Karen Booth - Between Marriage And Merger

“Now you know how I felt when that video ran. At least we knew this was going to happen. That’s a big improvement over the way things happened for me.”

Lily sighed and looked at the pixelated photograph again. This was the new cost of doing business, the price she’d be paying for securing her future with her small piece of Locke and Locke. This was the new normal. “Do you think this will be the extent of being in the tabloids? We won’t have to keep doing this, will we?”

Noah took a sizable gulp of the Old-Fashioned he’d ordered to go alongside his steak sandwich and fries. “This should be enough to do the trick. We just needed Hannafort to buy the idea of us as an engaged couple before we show up at his daughter’s wedding.”

She smiled thinly and nodded. His words pointed to one truth—the notion of Lily and Noah as a couple was indeed something that needed to be sold. It needed the help of smoke and mirrors. “Okay.”

The expression on Noah’s face softened. “Are you just saying okay? I have the feeling this is really bothering you.”

She didn’t want to make a stink. She wasn’t someone to complain, but it did bother her. At least Noah was being thoughtful about it. That she appreciated. “I don’t want to sound like a hopeless romantic, but it’s a big deal to get engaged. It feels like we’re tempting fate by doing it for show.”

Worry crossed his face, a look she disliked. Noah was too perfect to stress. “Think of it this way, it’s helping you build a nest egg, right?”

“Yes. That’s important.”

“And, hopefully, there are worse people you could be fake engaged to.”

I’m not sure there’s anyone better to be fake engaged to. “Of course. Don’t be silly.”

“More than anything, do you have any idea how many people get stuck with super unflattering pictures of themselves in the tabloids? This photo of us is pretty hot. We look good together.” He smiled, seeming like he was desperate to reassure her everything would be okay. It was so endearing.

“True.” Lily gnawed on her lower lip. She had noticed that. “Can you get Kendall to email me that link? So I have it?” She might be upset by the newspaper story, but she might also have that photo blown up and framed. She could hang it on the wall in her bedroom. Oddly enough, the kiss in the jewelry store hadn’t been particularly hot. It had been sweet and nice. She hadn’t noticed when it was happening that Noah had not only rested his hand on her hip, he’d curled his fingers into her coat. Even with the graininess of the photograph, she could see him pulling on her. Like he wanted her. Like that moment in the car when his hand slipped under her skirt and he’d discovered her stockings. There was a good deal of feminine pride wrapped up in being able to surprise a man like Noah. Very few women had likely made such an impression.

Noah’s phone rang. “I’m so sorry. I should get this. It’s Charlotte.” He pressed the button on the screen and jabbed his finger into his ear. “Hey. What’s up?” He nodded and popped a French fry into his mouth. “Okay. Hold on.” He handed the phone to Lily. “She wants to talk to you.”

“About?”

“Something about shopping.”

“Hello?”

“Lily, it’s Charlotte. I’m wondering, and I’m not totally sure how to ask this, but do you have the right clothes for this trip?”

Lily had no clue what that might entail. Did she have nice clothes? Of course. She made a point of being impeccably dressed at work. Did she have fancy, expensive clothes? No. “I’m not sure. Noah hasn’t told me anything about what we’re going to be doing.”

“I’m not surprised. I’m sure it’s the last thing on his mind. Thankfully, it’s the first thing on mine. I do not want you feeling unprepared. You should feel comfortable in the Hannaforts’ world of big money and luxury. I’ll take you shopping to be safe. Plus, Noah’s paying.”

“Does he know that?”

“Not yet.”

Lily snickered. “Okay. When?”

“Now? I had a client cancel on me this afternoon and Michael is working late.”

Lily glanced over at Noah. How anyone could look so smoking hot eating a sandwich was beyond her. And the way his lips curved around the glass? She’d never wished so badly to be an ice cube, to slide down and crash into his mouth. “You sure? You don’t have to do this.”

“Are you kidding? I live for stuff like this. Meet me at the Saks in midtown in thirty minutes?”

“I’ll have to clear it with Noah first, I guess.”

“I’m clearing it. If my brother says a peep, remind him that he’s on thin ice with me right now. Plus, if you’re going to be my pretend sister-in-law, we should spend more time together, don’t you think?”

“Good idea.” It was nice to think that Charlotte could be Lily’s ally in this. She needed someone on her side who wasn’t an impossibly handsome man. Noah wielded too much power as it was. “I’ll see you in a bit.” Lily returned Noah’s phone. “Your sister’s taking me shopping for clothes for the wedding, but she wants me to meet her in a little bit. Can you and Sawyer manage if I’m out of the office this afternoon?”

“I don’t have much choice. When Charlotte decides something is going to happen, it does. Case in point, our engagement.”

“She does seem like a force of nature.”

“She’s always been like that. Even when we were kids.”

Lily had often wondered what it must’ve been like to grow up on the sprawling Locke estate out on Long Island. “What about you? What were you like?”

“Quiet. Uncoordinated.”

“You’re lying.”

“I’m not. I was always the one in the background. Sawyer was the star. He was the better athlete. He had more girlfriends. He did better in school. Charlotte was the one who was in crisis or kicking up trouble.” Noah sat back and draped his long arm across the back of the booth. Lily hadn’t moved back after scooting closer, so they were only inches apart.

Lily sat there and stared at Noah, his admission still plain on his face. “I can’t even imagine you like that. It seems impossible.”

“I assure you it’s more than possible, it happened that way.”

Lily was seeing Noah in an all-new way and she wasn’t sure what to make of it. Noah always seemed like the cocky golden boy of the Locke family, while Sawyer was the strong type A oldest sibling. Maybe she’d read it all wrong.

Noah got yet another text. “This is why I hate my phone.” He picked it up from the table, shaking his head when he read the message. “Sawyer needs me to get back to the office. You should take the car to meet Charlotte and I’ll hop in a taxi.” He flagged down the waiter and handed over his credit card to pay the check.

“You don’t have to do that. It’s only eight or nine blocks for me.”

“What kind of fiancé would I be if I let you walk in those shoes?”

Lily had strong thoughts on the answer. Peter had once left her to walk to a gas station two miles away when her car broke down. She’d called and asked for his help, but he’d been at the gym and wanted to finish his workout first. Noah probably had no idea how impossibly sweet he was being right now. “I want to walk. But I sincerely appreciate the offer.”

“Okay, but I’ll pay for a cab if you change your mind.” He signed the bill when the waiter returned it, then plucked the card from the leather folio and handed it to Lily. “Shopping is on me, too.”

“You don’t have to do that either. I have money.”

“You never would’ve been in this situation if it wasn’t for me.”

Lily couldn’t forget it. It was omnipresent in her brain. It would be interesting to see where exactly the idea resided once she was back from the Hannafort wedding and all was back to normal.