Page 36 of The Wedding Fake

“He’s not a stripper,” I reiterated, pursing my lips. Of course Emily couldn’t understand. She’d never had someone betray her the way Dan had betrayed me. “But he’s obviously a player. I can’t develop feelings for him.”

“Because of Dan?” Emily asked cautiously, and I hated how well she knew me.

“Because of me,” I stressed.

Emily sighed, a tiny hum of a noise I knew meant she was unhappy. “It’s your call, Claire. I should go. I’m back at the shop—” She let out a low wail. “—and for fucks sake I can still see them in there looking at headpieces. Wish me luck,” she grumbled.

“Good luck. I’ll see you soon,” I replied with a levity I didn’t feel, then hit the button and let the phone drop out of my hand. I was staring at the ceiling, trying to decide if it was okay to call Hudson, when the phone dinged again. I scrambled to grab it once more, scolding myself for still hoping it was Hud.

Emily: You should go out somewhere—I just overheard Mom invite Grant to dinner

My stomach lurched. Why wouldn’t Mom just leave well enough alone?

Claire: Hudson has my car. I’m trapped.

Emily: Ugh

Yes, ugh was right. I chewed on my lip for a minute, then pulled up Hudson’s contact.

Claire: Did you actually steal my car and you’re never coming back? Because I would understand.

Was there a polite way for me to ask him to come back?

Hudson: As a matter of fact, I’ve not only stolen it, but I crossed over the Canadian border and I’m making a run for it.

I could be honest—tell him I’d really been enjoying spending time with him and I was surprised to find I missed him today, but I’d been burned before, and I couldn’t help but brace myself for the moment he broke my trust.

But sharing that in a text seemed a bit too real, so I sent a laughing emoji instead. Coward.

Claire: That’s fair. I have also had that reaction to my mother at times.

I desperately wanted to say more, to ask him to come back, but my thumbs wouldn’t type the letters that would ultimately lead to my own stupid, broken heart.

Hudson: Just sat down to eat with my family, but I’ll head back to your place in an hour or so. Is that okay?

It was more than fair. I was shocked he was even willing to stay. God only knew day one of our little ruse had proven disastrous.

Claire: Of course. Don’t rush on my account.

I set down the phone, hearing my family coming in downstairs. All I wanted was to stay locked in my room, but that wasn’t going to be an option, and so I pushed myself up and out the bedroom door, pinning a smile to my face as I went down the stairs, finding my mother, Emily, and Nora in the kitchen.

“Claire Bear,” Mom gushed, putting a hand on my cheek. “Where’s Hudson?”

“I told you, he went to visit his parents today. They live in Cranberry Falls.”

I saw Mom’s eyebrow twitch. It was one of Mom’s few tells, letting anyone who saw it know she was scheming in some way or another. My sisters must have seen it as well, because both paused what they were doing and were openly observing the interaction. “I do remember you mentioning that now,” Mom said. “Why didn’t you go with? Have you already met his parents?”

As a person who prided myself on being prepared for anything, I was shocked I’d overlooked such an obvious detail. I should’ve gone with Hudson, even if it meant lying and spending the day hanging around Cranberry Falls while he visited home.

But knowing my mother would leap upon the slightest hesitation, I answered quickly. “We planned to stop by his parents on the way home this weekend, and I wasn’t sure if you’d need me around for anything, so I stayed back.” I shrugged as if this were wholly logical. “In retrospect, I mostly hung around here and got some of my work done—” I’d gotten no work done, I’d just stared at pictures and videos of Hudson all day. “—and I may as well have just gone with him. I didn’t realize.” Mom nodded as if this sounded reasonable, and I sighed my relief internally.

“We didn’t need you there,” Emily said with a chuckle. “There were already too many opinions.”

“No, Em,” Nora shot back. “It was just you disagreeing with everything. Just because you want some miserable, black, vampire wedding someday doesn’t mean everyone does.”

“Girls,” Mom warned, and I had the feeling they’d been bickering for much of the day. You could always count on Emily to not bend to anyone’s will, even the will of the bride. “Well, I hope you got a lot of work done,” Mom added.

I smiled brightly, finding the lie slipped off my tongue easier than any truth might have. “I did.”