Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72586 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 290(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72586 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 363(@200wpm)___ 290(@250wpm)___ 242(@300wpm)
"Well," I said. "I hope you're all careful on the slopes. I wouldn't want you having to... pull your Dick out of a snowbank."
Mr. Wellington's expression darkened like I'd just insulted his ancestry. "Excuse you?"
I went bright red. "I just meant—you two were talking like, and I—"
"Dick is an incredible athlete, Emma. All of my children are. He would never get stuck in a snowbank."
"Oh," I said. Right, because that was the inappropriate part about my comment. I couldn’t figure these people out. "Sorry."
Mr. Wellington shot me a look that could have melted ice before joining the group.
Wonderful. Maybe I was imagining it, but it felt like Mr. Wellington had soured on me from the moment James arrived.
With a sigh, I headed toward my mom, whose drink looked significantly emptier than when I'd first spotted her.
"Hey," I said, sliding onto the barstool beside her. A ball of ice formed in my stomach.
"Em," she said, lifting her eyes to me. My mom was in her late fifties with laugh lines that spoke of a life well-lived, silver hair, and a beautiful smile. This afternoon, though, she looked like she'd aged ten years overnight. "I was looking for you."
"Yeah, Lily told me."
My mom traced the rim of her glass with one finger, lips working like she was trying to find the right words.
Here comes the James conversation I've been dreading.
"I... know you probably hate me right now. I assume he told you who asked him to come here. And I know what he did to the wedding you planned in Ireland, and how much you likely hate the man, but—"
"Mom..." I said. "Why, though? You don't seriously think there's something to uncover between Lily and Marcus, do you? They're practically perfect for each other."
"I don't know," she said, slumping like her spine had suddenly given up. "But a mother has intuition when it comes to her babies. And my intuition is telling me something about Marcus and his family isn’tright."
"Wait... his family?"
She shook her head. "There's just something. And I called this wedding wrecker man because, well, you told me how he exposed that man in Ireland. I looked him up, and it sounds like he only works cases if he looks into them and thinks there's a good chance something is wrong. I was honestly hoping I'd talk to him and he'd get back in a few days and say there was nothing to investigate. But... here he is." She lifted her drink and drained the remains, then raised the glass toward the bartender.
I frowned. "What did he find?"
"Nothing yet, as far as I know. But do you care to explain why I saw him with his arm around you claiming to be your boyfriend?"
I rubbed the back of my neck. "Um, well. It's actually pretty easy to explain, but I need you to promise to keep this quiet. We can't even tell Lily."
Somewhere behind us, the large group of Wellington clan-mates let out a manly whoop and charged out the doors to load onto a bus that would presumably take them to the slopes.
My mom raised her eyebrow. "You know what? I don't want to know. I can't handle any more secrets right now. As far as I'm concerned, you two are a happy, confusing couple. And that's that."
"You really don't want to know?"
"I don't like keeping things from my daughters. If I don't know, I don't have to keep the secret. So, no. I'll trust that you know what you're doing. You're both smart girls, and I will always trust you two."
"Which is why you hired a wedding wrecker to investigate the man Lily wants to marry," I said softly, the words tasting bitter.
My mom winced, her shoulders curling inward. "I know, Em. This isn't like me, but what am I supposed to do? Just sit by and ignore the feeling in my gut? And trust me, I talked to former clients of his. I read as much about him as I could. If he finds nothing, he just enjoys the ceremony and goes home. Nobody is the wiser. So we should be happy he's here. If there's something to expose, he'll expose it. And if not, then nothing changes."
"And what if it's something Lily wants to be able to work through with Marcus? It's not natural, Mom. Relationships are about compromise, forgiveness, and trust. This whole wedding wrecking thing just... sidesteps all that."
She took another long sip of her fresh drink. "Maybe you're right. But he's already here. And if I'm wrong for doing this, then I'll ask God for forgiveness when it's all through. And I'll know I did everything in my power to protect one of my daughters. Just like I always will." She cupped my cheek with a trembling hand and gave me a sad smile. "So be careful, because your momma is prepared to do crazy things for you."