Adam silently groaned. This was definitely a ‘tell all’ show. Megan wasn’t going to stop until she’d given every gory detail. Why she was doing this was clear. She was releasing him from any more contact with her. She was doing this so they could go their separate ways.
Without coming out like this, they would have to make up excuses as to why they weren’t living together. They’d have to lie, and say they’d had a fight, were separated, or some other such thing. They’d have to lie until they got a divorce. She was doing this to give him an out.
But he didn’t want her to take all the blame. He was part of this too. “I talked her into it,” he blurted.
They both stared at him. When Penelope had gotten over her shock, she quietly urged, “Go on.”
“I wanted the money. ABC was only willing to do the show if we agreed to get married at the end.” Everyone gasped at this revelation, but he ignored them. “I convinced Megan to go ahead with it, to get married, but only on paper. She reluctantly agreed. The marriage was never supposed to be real.”
The audience burst into loud chatter, and Penelope had to calm them down. “I’m being told we need to go to commercial break. We’ll be right back with Megan Holloway and Adam Warner, as we learn the whole truth about their show.”
As soon as the cameras were off, Megan turned to him, her eyes accusing. “What are you doing?”
“I could ask you the same thing.”
Her gaze softened. “Sorry. You just startled me. I thought you’d just sit and listen.”
“Oh, believe me, I’m quite entertained by all of this. But I couldn’t let you take all the blame for what happened.”
She placed her hand on his knee, the gesture about driving him out of his skin. “Thank you. But this is my tell all. I need you to sit and quietly listen to the rest.”
He no longer wanted to listen. All he wanted to do was to pick her up, throw her over his shoulder, and take her home so he could kiss her until she fell in love with him. Instead of admitting his caveman-like urge, he simply nodded.
“Thank you,” she repeated. Then she settled back in her chair, and they waited until the break was over.
Penelope snapped back into action as soon as the cameras were rolling. “We are back with Megan Holloway and Adam Warner. Megan and Adam have just revealed that their marriage was never supposed to be real. Please tell us more about this, Megan.”
Megan clutched the sides of her chair, her knuckles white. “The actual marriage is real. We used a real minister, signed real papers, and it’s legally binding. Adam and I are married.” She stared at the cameras. “But we agreed to it under false pretenses. We never intended to act like a real married couple.”
“So, nothing went on in the bedroom, then?” Penelope gave the camera a wicked grin.
Megan shook her head. “We agreed to get married because of the show, and for the money. That’s the only reason.”
The audience obviously didn’t like this statement, but hushed to hear what else Megan was going to say. “I knew ahead of time that I was not to fall for any of the other men on the show. They were there to create tension, but never as serious contenders. I knew Adam would propose, and I knew I was to accept.”
Penelope nodded. “I think there’s more to tell. Am I right?”
Megan nodded, her lips pinched tight. “What I didn’t know was that Adam Warner was going to fall in love with me.”
25
Megan peeked over at Adamand got to see the color drain from his face. She had to keep going or she would never be able to finish. “It was our wedding night. I was to sleep in the bedroom, and Adam had agreed to be on the couch. I was tense from the stress of the fake wedding, so Adam offered to massage my shoulders.”
A few ladies in the audience made noises of approval. Who wouldn’t? Adam was all hunk. She was sure they were imagining him giving them a massage. She pushed away a smile. “We talked for a few minutes, but as our conversation turned more intimate, I grew uncomfortable.”
Adam looked like he wanted to crawl under his chair. She hated embarrassing him like this, but she had to get everyone to understand.
Penelope rubbed her hands together. “Then what happened?”
Adam leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his head in his hands. She was hurting him. She had to get the rest out. “Adam admitted to me that he had really fallen in love with me.”
The audience froze, and the silence was deafening. Megan clenched her hands and tried to muster up her courage. “I freaked out. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I couldn’t handle his admission at that time. I clammed up. And when he asked me if I felt anything for him, I couldn’t admit my true feelings.”
Adam’s head snapped up, his blue eyes meeting hers in a piercing stare.
“Are you saying that you have feelings for Adam as well?”
It felt like everyone in the room was holding their breath, waiting for Megan to speak. “I do.”
