Page 59 of Irresistibly Wicked

“Haven’t you met them yet?”

She shook her head. “No. I met his brothers and his cousin, but it all happened so fast, and we had to get all our ducks in a row with Brian and the bank and the courthouse. We’re picking up the marriage license tomorrow and getting married Friday morning before work.”

“That is fast. I know you’re both adults and you don’t need anyone’s approval, but it would seem to me that meeting his family before marrying into their family might go a long way,” he suggested. “Let them see who you are. Maybe that’ll ease their minds.”

“That makes sense, but to be honest, I was kind of relieved that he didn’t ask me to meet them. I didn’t want to bring his family into it at all, because the marriage isn’t real, you know? It’s a blip in our lives, a few months that’ll fly by and then be over.” A pang of disappointment caught her off guard, but she dismissed it, knowing she and Zander would still be friends after they ended the fake marriage.

“I meant to ease their minds, and yours,” he said.

“Maybe you’re right. I’ll bring it up to Zander, but I have a big favor to ask you. Actually, I have two.”

He waved a hand. “Fire away, Flores.”

“The first is, I know you promised to keep our conversation to yourself, but I want to be sure you won’t mention it to the guys. I need to figure out how to tell them I’m getting married, but Zander and I think it’s best if only you and his family know the truth, since it has to look real.”

“I won’t say a word.”

She exhaled with relief. “Thank you. The second favor is a bigger one. Would you be willing to come to the courthouse with us Friday morning to be our witness? We have the first appointment at seven thirty, and the clerk said we’d be out of there in twenty minutes. Thirty minutes, tops.”

A wide smile appeared, and he said, “I’ve got to be honest with you. I had hoped that if you ever got married, you’d ask me to walk you down the aisle.”

“You did?” That warmed her all over.

“Yes, indeed. You’re the closest thing I’ll ever have to a daughter. I realize this isn’t the white wedding I’d anticipated, but I’d be honored to be there for you.”

She got choked up. “Really? Does that mean you forgive me for lying to you?”

“Yes, I forgive you.”

“Thank you!” She jumped up, and as he rose to his feet, she threw her arms around him, but quickly stepped back. “Sorry. You’re my boss. I shouldn’t hug you.”

“It’s okay, but, Flores?” He waggled a finger at her. “Just so we’re clear, after Friday I’ll have blackmail to hold over your head, so don’t even think about lying to me again, or you will find out just how much trouble you can get into for this sham of a marriage.”

She couldn’t stop smiling. “Yes, sir. I promise I won’t.” She drew an X over her heart, and couldn’t wait to tell Zander they had a witness.

Chapter Twenty

ZANDER WALKED INTO the clubhouse Wednesday night like he was heading into battle, his shoulders back, his chin up, and tension straining every muscle. The room was alive with conversation, heckling, and laughter, but Zander couldn’t even fake a smile. The last two days had been riddled with too many questions and opinions he had no interest in hearing. At least his parents and Zeke had kept the news of his and Shauna’s plans in the family as he’d asked, but fuck. He couldn’t believe none of them had his back, and now Shauna wanted to meet them. When they’d spoken earlier, she’d been excited that Cap had agreed to be their witness and relieved that he’d forgiven her about Brian. She’d been through enough emotional roller coasters. There was no way he’d put her in his family’s crosshairs when they were acting like people he didn’t recognize.

He wondered if they’d act that way if he were one of his siblings, and gritted his teeth, knowing the answer. They all had opinions aside from their concerns about his history of a revolving bedroom door, and they all boiled down to the same thing. They thought he was too impulsive and short-sighted to get married, even as a temporary favor. It didn’t seem to matter that he didn’t shirk his responsibilities at work or with the club, or that he’d always been there for the family, no matter what else he had going on. The only one who gave him an inch of slack was Baz, who said he’d gone through life-altering changes when he’d met his fiancée, Emerson, and he knew if Zander wanted to change, he would succeed. But Baz had still given him a laundry list of reasons he should consider options other than marriage because he agreed with Zander’s parents about the sanctity of marriage.

It was infuriating that the rest of them couldn’t see him as anything other than that impulsive guy. But Shauna did, and that was what mattered.

He stepped out of the way as a couple of guys came through the door and saw his brothers and cousins sitting in their usual spot on the far side of the room. Gunner and Blaine looked over. Gunner lifted his chin in a silent hello, the tension in Blaine’s jaw mirroring Zander’s.

In no mood to get more shit, Zander headed for a table on his side of the room, where Rubin “Justice” Galant, the sharp-witted attorney who had handled Zander’s case for the accident and a single father to an adorable little girl named Patience, was thumbing out a text.

“Hey, man, how’s it going?” Zander pulled out a chair and sat down.

“Not bad. Just scheduling a playdate for Patience and Gracie.”

“Gracie? Starr’s little girl?” Their friend Starr was a single mom who waitressed at the Salty Hog.

“Yeah. Patience and Gracie have been taking dance classes together, and we’ve had a few playdates for them.” Justice pocketed his phone. “You should’ve seen the girls last weekend. One minute they were playing with their dolls on the patio, and the next they’re making brownies out of mudpies. It was hours of unstoppable giggles and messy chaos.”

“Sounds like they had a great time.”

“They did. They’ve been begging for a sleepover. That’s what we’re working on setting up.”