Accidental Fiancé (Unintentionally Yours #5)

22. Julian

Chapter 22

Julian

T he trudge up the stairs seemed longer this time. Every step was heavy bearing too many thoughts. What the hell just happened in the closet? She kissed me, and I lost all control. I almost admitted how I felt, though I wasn’t even sure what that meant. Not really. It was the sex. It tainted my brain, making me weak and stupid.

I could not let that happen again.

As we headed upstairs, I heard Chloe cackle. I knew it was at our expense. Not that I cared—Chloe’s opinion meant nothing to me—but my family’s opinions meant everything. By the end of the week, I had to ensure they liked Maggie and hated Chloe. Maggie could be closed off and reticent, so that was where I had to focus my energy. I needed to get her out of her shell and show them what made her so special.

They’d figure out Chloe was awful all on their own.

Once we were in my room, I closed the door behind us for privacy. Despite her irritation at my tendency to joke during uncomfortable situations, I had to try. I’d do anything to see Maggie smile. “Chloe’s a real piece of work, isn’t she?”

Maggie hiccupped a laugh. “She’s like a dog with a bone, and we’re the bone.”

I smiled, trying to figure out something to say, but her words hung in the air, and all I could hear was her saying bone. That was the only thing on my mind. Sex. With Maggie. Our unspoken tension felt like air pressing in at all sides and I couldn’t think.

I grabbed my trunks. “I’ll change in the bathroom.”

“Do you mind if I do?” Maggie asked. “I need to fix myself up a little before I face your family again.”

“Sure. Of course.” The truth was, I wanted a door between us. Just a little space so I could think clearly. She darted into the bathroom and closed the door. The thin border between us allowed me to breathe again.

I changed and laid on the bed, watching the ceiling fan spin above me. I’d had the best blowjob of my life in the supply closet not fifteen minutes ago. Almost confessed I was falling for Maggie ten minutes ago. Mere moments after that, I nearly decked Marcus as I passed him in the hallway for having the audacity to invite a plague into our home.

I checked the clock. How the fuck had it only been an hour since we’d arrived?

Clearly, the contract meant nothing to either of us, Maggie’s payment aside. She’d get that money no matter what happened and after getting humiliated by Chloe, I planned on tacking on a hefty bonus. Not that it would make up for things, but it might be a balm to Maggie’s nerves. Or it might alleviate my guilt. Either way, she was taking home a lot of money. I’d make sure of it.

But then the question became, which home was she taking that money to?

The thought of her no longer being in my house after this, of her going back to her apartment, of her leaving us behind, cracked something within me, shaking me to my core. I hated the thought. But I didn’t know how to change things between us. Furtive fucking in the supply closet was not the way to woo someone.

I didn’t know how to woo Maggie or if I even should. When she rejected me in high school with that disinterested confused look in her eyes after I kissed her, it was enough to put me off of dating for a long time. It hurt too much to be rejected by my fantasy. Now, with Piper in the mix, I couldn’t risk damaging my relationship with Maggie. My daughter would be crushed if Maggie never came around after this week.

Too much risk. But the reward…

The bathroom door unlatched, calling my attention. When Maggie walked out, time stopped, and my brain stuttered. She wore one of those retro swimsuits that tied around the neck, her breasts threatening to spill at the top. Bright red. A heartstopper. Little sandals and matching red shorts. She was a vision. A fifties fantasy in real life. A?—

“You’re staring.”

“Uh, sorry. Ready to go?”

“Do I look?—"

“Yes,” I rasped.

“You don’t even know what I was going to say.”

“Whatever it is, yes. I’m not sure you should be allowed to wear that.”

“What, why?”

I scrubbed my hand over my face, trying not to tell her what was on my mind. “If my cousins hit on you, you tell me.”

She laughed. “What are you talking about? They know I’m here with you. They wouldn’t dare.”

I wanted to take her in my arms and kiss her until my face went numb. How could she be this innocent after what we did in the closet? After everything we had done?

I faced her, wishing our circumstances were anything but what they were because I wasn’t sure what that was anymore. “You look amazing. This outfit… you might be covered up, but you’re also devastatingly indecent.”

Her face flushed pink. “It’s just an outfit.”

“It’s the outfit. Every woman down there will be jealous of you.” I thought for a moment. “Except for Phoebe. She might hit on you.”

