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  He suddenly felt like he was ancient. He shelved the thought of asking her to go with him to California. That had been impulsive and maybe foolish. He glanced at her gift table. There were piles of brightly wrapped gifts. His little teddy bear seemed so out of place now.

  He placed it on the table and stepped back. Maybe he shouldn't have brought it. It showed too much about what he felt. He was itching to take it back and was on his way to do so when a hand clamped down on his shoulders.

  "Xavier!" Farrah was almost staring him in the eyes. She was in three-inch heels and smelled so good… so expensive.

  "Farrah," he croaked. "Happy Birthday."

  He couldn't manage anything else from his parched lips. She was beautiful and he was feeling nervous and awkward. Her waist-length hair was straightened and her lips were painted a lush red, giving them a bee-stung look; his eyes were glued to them. It was only when she pinched him that he realized that she was laughing at something; he hadn't even realized what it was.

  "Are you okay, Xavier?" she asked above the music. She leaned in closer to him.

  Xavier inhaled her perfume and stared into her eyes. "I am going to the States," he said nervously.

  "What?" Farrah's ears were almost near his lips and he could feel tendrils of her hair tickling his cheeks.

  "Come on, let's go in the passage." She held his hands and dragged him out into the passageway.

  "What were you saying about the States?"

  "I am going to the States," Xavier said and then a wicked impulse made him say, "Come with me. We could get married. I can take care of both of us. I waited around until you were eighteen."

  Farrah laughed. "Who put you up to this, Xavier?" She touched his arm sympathetically. "I couldn't marry you. You are not in my class. You are practically handicapped, with your eyes so crossed. They look wobbly. We are just friends. The very thought is, eeew."

  "I told you he liked you," Kate said.

  Xavier spun around and saw that Farrah's three girlfriends were behind him.

  "He's liked you since you were a little girl," Darla sneered. "That's sick."

  "And he's ugly," Darla shuddered. "Why do you keep him as a friend? If we met him at night in a dark alleyway, we'd run."

  "He looks like a monster," Kate added. "You would be the bride of Frankenstein if you married him."

  The two girls chuckled. Alka didn't say a word. She was standing behind Kate and Darla and she looked upset.

  Xavier wondered if it was on his behalf but when he spun around he saw that Farrah was grinning as well.

  And then she said mockingly, "I am so sorry that you thought we could even be together, Xavier. The thought is repulsive and sickening. Excuse me while I go vomit."

  She stalked off into the courtyard with her two giggling friends in tow.

  He felt cut so deep that he could barely breathe.

  "She doesn't mean it," Alka said softly. "She is playing to the crowd."

  Xavier looked at Alka. She was such a sweetheart for thinking that, but Xavier knew that Farrah meant it. "She is right, though." His voice was hoarse, almost tear-filled. "I am not in the same social class as her, and I am ugly."

  "That has never stopped her from calling you all hours of the night to tell her about her day, though," Alka said. "She will not admit it but you are her best friend. You guys are closer than she and I are, and you are not ugly."

  She took one last look at him and then walked off toward where her friends had disappeared.

  Xavier slumped on the wall. It took him five minutes to get his composure together before he could leave.

  Farrah's words kept ringing in his head. I am so sorry that you thought we could ever be together, Xavier.

  Even when his friends Aaron and Jayce picked him up at the gate of the Knight mansion, he felt numb. Nothing, no bullying, no teasing had ever felt as bad.

  *****

  Xavier snapped out of his reverie when he heard voices coming toward the courtyard. He needed to go join the engagement party. His band was performing and they were delighted that he was back to take up the slack as the guitarist.

  He headed through the courtyard and to the outside near the pool area. He must have been mad to offer to bail Farrah out of her current situation. It was similar to the time he had told her of his feelings when they were younger. Obviously, he hadn't learnt his lesson where Farrah was concerned, but it irked him that she was marrying just because her father wanted her to and had threatened to throw her out if she didn't comply. He heard that the band was playing at her wedding reception, as well. He definitely was not going to attend that event. They would have to count him out. He wouldn't be able to stay and watch her marry another man.

