MY PRETEND WIFE

Kiss

Richard paced back and forth inside his room. His suit hung silently in his closet. He should be starting to get ready for his engagement party tonight but he couldn't stop worrying about Maine. This will be the evening that she will be formally introduced as his fiancée and she has no idea that her life would drastically change after this. As he was growing up, Richard as well as Kris, Jake and Jerald were constantly exposed to the glare of the spotlight and the media. He had long since accepted that his life was fair game to the paparazzi and he has learned to work around it. But Maine, his sweet, and innocent best friend, is not used to that at all. She has enjoyed the feeling of anonymity all her life and she has always valued her privacy. How would she feel if she was suddenly thrust into the limelight and her life put out there for everybody to see?

He was starting to regret why he had put her in this position in the first place. If he hadn't asked her to marry him then she wouldn't be placed in this predicament right now. Why had he been so selfish and thought only of himself? He did not realize the trouble he was putting Maine through by allowing her to enter his world. He wanted so much to see her or even talk to her. He wanted to assure her that everything was going to be okay and that she didn't have to worry. Hell, she must be scared out of her mind right now. She had almost fainted when she found how many people were expected to be at the party that night. Hundreds of pairs of eyes would be watching her and scrutinizing her every move. It didn't help as well that she was considered a "commoner" or average. It was a good thing however that Kris was first to break that status quo by marrying Joyce and the people were not as surprised as they were the first time it happened.

RJ groaned helplessly. If he could only hear her voice for just a few seconds just to see if she's okay but unfortunately his mother had whisked his fiancée off early that morning and had forbidden him to talk to her. Didn't she realize that he was going out of his mind here?

With a determined look on his face, he snatched his cellular phone and dialed Maine's number. His mother couldn't be possibly there to guard her the whole time right? It rang three times until somebody answered.

"RJ" his mother's voice was heard on the other line.

Richard almost dropped his phone in surprise. He was pretty sure he dialed Maine's number. "Mom?" he asked not quite sure if he heard right.

"I distinctly remember telling you not to talk to Maine until tonight right?" His mother reminded him.

"I'm sorry mom, I really just want to know how she's doing. This is going to be a big night for her. I'm not sure how's she's going to take it." Richard explained.

"Don't you trust me to make everything right for her?" RJ's mother admonished him. "Don't worry sweetheart, she's in good hands. Now go ahead and get dressed. I don't want you looking like a slob tonight."

Richard's mother pressed the end button and placed Maine's phone back on the table. "That fiancé of yours is very persistent. I couldn't believe he disobeyed his mother's orders." she told Maine with a smile.

Maine couldn't help but chuckle at the older lady's comment.

Richard's mother moved closer in order to examine Maine's make up. "Everything looks good." She said approvingly. "Let's continue with our lesson then?"

Maine nodded in agreement. Madame Faulkerson had been giving her a crash course on the who's who of the upper class society.

"Rita is a social climber. She would do anything to get her hands on a rich, suitable man. She made a move on RJ once. It was a relief that my son had enough sense to ignore her. Miggy on the other hand is a young businessman. His family owns a huge construction company. He's very shrewd and intelligent and good looking as well." Richard's mother rattled on as Maine studied their pictures.