The Pretend Fiancé (2 page)

"Definitely," Gwen replied. She towed Aiden along beside her, fixing a smile to her face.

David and Barb had launched into their millionth argument over who had forced whom to sell the house when Gwen cut in between them. "Mom! Dad! Isn't Switzerland beautiful?"

As usual, David and Barb both tucked their anger and frustration away in a futile effort to hide from their daughter how much they hated each other.

"Not as beautiful as you, baby!" David said, "Let me get a look at you." He hugged her close, then held her at arm's length so he could take her in. "Stunning, just stunning!"

Gwen laid it on thick, bubbling and gushing and blushing beneath her parents' praise. It wasn't all that hard to do.

Barb grabbed her by the arm and tugged her over out of David's grasp, going through the same motions. "Gwenny! Oh, my sweet baby! Look at you!" She squeezed Gwen so tight around the waist that spots swam across her eyes.

With a bit of Aiden's help, she extricated herself from the repeated bear hugs and took a step back. "How was the ride over?" Gwen said.

Barb and David glanced at each other, their eyes meeting and then deflecting. "Great," David said. "Comfortable," Barb inserted.

Gwen felt great pity for the driver of that car.

"I hope it was a pleasant flight?" Aiden said, offering his hand to David.

"Yes... Very nice, thank you..." David replied eying that proffered hand as though it were a snake in the grass. Apparently, he still hadn't forgotten Aiden trapping his hand in one of those prolonged Manning handshakes the first time they'd met, back in Gwen's old apartment in New York.

Aiden recalled it then, too, and let his arm drop. But before he could do anything else, Barb swept in. She'd seen David's discomfort and decided to capitalize on it in an attempt to ingratiate herself with Aiden.

"Still so strapping!" Barb said, holding both Aiden's hands and shooting a pointed, smug look over her shoulder at David. "It's so hard to find a good man these days. You're both so lucky," Barb said, looking first at Aiden and then at Gwen.

"Maybe you just don't know where to look," David said.

Gwen could sense another fight encroaching like a pressure change before a big storm. The fine hairs on the back of her neck stood.

Aiden sensed the same thing and swooped in to defuse the tension. "Why don't we get you both checked in? I'm sure after the flight and ride you're both ready to relax a little before the party starts."

"Good idea," David said, searching across the lobby for the auditor's desk.

Gwen watched Aiden lead them over while she massaged a knot of tension that had formed in her shoulder in the last few moments. The child in her hated that her parents were divorcing, but the rest of her knew it was the right choice for them. They couldn't stand to be near each other, and she wanted them to be happy. If only they could have been happy together.

More and more people began arriving, then. Aunts and uncles from both sides. Old Harvard friends from Aiden's college days (though thankfully not that Liam fellow, Gwen hated him quite a bit).

Gwen kept wondering when Beatrice would show up. Her friend had promised to make it. Though there was still no sign of her.

***

A
iden couldn't hide the nervous energy any longer. He kept pulling his sleeve up to glance at the gold face of his watch. He knew that her plane had landed, and that the car had picked her up. So why wasn't she here? What was taking so long?

One polished shoe began tapping out a nervous beat on the equally polished floor. His bow tie felt too tight and he tugged it loose, only to retighten it a moment later. She would notice if it was loose. She would notice the tiniest scuff on his shoes, or an improper fold in his handkerchief. And God forbid if he left a button on his jacket undone...

"It's okay," Gwen said, squeezing his elbow. She smiled at him, and that helped calm him down. Her smiles always made him feel better. He knew it was a cliché, but when she smiled, it really did light up the whole room for him. The whole world, even.

Except then he ruined it by examining Gwen. Double checking that dress to make sure it didn't show too much cleavage, too much leg. Would she think Gwen modest enough? The anxiety started building again, bubbling in his stomach.

"She can't be that bad," Gwen said.

That earned her a small, pitying smile. "You've never met her," he said, "But let me give you an idea. Maybe it will help when she finally decides to show up. If you thought Henry was difficult, overbearing, manipulative..."

"And mean," Gwen interjected.

