"You look beautiful," he said as his face lit up in a smile.
His piercing blue eyes stared into my soul, pulling me in. A dimple popped in his right cheek, making him hotter than ever. I shook my head to disperse the thought.
This was no time to admire the man I hated.
I ignored the hand he offered and stepped out of the car. He caught the back of my dress before it brushed the tire and I shot him a glare.
"You have a great smile. Why don't you show it off?"
"Forgive me if I'm not grinning about being blackmailed into family dinner," I snapped.
He held out his arm to me and I grabbed it, aware of the people watching.
"I thought this was just a dinner," I whispered.
This wasn't dinner. This was a freaking gala. There were several people dressed I black and white, handing out glasses of champagne and shrimp skewers.
The house was magnificent---like one of those mansions I'd seen on TV. White and gold paints gleamed in the lights and a massive fountain shimmered ahead of us.
A golden statue of a lion lay in the center, water spurting from its gaping mouth.
We walked towards the garden; I could see some people seated around a table surrounded by waitresses handing out drinks. My heart pounded in my chest as we got closer.
What the hell have I gotten myself into?
This was way more than I could handle. Dinner to me, meant ordering in pizza and Chinese food, not wearing a ball gown with a full blown makeup. It wasn't how I thought I'd spend my Friday night.
"They're just family," he said.
Family?!
"Wait," I squeezed his arm. "Does that mean Drake's gonna be there?"
"He is not family," he hissed.
Right. I forgot how much he couldn't stand Drake. There was no way he'd force me to attend if he knew Drake was coming.
I heaved a sigh of relief. The last person I wanted to see was Drake and his smug punchable face.
"Don't forget you promised to tell your dad this fake fiancée thing was a mistake."
It was the entire point of me agreeing to dinner. Well, there was also the fact he'd basically threatened me.
"If I find what I need to tonight, yes," he said.
If? What the hell did that mean?
"What do you mean 'if'? This is a one-time thing!" I hissed.
He smiled and didn't respond.
"Damien!" a man called.
"Mike!" Damien yelled and hugged him.
"Gosh, how long has it been?" Mike asked.
"20 years?" Damien replied.
"That long, huh? Why didn't you tell me you were back?" he asked.
"Got back a few days ago. Barely had time to settle in."
I shifted awkwardly, my eyes darting around as I waited. Mike turned to me.
"Who's this?" he asked.
Damien grabbed my waist and I ignored the butterflies at the feel of his touch.
"This is Aria…" his eyes met mine. "My fiancée."
You wish, I wanted to say but I just bared my teeth in response. It was all going to end tonight after all.
Mike's eyes widened in surprise as did the rest of the people at the table as they all turned to stare at me.
I counted three men and four women, all dressed like they were attending an award show. Was this how rich people lived?
"Fiancee?" he shot a surprised look at Damien. "How did that happen?"
"Yes, love," I smiled at Damien. "Just how in the world did that happen?"
Damien chuckled, pulling me closer as he shot me a look.
"It just did. Right, honey?" he bared his teeth.
"Right."
Even Mike, a complete stranger found it hard to believe that. I wonder why Mr. Brown didn't pick up on that.
It was obvious Damien and I belonged to two different worlds. No amount of makeup or expensive dress was going to hide that.
"I'm Mike, his favorite cousin," he held out his hand to me.
I grabbed it feebly. "Aria."
"This is my wife, Bella," he introduced when a curly haired woman with stomach as huge as a house, approached us.
"Hi," I flashed a smile.
"It's nice to meet you, Aria," she said and caressed her stomach gently.
I couldn't help but stare. Her stomach was massive. It looked…downright uncomfortable.
"Twins," she stated.
I blinked. "Huh?"
"I'm having twins," she said.
"Congratulations?" I said, unsure whether to smile or to offer my condolences.
It was one of my greatest resolve; not to have kids. I was barely surviving, what with taking care of mom and sorting my bills. The last thing I wanted to be riddled with was kids.
"Let me introduce you to the others," she said and grabbed my arm, walking me closer to the table.
"This is Bethany, Iris and Deandre," she pointed at the ladies.
I stared in surprise when I looked down at their stomachs; they were all pregnant.
Was this some kind of a breeding house?
"It's uncanny, I know," Bella whispered in my ear.
"Was it all planned or…"
It was a disturbing sight. I could deal with one pregnant woman, but not four!
"Well, when you're a Brown, you're expected to produce heirs," she paused, looking at me.
"You'll do the same when you're finally a Brown."
"Oh, hell no."
She looked taken aback by my reaction but I neither had the time nor the patience to tell her there was no possible way in hell that was happening.
"Excuse me for a second," I said and pulled Damien to the side.
"You didn't tell me we were coming to a breeding house," I hissed.
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"The four pregnant women sipping what I thought was wine but turned out to be orange juice?"
He spared them a glance before turning to me. "They're my cousins' wives. It has nothing to do with you."
I scoffed. "Except for the fact that your sister in law just told me I'm gonna have to born an heir once I become a Brown."
"But you're not going to be a Brown, are you?"
I paused. He was right. There was no need to freak out. I was never going to be a Brown so it had nothing to do with me.
"You're right," I sighed. "This is just dinner."
I needed to remind myself that. I wasn't going to see any of them again after that night.
"Are you okay?" he asked, eyes filled with concern.
"Let's just get through this, okay?"
I turned and froze immediately when I came face to face with a familiar blond hair and big brown eyes. Damien held my waist and brought me closer to him as I stared at Drake…and Lindsay who was attached to his arm.
Shit.
"What are you doing here?" Lindsay snapped at me.
"I could ask you the same thing," Damien glared at Drake.
"What the hell are you doing here, Drake?" he spat.
"Great. The whole family is here," Mr. Brown said, coming into view.
We watched silently as he sat at the head of the table.
"Let's eat."