The Unintended Fiancé (Captured by Love Book 4) (13 page)

“I see,” she murmured, wondering if Valerie had a hidden meaning behind her words.

“And I was saying to Brad that’s what happens when you fall into a relationship too quickly. You make unwise decisions that you regret,” Valerie said, sending James a quick side-eye.

Erin lifted an eyebrow. Was this woman for real? Did she really want to discuss this topic when her own husband was only a few paces away? Fortunately, James was too busy trying to impress the Carmichael brothers to overhear his wife’s seemingly pointed comments. In any case, this wasn’t the time and place for Valerie to air out any grievances towards James. This was Brad’s night, damn it.

“Honey,” she said to Brad. “Rebecca over there wants to ask you something.”

“Oh, okay. Excuse us, please, Valerie,” Brad replied, leading her away without waiting for Valerie’s response.

“That was just an excuse,” she whispered to Brad as they walked away. “Rebecca isn’t looking for you.”

Brad chuckled, hugging her close. “I gathered. Thank you.”

“I can’t believe Valerie had the hide to make those innuendos when her husband was almost next to her.” A thought hit her. “Do you think she’s part of the sabotage team?”

“Hm. That never occurred to me. To be honest, I think that’s just Valerie being Valerie. She doesn’t care much about what people think or the repercussions of her actions. She’s too self-centred for that.”

“Looks like she wants to ditch her husband for you,” she said dryly.

“Well, she can want me till the cows come home. I’m taken,” Brad said, kissing her forehead.

She glanced up at him sharply, her heart pounding. What did he mean by that?

“Hey, Brad,” Lexie called out. “I thought you weren’t going to say hi to me.”

Erin let out a sigh as Brad turned his attention to his sister. Oh, he was such a tease. Did he mean he was in-a-true-relationship taken or just pretending to be taken?

Now she couldn’t wait to get home to grill him about this.

B
rad came back from the gents’ and re-entered the function room. He stood back to observe the crowd, grateful that this event was going better than he’d expected. The presence of the Carmichaels certainly erased some of the question marks that had hung over his head. But it wasn’t only the brothers’ endorsement that was helping him tonight. One woman’s grace and charm was doing a great deal to soothe the concerns some people had about him.

He looked for Erin and spotted her chatting animatedly with two of his clients. She was the perfect co-host, ensuring she spoke with as many people in the room as possible. He had no idea what she’d said to some of the guests, but more than a few had expressed their delight at his fiancée, and how they were very pleased for him that he was getting married to her.

His fiancée. How used to that had he become?

He’d surprised himself with how comfortable he’d been with being “engaged”. It had even started to feel... real. Even when alone, they were more comfortable staying as a couple than reverting to being friends. And for weeks now, Erin hadn’t been using her bedroom except to get dressed there. She’d been sleeping with him in his bed, even during the occasional nights when they didn’t have sex.

And, frankly, he wouldn’t have it any other way.

So what did this mean?

A big part of him wanted to sit Erin down and tell her he wanted to have a go at a real relationship. But he was hesitating. What if he was not cut out for it? He didn’t want to end up hurting Erin and give her the impression that he’d only used her to further his career. That would bring untold damage to their friendship.

“Oy,” a voice said behind him.

He turned around to face a grinning Rick.

“Are you just gonna stand there and ogle your fiancée, or are you gonna entertain your guests?”

His face heated up.

“Wow,” Rick said, his eyes rounding. “I’ve never seen you blush before.”

He snickered, embarrassed.

“Hahhh,” Rick said theatrically. “The joys of romance, huh?”

“What do you mean?” he asked innocently.

“C’mon, dude. You haven’t taken your eyes off Erin all night. I must admit I hadn’t paid much attention until Lexie told me to, and now I see that some enlightenment has dawned on you.”

“Enlightenment?” he said with a snort. “That’s a bit dramatic, don’t you think?”

“Well, I happen to think that you falling in love is some sort of enlightenment.”

His heart jumped. In love? Whoa.

“Admit it,” Rick challenged.

“I don’t know, bro,” he said with a sigh. “I mean, sure, I care about Erin and I’ve done so for years. But, in love? How can I tell?”