His smile grew a little. He loved Gwen's little quirks so much. "And mean, yes. Well, all those things and more, in any case. If you thought those about Henry, Judith is worse..."

"Impossible!" Gwen broke in again, that smile of hers making Aiden's heart jump.

"Gwen, darling, Henry learned everything he knew about all that from Judith. Where do you think he got it from?"

That got through to her. "Oh," she said.

Before they could continue, they both felt the burst of outside air from the lobby doors opening. Aiden knew before looking that it was her. He could feel her eyes seeking him out, finding him, latching on. He reached up to straighten his bow tie before remembering he'd already done so a moment earlier.

Everyone else sensed her presence, too. The valets and butlers and auditors and guests all quieted and looked in her direction.

No one had a sense of presence like Judith Manning. Not even Henry could so command a room just by walking into it. She swept towards them, the hem of her dark dress whisking just above the floor. She kept her hair dyed black, and despite her advanced age only a few wrinkles crossed her sharp, severe face.

When he was little, Aiden used to have nightmares about Grandmother Judith. He thought she was a witch, and that she'd swoop in through the window one night to take him away and throw him into an oven like in an old fairy tale.

An inkling of that primal, childish fear ran its cold fingers down his spine as she drew closer, and he had to steel himself against the sensation. He pulled himself up straight and fixed his eyes on hers. He also noticed a manila envelope pinned between her arm and side.

"Grandmother!" he said, "I was beginning to get worried! I'd like you to meet Gwen..."

Judith broke in, her sharp eyes narrowing as she examined Gwen. "Gwendolyn Gladys Browning, of Albany, New York. Daughter of David and Barbara Browning. Yes, I know all about her."

Reflexively, Gwen glanced around to see if anyone had heard Judith utter that middle name she hated so much.

Aiden's chest tightened. He knew right away that Judith hated Gwen. He could hear it in the tone of her voice, in the hardness of her eyes. And clearly Grandmother Judith had been doing more than a little detective work. It reminded him of the first time Henry had met Gwen. Of the suspicion and tension and ill promises.

But that was no matter, he told himself. Judith could hate Gwen all she liked, because Judith had no say in any of this. Not anymore, at least.

"It's so nice to meet you," Gwen said, trying to break some of the tension, offering her hand to Judith.

Judith eyed the appendage without accepting it. "I'm not so sure it is, at that."

"Oh... Okay, then... Well..." Gwen said.

Aiden began desperately searching for some way to end the interaction. It felt like all the heat had seeped out of the room. And his stupid bow tie was too tight, making it uncomfortable to breathe.

"We have matters to discuss, Aiden," Judith said. "Urgent matters that need tending to right away."

Aiden pulled up his cuff to take another glance at his watch. Pretty much everyone seemed to be here, now. It was almost time. They'd have the ballroom prepared by now.

"I'm afraid it will have to wait," Aiden said.

"And I'm afraid it can't!" Judith replied, leaning in close, "I will not let you disgrace yourself and this family..."

"Whoa! This place is
snazzy
! Hey, girl!"

"Beatrice!" Gwen said, rushing to meet her friend.

Aiden could have kissed Beatrice at that moment. Her arrival broke the tension, and he felt his shoulders relaxing. "Excuse me, but I have to go. We can discuss your issue after the party," Aiden said, silently adding:
or never at all, with any luck
. Especially since he had certain other plans for how to spend the time after the party with Gwen involving champagne and a lack of clothes.

It felt oh so satisfying to leave Judith gawping and wagging her jaw, unable to say anything.

"Hi, Beatrice," Aiden said, approaching the two hugging women. Beatrice had a couple large suitcases on wheels behind her.

"Hello, handsome!" Beatrice said, somehow enfolding Aiden in a huge hug despite her rather petite frame. It had been a few months since Aiden had last seen her, and he'd almost forgotten just how exuberant and forceful Gwen's best friend's personality could be. For a moment there, he wanted to introduce Beatrice to Judith and then just stand back and observe the outcome. He didn't know which of them he'd pity more.