“Another cousin?”

“My third youngest. Early twenties, septum piercing, purple hair last I saw her. You can’t miss her.”

She nodded. “Ready?”

“Let’s go.”

As much as I was irritated by Marcus’ choice in girlfriends, I was happy to see my family. We had a love-hate relationship, but this one week out of the year, while tense, was usually a good time. Or at least I tried to convince myself that it was good for Piper. My daughter loved coming here.

She splashed at the shallow end with her cousins and their friends, thirty kids ranging in age from four to fourteen. They played games and slid down the slides, shouting for their parents to watch them. Piper would have, too, but she was too busy hosting a contest to see who could hold their breath the longest under water.

Maggie’s eagle eyes were on Piper, watching every movement under the water and breathing a sigh of relief when she popped back up.

“She’s fine.”

She smiled at me upon realizing I had noticed. “It’s just… when her head goes underwater, it’s hard not to panic.”

“Believe me, I understand. But you see them?” I pointed to the six people in bright orange windbreakers and not much else. They patrol the pool area with a sharp eye. Don’t forget she’s taking swim lessons, too.”

“Who are they?”

“Professional lifeguards. They’re here to allow the parents to be able to relax a little bit. It’s okay to just let her do her thing, they’ve got it under control.”

Maggie sighed, her eyes still on Pip. “I’m not sure how to turn it off. I have to leave the pool every time her swim coach comes over, or I freak out when she goes under too long.”

I took her hand in mind and gave it a squeeze. “That’s how I know you’ll be a great mom.”

She smiled fully at that but it died fast.

Oh right. None of this is real .

A bevy of cater waiters in short shorts with billowing open shirts delivered cocktails and snacks to those on the loungers, causing Maggie to lean in and quietly ask, “Are they models?”

“Can’t say. Mom hires from the same company every year, though. She likes good-looking men to gape at.” The thought made me a bit less comfortable as we sat on the loungers in the shade near Apollo.

Maggie giggled as one of the cater waiters took our order, her tone dropping into her mischievous register after he left. “Are you sure they aren’t hired hands for more than just serving drinks? He was very flirty.”

Apollo sat up at that, smirking. “You mean, does Aunt Artemis hire sex workers for her family party?”

“I didn’t mean anything by it,” she blurted.

“I’ve been wondering the same thing for years. Anytime I’ve asked, she swats my shoulder and tells me to mind my own business, so…” He shrugged with a grin.

But I couldn’t let my brain go there. Mom having a sex drive? Pass. I said to Maggie, “He was probably flirting with you because you look incredible.”

“Aw, look at Fool-ian, scoring brownie points,” my cousin teased.

I rolled my eyes beneath my sunglasses but enjoyed the way Maggie’s lips turned up at the corners into a sexy smirk. “He might be a fool, but he’s my fool,” she replied.

If only .

“Sounds like Julian got himself in trouble again,” Chloe taunted as she and Marcus joined us. They took the empty loungers to my left, and I was glad to play defense between her and Maggie. Chloe wore a blue bikini that matched her eyes.

After our drinks came, I asked, “So, what game is it that you had to get us out here for, Chloe?”

“Pool volleyball?”

Marcus didn’t like that idea. He groaned and dug his head back against the thick pillow on his lounger. His guayabera shirt slid apart, revealing his belly. “Anything but that, babe. I’m here to relax, not to let Apollo spike the ball in my face again.”

Apollo snorted a laugh. “Like you ever had a problem with balls in your face.”

Marcus flipped his brother off. “Not volleyball.”

“Spin the Bottle?” Another collective groan went up but Chloe was undeterred. “No wait, I’ve got it. Truth or Dare.”

I blew out a breath as the others complained. I was inclined to agree with them. If we played that game, Chloe would have the upper hand. She knew the most about me and Maggie, and while I wasn’t as paranoid as Maggie, Chloe had a gift for ferreting out things you didn’t want known.

But maybe I could use it to my advantage. I wasn’t the only person here with a secret. I could use the game to show Marcus who she really was. “I think that’s a great idea, Chloe.” I slowly smiled at her. “You go first.”

She looked like the cat who ate the canary. “Love to. Apollo, truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

“Recite the alphabet backward.”