“I take it you haven’t given this much thought?”

“Well, I’ve been considering dating her for real, but that’s about it.”

Rick shrugged, then stayed silent, seemingly content to just stand there with him and check out the goings-on.

“But how do I know?” he heard himself ask after a long pause.

“How do you know what?” Rick asked nonchalantly.

“If what I feel is love?”

Rick chuckled and dragged him to a quieter corner. “You’re such a virgin with this commitment stuff. All you have to do is imagine Erin being with someone else and not you. How would you feel about that?”

Of course he wouldn’t want Erin to be with someone else. He wasn’t a violent person, but he’d want to deck the man who’d dare steal her away from him.

“Or to be more precise,” Rick said, “what if you saw Erin
kiss
a guy she chose over you?”

His heart squeezed. No. He didn’t even want to imagine that. That would be... terrible.

“But what if I’m just being extra grateful to her for what she’s doing for me?” he voiced out. “What if, when my problems are sorted, I go back to not wanting to be tied down by a woman? I’d really hate to lead Erin on, then just disappoint her.”

Rick gazed at him scrutinisingly. “You’re right. It could just be gratitude.”

Yeah. That was probably all it was. He went back to watching the crowd.

“But what if it isn’t?” he pressed, facing Rick again.

Rick smirked. “Then test yourself. Tell you what. You guys planned to stop this pretence just after New Year’s, right?”

He nodded, the thought constricting his chest further.

“That means you wouldn’t be together anymore during my wedding to your sister. There will be a number of single guys there, so I’ll set Erin up with one of them—”

“Don’t. You. Dare.”

“Just so you can figure out how you feel when you
actually
see her flirt with other men,” Rick said innocently.

“There’s no need to go that far,” he growled, glaring at his future brother-in-law, who he’d quickly disown as a relative if he went ahead with such an asinine plan.

Rick laughed. “Hit a nerve, did I? Let me know when you’ve said the L word to Erin. I’ll be holding my breath.” Then Rick walked away.

Brad filled his lungs and slowly exhaled.

Erin’s laughter caught his attention. She was alone with Mallory, the playboy owner of a chain of coffee shops, who appeared to be telling her some amusing story. Mallory was touching her arm. And grinning at her charmingly. And cocking his head in a flirtatious manner.

He glared, wanting to interrupt the bastard by kissing Erin in front of everyone. Then they’d all be reminded that she was his.

He smirked at himself.

Of course he was in love. Why continue to deny it?

But he was scared of telling Erin.

He already knew she had feelings for him, and it thrilled him more than anything ever had. But he was also sure that if he confessed his love for her, she’d let herself get even more entangled with his problems. Right now, the only way he knew to protect her integrity from further questioning was for them to break up.

Argh, he was dreading the day it had to happen. That was the last thing he wanted. But if this saga was still ongoing after New Year’s Day, then he’d make that call even if it broke his heart. Better that he be the only target rather than keep dragging Erin into the firing line with him. He couldn’t be selfish when so much was at stake.

Regardless, he couldn’t let Mallory keep coming on to Erin. Tonight, he was still her fiancé. And truthfully, he was getting jealous.

Erin noticed him approach. “Hi, honey,” she said, holding out her hand for him to grab.

He melted, just as his heart skipped a beat.

“Brad!” Mallory boomed, clearly buoyed by some alcohol in his system. “I’ve been wanting to speak to you all night.”

“Oh, right,” he said courteously.

“I better leave you guys to talk shop,” Erin said, smiling at the both of them.

“Sure, babe,” he said. He squeezed her hand before letting her go.

“So, Brad,” Mallory said in a low voice when Erin was out of earshot. “Man-to-man talk. Are you and Erin really together? Or is it all a front?”

“What do you mean?”

Mallory glanced around furtively before leaning closer to him. “I heard that the two of you are just acting to show James Coyte that you weren’t after his wife. Apparently, Erin is a good friend of yours from way back, and also your sister’s best friend, so she was happy to help you get out of a sticky situation with James.”

Brad stared at Mallory, momentarily speechless. How could he dispute that when it was the truth? “Where did you hear that from?” was all he could say.

