The Sweetheart Hoax Read online

  “Phil,” Devon said with a wary smile.

  “Dev.” Phil stared at his brother with narrowed eyes before reaching back to pull Margot to her feet. “This is my girlfriend, Margot. Margot,” he motioned with his hand and poked Devon in the chest. “This is my baby brother, Devon.”

  Devon pinned Margot with a charming smile and his wide-set dimples flashed to life. “Margot. You sure are a pretty little thing.”

  “Thank you,” she said. She couldn’t imagine Phil referring to anyone in such a condescending manner.

  “Where’s Sheryl?” Phil asked.

  “She’s helping one of the cheerleaders. Some sort of hair emergency.”

  “Good,” Phil said and took Devon’s arm. “Then you won’t mind running to the concession stand with me. Margot’s thirsty and I’ll need some help.”

  “I just got here, Philly. I think you can handle it.”

  Phil stepped in his path and refused to let him pass. “I insist.”

  Margot watched Phil drag Devon down the stairs and looked back at Judy and Bo. They both watched the scene play out with matching worried expressions on their faces. What in the world was Phil up to?

  ***

  “Let go of my arm and quit dragging me around like I’m eight,” Devon hissed when they reached the bottom step. “What in the hell’s your problem?”

  Phil poked Devon in the chest. “You’re my problem,” he said and turned to walk past the concession stand, past the restrooms, and into the shadow of the bleachers. Devon followed without another word.

  “What’s this all about?” Dev asked.

  “Why the hell did you start a rumor I’m gay? Do you have any idea how that makes me feel? How it makes mom and dad feel? For God’s sake, Mom’s got us sleeping together in the guest room.”

  “I didn’t start any rumor, Phil. You’re barking up the wrong tree.”

  “Then who did?”

  Devon had his mouth clamped so tight, Phil could see a vein throbbing in his temple. “How do I know? And why would you blame me?”

  Phil paced away before turning back to stare down his brother. “Who else had reason, huh? Who else even gives a shit?”

  “You think I want to be known as the guy with the gay brother? Please. This is a small town and I’ve got a reputation to uphold.”

  Phil stared at his brother and watched the vein in his head throb and throb. When Devon began the telltale guilty shuffling of his feet, Phil knew he’d caught him red handed. “You’re lying.”

  “Phil…”

  “Just admit it was you,” Phil said. “I know it was. You never could tell a lie to save your life.”

  “Fine,” Devon sputtered. “I’ll tell you the truth, but only so you know it wasn’t me.” He wiped his hands on his jeans and looked Phil in the eye. “It was Mom.”

  Phil chortled. “What? Jesus, Dev. I can’t believe you’d throw your own mother under the bus to save your ass. You really are a prick.”

  “I’m not lying, Phil. Mom started this whole thing.”

  “That’s crazy. Why would she start a rumor I’m gay?”

  “She didn’t start a rumor you’re gay. She told you I’d heard rumors you’re gay.”

  “Did you?” Phil asked.

  “No. Mom lied to you so you’d bring someone home, and then she sent Dad over to the shop to tell me what she’d done and that’s when things got a little out of hand.”

  “What do you mean, out of hand?”

  “Well, you know how loud Dad is when he talks? There were people in the store and they overheard and it just kind of snowballed from there.”

  Phil paced away, paced back, and stopped in front of Devon with his hands on his hips. “Are you telling me that Mom lied about the rumor, Dad tried to explain the lie to you, someone overheard, and now what Mom said is true? People really do think I’m gay?”

  Dev squinted his eyes as if mentally playing catch-up with the scenario Phil outlined. “Yeah, that sounds about right.”

  Phil could feel the anger spread from his head to his heart to his gut. His own mother. How could she? Phil grabbed Devon’s shirt in his fist and lifted him to his toes so they were eye to eye. “You’d better be telling me the truth.”

  Devon waved his hands in the air. “I am. I swear.”