His jaw clenched, and I couldn't figure out why he suddenly looked so pissed off. But his glare was unmistakable and aimed at Marcus. “Seriously, man?”

Marcus shrugged mildly. “I didn't say shit.”

I asked, “What's going on?”

Chloe smiled, eyes wide and innocent. “What's wrong, Apollo? Did I say something out of line?”

“Man, fuck this,” he muttered under his breath. He stood and dove into the pool.

“All I did was ask a simple question. It's a game. Why is he taking it so personally?”

Marcus sighed. “Because he thinks I told you about his near DUI. Reciting the alphabet backwards is one of the roadside tests.”

“Well, that's hardly my fault, I didn't know.”

But none of it sat right with me. “Apollo got a DUI?”

“Almost. Given that he has friends in high places he was able to get it expunged, removed from his driver history. But he's embarrassed that it happened.”

“Why the fuck didn't he call someone for a ride?” I asked. “Hell, a ride share is a better idea than a freaking DUI. He's smarter than that.”

“And that's why he's embarrassed,” Marcus explained. “He was just slightly over the limit as it was. He didn't realize how hard the beer would still hit him after having a burger and fries at the bar with me.”

“We all make mistakes,” Maggie said. “Obviously, he's not gonna let that happen again.”

My cousin nodded. “Exactly. He had sworn me to secrecy about the whole thing, so I get why he would be mad if he thinks I blabbed. But seeing as he had a hissy fit just now, I figured I should give you guys context.” He noted to Chloe, “Especially you, babe. He's not mad at you. I don't think he's even mad at me. He's mad at himself.”

“It's fine,” she said. “We all go through difficulties. Volunteering has really shown me that.”

“And how has volunteering at the historical society shown you that everyone goes through difficulties?” I couldn't keep the question to myself.

“History is filled with people going through difficulties, Julian. Open a textbook sometime. Or does Maggie still do your homework?”

“Maggie never did my homework.”

“That's not how it looked.”

Maggie sat up. “I didn't realize we were being so closely monitored.”

Chloe examined her manicure. “I didn't have to monitor anything closely. You two were so obvious about it.”

“Truth or dare, Chloe,” Marcus cut into our sniping.

“Truth.”

“If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?”

I chuckled. Marcus was still the nerd I knew with the biggest comic book collection I had ever seen. It did not surprise me to hear him ask a superhero question.

“Invisible for a day? That sounds awful.”

He asked, “Awful? You could do anything. Rob a bank. Steal an armed truck full of money. Spy on your sexy neighbors. Anything.”

Before she answered, I said, “You know, I thought you were asking a superhero question but I was wrong. You're asking a supervillain question, which is making me second guess everything I thought I knew about your comic book collection.”

Marcus laughed. “Maybe when I was younger, I was into the heroes. These days, I'm old enough to know the villains are the interesting ones.”

Well, that just made him and Chloe make a lot more sense.

“If I had to be invisible for a day, I would probably go to Tiffany's and try on all the engagement rings,” Chloe said, bringing us back to the point. “A girl has to be prepared, right, Maggie? Let me see your ring again.”

Maggie raised her hand, flashing the diamond at her. “See?”

“I thought you said it was big enough to be a difficulty when you were baking. I can't imagine that getting in the way.” She tipped her head at me. “Thoughtful of you to get her a ring so small, otherwise, she might have lost it in a muffin.”

“Looks plenty big to me. Too big, really. She has tiny hands,” Marcus chimed in.

“I'm going to the restroom.” Maggie left us behind, probably too pissed to speak. It was all over her face.

Apollo waved at his brother from the deep end, beckoning him over. Marcus tensely grumbled, “Great, now I get to explain why I told everybody about Apollo's DUI.” He removed his shirt before diving in and swimming to his brother, leaving me alone with Chloe. Goody.

She flattened her lounger and laid back. “Didn't need to ask you truth or dare. I already know your truth.”

I feigned boredom while everything inside of me tensed up. “And what's that, Chloe? What do you think you know?”

“You're faking your engagement.”

An incredulous laugh chirped out of me. How the fuck did she know that? “Is that right? Someone should have told my jeweler he could have used cubic zirconia instead of the diamond.”

“Oh, the ring is real enough. But you two? No. And you're going to pay me a million dollars a day for me to keep this quiet during Yaya’s birthday week, or I’ll tell everyone the truth.”