Moonlighting with the British Rock Star: A Georgia Moon Romance Read online

  “We’ll be home sometime tomorrow morning,” Shelby said to Josie as they walked out to the waiting car. “I’d like to have you here when we get home to help me organize the items going into the Valentine gift bags for the New Beginning Center. Most of the packages are scheduled to come tomorrow.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Josie said, knowing she had a long night ahead of her since the party would go well past midnight. “I’ll probably just sleep here tonight to make it easier.”

  “Good idea,” Mr. Dalton said as he opened the front door for his wife. He lingered behind for a few seconds and smiled at Josie. “I promise you won’t have to be up all night posting pics. I’m cutting Shelby off at eleven.”

  “Thank you,” Josie said, hoping his wife would follow his edict. “Have fun, and I’ll see y’all in the morning.”

  Once the couple left, Josie went back to the office and uploaded the pictures to her computer and posted them to the blog. Then she left to run a few errands, stopping at the store to pick up the sugar cookie order from the bakery and the supplies to decorate them. It took longer than expected for the store to find her order. By the time everything had been loaded in her car and then delivered to New Beginning, she was starving. Since the chef had the night off, Josie stopped at her favorite Thai restaurant for takeout and returned to settle into the guestroom on the first floor.

  It wasn’t as big as Miss Sue’s suite, but it still had more square footage than Josie’s one-bedroom apartment, which was located in the historic district of Savannah. Although it was tiny, it was clean and the rent wasn’t too bad since her landlady, Mrs. Granger had known Josie’s maternal grandmother. She sent a quick text to Mrs. Granger, letting her know she wasn’t coming home tonight so she didn’t worry. Since Josie’s grandparents on both sides had passed away a while ago, Mrs. Granger was like a surrogate grandmother.

  An alert for a new message from her stepsister appeared on the screen.

  Scarlet: Did you have time to talk to your fiancé? I need his measurements for the tux.

  Josie groaned and closed her eyes, wishing she could block Scarlet’s number. She didn’t want to keep up the lie, but she wasn’t ready to admit anything yet either. Maybe it was time for her non-existent fiancé to die in an unfortunate accident. That might get her out of coming home at all.

  Her phone chimed again, and she reluctantly looked to see it was another message from Scarlet.

  Scarlet: I’m starting to wonder if this guy really exists?

  She added a thinking emoji at the end of the text. Josie’s pride outweighed her common sense, and she quickly typed in a reply that she was still waiting to hear back from him since he was out of the country. She squinted at the screen as three scrolling dots appeared. She braced herself, guessing what was coming next. Scarlet had already asked her several times for a name and at least one picture of her significant other. Josie was tempted to find a pic of some hot guy and send it to her but ended up saying that her boyfriend was camera shy. Her lies were getting more tangled than her hair was after going to bed with it wet. Pretty soon, she’d have to keep notes so she didn’t get her story mixed up.

  Scarlet: What was his name again? Daddy and Mama want to meet him. The least you could do is send us a picture of y’all.

  Seriously? She’d asked Scarlet not to say anything to Monica and her dad. While she should’ve known not to trust her, it stung that her dad hadn’t even bothered to call her to find out more about his daughter’s fiancé.

  Before she talked herself out of it, Josie typed in a reply that perpetuated her story.

  Josie: You’ll get to meet him next week. I’ll send you the measurements tomorrow.

  She also added that she was working late and couldn’t talk anymore.

  Josie was relieved when the next message was from Shelby. There were several pics attached of Shelby with Phillip Jacobs. She added a text that Phillip said how much he loved visiting Mitchel Creek, and he was looking forward to meeting Scarlet and her family in person next week. It looked like he was invited to the wedding too.

