I pursed my lips, not wanting to say what I was thinking just yet.
Dalton glanced over at me. "At least we're moving forward with the case. The court requires mediation, but Oakley could have pushed it off for a bit longer if she wanted. Hopefully, this is a sign that she wants to resolve things."
"That's a big maybe with her." You never knew what that girl really wanted because she changed her mind on a whim and expected everyone else to go along with her.
"I'm hopeful we'll get past this. I'm looking forward to the day that we have something in writing that's enforceable."
I took a deep breath, unsure how to begin. "I know we talked about this not being real between us, and that we might need to be engaged at some point. But I guess things have changed."
He frowned. "How so?"
"It feels real now. I like you. I like what we've built, and I thought we were moving forward with a real relationship. But that call reminded me that this started out as fake."
He shifted in his seat. "Things change."
"But we still need to pretend to be engaged. I don't know if I can do that." Not when what I felt for him was so real.
"This is what we talked about. If you're not there, I'm not sure I can get custody on my own."
I folded my arms over my chest, feeling guilty that I'd even brought this up. But something about pretending to be his fiancée got to me. "I have a weird feeling about this."
"It's only for a couple more weeks, and then we can go back to how things were," he said reasonably.
"And what is that? Am I your pretend girlfriend or your real one?" I asked, feeling more upset.
"It started out as pretend, but then it became something that's real." Irritation crept into his tone.
"Then why are we still pretending?" I asked, knowing I was starting a fight but couldn't stop it.
"We're just pretending to be engaged."
"I know I promised that I could do this, but I don't think I can go through with it anymore."
Dalton parked in his driveway next to another Kingston Construction truck. One of his brothers must have come over to watch Lilliana.
Dalton left the truck running and shifted so that he could face me. "It's just for a while longer. Can you do it for me?"
I couldn't say no to him, but something about this situation didn't sit right with me. "I have to think about it."
His jaw clenched. "I don't have much time."
"This isn't just about you and what you need. I'm part of this too," I said with a bite to my tone.
He softened. "Yeah, okay. Take a day or two. I'll need to let Ashton know if you can't be there. We might need to change tactics."
I rested a hand on his arm. "You don't need me to prove that you're a great guy. You should be able to do that on your own."
He blew out a breath. "I thought you were going to be by my side."
"You're asking me to lie for you, and I know that's what I signed up for, but I'm not sure I can continue to do this."
"You can't continue to do this fake relationship, or you can't be with me at all?"
This was becoming more than I could handle. "I just need some time."
He nodded curtly. "I can give you that."
"I'll still be here for Lilliana?—"
