Accidental Fiancé (Unintentionally Yours #5)

23. Maggie

Chapter 23

Maggie

B edtime had been uncomfortable, to say the least. I went into our shared bedroom and waited for Julian to show up but I dozed off before he arrived. I woke up when he finally came in. “Oh hey.”

“Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you.”

“It's fine. Coming to bed?”

“I can sleep in the chair if that's what you'd prefer.”

My brain was foggy. “Why wouldn't you sleep in the bed?”

“I just figured you wouldn’t want me to. It's up to you.”

“Don't be silly.” I pulled the blanket down a little for him by way of invitation.

“I’ll get washed up.” He left for the bathroom, and I was left with questions.

Why wouldn't he sleep in our bed? Did we have a fight? But then Chloe's face came to mind, and reality cracked through my haze.

We're not a couple. Why do I keep forgetting that?

When Julian came to bed it took all the strength I had not to cuddle him. What happened earlier in the closet was an unexpected one-time thing. Neither of us acknowledged it and I wasn't sure what I would say anyway.

I had no idea what had been about to come out of his mouth when Chloe threw open the door. I had my suspicions, of course. But none of them tracked with reality. None of them made any sense. Julian Black did not love me. He wasn't in love with me. The sex? That was just two horny people wrapped up in a moment. He was trying to comfort me. Or distract me. But it wasn't about how he felt.

We have a contract in place that clearly defines how he feels.

I was just another tool to him. Another person to buy and sell. A way to keep his family off of his back. It was one thing when we were just friends doing each other a favor. But the moment money entered into the situation, it changed everything.

I had to do my best to remember that. But I didn't want to. I wanted to put that damn contract out of my mind. I wanted to pretend that this was real, that I could somehow fit into this life.

Chloe made it plain by the pool that I never would. That was why I had to leave. She and I both knew that the rock on my finger was enormous. Her taunts were not about the size of my ring. She was trying to point out that I didn’t matter. That I was unimportant. And when Julian didn't stand up for me against her, I didn't know what to do. In that split second, he proved her right. I looked to him for some sort of clarity but he was watching Chloe, and then Marcus spoke up, closing out the conversation.

We had to talk about it. In the dark, I whispered, “Julian?”

But all I got was a snore in return.

The woman of the hour finally arrived at breakfast the next day. According to Julian, she liked to show up late to her own party to make a grand entrance, and to guarantee that everyone was already there waiting for her. Hera Galanis—Yaya—was a striking woman. Petite and thin with short gray curls, only a fool would think she wasn't a powerhouse. Energy, authority, and positivity radiated from her. Clearly, the family's green eyes came from her genes; she had the same gray slash in her iris as Julian did.

When she moved in to hug him, she spied me over his shoulder. With a thick Greek accent, she asked, “And who is this lovely one?”

“Yaya, this is Maggie Bryant.”

She released Julian then took both of my hands in hers before hugging me tightly. “Welcome to the family, Maggie.”

I felt the words as she said them. Immediate acceptance. No hoops to jump through, no games to play. This woman loved with her whole heart. It made me want to be worthy of that love. And it made me feel guilty to be lying to her. Still, I kept my smile firmly in place. “It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Galanis.”

“No, no. You call me Yaya. You’re family.”

I beamed up at Julian, then back to her. “Thank you, Yaya.”

“Is everyone ready?” she asked Artemis.

“Ladies, to the cars,” Artemis announced.

“Um, what?” I asked in confusion.

“Did my son not tell you?” she asked. “It's Ladies Day at the spa.”

My head instantly whipped around to question Julian. “What?”

His expression crumpled and he knew he was in trouble. “I must have forgotten to mention it.”

Before I could even speak, Artemis looped her arm in mine. “Not to worry, Maggie dear, the spa will take care of all of us. Come along.”

I did, not that I had much choice. We piled into a series of large black SUVs. I was grateful I didn’t end up in the same one with Chloe. When we entered the spa, I immediately noticed there were no other patrons in sight.

“Welcome, welcome.” A woman wearing sage-colored scrubs came forward. She had a soft, kind appearance and a warm smile. “Mrs. Black, it's so good to see you.”

“Thank you, Olivia. If I'm not mistaken, Maggie, this is your first time ever being at a spa, correct?”

Spas were not exactly a high priority for me in my life because frankly, I couldn’t afford them. I had only been once before today. It was nice, but nothing like this place.

The lobby was decorated in sage and silver, the air scented with peppermint, vanilla, and lavender. A decorative wood and stone waterfall wall was situated behind the lobby desk. Instead of typical bamboo, delicate live orchids were placed throughout. Relaxing flute music played on the surround sound.

I explained, “I’ve been to a spa before but I’ve never been to this spa.”

“Splendid,” Olivia said, quickly corralling me from the group. “Mrs. Black, while Douglas takes care of the rest of you, I will attend to Maggie.”

A young man wearing the same uniform as Olivia emerged from the back and escorted the rest of them from the lobby. Olivia helped me select services from a digital menu. “Pick as many as you would like for as long as you'd like. You'll be here all day.”

“We're going to be actively relaxing all day? I don't know if I can do that.”

She laughed. “We'll do our best to help you out.”

I made my selections though I was sure I was going to need several breaks from other people touching me. I didn’t know how anyone could stand to do this for a whole day.

The thought of taking a break went out the window as soon as the massage therapist put his hands on my shoulders. Moans of intense pleasure came out of me and I simply didn’t care. As he worked his magic, I wasn't sure where I was anymore.

Afterward, I soaked in a eucalyptus bath and sipped cucumber water. There were three heated pools in a room lined with salted walls. I was so stoned from my massage that I wasn't sure what the attendant had said to me about the details of the salt room but I know it was something cleansing. Once I hit the warm water and the bubbles cascaded over me, I was done.

