The Fix Up (17 page)

Camryn

Nearly five months later

“Are you sure about this?” Olivia asks, navigating the stairs to the hotel in sky-high heels. She looks amazing for having a three-month-old baby strapped to her chest. I swear, nothing slows her down.

“Positive.” I grin.

Looking down at my engagement ring, I feel almost giddy at the thought of deceiving everyone. I didn’t want a big rock or a lot of fanfare, though Sterling wanted to spoil me. When he proposed in Central Park, he did so without a ring. It was Christmas in New York, which means it was that magical time of year where everything is filled with joy and cheer. Big white fluffy snowflakes falling from the sky, us huddled together in wool coats and scarves, drinking hot cocoa and watching the figure skaters on the ice rink. It’s a memory I will always treasure.

He dropped down to one knee with a sweet, short, and genuine request that I make his life complete by becoming his forever. He asked me with a shaky voice if I would be his wife.

While tears filled my eyes, he pulled off my mitten and kissed my left ring finger. When I sobbed yes, he told me he wanted us to pick my perfect ring together. We went into Tiffany’s beautiful New York store, my cheeks pink and my eyes watery with happy tears. They gave us champagne and let me try on every ring I wanted. I could tear up again right now remembering Sterling’s happy smile.

The sales staff teased him about proposing without a ring, saying that it was a brilliant plan just in case I said no. But when our gazes met, Sterling and I both knew there wasn’t a chance I would have said no.

I ended up selecting a simple, yet sturdy platinum band encrusted with five rows of diamonds. It was two carats, but all the diamonds were tiny flecks encircling the ring. The effect was so sparkly, and the significance of there being no beginning and no end held meaning for me. Sterling picked a similar style ring, thick platinum without any diamonds. To my surprise, he’s worn it every day since. I teased him and told him in this country that engaged men don’t wear rings, and he simply said
I know
.

“Well then, let’s get on with it. You have a groom to deceive,” Olivia says, pulling me from my daydream. Her hand pats Emma’s back softly as she coos to her daughter, who’s almost asleep.

Suddenly, my thoughts darken. “Oh God. I just thought of something. What if Sterling thinks I planned all this, that I’m only marrying him to get the inheritance money?”

Olivia chuckles at me. “You just now thought of that?”

“Yeah. Why?”

She shrugs. “That’s what I’ve been worried about the entire time.”

“Fuck.” I push my hands into my hair. “Am I slow or something?” I’ve never even considered that.

“You’re not slow.” She laughs. “You’re in love. It clouds the brain; not your fault at all. I think it’s cute.”

At the word
cute
, I roll my eyes. Just great. My fiancé, who wanted to wait to marry, is currently out with Noah for drinks, and I’m at the hotel panicking.

We’re in Vegas for what he assumed was a bachelor party for him, but really, we’re getting hitched tomorrow at noon at one of those cheesy drive-through chapels. Then we’ll have dinner with our best friends, Noah and Olivia, and there will be dancing and champagne, and then a whole lot of sex in our hotel suite later. I’m practically fucking giddy just thinking of it. Five months of dating hasn’t even begun to cool the insatiable lust I have for him.

We’ve had our ups and downs like any couple, there have been mundane things like dealing with stress at work, and busy schedules, and then there’s been the tougher stuff, like watching him suffer as his mom’s health worsens. I thought our names might be dragged through the mud when the media learned that New York’s most popular bachelor was dating his matchmaker, but there was only excitement as the will-they, won’t-they aspect of us marrying took center stage.

But there have been countless sweet times too. Sterling is a loving boyfriend, thoughtful and considerate. He’s an amazing lover, and my best friend. I hate to think where I’d be today without him. Probably a bitter, jaded, and very single version of myself.

I love him, and that means I care for him enough that I won’t allow him to miss out on inheriting fifty million dollars simply to prove a point. I know what that money could mean for his mother’s care, and for our future. I’m not marrying him for the money; I just hope he knows that.

My stomach tightens when I remember how set he was on the notion that we wouldn’t marry until later. He wanted to be absolutely certain I understood that he wasn’t marrying me so that he could get his inheritance. But now, standing here, doubt has started to creep its way in. Maybe he’s just not ready . . .

I guess there’s one way to know for sure.

Sterling

“Deeper,” Camryn whines.

“I’m trying, love,” I say with a grunt.

There’s an anxious edge to her voice, and I press in further.

“I can’t find it.” Sweat is beading on my forehead and my arm is buried up to my elbow. I push in deeper, the need to please my woman outweighing my discomfort.
Fuck
. Still nothing. “I’m in as far as it’ll let me, love.”

“My hands are smaller. I’ll have to do it,” she says.

Pulling my arm free of the sofa, I stand up.

“Are you sure you lost your phone there?”

She shakes her head. “I was sitting on the couch, and that’s the last time I remember seeing it.”

Checking the hotel suite, I return a moment later with her phone in my hand. “It was on the bathroom counter.”

“Oh.”

“Are you okay? You seem really jumpy today.”

Her gaze drifts to the floor and she nods. “Fine.”

I smooth my hands over her shoulders, rubbing the tension I feel there.

I wonder if she realizes, like I do, that tomorrow marks the six-month deadline. Maybe that’s put her on edge, though I’m not sure why it would. We agreed to wait to marry, and I feel more confident than ever that it was the right thing to do.

We can take our time and plan something special where all of our family and friends can be included. When you know something is going to last a lifetime, there’s no sense in rushing it.

Before, I was in a hurry to get to the altar, to sign the papers and be done with it. But love has changed everything. It’s given me a fresh perspective, and now I see that all the money in the world won’t make my life any better than it is. As long as I have Camryn by my side, we’ll figure the rest out.

“Come here, love.”