Mallory explained to him, and all Brad could do was shake his head. Just like what Gavin had uncovered in his investigations, most rumours seemed to have started when someone in Brad’s business circle overheard a loud conversation in a public place about him. No one had been able to give details on the identity of the gossiping strangers, who’d conveniently ensured that they were heard loud and clear by the people who knew Brad. Even when they’d been approached and questioned, they’d quickly shut up and left the scene. Unfortunately for Brad, the details that had been overheard were accurate enough in some parts that it had been easy for his business acquaintances to believe that there might be some truth to the whole thing.

“So you and Erin are really engaged?” Mallory pressed.

“Yes,” he answered. Erin was becoming more and more involved in his mess, and he was getting more and more concerned about its effects on her.

“Okay,” Mallory said in defeat. “Sorry about that. And sorry about all these negativities surrounding you and Erin. Hope you both get out of it unscathed.”

“Thank you,” he said sincerely.

The entertainment director’s voice came through the speakers, announcing that dinner would be served in two minutes. Brad excused himself and left the room to call Gavin. Gavin had to know about this new development.

“Damn,” Gavin said after Brad had finished updating him.

“Tell me about it,” he said dryly. “These rumours seem to be coming thick and fast now. And this last one’s worrying me because it’s the truth. But who’d know that?”

“There’s a possibility that whoever started it was making things up and just happened to hit on the truth. But, yes, it’s so accurate that it’s worrying. You’re sure that the only people who know about this secret were at Cassie and Carter’s engagement party at Lucas and Jade’s, right?”

“Yes,” he confirmed. “And you know they’re all family and friends that I can trust with everything I’ve got. They wouldn’t have breathed a word of this to anyone else.”

“Okay. Rest assured, I’m putting everything I’ve got into this.”

“Thanks, Gavin.”

“There’s something else, Brad. I was gonna tell you tomorrow, since you’re at a function tonight. But this one’s...”

Brad didn’t like Gavin’s pause. “How bad is it?” he asked wryly. “Is it about me embezzling my client’s money or something like that?”

“It involves Erin.”

His heart lurched. “What about Erin?”

“I have a contact who gave me credible information. The women’s magazine who wanted to interview you before received a request from a so-called reader on their website, saying they’d be interested in the
scandal
about you. Now, it appears the magazine thinks it’s a great idea, and that the perfect angle would be how you—a good-looking, successful man—appear to have created troubles for your fiancée, who’s had an exemplary record with JMR for seven years. They intend to explore the question of how foolish some women can become just to keep their men, or something like that.”

“Are you kidding me? What utter rubbish! Is that really a topic they’d run with?”

“Why are you surprised?” Gavin said dryly. “Haven’t you seen their usual headlines?”

“I don’t read crap publications. So how can we stop them?”

“It would depend on what they say and how they act. But those people are smart enough to know just how far they could push the boundaries without landing themselves into a legal nightmare. The Delsant case is still ongoing, and Anthony’s allegations have made their way into the public arena. I wouldn’t be surprised if the magazine takes the smoke from that and turn it into a wildfire without getting into too much trouble. Anyway, I’ve already initiated investigations on the IP address of the reader through the help of my mole. But it seems like the post was made from a public computer in an Internet café with no security cameras pointing to the area where the machines were.”

Brad’s mind whirled with worst-case scenarios and possible consequences as he stared into space. “Erin will continue to be dragged into this for as long as she’s my fiancée, right?”

Gavin’s response was a heavy exhale.

He shut his eyes, raking his hair with his fingers. “But if she’s not with me anymore, it wouldn’t make sense for the magazine to go ahead with their story, would it? They can’t paint Erin as foolish when she’s broken up with me.”

“Well, you’re not really going to do that, are you? Your engagement might be fake, but from what I can tell, your relationship isn’t anymore, is it?”

“But Erin doesn’t deserve this, Gavin,” he said with determination, letting Gavin read between the lines. “It would make life hell for her. And if she’s forced to leave JMR, who’d want to employ her if she’s still with me? As long as we’re together, she’ll continue to be a target of my saboteur, and her integrity will always be questioned.”