The Millionaire’s Fake Wedding

Chapter 7

They arrived at Belle’s parents’ house in the afternoon, and parked not in the driveway, but along the road. Otherwise it could’ve been seen as intrusive. Besides, there were already two cars occupying the space, and jamming the convertible in there would be plain silly. The house was just one of a hundred like it, located in a typical suburban area, with strict color scheme regulations and well kept lawns. There was an American flag on the roof

Allen killed the car, and they sat in silence for a minute.

“Ready?” he asked.

She wasn’t, but his confidence made it easier on her. She said, “Let’s get this over with.”

They stepped out of the car and went to the front door. There was no bell, but an old-fashioned bronze doorknocker. Belle knocked twice, then twice more. She was afraid they’d be ignoring this, as well, and looked at Allen for support. He gave a reassuring nod and knocked on the door hard with his fist.

“Mr. Jameson?” he yelled.

“Come on, don’t shout. They probably just can’t hear. Come on.”

They squeezed between bushes and walked around the corner of the house to the back lawn, which had a patio and a small pool. There was no one outside.

“They usually keep the back door open.”

And it was. They entered the house through the screen door.

“Mom? Dad?”

“Belle?” a voice came from the bathroom deep in the house. There was muffled music playing, too.

A few seconds Da appeared in the room, wearing dirty clothes and with some instrument in his hand.

“What are you…” he began, but then he saw Allen. “Jesus, Belle. What’s going on?”

It was hard for her to find the right words, but thankfully Allen rescued her. He took a big step towards her father, reaching out with his hand.

“Good afternoon, sir. I’m Allen Rodgers.”

Da made a pause that took a few seconds, before shaking Allen’s hand.

“My hand’s dirty.”

“Never mind that, sir.”

“Don’t you sir me, Rodgers!” He turned to Belle, “Help yourself to the food. I’ll be with you shortly.”

He went back to the bathroom, where he must’ve been doing some renovations.

They went to the kitchen, and Belle made some coffee and turkey sandwiches for everyone.

“He doesn’t seem that pissed,” Allen whispered, taking a cup.

“He’s a kind man. He keeps it inside.”

“I see. I’ll do my best.”

“You better!” Belle winked.

A few minutes later her father joined them. He poured himself coffee and grabbed a sandwich. He then sat down at the table as if his guests weren’t there, biting into his lunch, waiting for them to speak.

“I’m so sorry dad,” Belle began. “I should’ve told you everything when it happened. I was afraid you’d be… upset.”

“Hm,” he said after some thinking, “Look how that turned out.” Another pause. “O, will you tell me now?”

“Of course I will!”

So she told her the whole thing, with Allen helping her out a few times, explaining some things and clarifying other. Da stopped eating halfway through the story, taking in the information. He looked shocked, disgusted even, during the fake marriage part, but when they explained that things had gotten real between then, he seemed to have calmed down. Still, the whole thing visibly unsettled him, hard as he tried not to show it.

“You kids should’ve just come out and said as much.”

“I really wish we had,” Belle replied. “But it happened so fast! I guess we weren’t expecting this to kick off like that.”

“I’m the one to blame, Mr. Jameson,” Allen said. “This was supposed to boost my ratings, but now I feel ridiculous even putting it this way. Belle got into this by bad coincidence.”

Mr. Jameson smiled. “You know, kid, maybe this wasn’t a coincidence at all? You did meet, and no amount of sh*tty contracts could keep you from expressing your true feelings. That’s gotta be worth something in my book.”

They were holding hands now, Belle and Allen, and exchanging cute looks. Da made more coffee and they all had some. Belle told him about the game on Sunday, and how much fun it. She said Allen was outstanding. Her father agreed, saying that it was on the news as well, when he watched. They had only shown excerpts, but it was enough to tell Allen was for real. Allen himself seemed humbled by the comments. 

Once that had been discussed, Belle’s dad got serious: “Now tell me, Mr. Rodgers, what are your intentions here exactly? I trust you when you kids say you’re in love, but how serious is it going to get?”

Allen wasn’t sure how to respond right away, so Belle helped out: “Dad! We’ve only been together for two days! Will you at least give us some time to figure things out, please? I promise, I’ll tell you as soon as there are any… developments.”

“Alright, alright, little girl. A father has the right to ask, doesn’t he?”

“Absolutely, Mr. Jameson.” Allen said. “I know how this will sound, all things considered, but I’ll say it anyway. My intentions are very serious here.” He put his hand around her as he said it. “I’m sure we’ll be good together.”

“You sure look good together, I’ll tell you that much.”

After that there seemed to be little else to talk about. They sat in silence, which got progressively more uncomfortable, until Belle said, “Da, we have somewhere to be in an hour.” She looked at her phone’s screen, checking time. There was nowhere they had to be that she knew of, yet she said to Allen: “Don’t we, Al?”

It was the first time she’d called him that, and he was pleasantly surprised. “Yeah, Bells, we do. I hope that’s not too rude, Mr. Jameson?”

“Oh, no, by all means, go. I’m sure you have more important things than to hang out with me. And I need to finish the bathroom. There’s still wiring to be done, and a few pipes to reroute… But of course you don’t want to hear about that. Go, kids!”

The three of them walked out through the front door, where Belle’s father shook Allen’s hand and gave her a kiss.

“I guess I won’t be calling you every night now, huh? Wouldn’t wanna… interrupt anything.”

Allen looked away, blushing.

“Dad! Just… text before you call, how about that?”

“You know my vision’s not what it used to be!”

“Then call at your own risk!”

The laughed, and her dad patted Allen on the side of his arm.

The couple walked to the car, holding hands again, seemingly never letting go of each other. It was fantastic. Never had Belle been so close with anyone. Close to the point where she was smiling for no reason, enjoying the moment. Holding hands, and thinking about how sweet it was. She hoped Allen felt the same way.