  He walked near a young guy who was surrounded by pals congratulating him, and then he realized that he was staring at Jason Cavendish, the soon–to-be groom. He looked quite pleased with himself. He raised a toast to the guys and they all guffawed at some silly joke. Such a goofball, and he was the one whom Farrah was going to marry.

  He shook his head and headed to the side of the stage where his other band members were.

  "Where've you been?" Aaron frowned at him. "We are going to be on in five minutes."

  Xavier grimaced. "Sorry, I was talking to Farrah."

  "Oh," Aaron patted him on the back, "I didn't know you still had feelings for her."

  "I don't."

  The other guys looked at him speculatively.

  "But when our set is over I am out of here." He didn't wait for their knowing looks; he turned his back to them and looked out at the crowd. His heart did a weird tripping beat when he saw her. She was dressed in a pale pink dress, her hair tumbling around her shoulders. She looked almost ethereal and innocent—like a lamb to the slaughter.

  Their eyes met across the distance and then her fiancée spotted her and strode toward her confidentially. When they held hands, Xavier swallowed with difficulty. The end of the night couldn't come soon enough for him.

  Chapter Eight

  Farrah woke up the morning after her engagement party with a headache. She had to summon all her acting abilities and force herself to sparkle. She had left Xavier in the courtyard and headed to the room, where she had smiled with Darla and Kate. She had put on her sparkly pink dress and put her arm in Jason's and they greeted the guests as if nothing had happened—as if they both weren't miserable. She had to admit that Jason was a good actor as well. He laughed and talked his way through the night, accepting congratulations with aplomb and acting as if marrying her was a match made in heaven.

  She had seen Xavier in the crowd, along with the rest of the New Song band, and she had yearned to hang out with him but after they performed, he quickly disappeared.

  Her dad had his engagement party. He was probably the only person who was happy at this moment.

  She scarcely had the time to confront Jason last night. They simply had no time alone to talk things over.

  She heard a brief knock on her door and knew it was her mother. Farrah groaned. Her mother had been taking a back seat to this whole affair and Farrah wondered what could be so important for her mom to visit her now.

  "Come in," she called. She heard the click of her mother's heels on the floor as she walked through the sitting room, and then she was standing at the room door.

  "Vicky told me that you are still having doubts about Jason. Didn't I tell you to follow your heart?" her mother asked. She folded her arms and stared at Farrah, a little wrinkle between her brows.

  "Mom," Farrah said, throwing the sheet over her head, "I can't follow my heart. Dad said he would disown me and anybody who tried to help me if I didn't marry Jason."

  Her mother laughed. "That's rich. Your own father is blackmailing you. Why didn't I know about this?"

  "Because I was threatened just yesterday. I haven't had much time to digest it yet. I am still wondering what my next move is," Farrah murmured. "And I really don't want anybody to get in trouble with Dad because of me."<
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  She felt when her mother sat on the bed and leaned on the headboard. "What do you want? Forget about your father and his threats. What would make you happy, Farrah?"

  Farrah closed her eyes; Xavier's image came up in her mind. She tried to squelch it. What did she really want?

  "Xavier," she said involuntarily and then she dragged the sheet from her head. "Sorry Mom...I mean I don't want... I don't know how that came out."

  Her mother patted her leg. "The truth has a way of doing that."

  "No. I mean I don't..." Her voice trailed off. What was she protesting about? She wanted Xavier. She needed him back in her life.

  Her mother grinned. "I say again, follow your heart." She got up. "I see that I am not needed here. I trust that you'll make the right decision." She glanced at her watch. "I have a meeting at the spa. Why don't you come on down and get a treatment? It should calm your frazzled nerves."

  "No thanks," Farrah said. "I think I am going to do something very unexpected."

  Her mother raised her eyebrows. "Keep it legal, dear."