She lays her head on my chest as I fold her into my arms.

“Tell me what’s bothering you,” I say.

She shakes her head. “It’s nothing, Sterling.” She wipes her eyes quickly with the back of her hand.

I’m not sure of the right words to say to ease her mind—hell, I’m not even sure what’s on her mind—so instead, I do the only thing I can think of.

I take her to bed and make love to her until all she can feel is me.

• • •

“Babe?” I say, my voice shaky. “What’s this?”

Our limousine has stopped in front of one of those tacky drive-through wedding chapels. The neon sign outside promises weddings in fifteen minutes or less.

The smile on Camryn’s face falls when she meets my confused expression.

“Surprise,” she says weakly.

Noah and Olivia sit stoically across from us, seeming afraid to move or breathe.

“I don’t understand,” I say. Now Camryn won’t even meet my eyes.

The limo driver opens the door and offers Camryn his hand. “Miss, we’re here.”

She tells him that we’ll need a minute, and he closes the door.

“Cami? What’s going on?”

She swallows and takes a deep breath. “This all seems rather foolish now, but I—”

“Noah, Olivia, would you mind giving us a bit of privacy?” I say.

They nod and exit the car, leaving Camryn and me alone. The faint scent of leather and the hum of the air-conditioner are our only companions.

“I love you, Sterling. I wasn’t going to let you throw away the chance at your inheritance. I know you thought that was the right thing to do, but I’m ready. And I think you are too.”

“So you brought me here . . . to get married?”

She nods.

Holy shit.
I never saw that coming. Maybe I should have, given that we’re in Vegas, but when she said it was a quick getaway with friends for a bachelor/bachelorette weekend, I believed her.

Pushing my hands into my hair, it takes me a moment to know how to respond.

“Sterling . . . Say something,” Camryn pleads.

“I need a minute here, love.”

Camryn reaches out and squeezes my knee. I see the outfit she chose now with new eyes. The cream-colored lace top and black skirt is what she chose to get married in. Her lips are painted matte red, and her shiny black pumps elongate her legs, making her a little closer to my height.

I just can’t believe she planned this whole thing without telling me. We tell each other everything.

“Do Noah and Olivia know why we’re here?”

She nods.

My gut is churning, and I’m trying to push away the negative thoughts playing in my brain. She’d never marry me for the money. This is Cami.

“Sterling, you know I’d never push you to do something you weren’t ready for.”

She told me that she needed commitment, that she was looking for her lobster. And when I realize that I’ve been denying her simply because I was trying to prove a point, I feel pretty fucking selfish.

I lift her hand to my mouth and press a kiss to her palm.

“Baby, when I put that ring on your finger, I meant it. I want you today, tomorrow, and forever. If you’re sure about this, then let’s go get married.”

Camryn’s mouth breaks into a happy grin.

• • •

It was every bit as cliché and sappy as you can imagine, and we laughed and kissed and smiled through the whole thing. And now fifteen minutes later we’re back in the limo, the ink drying on our marriage certificate.

Camryn’s in my lap, her ass is in my hands, and her lipstick is staining my throat and the collar of my white shirt. But it’s fine. She’s mine and I’m hers, and I don’t mind her marking me.

“We did it. We freaking did it.” Camryn grins.

“Love you so much, baby.” I say, pulling her lips to mine again.

“Love you more,” she coos.

Noah and Olivia share an uncomfortable look. “Geez, at least wait until we’re back at the hotel to hump,” Olivia says.

“Then you better tell the driver to step on it,” I say. Because I can’t wait to make love to my wife.

Camryn

“Cheers,” Sterling says, raising his glass to mine.

“To?” I clink my champagne flute against his, watching the wind tousle his hair that’s grown too long on top.

“To being newlyweds, and millionaires,” he suggests.

“That’s a good one.” I lean forward and press a kiss to his lips.

It’s crazy how much my life has changed. I’m now Mrs. Camryn Quinn, and my sexy new husband and I are enjoying a month-long honeymoon on a private yacht in the Mediterranean.

I may have thrown him for a loop, planning a wedding and not telling him, but after coming home from Vegas, we set about planning our honeymoon and attended to some personal affairs. Sterling got his mom situated in an amazing community with the best doctors anywhere. She has her own apartment with a little garden in the back, where she spends most of her time. We visit her every weekend, and sometimes meet up with her for dinner during the week too.

With my bonus, I was able to pay off the credit-card debt that had haunted me. It was important to me that I use my own money, from my job, rather than because I was lucky enough to marry a millionaire. Though admitting to Sterling that the debt was due to my ex was almost more embarrassing than him assuming I’ve made poor decisions. As I suspected, he never judged me, though he did want to hunt down David and kick his ass.

Sterling reaches over and gently tugs on the string to my bikini bottoms.

I can see the look of raw hunger in his eyes, and I smile at him. Most of our days have been like this. Filled with sun and sea and flirting and lots of lovemaking.

“Let’s go below deck and see how many times I can make you come, riding my face.”

I chuckle. “Maybe later, lover boy. It looks like we’re headed to that marina.”

Sterling’s gaze swings portside. “Brilliant. We’re here.”

“Where?” I ask. The green hillside is still a mile away, and the few buildings I barely make out in the port are minuscule.

“Italy.”

Happy tears fill my eyes as I realize this amazing man has made all of my dreams come true.

If someone told me six months ago that I’d be married, I would have laughed. If they told me it was to the cocky player, Sterling Quinn, I would have punched them in the nose.

Of all the unlikely scenarios I could have imagined, this was never one of them. And yet everything has unfolded naturally between us. Despite all the chaos and drama the impending inheritance brought us, everything clicked between us right from the very start.

I guess sometimes things are just meant to be.