  Phil dropped him like a doll. He shook his head back and forth. “Just so I’d bring a woman home? What was she thinking? Does she have any idea the kind of stress I’ve been under? How hard it was to talk Margot into coming with me?"

  “Hell, I know it sounds bad, but that cute little blonde ought to bring a quick death to the rumors. Just put on a little PDA, and everything’s back to normal.”

  Great. Public displays of affection with the one woman he recently deemed off limits. Could his life get any better?

  “Where’d you meet her?” Dev asked.

  “She used to work for me.”

  “Nice. I like the curls. And the tits. Bet it was hell keeping your hands to yourself when she was your employee.”

  If only Devon knew how hard it was for him to keep his hands off her now. “I can’t believe my own mother would do this to me. I don’t even know what to say.”

  “Well, I’d give her a taste of her own medicine if I was you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Dev gave Phil his most mischievous smile. “You’re sleeping in the guest room, right? Both of you?”

  “I told you we are.”

  Devon chuckled and leaned up to Phil. “That bed squeaks like the devil. If you and the blonde go at it later, Mom and Dad are sure to hear through the wall.”

  “Her name’s Margot.” Phil jerked back to see the laugh in his brother’s eyes. “How do you know the bed squeaks?”

  “Sheryl and I spent the weekend with Mom and Dad when we had our floors redone. Wish someone had warned me.”

  Great. Now he not only had to worry about making a move on her in his sleep, but of moving in general. It would serve his mother right if she thought he and Margot had sex right under her nose. But he didn’t know if he could face his parents in the morning if they thought he’d had sex in the next room.

  “Come on,” Dev said. “Let’s get out of here before someone thinks we’re a couple.”

  ***

  Judy’s hackles went up the minute Phil returned. He dragged Margot to her feet and asked if she were ready to go without looking his mother in the eye. Since Margot had been dodging Judy’s questions about how she and Phil had met and how long they’d been dating, she wasn’t surprised when the girl took off like a shot.

  “We’re heading home,” Phil announced as Margot came to his side. “We’ll see you back at the house.”

  Judy stood up and tried to smile. “Okay, honey. See you later.” When they were halfway down the bleachers, she pivoted toward Devon. “Spill it, Dev. Every word.”

  “Huh?” Dev said. Cash had made a first down and the volume from the crowd had increased tenfold.

  “What did he say to you?”

  “Who? Phil? He thought I was the one who started the gay rumor, thank you very much. As if he didn’t hate me enough already.”

  “Your brother doesn’t hate you,” Judy insisted. “When it comes right down to it, the gay rumor is your fault.”

  “Excuse me?” he said after the Cash quarterback was sacked for a loss. “I’m not the one who started the rumor.”

  “It was never meant to be a rumor. Just a pretend rumor.”

  “It’s not my fault the Reynolds’ boy overheard dad telling me about your pretend rumor. I wasn’t about to let anyone think it was me.”

  “So what did you tell him?” she asked.

  “I told him I didn’t know who started the rumor or why. Oh,” his eyes twinkled with delight. “And I warned him about the squeaky guest room bed.”

  Judy flinched. She’d never forget the night Devon and Sheryl stayed in the guest room and she and Bo had to listen to their son and his wife having sex through th
e wall. How much worse would it be to hear her unmarried son and his maybe girlfriend having sex?

  Chapter 13

  They had pie at home with a fire crackling in the parlor. Phil had called it the parlor, as if he lived in a Greek mansion she’d only read about in books. He carried their plates in along with a glass of wine.

  “Wine and pie,” she said when he handed her the plate. “And ice cream. Thank you.”

  “It’s an odd combination, but one that appeals to all my tastes.”

  “Mmmm,” she said after taking a nibble. “All of mine, as well.”

