Katherine's POV
I was nervous. I hadn't felt this way since when I got interviewed for my job. I had been stunned when Jack and Taylor came here yesterday after Taylor dropped me not quite long before that.
I had been grateful I hadn't gotten undressed as everything after still felt like a dream.
Everything until now. I had to focus. He had invited me to meet his family and it was happening soon.
I smoothed down one of the dresses we had bought yesterday and ran my hands on it as I stood before the full-length mirror in my bedroom.
We had bought over ten dresses even though I had told him not to bother that I had good dresses at home I could wear to meet his family.
He didn't respond and I tried not to feel insulted that he felt I was too poor to own a dress that would match up to his standards.
Maybe I was. He knew his family better than I did and would know what they would approve of.
I blew out a breath. "Yeah, Katherine, we are doing this."
Finally, my wild moves got me in trouble and landed me a match as well. I wondered if I should recommend my lifestyle to someone else or not.
I dropped the blue dress in my hand and picked a green one up. I could remember the way his eyes flashed when he saw me stepping out of the changing room in that.
Or maybe it was my imagination. He had made it clear that he wasn't interested in any romance with me again.
Even though I believed that, that didn't stop me from wearing the green dress. I guessed I wanted to confirm if I was right.
I didn't need to fix my hair as I already got that done yesterday, courtesy of my rich fake boyfriend. It was a hassle sleeping as I didn't want to make the hair rough. I hoped I didn't yawn at the party and end up embarrassing everyone.
I applied mild makeup and waited for him, hoping I didn't get my finger broken before he came with the way I kept pressing hard on it.
My phone flashed and I found out that I just got a message.
Outside. Meet me in two.
I rolled my eyes at the message. What a gentleman.
He couldn't even come to the door to get me? I couldn't believe his driver was better than he was.
To spite him, I took my time and waited for five minutes before stepping out of the house.
I expected him to be leaning on his car, in hopes that he would open the door for me. He was in the car, pressing his phone. I had no doubt he was working.
I rolled my eyes as I slid into the car. What an attractive gentleman. I thought with sarcasm. I hoped he wasn't going to work all through the night or I was about to have the most miserable night of my life.
"I thought I told you to be out in two." He growled without glancing at me.
"I never agreed that I would. If you were impatient, you would have come to the door to get me." I replied while strapping on the seatbelt.
"Don't play smart with me. I hate tardy people."
"And I hate rude boyfriends." I snorted.
He growled low in his throat and turned to glare at me. His eyes moved over my body and lingered on my dress. He cleared his throat and moved his eyes away, gripping the wheels tight.
"You might be tardy but you know how to dress well so I guess you are forgiven. Let's go. I don't want to fight with you tonight."
Did that mean he wanted to fight with me another night?
He didn't look at me again all through the trip and I wondered what to think of that. He must have liked that dress on me as I suspected earlier but wasn't he meant to be stealing glances at me?
I sighed. I guessed what he liked was the dress and not me. It might not have mattered to him who wore it. He must have appraised if his family would like it and it had nothing to do with his desires.
I felt stupid for thinking too much of what wasn't a big deal.
"Can you play the radio, please?" I asked after ten minutes of silence.
How far was his family house anyway?
"I prefer driving in silence."
Of course, he did. I sighed.
"Do you have a bottle of water?"
He snorted. "This is a car not a convenience store."
"I thought it was. Forgive my blindness." I retorted, unable to keep the bite from my voice.
"What is wrong with you?" he asked, finally looking at me.
He looked at me like I was crazy though.
"No, Jack. What is wrong with you?" I snapped. "I'm nervous about meeting your family and you don't seem to realize how awkward and uncomfortable this is for me. In case you forgot, I'm pregnant with my hormones running everywhere and you aren't making things easier for me."
I knew throwing my pregnancy in there was a low blow but I would use any method I could to get him to act.
He sighed and looked sorry when he looked at me. "What do you want?"
I want you to act like a real boyfriend now, act like you really want me to be around you.
I didn't say that though. I couldn't even believe that was the thing on my mind. That had to be the pregnancy. Yes, that had to be it. Because I spent days telling myself not to expect anything from this relationship.
"I want to listen to the radio."
I wanted to drown the thoughts in my head.
"I don't listen to the radio. It's distracting."
"You aren't alone now and it won't kill you to play the sweet boyfriend."
His lips twitched like he wanted to laugh. He grumbled instead. "This is why I don't do relationships."
"Well, I didn't ask for one. This is your idea, remember?"
He turned on the radio and didn't say anything else. I leaned back in my seat and closed my eyes, drowning in the music while I imagined all sorts of scenarios that could happen at the party.
Finally, we got to his family house. I knew the moment he parked and waited for him to call me but he didn't. After two minutes of no response, I opened my eyes and felt him staring at me.
I blushed the moment our eyes met and cleared my throat, hating myself for behaving like a school girl.
"Why didn't you tell me we are here?" I asked, unstrapping the belt.
"I thought you were asleep and didn't want to wake you up. I'm meant to be a sweet boyfriend, remember?"
I rolled my eyes. He didn't think I was asleep and we both knew it. I could see the mischief in his eyes and knew he had been waiting to throw those words back at me.
This relationship was going to be interesting. I sighed.
"Let's go."
"I was about to say the same." He said, turning to the door.
"Stop." He turned toward me and suddenly shouted.
My hands froze on the handle and I turned to stare at him.
"Stay in the car." He ordered and stepped out.
I watched as he moved round the car and walked up to where I was. He opened the door and extended his hand to me. For a while, I sat there in shock, looking at him and wondering what possessed him.
"Are you not going to come out?" he hissed low under his breath though he had a smile on.
I blinked and slipped my hands into his, hating how my hand shook when it made contact with his.
"Don't be afraid of me." He said, closing the door and pulling me closer to him.
I sucked in a breath and tried not to be tense. It was better if he thought that my hand shook because I was afraid of him. Heavens forbid he found out that my body betrayed me at that moment.
Gosh! Why did he have to be so handsome? I had tried not to look at him while we were in the car, pretending he didn't exist and ignoring my thoughts but now that we were together, with his hand wrapped snugly around my waist and his cologne filling my nostrils, it was hard not to notice him.
Parts of me was getting hard and it wasn't my breathing alone.
"Hey, brother." I heard a voice coming toward us and tore my gaze away from Jack.
I sighed as I realized what had turned him into a sweet boyfriend suddenly. He must have seen his brother in the distance.
The act had begun. I told myself and plastered a smile on my face.
"John," Jack replied without emotions.
I didn't know if I should feel glad I wasn't the only one he acted cold to or feel concerned.
John didn't care about his brother's lack of excitement and continued chattering. "It's good to see you. Well, gramps almost died so you would be a bastard if you didn't show up tonight. Don't you think?"
Jack winced but didn't say anything. I was amazed at John's sly way of being insulting.
He glanced at me and finally realized Jack wasn't alone. "Who is this?"
"Who do you think she is?" Jack snorted, pulling me closer to him.
I gasped. I didn't know if he pulled me closer to himself to stake his claim and keep on with the act or stop himself from punching his brother in the face but I didn't like it.
Whatever was going on between the brothers, I didn't want anything to do with it.
John glanced at Jack's hold on my waist and smiled.
It didn't seem like I had a choice in not getting involved with their weird relationship. The way John was looking at me and Jack staring back at him even though his hand was wrapped around me to make me know he was aware of my presence made me feel super uncomfortable.
Good, Katherine. I sighed.
Just my luck to pick a billionaire with a weird family drama.