The lunch ended much sooner than Marybeth wanted, and Austin pulled her aside long enough to update her on his plans for the afternoon."I'm heading into a meeting, and I'm not sure how long it will take," he said, rubbing her arm lightly. "Benji and Arno will drop you off at your place if I'm not done by five."Marybeth didn't understand why he was carrying on with his charade of a doting couple in the throes of a whirlwind romance. Half the people in the room may have bought it hook, line and sinker, but judging by the shrewd way old man Hawthorne kept looking at her throughout their meal, he hadn't."Beth?" Austin shook her a little to get some reaction from her.She sighed, her voice heavy with irritation when she spoke, "Seriously, there's no need to report every little aspect of your day to me; after all, my job is to look after your daughter. Where is she, by the way? When will I meet her?""For as long as we're in company, žená, you will act like a glowing bride, so quit your
The meeting wasn't going as well as Austin had hoped. In fact, it turned into a circus as soon as they sat around the oval table in one of the conference rooms on the fifth floor, with everyone demanding to know what had possessed him to blindside them with his shotgun wedding.His father was the most aggrieved. He couldn't understand why he'd keep such a huge secret from him or deny him the opportunity to be at his wedding."Marybeth wanted something small," Austin explained for the hundredth time.Frustrated, he eased out of his seat and paused in front of the window. A pang of nostalgia hit him hard as he watched a handful of surfers ride the waves in the distance. It had been a while since he'd gone to the beach to unwind and be one with the ocean. Maybe he should go surfing one of the days. Better yet, he should take Orlando and Beth for a weekend getaway on the yacht. They'd make it a pre-honeymoon vacation. Not that he'd pitch it as that to Beth. She'd made it clear how much sh
By the time the birds began to chirp their morning call, Marybeth was long awake. She sat at the kitchen island, nursing a cup of instant coffee in her hand, and contemplated the several empty boxes scattered around the open plan living room floor.When she moved in two years ago with her bestie, Scarlett, she vowed never to see another cardboard box in her life again. Not until she'd found her soulmate, at least, and they had to move into their seaside mansion.But here she was, faced with a damn near impossible task of stuffing twenty-eight years of her life into cardboard boxes she'd rounded up from the building manager the previous afternoon when she got home after her disaster of a lunch with the family.A door down the hall creaked open. Barefooted steps on the tiled floor treaded closer, followed by a loud yawn as Scarlett paused inside the entryway. She blinked several times at the boxes and rubbed her bleary eyes, shaking out her messy blonde hair. "What's going on? Are we mo
Scarlett gently nudged her shoulder, shaking her out of her melancholy. "I'm sorry. I'm guessing Austin didn't mention any of this to you?"Marybeth brushed off the question with a quick shake of her head. "Why would he? We're married in name only. In exactly a year, after Daddy pays him off, we'll go our separate ways.""Are you sure about that?" Scarlett asked."What do you mean?""I mean, it's not just you and Austin. There's also a little girl involved. Can you honestly walk away from her after your time is up?"Marybeth tilted her head slightly and played with her hands. "Please, Scar, don't put me on the spot. I'm still getting my head around everything. My father, his debt, Austin and our fake marriage. It's all too much for me.""I understand," Scarlett said, stifling another loud yawn with the back of her hand. "But seriously, I think this whole thing is absurd. I mean, who marries someone just to pay off a debt?"Marybeth could only nod her agreement. She, of all people, kne
Sure enough, at 1:00 PM, Arno, Benji and two brawny men who could easily moonlight as bouncers were on Marybeth's doorstep.Within ten minutes, the four of them had cleared her apartment of the ten boxes with her books and keepsakes, and three suitcases stuffed to the brim with all her clothes.Marybeth ran through her apartment one last time, making sure she hadn't left anything behind. Satisfied she had everything she'd need for the foreseeable future, she turned to Austin's men with a smile. "I think I'm done."Pointing at her laptop bag and purse, Benji asked, "May I?""Sure." Marybeth gladly handed over the items and locked up the place, before she followed the men down the hall to the elevators.When Arno offered to carry the case with her mom's acoustic guitar, Marybeth politely declined. It was her most cherished possession and the only link to a woman who'd discarded her like she meant so little.Phoebe Tyson picked it up for a song at a Waterfront flea market, but she never
It was an ambush. No, an intervention of some sort. Austin knew this as soon as he walked into the grand living room of his childhood home in Clarence Estate, and found not only his father, but also his aunt, Blake and Hadley, having a nice old chat over Earl Grey tea.Their nice old chat came to a screeching halt when Orlando dashed from his arms and ran straight to her grandfather's lap, screeching, "Gramps!" like the man was Santa Claus himself."There's my favourite granddaughter in the whole wide world!" Lukas cheered right back at her, his large arms enfolding her small frame in a warm embrace."What do you mean, Gramps?" Orlando asked, burying her face in his neck. "I'm your only granddaughter and your only grandchild.""That you are my button!" Lukas tapped her nose before she scrambled out of his grasp and showered her great aunt, soon-to-be aunt and uncle, with hugs and kisses while telling them all about her sleepover at Neli's."I'm hungry," she announced in the middle of
Austin found Orlando sniffling in the back seat, clutching her worn stuffed toy. He pulled her close to him, asking, "What's going on, Squeak? Why are we crying?"Orlando sobbed on his chest, "You're upset, and I didn't mean to make you mad!""You're right," he replied. "I am upset. But not with you, Squeak. Your aunt and great aunt did something unforgivable.""When they told me about the wedding?" Orlando shifted slightly and peered at him, her eyes moist with tears."Yes." Austin brushed her cheeks with his thumb and kissed her forehead. "I wanted to be the one to tell you. I wanted you to hear it from me first. I'm sorry you didn't.""Why didn't I come to the wedding, Daddy? Didn't you want me there? Does Ms Tyson not like me? Aunt Hadley said she doesn't want me—" And Orlando dissolved into another gut-wrenching round of fresh tears."Oh, Orly. That's not true at all," Austin said, gently patting her back until her cries eased into gentle whimpers."Let's stop at the promenade,"
"Well, well, well, Beth," Austin whistled as he opened the pots simmering on the stove one at a time. His eyes grew as big as a kid's at a candy store when he saw the saffron rice and chicken stir fry.Who would have known his new wife could cook?Wasn't she just full of surprises?But it was one thing for her food to smell tantalisingly delicious. The taste had to be phenomenal before he showered her with praise.So he grabbed a spoon and stole a quick bite. But one bite led to two, and before he knew it, he couldn't stop. The food was freaking delicious, better than their three-course wedding lunch at The Windmill Hotel. In fact, it was better than any meal Mrs Allan had ever made."I was right about you, Beth," he murmured as he dipped his spoon in the wok again."Daddy!" Orlando whispered, glaring at him when she caught him red-handed as he was about to shove a spoonful of stir-fry in his mouth. "That's terrible manners!""I'm sorry, Squeak," he mumbled guiltily as he pushed the f