“So this is where the shindig's gonna be? Hell of a classy joint, for sure.”
The old woman's voice made my neck hairs stand on end. There stood Sarah's grandma in the doorway, tightly bundled up in a thick coat with a neon pink cast on her arm.
By her side were Carol and Cole, who was looking about as miserable as I felt. I was part relieved and part sad that Sarah hadn't come along too.
Wait a minute. No – what on earth were they even doing here?
“Oh, Asher! Didn't expect to see you here today,” Hazel said cheerfully, while Carol dragged her son off to inspect the place.
Thank goodness mom had wandered elsewhere to harass some other poor, underpaid staffer for another mojito.
“Didn't expect you guys to show up either.”
I was quite literally at a loss for words. Why would they come knowing there was no wedding happening after all?
Unless... They didn't know it'd been called off! Sarah never told them the truth, did she? Why not? What good did she think lying was going to do?
It didn't matter now. Hazel was staring me down, her pale blue eyes studying me.
“You're looking very serious today. Not how I'd expect a fella to look before marrying a sweetheart like Sarah.”
“Well, she's a sweetheart all right,” I said with a very nervous laugh. Oh man, I couldn't keep up this charade forever. What was I supposed to do before it all came and ran me over like a semi truck?
Hazel looked as though she had more to say, but thankfully, Carol's howling beckoned her to check out the fancy fountain on the balcony.
Guilt came over me as I watched them. If I told the truth, Ellen would come into a lot of money. It'd solve so many of their problems. My parents would hate me, and I'd probably lose a chunk of my inheritance. But I didn't care.
All I wanted was to do right by Sarah. Whatever was best for her, to help her.
It was a funny feeling, putting someone else above my own interests for once. Maybe that was love after all.
A heavy hand came down on my shoulder.
“What have you done to my sister?”
I spun around. Cole scowled, and his grip on me tightened. I pulled away and rubbed what was sure to become a bruise.
“I don't know what you're talking about, man.”
“She's been miserable the last couple of days. Caught her crying once and she won't tell me what's wrong.”
“And you automatically assume I'm the source of her troubles?”
He rolled his eyes. “Far as I'm concerned, the Carringtons are the source of lots of problems around here.”
He was right, though. It probably was all my fault. What an idiot I was, agreeing to this fake marriage bullshit! If I'd never done that, I'd not be lying to so many people. I wouldn't have hurt her.
Maybe I'd have a real chance with her again.
“I don't know what's going on between you two, but you'd better fix it fast,” Cole continued. “I hate to see Sarah cry.”
“So do I.”
A familiar, cloying scent wafted past my nose. Mom's perfume. Uh-oh.
“Just what are these people doing here? Heath must have a talk with someone about letting the riff-raff in.”
Mom stood behind me, glaring at Sarah's family as they peeked around the bar and examined the dance floor. Cole gaped at her, his face turning red, about to say something we'd all regret.
“Damn it, mom,” I hissed, and ushered her away to a private corner. “Can't you at least pretend to be nice?”
“Don't see why I have to be anymore. You're not marrying that girl, so I may as well call a spade a spade.”
Ugh. I almost wanted to marry Sarah just to rub it in her face.
“You're the one carrying on with the fancy reception even now. Not sure what you expected to happen.”
She got that sheepish look again. Now I knew she was plotting something; she'd never been good at keeping anything secret for long.
“Please don't be angry, Asher. I'm your mother. You know I've always only wanted the best for you.”
Here we go. Not sure what was coming next, but I wasn't gonna like it.
“Your father and I, we've been wanting you to settle down for years now. Surely you've had enough of the partying and stringing women along.”
I shrugged. About a month ago I would have said nope, not really. Now it held no appeal.
Only Sarah did.
“Funny. I was just about to settle down until dad reneged on that idiotic contract. Guess you guys just didn't want it bad enough.”
She looked even more uncomfortable. It was tempting to blurt out that I knew the truth, that Ellen was dad's sister and he'd been ripping her off for years, but I managed to bite my tongue.
“Sarah is fine and all, but, well... She's not exactly the woman we had in mind for you.”
“That's not my problem.”
My phone rang. Hoped it was the lady of my dreams, but nope. Just Ken. Whatever; I'd take any distraction at this point. Mom's nonsense was just making me madder by the second.
“Hold that thought, okay? Important business call.”
Her shoulders fell. She said nothing as I walked away. Naturally, she was hiding something, and I'd ignore it until I couldn't turn a blind eye any longer.
“Yo, Ken.”
“That shoplifter's back again, skulking around trying to steal batteries,” he said flatly. “Want me to knock him out?”
That gave me a much-needed laugh. “Y'know I can't be held responsible if you get your ass kicked.”
“Aw, I can take him. He's just a punk teenager.”
“So are you. Anyway, just let security handle it. I'm more interested in whether you've seen Sarah Masters