  For a brief moment, Josie considered sending the picture of Phillip to Scarlet. If she knew how tight Josie’s boss was with the famous country singer, then she might be a little nicer to her. Since there was little chance of that happening, she didn’t want to stir up any trouble. No one in her family followed Shelby’s Instagram or fashion blog. In fact, they thought Josie’s job was a joke and that she was wasting the marketing degree she’d earned from Mercer University. They had no idea how well she was paid, along with all the perks that came with the job like flying in a private jet to destinations for a day of shopping in New York or California.

  Additional pictures came in from her boss, making Josie wish more and more that she’d been invited to tag along. The last photo was of Shelby standing very close to Jake Owen. Mr. Dalton was a good sport about taking the pictures of his wife with some of the hottest men in Nashville.

  After posting the last set of pictures online, Josie saw it was almost midnight. Either James forgot all about his promised cut-off time, or his wife had ignored it. She waited a few more minutes until she called it a night. Rolling her shoulders back, Josie headed for the room she always stayed in and grabbed the bag of toiletries she kept stored in the adjoining bathroom. After taking a quick shower, she washed her face and combed through her long hair. Not wanting to wake up with knots in her hair, she braided it on the side so it hung over one shoulder and then found clean jammies in the dresser drawer. She stayed overnight so often that she had a whole closetful of clothing.

  Josie climbed into the plush bed, marveling at how incredibly soft and silky the sheets felt against her clean skin. The Charlotte Thomas sheets were ridiculously expensive. Josie knew this because she’d been the one to order the linens for all of the bedrooms in the house only a few months earlier.

  Just before falling asleep, her cell phone pinged an incoming text. Peeking at the screen, she saw it was from her stepmother. Bolting upright, she read through the entire message, feeling like all the air in her lungs was trapped inside.

  Monica: Nashville Informed just confirmed they are interviewing Scarlet Tuesday morning. You and your fiancé need to be here no later than Monday.

  Oh boy, Josie’s pile of doo-doo just got a whole lot deeper, and she had no one to blame but herself. Falling back on the bed, she stared at the ceiling. She either needed to find a fiancé or end the relationship in two days.

  Chapter 2

  Colin

  Gazing out the limo’s tinted window, Colin questioned his sanity as the vehicle passed through Savannah, Georgia. He’d done some crazy things before, but this had to be the nuttiest. What’s more, he couldn’t lay the blame on alcohol or his good for nothing father.

  Colin hadn’t had a drink in four years, and he hadn’t seen Harvey since that time either. No, Colin Wilde, the former lead singer from the British rock band Wild Card was stone-cold sober when he’d agreed to pose as some American girl’s fiancé for a week.

  Sitting back in the leather seat, he looked down at his phone, checking to see if Gran had messaged him back. She wasn’t pleased about him not coming home for his birthday. Colin felt bad about missing the big party she’d planned, especially since Gran was the only reliable person in his life after his mum passed away when he was a kid. She must be pretty miffed if she hadn’t responded to his text yet.

  Tapping on the photo app, he looked at the picture Shelby Dalton had texted him the night before after meeting her at the party in Nashville. Josie Sinclair was a looker with all that gorgeous dark hair tumbling around her shoulders and blue eyes the color of Ireland’s Cork Harbour on a summer day. Her full lips curved into a sexy smile that intrigued him. As gigs go, this wasn’t too bad, especially if he got what he wanted. But why did a pretty girl like Josie need a pretend fiancé?

  Colin slipped his cell into his pocket and ran a hand through his hair. He hadn’t been able to ask Mrs. Dalton any more questions
about Ms. Sinclair’s situation since she and her husband had been on their phones from the time they boarded their private jet this morning until now.

  The muscles in his shoulders tensed as the driver exited the motorway and merged onto the toll road leading to Wilmington Island, his final destination. Colin had played many roles over the years, trying to please his father, his grandmother, and his fans, but he’d never been a boyfriend/fiancé for hire.

  “Goodness,” Shelby said, drawing Colin’s attention toward her. “I apologize for being such a poor hostess. I intended to talk to you during the flight, but I’ve had one phone call after another.”

  “No worries,” Colin said, giving her a practiced smile. “It was nice to relax for a change. Your plane was incredible.”

