Fake Fiancé

After-Dinner Drinks

Joe held the front door open for Isabella. Before they left, she turned toward his parents.

"It was lovely to meet you, Lily. And to see you again, Mr. Walker," she smiled.

Isabella shook Joe's father's hand and hugged his mother. She turned back towards Joe and grabbed his hand.

"Ready?" She asked. "Oh! We can't forget. You have that meeting with Shelner early tomorrow."

Damn, Joe thought. She definitely plays the part well. I should pay her more for this.

"You're right," Joe played along as he intertwined their fingers. "See you at work tomorrow, Dad."

Joe unlocked the car and opened the door for her. After he closed it, he turned around and waved once more to his parents.

The tension was thick between the two as Joe drove through his parent's round driveway. He looked into the rearview mirror to see his parents still standing on the front porch. He filled with guilt when he saw the excited smile on his mother's face.

They hoped that the tension would lighten the further they got from the house, but that didn't happen. Instead of lightening up, it got heavier. Joe glanced over at Isabella to see her looking out the window.

He sighed when he noticed her playing with her fingers. Over the years, he's found that when Isabella played with her fingers, it meant she was overthinking something.

"It's still kind of early," he said, breaking the silence. "Want to go get a drink?"

His breath got stuck in his throat when she glanced over at him with a small smile on her face.

"Drinks sound great."

* * * * *

After they ordered their drinks, they sat at a booth. At first, they were nervous. But eventually, Isabella had to ask the burning question.

"How do you think it went?"

"Isabella," Joe said gently. "My parents loved you."

"Are you sure?" She said, glancing at her hands wrapped around her glass.

"Of course," he said reassuringly. "I'm telling you, my mom officially found someone to like more than me."

"Joe," she sighed.

"What?" He laughed. "It's true! Mom adored you."

"I don't think your dad was too happy about us."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know," she said, clearing her throat. "He didn't seem to like me very much. And when you talked about hiding it from the people at work, he seemed. . . Annoyed."

"Hey," he said as he reached across the table and put his hand on her arm. "That was more about me lying to him. Not you. He'll get over it."

"Are you sure?" She asked under her breath.

"Of course," he tried to comfort her. "Plus, I'll talk you up."

The rest of the night, Isabella seemed to be more relaxed. Joe, on the other hand, couldn't stop thinking about what they talked about at dinner.

"You okay?" Isabella asked, bringing Joe out of his thoughts.

"Maybe you should move in with me."

"What?" She asked with a small laugh. Her smile dropped when she saw the seriousness on his face.

"Joe," she said slowly. "Why would you think I should move in with you? Is this because of what your parents said?"

"Well, yeah," he shrugged. "It makes sense. Almost every engaged couple I know either already lives together or moves in after the engagement."

"Joe, I don't think we should. . ."

"We don't have to," he said quickly when he noticed her hesitation. "It was just a suggestion. One, I now realize, was crossing the line. I'm sorry, Isabella."

"It's alright," she said, not sounding convincing at all. She looked down at her hands, nervously picking at a hangnail.

"Isabella," Joe sighed. "I'm sorry for crossing the line. I shouldn't have. . ."

"It's not that you offered," Isabella interrupted him. "The thing is. . . Well, the last time. . ."

"Isabella, it's okay," Joe cut her off when she didn't continue. He reached over and grabbed her hand. "I shouldn't have asked you to move in with me. It was unreasonable."

Even though Joe told her it was okay, he still wondered why Isabella was so against moving in. It's not like it was going to be permanent and she didn't need to sleep in the same room as him. They would've gotten a house with multiple rooms.

Isabella nervously fixed her bracelet. She wanted to tell Joe, but it was still weird opening up to her boss. She looked at her boss/fiancé to see him smiling at her.

How was this so easy for him?