“Maggie, so glad we could catch up in here.” Chloe invaded my pool and my eyes popped open in horror. But not even she could damage my massage high.

“I’m pretty sure we are caught up, Chloe. Feel free to leave.”

“Nonsense.” Chloe plucked my left hand from the water. “No ring today?”

“Julian's got it for safekeeping. This seems like the kind of place I could lose it.”

“Hmm. I really am happy for you two. We always wondered about you in high school.”

I had no urge to indulge her today. “Oh?”

“Well, you know, there was the lesbian rumor, which made Julian look like a hopeless little puppy dog, always following you around. How humiliating for him, right?”

“Seriously, Chloe, do you ever think before you speak?”

She laughed it off. “Then there was the way you dressed. You were so ample up top—it was almost cruel how you taunted the boys with those lowcut shirts then get upset when they talked about you. Why did you tease them like that?”

I shook my head at her. “I didn’t wear lowcut shirts, Chloe, I just wore shirts. Not my fault I have what I have. Those boys’ parents should have raised them better than to comment on other people’s bodies.”

She shrugged, still smirking. “I was always your biggest defender, of course, but then there was Julian.”

She was trying to get me to ask for more information. As long as I did that, she was the center of attention, and as long as she was the center of attention, she felt important.

I blew her off. “That’s nice.”

Her blue eyes came alive, excited to tell me something against my will. “Come now, don't play coy. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Julian is your knight in shining armor. It's really quite romantic. He finally got the girl of his dreams.”

Maybe if I just keep agreeing, she’ll get bored. “Julian’s always been a romantic.”

“Especially when he faced down Grant Worthington. You remember him, right?”

The football quarterback who took up the slack whenever Chloe wasn’t around to annoy me. He was the first boy to start shaving and had a five o’clock shadow in the sixth grade. He developed faster than the others, shooting up six inches during the summer in between freshman and sophomore year. An awkward boy who grew into a handsome young man. As Rosewood High School’s favorite son, I worried Julian would be arrested for breaking Grant’s throwing arm.

“I remember him. But why are you rehashing the old days? Don’t you have new accomplishments to talk about? Or did you peak in high school?”

Chloe bit her bottom lip, her crow’s feet pinching ever so slightly. I’d struck a nerve. Knowing her, she wouldn’t let that stand. “If I were you, I probably wouldn’t want to relive old times, either. Especially considering what Julian did for you.”

“Out with it.”

“Didn’t he tell you the details about the fight with Grant?” But before I could respond, she answered her own question. “He didn’t, did he? He didn’t want you to know what happened.”

“But clearly you do.”

“I’m trying to do you a favor. You should know who you’re marrying.”

If this were a real engagement, she’d be right about that. So I played along. “Fine, tell me.”

“Well…” She shifted in the water to get closer to me. “Grant and I had been dating for a few months, and he was such a devoted boyfriend. Handsome, student body president, captain of the?—"

“I remember, Chloe. Go on.”

“We were smoking behind the cafeteria and minding our own business when Julian showed up out of nowhere and picked a fight.”

“You just said he was being a knight in shining armor, so how is that picking a fight?”

She shrugged. “I misspoke. He walked right up to Grant and started attacking him, beating him and shouting, ‘It’s not true!’ It was horrifying. Thought you should know he has a temper.”

“You made it sound like he did it to help me. What?—"

“I have a treatment.” She stood, water cascading down her skin. I’d better go, or I’ll be late.”

I snatched her hand and kept her in the pool. “Tell me what else happened.”

“Grant was trying to protect the student body from a predator,” she hissed. “Julian acted like an animal.”

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

“Mr. Poundstone.”

The name whooshed through me like a ghost. My beloved chorus teacher, the one who believed in me. The one who gave me the solo for the state competition. The one who picked me over Chloe. I lost a breath and loosened my grip. “What about him?”

“After your affair came to light?—"

“We never had an affair!” I barked. “I don’t know why anyone thought that!”

She clicked her tongue at me, watching my every move. “Mm-hmm. Well, Grant felt it was his duty to protect the student body after he heard those things, so he went to the principal with the information.”

I gripped the edge of the pool to steady myself. The words came out slowly. “Nothing happened between me and Mr. Poundstone, Chloe.”

“Right. You earned the state competition solo.”

“You think I’d sleep with an old man, a teacher, for a solo?”

“I think Julian was angry you were sleeping with Mr. Poundstone, and by the time he heard about it, Mr. Poundstone had already been fired, so he took out his anger on the man who exposed you.”

Absentmindedly, I shook my head. “He’d never do that.”

“Believe what you want, Maggie. But Julian Black, wonderful as he is now, had a real anger problem in high school. He must have thought he was defending your honor or something.” She rolled her eyes and stepped out of the pool. “See you later.”

It made no sense. As senior year wound down, the state competition had been the only thing on my mind—that and keeping my grades up for scholarships. The solo had been decided a few weeks before Mr. Poundstone was fired. Just enough time for a rumor like that to destroy a career teacher. With Grant’s word being gold, no one would doubt him.

Julian attacking Grant out of nowhere sounded like total bullshit. He knew that Grant made up a lie and got a good man fired to avenge his girlfriend’s disappointment. Julian was angry, sure. But it was justified. He wanted to clear Mr. Poundstone’s name.

And mine .

A shiver of realization bolted through me. He had attacked Grant for me despite the odds. Grant was huge, and he had a knack for fighting. We’d seen it on the football field and in the halls. Julian should not have been able to walk away from that fight with just a busted eyebrow. By all rights, he was the one who should have ended up in the hospital, not Grant. Julian risked everything for me, and a primitive part of me loved him for it.