  “Thanks, son,” Mr. Dalton said as he ended his call. “She’s a beauty to fly, but my wife won’t ever let me pilot the plane with her or the boys aboard.”

  “You’re a pilot, then?” Colin asked. He’d always wanted to learn how to fly. As a little boy, he used to dream about flying over his home country of England. He’d gotten his wish as Wild Card toured the United Kingdom and then the United States. Too bad he’d been wasted most of the last year he was with the band to remember much about it.

  James nodded his head. “I’ve got a P-51 Mustang I added to my fleet a couple of years ago.” Giving a low whistle of appreciation, he crossed an ankle over his knee. “Exquisite aircraft and fun to fly. I’d love to take you up while you’re staying with us.”

  “He won’t be here, darlin’,” Shelby said. “Remember, he’s Josie’s date for her sister’s wedding in Mitchel Creek?”

  “That’s right,” James said. “Josie is going to be mighty surprised when she sees what my wife brought home for her.”

  Mr. Dalton eyed Colin as if trying to determine what kind of a man would agree to be someone’s pretend fiancé.

  A desperate one.

  This was a long-shot, but Colin was tired of taking care of other people’s lawns to earn a living. He wanted another chance at a music career and was willing to do whatever it took. Within reason. He wasn’t the same wild child he’d been in the band.

  “Speaking of Ms. Sinclair,” Colin said, feeling heat climb up his neck. “Does she know about me?”

  “On no, sugar,” Shelby said with a light laugh. “That would ruin the surprise.”

  Right. Colin hoped his fake girlfriend had a sense of humor. He also hoped she hadn’t been a fan of Wild Card. Or, if she had, that she wouldn’t hold his past against him. He’d been a stupid kid. Having Harvey as his manager hadn’t helped. His good ole’ Da had spread rumors about Colin and the other band members, and their wild rock-star lifestyle until the rumors were no longer rumors. Colin had stayed away from the drugs, and he’d avoided meaningless hookups, but the alcohol had nearly destroyed him.

  His life experiences made him feel older than twenty-eight, but he was a changed man. He just hoped the world would give him a second chance. Only this time, he wanted to do it in the genre of music his Gran had indoctrinated him with. She loved country music, Garth Brooks, in particular. Colin loved the genre too, but not his father. Harvey had said there wasn’t any money in it.

  The money had been good. Colin had amassed quite a fortune by the time Wild Card disbanded. However, Harvey had stolen it all, leaving Colin with nothing but a fancy sports car he’d sold to pay for rehab.

  The limo hit a bump in the road, rattling the bottles of liquor lined up along one side of the vehicle. The desire for alcohol no longer constantly plagued Colin, but it was always there, lurking in the shadows just waiting for an opportunity to sneak back in.

  He’d wanted a drink last night and had come close to giving in to the craving. Then he’d spied Phillip Jacobs and his wife across the room. Colin’s former reputation wasn’t what the country music star’s label liked representing. The reminder had been enough to help him walk away from the bar. Unfortunately, Phillip was up on stage by the time Colin made it across the room. His wife was talking with Mr. and Mrs. Dalton. Colin had moved in close enough to overhear the couple had a connection with Chase Nichols, a singer-songwriter and business partner with Phillip. Before Colin could get the nerve to strike up a conversation with Phillip’s wife, her husband called her to join him on stage.

  Colin thought he’d missed his chance, but Shelby Dalton was a talker. He’d asked about her connection with Phillip, and she was all too happy to comply. The next thing he knew, Colin was boarding their private jet to pose as her personal assistant’s fiancé.

  Two different ringtones sounded. Shelby fished her phone back out of her large purse, and James pulled his from the pocket of his leather jacket.

  “Pardon me,” James said to Colin before taking the call.

  Shelby mouthed another apology after she answered her phone.

