Rogue Rascal (The Rourkes, Book 9) Read online

  Only here I am. Every instinct is telling me to get out while I still can. I just have to hang on long enough to keep Sam and me good with each other. After all the wedding stuff is over for him, then Riley and I will get that quiet annulment. She says when Sam gets back from his honeymoon, she’ll let him know we made the mutual decision to break up. She’s good at pulling off serious-sounding stuff like that. I think if I said it, Sam would think I was about to pull a prank. That’s normally the only time I sound serious, lying through my teeth in the name of a good joke. Then, of course, I always reveal the prank with the truth and much laughter (mostly my own). I really am a rascal.

  “They’re here,” Riley says.

  I tense. Everyone applauds as Sam and Alison make their entrance. A few minutes later, the wait staff directs us to take our seats around a long rectangular table. It’s just the bridal party and the bride’s and groom’s parents. There’re name cards, and I’m placed next to Riley. Her parents are on the other side of her. Mrs. Walsh has sharp cheekbones and an expression that says she doesn’t tolerate any BS. Her dark brown hair is in a bun. Everything about her says sensible and straitlaced. Guess Riley took after her. Mr. Walsh has rounded cheeks like Sam, and his dark brown hair is streaked with gray and cut short. He looks dignified and, frankly, like he came from money. The country club set are their people. I tug at my tie, which feels like it’s choking me. These are so not my people.

  Her mom glances over at me, and sweat trickles down my spine. I have to pull off serious boyfriend with honorable intentions. I just hope her parents don’t ask too many questions.

  After her parents have a short conversation with Sam sitting on their other side, they turn to me. “Jack, it’s so nice to finally meet you,” Mrs. Walsh says. “Sam talks about you. He says you’re quite the prankster. We know you’ve been good friends for a while now.”

  “Yes, great to meet you,” Mr. Walsh says, standing and leaning toward me to offer his hand.

  I stand to shake his hand and then shake Mrs. Walsh’s hand too. “Good to meet you both.” I take my seat again, still tense, waiting for Riley to drop the bomb.

  Riley smiles at me and then her parents. I can’t manage a smile back because I know this is when it all goes south. “Jack and I have been seeing each other. It’s been a little over a month, so I’m glad you finally got to meet too.”

  Mrs. Walsh tilts her head. “Oh.”

  “Okay then,” Mr. Walsh says, giving me a second assessing look.

  The words are out of my mouth before I can stop myself. “I respect Riley. I know she’s smart, a very accomplished woman. Sam brags about her, and I always admired her, working hard to get her master’s degree in accounting and then working hard at her corporate accounting job while studying for several CPA exams. She passed them all with flying colors, which is amazing.” This is true. To me, she’s brilliant, but also unapproachable. Sort of like an accountant superhero. Throw in the bro code and there was no way I was going there. But that’s all out the window now thanks to a tequila night in Vegas.

  Mr. and Mrs. Walsh stare at me, looking a little shellshocked. I don’t think they’re sold on me as serious boyfriend material yet.

  I go on in a rush. “And my future prospects look good. I’ve worked in my family’s construction business for years, and now we’re branching out to real estate development. We have an initiative to give back as we build neighborhoods, incorporating parks and playgrounds into every project. The one we’re working on now has a playground that’s wheelchair accessible and fun for kids of all abilities. In five years, I’ll be project manager, taking a property from first purchase to completion.”

  Not that anyone asked.

  I lean back in my seat, out of words, wondering where the hell that came from. My oldest brother, Dylan, is the CEO of our company, and he told us each to work out a niche in the new real estate development business. I couldn’t see where I fit until right this very minute. I do know all the different types of labor needed to complete a project, having worked them all myself. I know the crew really well. This is a natural fit. Huh.

  Mr. and Mrs. Walsh exchange a look. I belatedly turn to Riley. Her brown eyes are wide. Looks like I surprised everyone with my future plans, including myself.

  Mrs. Walsh recovers first, saying in a formal tone, “Thank you for sharing.”