  Then she walked out of the room, already in her own world.

  Farrah watched her and as soon as she closed the door she grabbed her phone.

  She dialed Kate's number first.

  "You owe me," Farrah said when Kate answered. "You were seeing Jason and you couldn't say a word to me. What kind of a friend are you?"

  She listened to Kate's tearful explanations and then reassured her that she wasn't mad.

  After she hung up with Kate she called Judge Lopez, who was her mother's friend. Thankfully, he was not in court. He listened to her as she talked and then gave her advice.

  After that she called Xavier. He answered the phone groggily.

  "Farrah?" He had a note of alarm to his voice when he recognized her voice.

  "Xavier," she said a lightheaded feeling overtaking her at the sound of his voice. "I am going to call my dad's bluff."

  He cleared his throat. "Good for you. What does this mean?"

  "It means that I have something very important to ask you, and before I ask I just want you to know that it is temporary, just until I make up my mind about what I am going to do next."

  "Okay," Xavier was curious. What was she up to?

  "Will you, er..." she looked around the room, trying to find the right words. It was so easy to discuss with the judge, but having Xavier on the phone was actually making her stutter. "I need to do something to get my dad off my back or else he will insist that I marry Jason."

  "I am listening," Xavier said softly. "What do you want me to do?"

  "Will you marry me?" Farrah asked the question in a rush. She waited for Xavier to decipher what she said, and she didn't have long to wait.

  "What!" Xavier exclaimed.

  It sounded as if he dropped his phone because Farrah heard a crashing sound and then a fumble.

  "Today," Farrah said, inhaling shakily. "It has to be today, before I change my mind. As I said, it would be temporary. We can get an annulment but an annulment can only be gotten under certain conditions. We can't consummate the marriage," she said hurriedly.

  "Today? I mean...not consummate…" Xavier coughed. "I mean, why get married today?"

  "Yes. Today," Farrah said. "You can meet me at the courthouse. Judge Lopez, my mother's friend, said he will do it."

  "But why?" Xavier cleared his throat. He was having difficulty keeping his voice steady. "I mean, aren't there other options?"

  "I don't know," Farrah said. "You don't know my dad; he is mean and if he says he will ruin anyone who helps me, he'll find a way to do it. He and my uncles practically run this town. They have their tentacles everywhere. I don't want anybody else in the family to be hurt by this, or any of my friends. And as you said, you can't be ruined because you are poor."

  "Well, I didn't actually say that..." Xavier corrected, but Farrah wasn't listening.

  "Will you do it for me, Xavier? Please."

  "Farrah," Xavier felt a hammering in his ear, as if he had just woken up from a nightmare about Farrah getting married to Jason Cavendish. He almost pinched himself to make sure that he was really awake and that Farrah was really on the phone begging him to marry her. "Shouldn't we discuss this some more?"

  "No," Farrah said. She sounded determined. "It's now or never. Judge Lopez will be available at eleven. Oh and one more thing: can you find two witnesses?"

  She hung up the phone before Xavier could answer and he sat up in his bed with a weird feeling of elation gripping him. Farrah Knight wanted him to marry her. He must still be dreaming.

  Xavier made two phone calls, one to his brother and one to Alice. They were relatively near to the court house and had businesses that they could leave at the drop of a hat. Carson had laughed at him but Alice had been more measured in her response.

  "Are you sure that you want to help her in this way, Xavier?"

  "Yes," Xavier gritted out. He was still smarting from Carson's totally uncalled-for and prolonged mirth.

  "Okay, I'll be there," Alice said seriously. "You have always been there for me and Carson. I will be honored to be your witness."

  When Xavier arrived at the courthouse at eleven, he was surprised to see not only Carson and Alice in the parking lot, but Ruby, Ian, Logan and Jayce, as well.

  "I only need two witnesses," he said to the group.

  "I work here," Logan said. " I had court today but my case was dismissed. I thought someone was in trouble and needed my legal help so I came by to speak to my friends, only to hear that one of them is getting married today."