  Not wanting to intrude, Colin turned to look out the window again. He wasn’t sure what to expect, but the way Shelby had raved about her assistant the night before he figured the next week wouldn’t be horrid. He’d be with a pretty girl and hopefully get a chance to speak with Chase Nichols at the wedding of Scarlet Graham, Josie’s sister. A wedding scheduled to air live with Nashville Informed in connection with Scarlet in the running for a spot on the talent show The New Voice of Country Music.

  Colin’s research late last night on Scarlet led him to her YouTube channel. The girl didn’t look a thing like Josie. She had blonde hair and brown eyes. After reading a few bios on her, he’d learned Josie and Scarlet weren’t blood relatives. Ms. Graham was pretty, but she looked almost too perfect like she was made of plastic. Her voice was phenomenal though. It was easy to see why she was a finalist.

  The driver passed through the security station to the exclusive gated community of Wilmington Island, an affluent suburb of Savannah, where the Daltons resided. The homes were beautiful, with many different architectural styles. Shelby’s phone conversation ended in time for her to point out a gorgeous French Caribbean-style estate that was once owned by a famous Southern chef native to Savannah.

  Colin tried to absorb everything Mrs. Dalton said, but his mind was spinning with questions about meeting his soon-to-be girlfriend. As the limo came to a rest at the end of a long driveway, Colin questioned his sanity once more.

  A middle-aged woman with red hair and two little blond-haired boys stood on the front porch. “There are my babies,” Shelby said, climbing out of the door the driver opened for her. “Come give Mama some sugar,” she said, crouching down to embrace the cute little boys.

  Colin got out of the car and nervously looked to see if Josie had come out to greet her employers, but he didn’t see her. He watched the two kids interacting with their mother, making him miss Gran.

  He sure hoped she’d forgive him for missing his birthday. Gran knew nothing about why he was in America. He hoped to surprise her with news of a contract or at least the hope for a contract. After getting sober and then getting over the loss of his money, he’d started writing songs. Colin knew the songs were good, but were they good enough to make people forget his past?

  “What did you bring me?” one of the little boys asked after giving his mother a kiss on the cheek.

  “Mind your manners, Mr. Legend,” the redheaded woman said.

  “Yes, ma’am,” the boy said. He leaned in close and squeezed his mother around the neck. “Did you bring me somethin’, Mama?” he whispered in Shelby’s ear.

  James chuckled at his son’s antics. “Come here, you little rascal.” He opened his arms, and Legend left his mother to rush into his dad’s embrace.

  Colin looked away, not sure why seeing a father act like a father hurt after all these years. Harvey had never been that kind of a dad. If Colin ever saw him again, the first thing he’d do is put a fist in his lying mouth. Then he’d see him in court to try and recoup the money he’d stolen from him.

  “When can we make cookies?” the other little boy asked his mother.

 
“Soon, Phoenix,” Shelby said with an affectionate smile. “Y’all go on in with Miss Sue, and I’ll have Mr. Lewis bring in the surprises Daddy and I got you.” She stood up. “First, I need to talk with Miss Josie.”

  “She’s in your office,” Miss Sue said. “Up to her eyeballs in boxes and gift bags.”

  James got another phone call, so he excused himself as Miss Sue escorted the two boys inside the house.

  “Well, let’s go meet your girlfriend,” Shelby said to Colin.

  Colin followed her inside the mansion, slipping off his shoes when Shelby did. The shiny tiled floor felt slick under his stocking feet. “Perhaps you should warn her first,” Colin said when they’d reached Mrs. Dalton’s office. “I’ll stay right here until you’re ready for me to meet her.”

  “Josie will be elated, but if you’d rather I tell her first, then that’s what I’ll do.”

  Colin nodded, hoping he could remember which way it was to the front door in case he wanted to make a hasty exit.

  Shelby left the door slightly ajar, allowing Colin to overhear the conversation perfectly.

  “Josie, you’ll never believe what I brought home for you,” Shelby said.

  “More boxes for me to unpack?” The sassy reply made Colin smile. At least his girlfriend for the next week had a personality.