  Damn, I failed the mom test. She doesn’t think I’m good enough for her daughter. We’re only faking the serious relationship, but I can’t help my disappointment. It’s the first time I ever really tried to step up as a boyfriend, and it wasn’t enough. But then Mr. Walsh surprises me.

  “I assume you’ll be at Riley’s birthday dinner,” he says. “Let’s talk more then.”

  “Sure,” I say immediately, so relieved I passed the test with him. I thought my future prospects sounded respectable. Now I just have to figure out how to make them happen.

  Riley smiles tightly. “Great. We’ll look forward to it.”

  It hits me why she’s tense. I just extended our fake relationship past the agreed week. I don’t know what that means for the annulment, but it does mean more time with her, which only leaves room for more temptation. There’s undeniable chemistry between us. When is her birthday anyway? I can’t ask her now. Her serious boyfriend should know when her birthday is. For all I know, I just signed up for another month of being together. I’ve got to untangle myself from this as quickly as possible. But not now. When I have a moment in private with Riley, I’ll explain we’ll have no contact until the agreed-upon birthday dinner. It’s my fault that I got invited. I came off as the kind of guy you want to get to know a little better. I’m not sure if they’re wary of me or curious. Either way, I can’t leave her to deal with her parents alone on her birthday when they’re expecting me.

  The rest of dinner goes by uneventfully. Mr. and Mrs. Walsh ignore us, focusing on Sam and Alison. Fine by me. Riley is quiet. I catch her staring at me a few times, but she looks away as soon as I catch her eye. Maybe she’s upset about extending our relationship because it leaves too much room for us to slip up. I can only imagine how her parents would take the news about a quickie Vegas wedding. Actually, I’m pretty sure they’d go through the roof. Look at this place. They’d want a long engagement so they’d have time to plan and invite all their country club friends to the formal occasion. That is, if they accepted me into the family. Unlikely. I’m never telling my family about the Vegas wedding either. I won’t even confide in my most reserved brother, Connor. The risk of it accidentally getting back to my parents is too great. Vegas was an anomaly. Everyone gets a little crazy in Vegas, right? This will all be over…I don’t know when it’ll be over, but it has to end soon.

  After dinner, Riley takes my hand and pulls me to the lobby of the club, which is empty. It feels natural and kinda nice to hold hands. Maybe she wants to thank me for handling her parents so well. Hey, I might be inexperienced with a girlfriend’s parents, since I never have actual girlfriends, but I do have parents, so I think I have a pretty good understanding of how to handle them. I mean, her mom didn’t seem too happy, but I did get a birthday dinner invite. Respect and manners go a long way. If there’s one thing my royal father taught us, it was manners. So many manners.

  She halts suddenly in front of me, her lips a flat line, her brown eyes direct. “My birthday dinner with my parents is next week. That’s a second week added on to our relationship, and Sam and Alison won’t be back from their honeymoon yet either, so there’s no buffer. Are you sure you want to do this? It could get uncomfortable.”

  “Do you want me to bail on the dinner?”

  Her eyes search mine. “I just don’t want you to feel pressured.”

  “I’m fine. If I had a daughter with a serious boyfriend, I’d want to get to know him better too just to make sure he’s okay.”

  She blinks a few times. “Do you want kids?”

  I shove my hands in my pockets. “That’s not the point.”

/>   “Do you?”

  “Yeah, of course. I come from a big family and we’re tight. Just not anytime soon.”

  She smiles serenely, like kids are just around the corner for us. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around two weeks of a fake relationship and a real marriage with a woman I can’t touch. I am in hell.

  “What’s that smile about?” I ask.

  “Nothing. It’s just good to know.”

  “Why is that good to know? This is temporary.”

  She leans close. “My parents would’ve been happy if I married Charlie, but guess what? I wouldn’t have been happy, so what does that tell you?”

  “That Charlie wasn’t worthy.”

  She hugs me, trapping my arms against my sides. “Aww, Jack. Sweet.”

  “Neither am I.”

  She pulls back and studies me for a long moment, like she’s trying to figure me out. I’m not all that complicated. I’ve got two modes—work and play. And I don’t mind mixing them. It’s easy since I’ve worked with my brothers and the same crew for the last twelve years. Wow, twelve years already. I’ve been there since I graduated high school. It really is time I step up with a more senior role in the company.