  His fork stopped half way to his mouth and he stared at her from across the small space between their chairs. She couldn’t read his expression in the dim light, but she knew he looked incredibly handsome in his socks, jeans, and flannel shirt. Somehow the outfit that had looked so silly on him that morning seemed to fit him like a glove by nightfall.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “Hummm? Oh, nothing.” He shoveled a bite into his mouth and looked away.

  She could read him better, had read his moods for years from the safe distance of obscurity. But now, seated intimately in the cozy setting with his eyes on her and their legs dangerously close, she couldn’t have said what had caused him to go silent. “I like Cash,” she said to break the suddenly uncomfortable silence. “Downtown is picturesque, even when everyone was at the game.”

  “There’s something to be said for small towns.” He sipped from the wine he’d bought at the liquor store on their ride home. “Not too much different from Echo.”

  “I don’t know,” Margot said. “Echo’s a beach town. There’s a whole different feel. It’s…laid back and go with the flow. Andover is upscale elegance disguised as small town. Cash is just good old fashioned Americans trying to make a living.”

  “You don’t think people in Echo or Andover are trying to make a living?”

  “Of course they are, but some of the people—most of the people—are outsiders. They’re drifters who’ve come to the coast to find a better life or one that’s not so rushed. This feels more rooted, I guess.”

  “That’s because the earth is harder here. It’s hard to make roots in sand.”

  “Is that why you came to Echo?” she asked. “So your roots wouldn’t stick?”

  He settled his plate on the side table and cupped his glass between both hands. When he stretched his legs out, his feet brushed hers. “That’s an interesting question. I couldn’t wait to get out of here and not because this is a bad place. What you said about roots is exactly right. People who stay here too long never leave.”

  “And you wanted to leave?”

  “I had to leave. There was a whole world out there to explore and I didn’t want to get tied up in the town I’d grown up in, doing the same thing with the same people for the rest of my life.”

  “They seem like good people to me.”

  “Oh, they are. I forget sometimes just how good when I’m gone for too long. They’re some of the best.”

  “Why Echo?” she asked. This was a part of him she didn’t know, couldn’t know because of their surface relationship. She could feel Cash taking root in her heart, and yet she wanted to know more, needed to know more about the man who stirred feelings inside of her.

  “I met Danny the summer before I graduated. I came down with a friend who had a house on Sullivan’s Island. It was so different from Cash. I remember the first time I got out of the car and smelled the salt in the air.” He took a sip and stared at the fire. “Danny and I just clicked, ya know. I knew in one afternoon that I’d be back, that we’d end up working together.”

  “Whose idea was the business?”

  “Both of ours. I made the business plan, got the loan, set our short term and long term goals, did all the marketing.” He set his glass down and pulled his feet back under the chair.

  “I’ve never heard anyone speak of you two, professionally, as anything other than the best.”

  He turned his head and stared at her. “Really?”

  “Yeah. I’d say your business planning paid off. Most folks didn’t take Danny seriously until you came along.”

  “And I couldn’t have gotten anywhere around Echo or Andover without his local connections. We’re a good team.” His expression turned serious. “We’re going to miss you at the office. I’m going to miss you.”

  Margot’s heart skipped a beat. Did he really mean it? No, of course not. She had to stop thinking his looks and his words meant anything more than gratitude. “Change is hard. Rebecca is—”

  “Not you, but we’ll muddle through. I can’t exactly ask you to give up your nursing career to be our receptionist.”

  “Speaking of nursing.” Margot stood up and gathered her plate and wine glass in her hands. “I’d better look over some notes before I go to bed.”

  “Margot?” Phil followed her into the kitchen with his plate and glass. He took her plate from her hand and placed them in the sink. Normally he would have put the dishes in the dishwasher, but not now. He was still mad at his mother. “I need to tell you something.”

  “Okay...”

  “Devon told me my mom made up the rumor about me being gay just so I’d bring someone home.”

  “Your mom? Are you sure you believe him?”

  “Yes. I do.”