  Jayce chuckled. "Maybe he is in trouble. This is madness. We played at her engagement party last night. How can he be marrying her now?"

  "What are you doing here?" Xavier asked Jayce, annoyed.

  "Day off," Jayce said, "I was over at Carson's to fix my car. I was in his office when you called."

  Ruby shrugged. "Before you ask, I am here for the entertainment. Alice told me what you were up to and I decided to come to see with my own two eyes. Why on earth didn't you warn me that you had a thing with Farrah? It's a good thing I didn't start any serious planning for her wedding except booking the venue."

  Ian frowned at him." I am justifying nothing. I came to knock some sense into you."

  Xavier stepped back from Ian. He looked serious.

  "Look," he held up his hand, "I am doing her a favor. Would you guys just act normal?"

  His eyes softened when she drove up in her car. "There she is. Don't spook her," he said warningly. "This is what she wants."

  "Not her alone," Jayce said. He was the only one smiling as all eyes turned to Farrah, who was in a white sheath dress and had a bouquet of flowers in her hand.

  *****

  It was done. Farrah walked into the house after one o'clock. She had married Xavier. She really did it. It was legal and binding; there was no way she could marry Jason Cavendish now, unless her father wanted her to be a bigamist.

  The wedding ceremony was brief and to the point. Xavier's friends could hardly fit in the judge's office for the ceremony, and every one of them had a bewildered look on their faces except Ruby, who had looked resigned.

  She had said goodbye to her new groom on the courthouse steps, before he could say anything to her, and had driven straight home. She was eager to confront her father. She had thwarted him, messed with his business deal, and derailed him.

  She felt really happy but maybe some of that happiness had to do with the fact that she had married Xavier. He had shown up to help her in her madcap plan. She wondered if he knew just how grateful to him she was. He still had her back even after all these years. She looked at her finger; Xavier had put on his school ring in lieu of a proper ring. It had slipped off twice already so she put it on her thumb instead and marched to her father's office.

  The door was ajar and her mother was leaning over his shoulder showing him something on the computer.

  "Oh, you two are here—quite unexpectedly, too. Bot
h of you are not usually here on a Wednesday," she said breathlessly, "so that means I won't have to say this twice and I won't be wasting anybody's time."

  "What are you going on about, girl?" Her father looked up at her and frowned.

  Her mother smiled at her absently. "Now is not the right time, dear. We really need to sort out these figures."

  They were still treating her like an unwanted dim-witted child. Farrah frowned. "I am married."

  Her mother's head snapped up and she looked at Farrah in shock.

  Her father removed his reading glasses slowly. They were both looking at her as if she had grown another head.

  "You and Jason couldn't wait, eh?" Kingsley asked, grinning. "I knew all of your protests about not loving him were like hot air."

  Farrah shook her head. "I didn't marry Jason. I married Xavier Bell. Remember him? His mother was the housekeeper here?"

  Her father flushed a deep red color. He pushed away from the desk and his chair slammed into the wall. He leaned on the desk for support. "Girl, tell me you are joking. Right now!" He punched the desk for emphasis.

  "No." Farrah's previously bright voice faded weakly. "I am married. Did it two hours ago, which means I can't marry Jason to suit your needs."

  Her mother gasped and placed her hand on her husband’s shoulder but he shrugged it off impatiently.

  "Get out," he growled to Farrah. "Get out of this house. Get out of my life."

  Farrah's lips trembled. "Dad."

  "I am not your father," Kingsley Knight said, a vein throbbing at the side of his head. "No daughter of mine would be so defiant. You are not a Knight."

  "Mom," Farrah pleaded with her mother.

  Gloria shook her head and stared at her daughter as she held her husband's arm. She was doing it like she was restraining him, and for the first time Farrah really felt afraid of her father.

  "Don't think you are going to be driving the car, either," her father said, "and I am freezing all of your credit cards."