  Finally, she says, “If you don’t mind extending it a week and dealing with my parents, then I’d like you there.” She flushes pink and speaks to my chest. “That was really nice what you said about me back there, about respecting my accomplishments.”

  “You’re like an accountant superhero.”

  She bursts out laughing, her brown eyes sparkling. “I’ve never heard that before. Now where did I leave my cape and tights?”

  I can’t help my smile. She looks so relaxed now and approachable. “Probably locked up with your shiny red bikini.” I wink. “All the best superheroes wear shiny red bikinis.”

  Her cheeks flush even brighter pink. “A superhero accountant would wear a power suit.”

  “A guy can dream.” I tug a lock of her hair. “I’ll be there. It’s your birthday, after all.”

  Her expression softens. “Thank you. I didn’t know you were doing all that stuff with building parks and playgrounds. It sounds like you’re really into making a difference.”

  I lift a shoulder up and down. “Brooklyn is my community too. Of course I want to make it great.”

  “Do you actually want to spend another week with me?” she asks softly.

  There’s a vulnerability lurking in her eyes that sorta squeezes my heart. How can I say no? “Yeah, sure. It’s your birthday. You’re turning twenty-seven, right?”

  “Twenty-six.”

  “Guess I should’ve known that.”

  She smiles sweetly, her dark eyes warm on mine. “Now you know.”

  I have the sudden urge to kiss her, so I do. Just a quick peck. I don’t want to lose control again.

  She rocks back on her heels. “Would you like to join me at a more fun birthday celebration with my friends on Wednesday night? That’s my actual birthday. We’re going to a bar in the city.”

  “Sure.” Why not? I’m always up for a party, and I’m already in for another week. Besides, her friends will make a great buffer between me and temptation.

  She throws her arms around me and hugs me. This time I hug her back, even though I’m not much of a hugger. An unusual calm settles over me.

  “Riley,” a masculine voice booms.

  Riley jumps back. “Hi, Dad!”

  Her parents cross to us, looking rather grim. Good thing we were just hugging.

  Mrs. Walsh speaks first in a forced pleasant voice. “Jack, you’re welcome to stay at our house tonight.”

  I swallow hard. Riley is staying in her old room at her parents’ house tonight. Now I’m invited to stay with them too. I’m in uncharted territory here. I’m not sure how to make it sound normal that we prefer to stay in separate places. I’m supposed to go to the hotel with the other wedding guests. What would a serious boyfriend do? Oh, right. Riley says let the woman have her way. In this case, it’s the easiest solution.

  “Thank you,” I say to Mr. and Mrs. Walsh. I turn to Riley. “Whatever you’d like to do is fine with me.”

  Riley stares blankly for a moment before she seems to come to a decision, wrapping an arm around my waist. “Actually, we’d like to stay at the hotel together.”

  I work to hide my surprise and drop an arm over her shoulders. “If that’s okay with you two.”

  Mr. and Mrs. Walsh exchange a look. They’re not happy about that scenario. Maybe they planned on having us in separate rooms. Still, I have to go with Riley on this one. It would be a helluva lot more awkward to stay together at her parents’ house, and there’d be way too many chances for a slipup. I’m sure I can get her a room at the hotel. I don’t kid myself I can manage to share a room with her without being tempted. Willpower is not my strong suit. I know my limits.

  Riley pipes up, telling her parents, “Thanks for including Jack, but now that I think about it, the hotel makes more sense. You’ve got enough on your plate with the wedding. You can get to know Jack better once all the wedding craziness dies down.” At their silence, she adds, “Sam thinks highly of him.”

  Mrs. Walsh turns to Mr. Walsh with a hard look that says you deal with this.

  Mr. Walsh picks up his cue. “Hotel it is. I’ll give you a lift to our house, so Riley can grab her things, and then drive you both to the hotel.”

  “Great,” I manage. And here I thought this couldn’t get any more awkward. Now I’ll have a car ride with her parents and time at her house with them while we wait for Riley to pack. Too bad I didn’t rent a car.

