Chapter 26

Chapter Twenty-Six

Luke

“ L ucas, go out there and find her,” Hazel commanded as she reached the window where I stood.

I nodded. “Right.” I looked at her. “Did you do that on purpose? Did you give her the jewels just to make Mom mad?” It wasn’t easy to make my feisty grandmother look hurt, but I’d managed it with just one question.

“I thought she deserved to feel special for an evening. She saved your brother’s life, and she’s a kind, intelligent girl who deserved better than this charade you dreamt up.” I hadn’t been chastised like that in a long while, and I deserved it.

“I’ll go look for her.” I could see Alex and her mother watching me as I walked through the room. I ignored them and headed outside. Isla was just crossing the veranda back toward the house when I opened the door. Her shiny blonde hair was swept up behind her head, leaving her long, smooth neck in full view. Just like with the bare shoulder, I found myself thinking about leaving a trail of kisses along that neck. I swallowed hard and stepped outside.

“I wondered if you went back to your room. I’m sorry about my mom. I don’t even know what to say.”

Isla smiled up at me. “No more apologies, remember? And your mom means nothing to me, so I’ve already forgotten it. I’m coming in. Just give me a second.”

I stayed.

“Really, Luke. I’ll be right in.”

I nodded and turned back to the door.

“And don’t worry. I’ve figured out an easy solution to all of this, so you don’t lose face in front of all your family and friends.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“It’s all right. This was fake, remember? I’ll be in soon. Just gathering my courage.”

Again, I hesitated. I had no idea what she was talking about.

“See you in a few minutes.” She waved me inside.

Reluctantly, I went back into the house.

I spotted my mom, Patricia and Alexandria with a few of the other guests, so I took the opportunity to slip into the room unnoticed. They all seemed to have their radar set to Lucas Greyson. Wherever I went, one of them was sure to show up.

I was still trying to decipher Isla’s last few words as I kept my head down and headed to the bar for a beer. I’d had enough meaningless small talk with people I hardly knew, or cared to see, to last me a lifetime. Rachel left her own dance early, claiming she needed her beauty rest for tomorrow. David was busy talking to all the same meaningless small-talk pros I’d been stuck with earlier. He fit right in with them.

I turned around with the beer and immediately searched the room for Isla. She hadn’t returned. I would never forgive myself for this.

“Luke, don’t leave Alex alone for too long. I’ve heard Max Harlan has his sights set on her,” Mom warned.

I lifted my beer in a mock toast. “Then I wish him luck.”

Mom’s mouth turned down at the edges. It seemed her facial implants were finally loosening up enough to allow her to show human emotion. She certainly showed it earlier in the evening when she ruthlessly accused Isla of stealing Hazel’s jewels.

“Mom, have you noticed that Rachel and David have hardly spoken two words to each other all weekend?”

She waved her hand. “Pre-wedding jitters,” she scoffed.

“That’s not it, and you know it. Rachel doesn’t love him.”

Mom reached up and straightened my collar. I pushed her hand away.

She scowled at me. “Love is overrated. And I hardly think you’re an expert. I mean this woman you brought this weekend—” Her face soured more. “I thought she’d left to go hide in her room.”

I turned. Isla had just stepped back inside. Several heads turned, and she shyly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she walked past them. I put down my beer.

“Go to Alexandria. That’s where your future lies,” Mom said frantically as I walked away.

The orchestra had been clunking up song after song, but they were actually playing a decent version of a Fleetwood Mac song. I reached Isla. Her smile looked fragile, like the rest of her. This whole stupid plan had taken her spirit, and I had no idea how I’d ever make it up to her. “Will you consider a dance?” I asked.

“That will work best.”

She was still talking in riddles. I led her to the dance floor, and once again, I wrapped my arms around to hold her close. Her scent, light and citrusy, had already become imprinted on my brain just like everything else about her. We stayed like that for a few minutes, silent. Before, she’d felt relaxed, comfortable in my arms, but now there was tension.

“Just go with it. It’ll look like a clean break,” she said softly.

“I don’t understand.”

Isla stepped back out of my arms. “I can’t do this anymore,” she said loudly, gathering first the attention of others on the dance floor and then people standing nearby. “We both know I don’t fit in your world. Just like you don’t fit in mine.” Her blue eyes glassed with tears. “I’m trying and I know you’re trying, but I need to end this before my heart is in tatters.”

Her words drove a stake into my heart. I’d been such an idiot. She was “breaking up” with me so I could save face with my friends and family. What she didn’t know was I couldn’t give a damn what they thought.

“Isla.” I reached for her hand, but she pulled it back. That small gesture ripped through my chest as if someone cut me with a knife.

“No, having you touch me only makes this harder.” Tears fell from her eyes. Her voice wavered. “I won’t forget any of our time together—you carrying me out of that creepy museum, the time you protected me from that terrible man in the bar, when you lied telling me I didn’t snore?—”

My throat tightened, and I couldn’t get a good swallow beneath the tight collar. I shook my head slightly, telling her I didn’t want this. It had all gotten so complicated. It was a fake relationship, but this breakup felt so real my heart felt like cement in my chest.

The song ended, and the room had fallen quiet around us. I could almost feel my mom’s giddy grin on my back.

“You don’t need to do this,” I said quietly.

She nodded. “I do. I need to make a clean break. It’ll hurt far less,” she smiled through her tears. “Cold turkey, you know? Just know this—Lucas Greyson, you were by far the best part of my life so far. I only hope my future lives up to it. But we can’t keep pretending. We can’t go on thinking that this—this wonderful thing we had—will last or that it will have a happy ending. Those are only for fairy tales.”

Without thinking, I reached up and wiped a tear from her cheek with my thumb. Our audience fell away, and for a brief, few seconds we were the only people in the room. Our gazes crashed together. I’d never felt such a mix of emotions in my life. And those same emotions were surrounded by utter confusion. I knew what was happening here, but the hurt was real. I didn’t want Isla to slip out of my life for good. Nothing about that felt right. “Isla, no?—”

“So, this is goodbye, Luke. I wish you nothing but the best.” Her voice broke on the last few words. She spun around. People stared, mouths agape. This crowd wasn’t used to true, raw emotion. They parted as Isla raced across the room.

I followed, calling her name.

“Oh, Lucas, just leave her alone. This is for the best,” Mom called to my back.

I reached Isla in the corridor and took hold of her hand before she turned the corner. “No, don’t,” she said through tears. “You’re not supposed to follow. This is the end, remember? Now you can move on with Alexandria.”

“That’s not what I want,” I said.

She finally turned to look at me. “Don’t worry. You don’t have to pay me. I didn’t hold up my end of the bargain.”

People had filled the doorway to watch. Isla noticed. “Please, that was hard enough. This is the perfect solution.” She pulled her hand free and ran to the stairs.

I loosened my tie before it cut off all my oxygen. I looked back at the faces in the doorway. Alexandria appeared next. I spun around and headed toward the stairs, to my room. I should have followed Rachel’s lead and left the party early. I’d been dreading this weekend, but never had I thought it would turn out like this.