  She couldn’t imagine Judy lying to Phil about anything. “Well. I guess the jig is up.” She knew she was in too deep when knowing the charade was over made her feel disappointed instead of glad. No more holding hands, smoldering looks, and scorching kisses. “Are you going to tell her you know? Confess the truth?”

  “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

  She noted the gleam in his eye and the way his hands fisted at his sides. “You look ready to enact revenge.”

  “Dev suggested we ‘go at it’ in the squeaky guest room bed.”

  She felt the blood drain from her face and pool between her legs. “What?”

  “Nevermind.” He ran his hand down his face and shook his head. “It’s been a long day.”

  Margot needed to get out of Cash. She needed a little breathing room and a clean break from Phil before she did or said something stupid. “Why don’t I see if I can catch a flight out in the morning? It sounds like you and your parents have some things to discuss.”

  “Leave?” he asked. “Why would you leave?”

  “Phil, the rumors aren’t real. You know it was your mom, and she can probably tell we’re not dating. Why would I stay?”

  “I just assumed you’d stay through the weekend.” He stepped toward her and shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “I actually need you to stay.”

  She couldn’t help it. Her breath caught in her throat and her pulse quickened as he stared down at her. Did he want her to stay because he felt a connection with her? Was the memory of their kiss branded on his heart the way his was branded on hers? “You do?”

  “There’s a bit more to tell. When my dad told Dev about the rumor, a customer at Dev’s shop overheard and now the rumors are real. People do think I’m gay.”

  Stupid, stupid, stupid. How could she think their kiss and the cozy conversation by the fire had meant anything more to him than playing a role? “Oh, well, I guess I can stay. If people think you’re gay.”

  “I’m sorry, Margot.”

  “Why are you sorry?” She looked down and began pulling at the ends of her scarf. She felt so transparent, she couldn’t look him in the eye. “Nothing’s changed. We’ll pretend to be dating this weekend like we planned.”

  “Everything’s changed. My mom...what she did. It’s so deceitful. I can’t believe she had it in her to lie to me like that.”

  “She wants to know about your life, Phil. You obviously haven’t told her much about South Carolina. She practically grilled me at the game.”

  “She did?”

  “While you and Dev were gone.”

  “Okay, maybe I haven’t bee
n very open about my life there, but there hasn’t been much to tell. Like you pointed out, I’ve dated a lot of women. No one I’d bring home or even mention on the phone.” He leaned back against the counter. “God, that doesn’t speak well of me, does it?”

  She shouldn’t feel pity for him in a time of crisis, not when he’d pounded a stake through her heart. But damn it, she did. “You’re a young, attractive, successful architect. You have every right to date whomever you want, whenever you want.”

  “I haven’t been in a relationship—a real one—since high school.”

  “Julianne?”

  “Yeah.” He sighed.

  Damn him, she felt tempted to move closer, rub his arm, try to wipe away the puppy dog look from his face. She stayed put.

  “Do you think I’m emotionally immature?” he asked.

  “Ahh, well...”

  “Nevermind. Don’t answer that.” He pushed away from the counter and stood up straight. “I’m just confused. And pissed off. My mother put me in a bad position, and now I’ve put you in a bad position. I feel terrible that I dragged you half way across the country over some stupid farce.”

  “Phil.” She did move toward him when she saw him working up a head of steam. She knew he’d reach full boil soon, and she suspected his parents would be back any minute. “I’m fine with this. What’s done is done. I don’t think your mom meant to ruin your reputation. It sounds like things just snowballed out of control.” Which would explain the worried look on his parents faces when Phil dragged Devon away at the game. “I’m here, and tomorrow at the party, we’ll put an end to the gay rumors once and for all.”

  They both turned toward the front of the house at the sound of tires on the drive. “They’re home,” he said with a grimace.

  She grabbed his arm as he strode into the foyer. “Phil, wait. I think you need to calm down before you face her. Trust me, you can’t take back the words you say when you’re upset and those tend to be the ones that hit the hardest.”