Billion Dollar Mistake by K.C. Crowne

Chapter 17

JOLENE

The rest of the meeting went well – as well is it could’ve for something as freaking weird as it was. We signed the documents, took them over to his secretary who notarized them, and that was that. With one simple signature I was on the hook for a fake marriage commitment. The sushi arrived but I wasn’t in the mood to eat.

“We’re going to need to plan a wedding,” he said once we were in his office afterward. “Something soon, and something simple.”

As pissed as I was at him, I had to admit that the man looked good in his suit. It was a dark navy, slim-fitting suit worn with a dark red grenadine tie and a pair of cap-toe, tan dress boots. Just the sight of him in it was enough to make me want him out of it.

“Huh?” my eyes were lingering on his ass as he tossed the documents onto his huge desk. I shook my head and came back to it. “Oh yeah. Simple.”

He sat on the edge of his desk, looking exactly like a man in charge. Something about him in that suit, in that office…it made me more confident about the end result of this, which was him being in charge of the company.

More than that, the sight of him like that made me wet as hell.

“I’m thinking a justice of the peace at city hall. We can get dressed up, do a quick ceremony one afternoon and that’ll be it. Planning a huge wedding with hundreds of attendees…we just don’t have time for anything like that. Not to mention it’d be one more stress on top of everything else.”

His words made sense, but they didn’t sit right with me. I’d never been the type of woman to really want a huge, over the top princess wedding, but swinging by the courthouse and filling out some paperwork hadn’t at all been what I’d wanted for the day I got married.

Then again, it wasn’t going to be a real marriage. At least, not in the sense that mattered.

“You alright?” he asked.

“Fine.” I cleared my throat and composed myself. “Good. I’ll speak to my guy at the courthouse and see when I can get this scheduled. I’m thinking a week from today – that work for you?”

“Yeah. Should work.”

He smiled as he pushed himself off his desk and over to the sushi.

“This is going to be great,” he said as he picked up a California roll. “I know it seems crazy, but just think about when this is all over and you’ve got your new job, no loans to worry about, and your whole life ahead of you. You’re going to be thrilled you did this.”

He popped the roll into his mouth and smiled.

A week later, I was at Joann’s condo in downtown Denver. I’d called off for Monday, having gone to the city on Friday to spend the day with her trying to find a wedding dress on.

Thankfully, Sawyer had told me not to worry about finding anything too fancy and to charge whatever I picked out to him. One of the perks of being a billionaire, I supposed – everyone in town knew you were good for it.

So, I’d gone on a little shopping trip with Joann, finding a few dresses that were nice, but not too crazy. I had to admit, it felt good being able to charge it all to Sawyer and not have to worry about prices. Not like I had expensive taste or anything, but it was fun to start getting some perks of this insane arrangement.

“OK,” Joann said as she came over to me in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom, two mimosas in hand. “What’re we thinking?”

I glanced up at the minimalist style clock on the wall. It was a little after ten. The wedding was set for noon, with a lunch for our families after that.

“I’m thinking I have absolutely no desire to meet his family. Don’t get me wrong – I’m sure his dad is a great guy and all that, and if Sawyer were a guy I was actually getting married to, it might be fun. But as it stands, I’m going to be looking into the eyes of one of the wealthiest men in the country and lying my ass off.”

Joann handed the mimosa over. Getting tipsy on a Monday morning wasn’t normally my thing, but I had a feeling I was going to need the help of a glass of champagne if was going to make it through this ceremony without freaking out.

My sister flitted through the dresses we’d bought, glancing over her shoulder to speak as she did.

“That’s your first mistake, Jo – you can’t be thinking about this like a lie.”

“But that’s what it is, right? A possible yearlong lie.”

She took one of the dresses, a semi-formal cocktail dress, and held it in front of me.

“You can’t think about it this way,” she said again, looking the dress up and down as she held it. “This is your life for the foreseeable future, until Sawyer’s dad hands the company over to him. If you keep thinking about it like a lie that you’re telling non-stop, for the next however long this is going to be, you will feel like you’re a fish swimming against the current or something. You have to accept it and live it.”

She was right, but all I could do as she held the dress was sip my mimosa, wondering what the hell I’d gotten myself into.

“This is perfect,” she said. “Casual but pretty, off-white but not like you’re wearing a regular, white wedding gown. Pair this with the pink pumps and you’re going to look amazing. Try it.”

I didn’t have the energy to debate. After one more sip of my cocktail, I slipped off my robe and put on the dress, stepping into the shoes once it was on. As I regarded myself in front of the mirror, I had to admit that Joann was right – the outfit worked. It was perfect for a casual wedding on a Monday afternoon.

Seeing myself in the mirror though, in that dress, only made me more keenly aware of how this was a fake wedding. It was like a sick parody of something that was supposed to be beautiful and memorable.

I couldn’t help but cry.

“Oh, no,” Joann said when she realized what was happening. “You look way, way too pretty to be crying.” She zipped over to the bathroom and came back with a box of tissues, shoving them in front of me. I took one and wiped the tears away.

“This is crazy!” I said, stepping back from the mirror and dropping into a sitting position on the bed. “I’m getting married and it’s a lie! What the hell am I doing?”

I knew there was no point in complaining. After all, I’d been the one to sign the contract – no one had put a gun to my head.

“You’re doing what needs to be done,” Joann replied. “Sure, this probably isn’t how you imagined you’d get ahead, right? But when this is all over, that’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to be debt free, with tons of money in your pocket and an amazing new job. When you and Sawyer finally annul this thing, you’re going to be set for life.” She placed her hand on my shoulder.

I sighed, looked up and stared at my tear-streaked face in the mirror. It was good that Joann was there to put it all in clear terms for me. I was doing this to get ahead, to push my life and career forward. It wasn’t about love it wasn’t about getting married – it was nothing more than a means to an end.

I wiped the last few tears away, giving her hand a squeeze before I rose from the bed.

“You’re right. This is nuts, but it’s going to make life so much freaking easier for the both of us.”

Before Joann had a chance to reply, her phone buzzed on the other side of the room. She hurried over and picked it up.

“It’s Mom,” she said. “She says she hopes it’s not a problem, but don’t be shocked if she shows up with a plus one.”

I laughed, the text taking my mind off the issue.

“Alright,” I said, looking at myself in the mirror once more, savoring my last few moments as a single woman. “Time to go.”