Not Fake for Long by Weston Parker
29
HARRISON
During the wedding ceremony, my eyes had the same problem they’d had before she’d left to join her mother and sister. They wouldn’t stay away from Keira.
Hailey looked great and the older woman who’d walked in just ahead of them, who I was assuming was their mother, looked beautiful too. In fact, everything was beautiful. The people at the venue had outdone themselves in setting up the garden area, but none of it could steal my attention from my date and fiancée for the evening.
The ceremony was short and sweet. Before I knew it, Nick was dipping Hailey low for their first kiss as husband and wife. Then they raised their joined hands into the air and guests swarmed toward them to congratulate them.
Keira hugged both of them before they got enveloped by the crowd, making her way to me after releasing them. She smiled when she reached me, brown eyes glittering as they looked up into mine.
“I think that went well,” she said, taking my hand in hers.
I wrapped my free arm around her waist, pulling her closer to plant a kiss on her forehead. “It went very well. Congratulations on the new addition to your family.”
“Thanks.” She glanced over her shoulder at where the wedding couple were still greeting and hugging their guests. “I just hope he always makes her this happy. She seems to think he will, though.”
“I’m sure he will.” I could see Nick in my periphery over the top of Keira’s head, and I watched him interact with his bride for a moment. He was a bit older, but he didn’t really look it. In fact, the way he was grinning and laughing at things people said made him look much younger than I was.
Dipping my chin lower, I shot a pointed look their way. “I don’t know him, but it seems to me like he’s smitten with her. Give him a chance. I think you’ll find he’s going to do everything in his power to make her happy for the rest of their lives.”
She pushed herself up on her toes to nuzzle my neck, and I felt her smile against my skin. “If you say so, oh wise one. Want to go get a drink? The bar should be open already and most of the people are still here, so we’ll get served fast.”
“Then let’s go. We might as well get a few spares while we can get served,” I said. “Don’t you have to go with your sister for pictures soon?”
“Nah. Not yet. The photographer will come get the family when it’s time. They’re going to do couple’s pictures first. It should take at least an hour.”
Keira kept hold of my hand as she led me to a tent that had been set up for the canapés outside of the reception hall. There were round cocktail tables scattered about, a long bar set up along one of the sides, and welcome drinks already standing on the counter.
The woman who I’d assumed was their mother was also already there, seemingly checking in with the wait staff until she saw us entering the tent. She stopped what she was saying mid-sentence, her gaze glued to me as she gave me a onceover.
I tightened my grip on Keira’s hand. This was the moment we’d both been waiting for. If I couldn’t sell it now, this would all have been for nothing. I could’ve told her the truth without worrying about what her mom would say and do if she showed up alone, and we never would’ve had to cook up some elaborate scheme to fool her.
Keira glanced up at me, winding both her hands around my arm as she held me close and nodded toward her mother. “That’s her. My mom. Are you ready?”
“Is it too clichéd to say that I was born ready?” I asked as her mother exchanged a few last words with the head waiter and then started marching toward us. “I’m ready, babe. Don’t worry.”
“Mom,” she said when the woman stopped a few feet away from us. “This is Harrison. Harrison, my mother. Moira.”
Moira surveyed me with eyes the same color as her daughters’. It was clear that both of them took after her. I hadn’t met their dad yet, but I doubted they’d gotten much from him in the looks department. It seemed to me that Moira’s genetics had definitely won out in both of them.
She stuck her hand out to me, and I shook it politely. “It’s very nice to meet you, ma’am.”
“Oh, it’s ma’am now, is it?” she said as she withdrew her fingers from mine. “If you really wanted to give me a sign of respect, you wouldn’t have asked my daughter to marry you without even meeting me first. Call me Moira.”
Keira held my arm tighter. “Don’t try to make this awkward, Mom. You’re meeting him now and I told you we’re going to have a long engagement. You’ll have more than enough time to get to know him before we actually get married.”
It was news to me that we were supposedly having a long engagement. It made sense, though. Since we weren’t actually getting married, she wouldn’t want her mom to waste her time starting to plan a wedding that wasn’t going to happen.
I flashed Moira my most charming smile, sliding my arm around Keira’s shoulders as I held her close to my side. “I’m sorry, Moira. It wasn’t my intention to make you feel like I don’t respect you. I should’ve waited, and I tried to, but I just couldn’t wait any longer. Your daughter means everything to me, and I wanted her to know that I’m committed to spending the rest of my life with her.”
