Page 74 of The Girlfriend Clause
Andrea glared at me, then took a sip of champagne like it was poison.
“Well, this is just adorable.” Miranda was practically glowing. “And you’ve been together ever since?”
“We have,” Andrea said sweetly. “Since Comic Con. It’s been a roller coaster. But I guess that’s love.”
“But Comic Con was… lastOctober?” Ben’s jaw dropped.
Shit. That was… what,ninemonths?
“Oh, well, we haven’t been in each other’s pockets all that time,” Andrea said quickly. “Liam is overseas a lot.” This woman was just digging us in deeper. I hoped to God Hugo didn’t smell a rat.
“October? Sounds pretty serious,” said Hugo. A huge grin spread across his face. “Liam, I must say, we’re thrilled for you. A new chapter in your life. And I know Nick and Juliette will be too. In fact”—he looked at his wife, who nodded the silent nod of a long-term spouse—“we would love to have you both at the wedding. We had no idea you’d be around. But now with these local roots, this… stability…” He smiled at us both, indulgently. “You two are quite the item. It will be marvelous to have you there.”
“Oh absolutely,” Miranda said. “You must come. We insist. It’s at Château de Chantilly, just north of Paris, in a month’s time. Nick and Juliette will be delighted. Have you ever been? It’s magical. You’ll love it.”
My stomach turned. France, in a month. If Andrea walked before then, the whole façade would collapse—and with it, my plans for Novexia.
“And a good opportunity for us to discuss your latest business venture.” Hugo nodded, lowering his voice. “I heard you may be looking for certain… dispensations. I’d be interested in hearing about your plans for change. Perhaps legislative leniency may be appropriate. Under the circumstances.”
“That would—that would be great, Hugo, thank you.” The window opened again. Maybe Hugo was a fan of cross-dressing elves after all.
“Say you’ll come,” said Miranda. “We’ll make thearrangements. And Andrea, dear, what a wonderful way for you to meet Liam’s old school friends, too.”
Hugo beamed. “I must say, you two do seem made for each other. Like an old married couple already.”
“Aren’t they?” Miranda kissed him on the cheek. “So you’ll come?”
Andrea’s hand was still looped through my arm, her nails digging just enough to remind me we were in this whether we liked it or not.
A month. Paris. A wedding.
“Of course we will,” she said, her voice bright, her smile tighter than a tourniquet.
I matched it with one of my own. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
Brilliant. Exactly the kind of stability Hugo wanted—and the last thing either of us could deliver.
Miranda gave my arm a final squeeze. “We’ll let you two catch your breath,” she said. “It must be exhausting, keeping a relationship this entertaining.”
“Quite,” said Hugo. “And Liam, if this is the woman you’re building a future with, I must say, she’s not what I expected. In a good way.”
He gave Andrea a last speculative glance, then turned with Miranda and headed off toward the auction room.
Behind us, Ben murmured something to Eliza and steered her a few steps away, casting one last raised eyebrow in my direction.
The second they were gone, Andrea dropped my arm like it had started leaking.
“Well,” she muttered, adjusting her dress. “That was… intimate.”
“Next time you want to paint me as a gender-fluid Tolkien tribute act, maybe check who’s in the room.”
Her smile was all teeth. “You didn’t mind when I was saving your arse.”
“Savingmyarse?”Was she ondrugs?
“I covered your stupid lie,” she hissed. “She’s with me? What the hell? Maybe next time yourhero complexflares up, try a rescue mission that doesn’t involve inventing a girlfriend.”
Was she seriously complaining that I’d stopped her and her sister from gettingarrested? The woman was insane. There was no other explanation.