Beatrice finally released him. "This place is so swanky," she said, not bothering to control the volume of her voice. Aiden could practically feel the valets and butlers getting miffed at the noisy American who so brazenly violated the code of quiet.

"I'm sure that's what they were going for," Aiden said. He could also feel Judith's eyes drilling twin holes into the back of his tuxedo jacket.

"Gwenny! Why didn't you tell me Beatrice had arrived?" Barb said.

"Hello, Beatrice," David added.

They'd both checked into their separate rooms (and Aiden had double checked with the auditor that they were in separate rooms) and come down right away it seemed, neither wanting to give any advantage to the other.

"
Gwenny
was a little busy," Beatrice said, giving Gwen an evil look. She hugged Barb and David while Gwen shook her head and muttered something about not being five years old anymore.

"I hope your car ride over was better than mine," Barb said, tilting her head back to David in a pointed motion.

"Well it couldn't have been any worse!" David broke in.

A valet at the other side of the room caught Aiden's attention and motioned toward a set of opulent doors leading into the ballroom. The party was ready. Aiden waved back, his fingers shaking and a lump forming in his throat. Now that the moment was here, it was all happening so fast!

Like a well-oiled machine, the valets and butlers went into immediate action. Some approached guests still loitering in the foyer, directing them towards the ballroom. Others went to the stairs or the elevator to alert people who'd gone to their rooms.

"Aiden, we must speak at once!" Judith said, appearing at his side and plucking at his elbow. She waved that manila folder in his face.

With everything happening around him, Aiden's irritation replaced his normal apprehension at being in his grandmother's presence. Before she could say any more, Aiden took her by the arm and led her over to Barb and David, who'd just begun another bout regarding who was going to sue whom for lawyer fees.

Aiden smiled at them. "David? Barb? I'd like to introduce you to my grandmother, Judith. Don't worry, she probably already knows everything about you."

As Aiden walked away, he again didn't know who to pity more. And there was also a twinge of guilt over pushing them together like that. He just needed Judith out of the way for a little while longer.

Gwen and Beatrice were talking excitedly, catching up about affairs back in New York. Aiden watched for a moment, taking in every detail of Gwen's face as she smiled and laughed. He loved the way the corners of her eyes crinkled when she was happy. He loved the way she held herself, the way her body moved. And there was something just so incredibly arousing about that modest dress he'd made her wear that made him frustrated about having to wait until after the party to tear it off her.

Thinking about the party, he ran his hands up and down his jacket again. His left palm found what he wanted: the small bump of the object hidden within his inside pocket.

More nervous energy burst inside him, leaving him trembling. "Gwen? Beatrice? The party's about to start," he said.

T
here had to be close to three hundred people in the ballroom. Still, it didn't feel crowded. The valets and butlers moved about between the tables ringing the room, dispensing champagne and wine and hors d’ouevres from the silver platters they held.

Four massive chandeliers hanging from the ceiling lit the huge room, illuminating the masterful woodwork, the perfect paint, and the large mural that occupied the ceiling.

A small orchestra currently sat at rest while a DJ up on a stage played some new dance hit Gwen didn't recognize.

Despite the grandeur of the room, Gwen's world had contracted to just the few square feet occupying the space around her. More precisely, to the space she shared with Aiden as they held each other close.

"This is such an incredible way to end our trip," Gwen said, resting her cheek against his chest so that she could hear his heart beat and closing her eyes so that she could better feel his presence, smell his cologne, and just be near him.

"I thought so, too," Aiden said.

They'd been dancing and having a good time for a couple hours now, at least. Catching up with old friends, listening to the orchestra when its turn came to play. Avoiding her parents and Aiden's grandmother. Judith sat fuming in a corner somewhere, clutching that folder she'd been hanging onto this whole night.

Gwen didn't let those thoughts encroach any more on her mind. She just wanted to be in the moment, to be happy here with Aiden on their last few nights before heading back to the States.

"So you like it? All this, I mean?" Aiden said.

"Of course! I love it!"

She didn't love how her fancy and adorable pumps had turned into twin torture devices sometime in the last half hour. Her feet burned and panged with every swaying step of their dance, but she (somewhat successfully) ignored the pain.