Her features softened some and her gaze darted from mine, to Keira’s, and back again. “Is that true? Or are you just telling me what you think I want to hear so I won’t be upset with you?”
“It’s the absolute truth,” I said, glancing down at Keira with what I hoped was a dopey, loved-up expression. “From the first moment I met her, I knew she was different. I knew she was the only woman I wanted to be with, and I didn’t want to waste any time or beat around the bush. When you know, you know, and I knew.”
Moira pressed her palm to her chest, her eyes going glassy as she stared at us. “Well, you certainly know how to win a mother over. I’m so happy for both of you. Tell me about yourself, Harrison. I’d really like to get to know you if I’m gaining another son in the near future.”
Keira stood anxiously by my side while I spoke to her mother. She was so tense, I could practically feel it coming off her in waves, but she didn’t interrupt us.
Other wedding guests streamed into the tent from the garden while we talked. Soon, there was a line at the table where the snacks had been set out and people were clamoring around the bar.
Moira’s attention was only on me, however. She greeted some of the guests she knew when they passed her, but kept promising she’d catch up with them later.
Eventually, when she was satisfied with my answers and had been placated in terms of not having met me before, she opened her arms and pulled me into a hug. “I’m so glad Keira finally has someone she can introduce to us. She’s never introduced us to anyone before.”
I was surprised to hear it, but I didn’t say so. It seemed like something her fiancé would’ve known about her. “I’m just glad I’m the one who gets to be introduced to you.”
Moira grinned at me, swatting my arm playfully when she let go of me. “You’re such a charmer. I’ll see you both a little later.”
She didn’t make it very far before she was swept into another group’s conversation. Keira exhaled deeply at my side and held up her empty glass.
“Thank you so much for that,” she said. “You were great. Can I get you a refill? I think we both deserve a refill.”
As if the server had heard her, he appeared next to us with a tray of cocktails. Keira didn’t even ask what they were. She simply swiped two glasses from the tray and placed her empty glass down on it. We hadn’t even made it to the bar before Moira intercepted us, which meant our plan of getting spares had never happened.
Thankfully, the servers were circulating with the welcome drinks that had been on the counter when we’d walked in. When we were alone again, she took a long sip of her new drink and sighed happily.
“One good thing to be said for Nick and his pretentious friends is that they sure know the value of a good cocktail,” she said. “I prefer beer over cocktails any day of the week, but these aren’t as sweet as they can be.”
I took a tentative sip of the orange concoction she’d handed over to me, and smiled when I realized she was right. “These are actually quite bitter. It’s good. What’s it called?”
“More.” She winked before shrugging. “I don’t know what they’re actually called, but they taste like more to me.”
I laughed, but I kept a close eye on the people around us. One of the things I hadn’t taken into consideration was that I might know some of the guests at a wedding like this. I’d already spotted a few faces that looked vaguely familiar, but none of them had seen me yet.
Since it was still early, most people were in the process of greeting friends, getting food and drinks, and talking about the ceremony. It wouldn’t last long, though. Sooner or later, someone was going to recognize me.
At least I’d now met Keira’s mother. She’d seen me, believed us, and liked me. Which meant it was time to come clean before someone beat me to it.
As I took another big gulp of my cocktail, Keira rolled her eyes when some of the conversation of the group next to us became loud enough for us to hear it. “Are they seriously talking about investment opportunities in cryptocurrency right now? God, I’m so happy you’re not one of these pricks. I have no idea how Hailey’s going to tolerate them for the rest of her life.”
Yeah, that’s my cue…It was a good in, and one that I needed to take. I cleared my throat, taking her hand to lead her out of the fray a bit.
“I need to tell you something, Keira,” I said, bracing myself for what her reaction was going to be. Hopefully, she wouldn’t kick me out right off the bat.
She peered up at me with those big brown eyes filled with curiosity. A flurry of movement not too far away caught my eye, drawing my gaze away from hers.
As soon as I saw what the movement was about though, I wished I hadn’t looked. A man had made a grab for his friend’s arm, but the friend had shaken him off almost violently and was now storming over to us.
It was Bernard Hilton, and he looked furious. Gone was the meek and mild man who’d left my office with his lawyer last week. In his place was a haughty, pissed-off man who clearly had a bone to pick with me, and he was going to pick it right fucking now.
