We turned onto a private road, a discreet sign marking the entrance to Sullivan property. Jack’s frown deepened and his shoulders hunched a little. Honestly, it made me wish we could turn the car around and drive straight back to the airport.
The strain on his face made something twist in my chest. Without overthinking it, I unclicked my seatbelt and slid across the seat until our thighs touched. I took his hand, relieved when his fingers immediately closed around mine. “So,” I said, trying to lighten the mood, “anything in particular I should know before we arrive? Secret handshakes? Forbidden topics? Embarrassing childhood stories I should avoid?”
The corner of his mouth twitched, almost a smile, before his expression grew serious again.
“I expect that my parents won’t cause you any hassles. Any thoughts they have about how suitable you are for the Sullivans will be directed at me. And before you ask, the answer will be, not at all suitable, since my mother had no hand in choosing you. My cousins are pretty harmless. Various aunts and uncles will either be very interested in you, or leave you completely alone. My grandmother will be all over you. My brother Jared, though, is another story.”
“I see. And, uh, what’s his story and do I need to be worried?”
“He’s... competitive. Always has been.”
When he didn’t seem inclined to elaborate I said, “I’m gonna need a little more information.”
“He has a habit of going after what’s mine.”
“Uh huh. And by “what’s yours,” do you mean me?”
“Yes.”
Of course, he meant in the context of the fake engagement, not that I wasreallyhis. No need to get all fluttery about it.
Jack dragged his gaze from the scenery. “A few years back, I was engaged.”
I blinked, caught off guard. In all our time together, he’d never mentioned this.
“What happened?”
“Her name was Katherine.” His voice was flat, carefully controlled. “Perfect on paper. My mother’s hand picked choice.”
“Not yours?”
He shrugged. “She was willing and I was long past believing I would meet someone who… “ He trailed off, clearly unwilling to finish that thought.
I really wanted to push him, to ask him what he’d been about to say. Someone who what? But I was too chicken shit for that, so instead, I said, “And then Jared?”
“He decided he wanted her. And apparently, she wanted him too.”
“That’s fucked up.”
“It is. I found them together.” He shrugged, the casual gesture belied by the tension in his shoulders. “She expected Jared to propose after I broke it off. He dumped her two weeks later.”
“So his only goal was to take her away from you?”
“Something like that, yeah.”
“He sounds like a fuckhead.”
That surprised a laugh out of him. “He is that.”
I watched Jack’s profile, thoughts connecting like puzzle pieces. His brother stealing his fiancée. His reluctance to come home. This fake engagement that had started with a ring in Paris.
“Is the fake engagement to get back at him, then?” I asked carefully. “Some kind of... I don’t know, power move to show him you’ve moved on?”
Jack turned to me, his expression softening in a way I rarely saw. “No. It’s for Nan.”
“Oh.”
“She’s, uh, she’s not well. The doctors aren’t sure what’s wrong with her, but she’s worried that this’ll do her in.” He stopped to clear his throat and his gaze slid away, to look back out the window. “She wants to know I’ll be okay if she, uh, if she?—”
