By the time Sunday rolled around, I was already dreading the family dinner almost as much as my upcoming showdown with Julianne Kingsley. And if that wasn’t enough, I still hadn’t figured out who I was bringing as my “date.”
I thought about reminding Darcy of our deal, but after what had happened at the gala—and his “what Sunday dinner?” comment—I decided against it. Instead, in a moment of desperation, I decided to ask Alex.
“This is a terrible idea,” I muttered under my breath as I stood in his office, fiddling with the strap of my bag. “Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
Alex leaned back in his chair, his signature smirk already in place. “I’ll be there.”
I blinked. “What?”
He stood, grabbing his jacket. “I’ll be your fake date,” he said, his grin widening. “Sounds like fun.”
Fun was not the word I’d use to describe what happened next.
The moment Alex walked into Mum’s overly floral living room, chaos broke out. Melanie, Dad’s absurdly young girlfriend, practically gasped when she saw him.
“Oh my God,” she cooed, flipping her hair. “You’re Sophie’s boss? That’s so… wow.”
Alex, ever the charmer, flashed his trademark smirk. “Guilty as charged.”
Melanie giggled like a schoolgirl, and I seriously considered crawling under the nearest table.
Meanwhile, Mum wasn’t faring much better. She cornered Alex in the kitchen, handing him a glass of wine and shooting me a conspiratorial look.
“Why didn’t you tell me he was this handsome?” she whispered loudly enough for the whole house to hear. “You’ve been holding out on us!”
I groaned. “Because it’s not like that, Mum.”
Mum ignored me completely, turning back to Alex. “So, Alex, tell me—are you single?”
Alex opened his mouth to reply, but before he could get a word out, the doorbell rang.
I hurried to answer it, desperate for a distraction, only to find Darcy standing on the doorstep, holding a bottle of wine.
“Darcy?” I said, my eyes wide. “I didn’t know you’d come.”
His expression was unreadable, but there was an unmistakable edge in his voice when he replied, “We had a deal, didn’t we?”
Before I could respond, laughter echoed from the kitchen. Darcy’s gaze flicked past me, and his jaw tightened when he heard Alex’s unmistakable voice.
“Oh,” he said coolly, handing me the wine. “It seems you’ve found a replacement.”
“No!” I said quickly, stepping forward. “It’s not like that. I just—”
“Don’t worry about it,” Darcy interrupted, his tone clipped. “It was just a stupid deal anyway.”
I reached out to stop him, but he was already turning to leave, disappearing down the driveway before I could find the right words.