As the song ended, Liz started to pull away from Lucky, but then stopped, feeling everyone’s eyes on them.
“What?” Lucky whispered, looking down at her.
“Um, I think they’re waiting for us to kiss or something,” she answered nervously, her eyes locking with his.
Lucky swallowed, not sure if they were going to be able to pull this off. So far, the few times they had kissed at the party had been quick little ones, nothing too serious, but this time, they would be expecting something bigger.
“Aw, look at that, they’re so involved in each other, they’ve probably forgotten we’re even here,” V whispered to Jax, a goofy grin on her face. He stifled a laugh and glanced over at Alexis, recognizing the signs of a phony marriage all too well. He had to admit, though, they were doing a pretty good job so far.
“If we don’t do something soon, they’re going to get suspicious,” Liz said through clenched teeth. “It’s not like we haven’t done it before.”
“Oh, right,” he mumbled, feeling his face grow hot as he remembered the kiss they shared in the parking lot of Lulu’s camp. He still had no idea what had possessed them to do that, but the memory never failed to make his heart race. He sighed and took her face in his hands, then lowered his face to hers, placing a soft kiss on her lips. In an attempt to keep things realistic, Liz tightened her arms around his neck and leaned into him, strengthening the kiss.
“Very Oscar-worthy,” Luke muttered to Laura as they watched the couple. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they were actually enjoying this.”
“Maybe they are,” she responded with a small smile. “You can only fake passion like that for so long before it starts to become real.”
Luke grinned and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “That’s exactly what I’ve been thinking.”
Lucky and Liz pulled apart, slightly disoriented from the conflicting emotions surging through them. They regarded one another cautiously before recovering and turning back to their guests.
Luke chuckled and stepped forward. “Well, that’s quite a show you two put on there,” he teased, making sure to stay a safe distance from Lucky, just in case.
The both blushed, remembering that everyone had been watching them. Lucky cleared his throat and looked around the room. “Um, I hate to sound ungrateful, because trust me, we’re both very touched by all of this, but we’re also pretty tired from our trip....”
“Yeah,” Liz cut in, hoping this was their chance to escape. “Everything was wonderful, but we’re just beat...”
“Oh, of course,” Laura said, walking over to them. She could see they were dying to get out of there, and just couldn’t bring herself to make them stay any longer. “It’s completely understandable. Why don’t you both just go on home, you can get all the gifts later.”
“Thanks, Mom,” Lucky said, smiling as he stepped forward to hug her. “The party was great. And I promise, the next time I get married, you’ll be there.”
“Next time?!” Liz said, slapping him on the shoulder. “What’s that supposed to mean?” She was trying not to laugh, but figured it was no only what she would be expected to do, but it was also a good excuse to hit him, something she always enjoyed.
Lucky jumped back and rubbed his shoulder, looking over at her in surprise. She stared him down, waiting for an answer, wondering if he even realized what he had said. He laughed and shook his head. “Sorry, honey, I was only kidding.”
“You better have been,” she grumbled, crossing her arms in front of her, pretending to pout. Lucky sighed and walked over to her, reminding himself to kill her for this later.
“Of course I was, you know you’re the only woman for me,” he said softly, pulling her into his arms, praying he was being believable. Liz was thrown for a moment by the sincerity in his voice, but reminded herself that it was just an act. She hugged him back, then pulled away.
“I know, I was kidding too,” she said, smiling up at him. “Come on, let’s go home.”
Lucky nodded, keeping one arm around her waist. “Right, home.” He looked back at the small crowd that was surrounding them and smiled. “Thanks again, everyone.”
They headed for the door as everyone congratulated them again, then hurried for Lucky’s car, figuring they’d return for hers later, once the party had dissipated.
“No what?” she asked, slamming the door and sinking into the seat. “You weren’t serious about moving in with me, were you?”
“Yeah, unless you have a better idea. We both know my dad’s onto us, what’s going to stop him from dropping in, or calling? How do we explain why I’m still living at Kelly’s?” he asked, starting up the car. “It’s not for very long, just until we can get the divorce.”
Liz sighed and rolled her eyes. “Fine, but we’re calling Alexis first thing in the morning.”
~*~
“Well?” Charisma asked, walking up to Luke. “What do you think?”
He shrugged, watching as the rest of the guests filtered out of the house. “Too soon to tell, but I don’t think it’ll be long now. Not only do they have to live together, but as long as they’re in public, they have to keep up the charade of being married.”
“Maybe I’ll stop by later and see how the happy couple is doing?” she asked slyly. “I mean, they probably know that you’ve figured out the truth, but they have no idea that I have, right?”
Luke grinned. “Good point. Yes, I think they could use a visitor every now and then to keep them on their toes.”
“Then I’ll make sure to drop by later tonight. They should have some time alone first, you know, to get settled and stuff,” she joked. “I better get going, but I’ll let you know how it goes.”
“You better!” he shouted after her, laughing.
“What was that all about?” Laura asked, coming up behind him.
Luke turned around and took her in his arms. “That, darlin’, was the second best partner I’ve ever had.”
Laura giggled and reached up to kiss him. “Why? What’s she going to do?”
“Oh, she’s going to make a little house call later, make sure they don’t go back to their old ways.”
“This is so wrong,” she said, pulling away suddenly. “We’re talking about our son here, Luke! As much as we might think he belongs with Liz, shouldn’t we let him discover that on his own, and not force them together? What if it backfires on us?”
“It won’t backfire, trust me. I was watching them all afternoon, they’re already falling for each other, they’re just too stubborn to admit it.”
“How can you tell?”
“The way they looked at each other, even when they thought no one was watching. And after that kiss, they were both pretty shaken up, I could tell.”
“I noticed that, too. How long do you think it will be before they finally realize what we’ve known all along?”
Luke smiled and hugged her again. “With a little help, hopefully not long at all.”