  Mr. Walsh goes to the valet stand to have his car brought around. Mrs. Walsh stands next to us, stiff and silent.

  “Jack’s a prince,” Riley says, trying to make me sound better than I am. I stifle a groan. Yes, I have royal blood, but that’s not who I am. “Did you catch his brother Dylan’s wedding in the royal chapel on TV?”

  “No,” Mrs. Walsh says flatly.

  I’m not impressed with the royal thing either. It’s not like I have any wealth or privilege from it. My father abdicated the throne of Villroy to marry my mother, a commoner, and recently reconnected with the royal side of the family, which is how Dylan ended up having his wedding there. It was a symbolic gesture, welcoming our family back into the fold.

  Mr. Walsh joins us, takes one look at his tense wife, and remains silent. I search my brain for something to say and come up short. They know me as a prankster. I have to show them I can be serious too, but I can’t think of anything that seems right to say in this awkwardly tense situation.

  Finally, Mr. Walsh says, “Sam tells me Williamsburg is très cool right now.” That’s the neighborhood where Sam and I live. “I’m looking forward to seeing it again at Riley’s birthday dinner. We’re meeting at Alison’s restaurant to support her, even though she’ll be on her honeymoon.”

  Riley’s cheeks pinken. “No one says très cool, Dad.”

  “It is très cool, sir,” I say.

  “See, Jack says it,” Mr. Walsh says with a hint of a smile. He reminds me a lot of Sam. I sense an ally.

  Riley gives me a small smile that says she’s eternally grateful to me or something like that. I don’t know. I just feel kinda puffed up inside.

  The car arrives, and I squeeze my long legs into the back of a black BMW with Riley. Mr. and Mrs. Walsh get caught up in a conversation about wedding logistics for Sam tomorrow. I take Riley’s hand, and she turns to me in surprise. Probably because it’s the first time I initiated the hand-holding since that time when we faced down Sam in her hotel room. It just feels natural now. And it kinda makes me feel better in the eternal tension that is being with her but not really with her. Touching her eases the ache of not touching her the way I really want to. Strange but true.

  She stares straight ahead, a small smile on her face. I impulsively kiss her cheek and her smile grows. I frigging love that. Funny how such a small thing can make everything a littl
e better.

  Riley

  As soon as we get to the house, I lead Jack up to my old room so he won’t be subjected to more tense conversation with my parents. What a trooper. He sits on the pink and white polka-dotted comforter on my twin-size canopy bed, looking ridiculously manly and out of place. Also, ridiculously gorgeous. Jack in a charcoal gray suit that shows off his shoulders and chest tapering to a trim waist is a beautiful thing. I want to rip the blazer off him and run my hands all over his chest and then rip his white dress shirt off and feel and kiss and taste every inch of deliciously defined muscle. I do feel deprived by seeing him down to his briefs in Vegas and never getting to touch. I wasn’t about to feel up an unconscious man. Inconvenient morals.

  And it’s not just his sexy good looks. He cares deeply about his work and his family, and he’s really trying with my parents, so respectful and nice, even in the face of their obvious discomfort with the situation. It was a little tense back there, but Jack handled it well. I don’t know how I expected him to be, but it was nowhere near as great as he actually is. I thought I’d have to run interference for him with my parents, but he came through, talking about his future career prospects and using those nice manners. He’s not just a fun prankster, maybe—

  He pulls out his phone. “I’m gonna book you a separate hotel room.”

  My heated rush of affection and lust instantly cools. He’s only being nice to me out of respect for Sam. I guess I thought when he said all those amazing things about me at dinner that he was actually into me. And then when he said he wanted kids down the line and that family was important to him, well, I guess it made me think he had potential for a real relationship. Like maybe the only reason he’s never had a relationship is because he just never met the right woman before. So stupid. He hasn’t suddenly morphed into a relationship kind of guy; he’s playing a part. Obviously he’s not attracted to me the way I am to him. I know I’m not the stunning beauty he’s used to. He could get anyone and has his pick of beautiful women.