk.”

I glanced at our hands laced together as he led me across the street toward Millennium Park. I stared at the silvery bean statue gleaming in front of us. Gazing straight ahead, Brian seemed wistful, deep in thought. I looked to him, but he continued to blankly stare at the park ahead of us.

With each step forward, dread washed over me. It was as if I was walking along this long cliff, knowing there was a deep, deadly drop at the end. My heart constricted because I knew where this was heading. We reached the park and stopped at a bench in front of the statue. Brian released my hand, and I immediately hugged him. I wanted to be close to him to apologize for what I had done, for putting him through all of this mess.

I tapped my forehead lightly on his chest. “Don’t say it,” I whispered.

“You don’t even know what I’m going to say,” he said softly, as he wrapped his arms around my waist.

“Whatever you are going to say, I don’t want you to say it.” I bit the inside of my cheek to stop all the emotions running through me.

Releasing me, he tugged my hand and pulled me down to sit on the bench. He inched away from me and placed his forearms on his knees. His head hung low as we both fell silent. My eyes focused on an older couple holding hands, walking at the other end of the park. I wondered how we’d ended up here because this was not how it was supposed to be. This was not how I’d planned it to be.