AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Eden snorts, bringing me back to the present again, to the wall at my back and Ralph frowning at his coffee like it’s a woman who did him wrong. Except I’m guessing I’m the woman who did him wrong.
“Financial gain, huh? How much money are we talking?” Eden asks, giving me a sidelong glance. “Is this guy rich?”
I pause, then say, “Yeah, I think so. He’s a lawyer. He’s always wearing really nice suits, and his car probably costs more than everything I own put together. But that’s his money, other than what he’s agreed to pay me. We already signed a prenup.”
She shakes her head, her eyes telling me I’m too stupid to live. “What are you still doing here? Even without this rich not-a-husband, you make more money on eBay than you do at the diner. We’ve never had a lot of people during the day, and it just keeps getting worse. If you want to make something happen, you’ve got to give yourself the time to do it. You’re not a damn wizard. You can’t make time out of nothing.”
I puff my lips out, considering it. She’s right. I know she’s right. The “eBay shit” is another side hustle. I get things from Goodwill and estate sales and shine them up, then resell them on eBay. When I crunched the numbers before Christmas, I discovered the “eBay shit” is where I make seventy percent of my income. The diner is thirty-five. Vanny is negative five.
Now, my job as Shane’s wife will be contributing almost as much as eBay. I can give up the diner and focus my attention on getting my Vanny events to turn a profit. But the thought of leaving punches a hole in my chest. This is my safe space, the same way that bench in the woods was when I was a little kid. But the way Eden’s looking at me tells me it might not be mine for much longer.
“Eden,” I say, the word coming out intense, “Are you and Charlie…”
“Ma’am,” Ralph says aggressively, lifting up his cup. “Ma’am.”
Eden gives me a tight smile and pats me on the back. “He’s playing your song.”
“What about tomorrow?”
“You can have it off,” she says. “The whole day. In fact, the diner’s going to be closed. And you’ll need to tell Charlie and me where to come for the ceremony. You know that man could get himself lost inside of a paper bag.” She pauses, her eyes widening. “What are you going to wear, girl? Tell me you have a dress.”
I’m an idiot, because tears are welling in my eyes. She’s so good to me, and it’s hard to feel I deserve it.
“I was going to wear—”
“I’m going to stop you right there, honey. You go get Ralph his hot or cold coffee and tell him he’s getting cut off in an hour. We’re going shopping, my treat.”
Before I can tell her there’s no need—I’ll wear a sweater dress or something I have lying around the house, because only a real marriage requires a real dress—she gives me a hard look. “I’m not taking no for an answer, so you might as well save us both the trouble.”
Chapter Eleven
Shane
It’s a piece of irony that Danny asks me to look at engagement rings with him the afternoon before my wedding to his sister. I say, “Sure, why not?” and hold back the, Hey, great timing, I’m getting married tomorrow, and I still need to pick up rings. I haven’t been able to get away this week, because Mom’s depressed again and all of her friends are out of town.
It’s been twenty-two years since my father died, and she still can’t get out of bed every morning, but she’s not interested in putting away the photos that make her house feel like a tomb. She doesn’t want to make any changes at all, really. What can you do?
I took it out on Ruthie the other day, when we were picking up the marriage license, and I felt like a real dick because I know it couldn’t have been easy for her. She’s gotten married for real, after all. There must be memories attached to that, and given that she was married to Rand, I’m guessing they’re shit memories.
I won’t be able to get the rings while Danny’s with me, obviously, since that would lead to questions such as Who the hell are you marrying?, but I could grab them after he leaves.
Grab them, like I’m swinging by a coffee shop to get a latte.
For the hundredth time today, I ask myself what the hell I’m doing. Danny’s the oldest friend I have and one of the only people I fully trust. I might not intend to fuck his sister, but he still deserves to know about the fake marriage. In all honesty, I don’t really understand my own hesitation—I’m doing this for the job, sure, but Izzy’s going to benefit from it, and Danny would do anything to help his niece. So he might even be on board with the plan.
There’s an uneasy feeling in my gut, though, like I know it’s not going to go down nice and easy like a shot of Macallan.
Still, I can’t back down now.
My first day at Freeman & Daniels is Monday, and Freeman is already arranging a celebration for next Friday night to officially welcome Ruthie and me into the “pack”—a pack of legal beagles, one can only assume. I’ve also been given the go-ahead to start interviewing for assistants next week, so this is really happening. It’s a go.
That’s a relief, and also not.
Freeman’s a good man, but working at his firm will be like getting a job at a Wendy’s after working at a Michelin Star restaurant. At least it’s still a restaurant, or so I keep telling myself.
I suck it up and meet Danny in the lot of the jewelry store I picked out based on the fact that they’ve been around thirty years and no one’s ever gotten pissed enough to sue them.
He’s only been with Mira since November, but that’s Danny for you. Once he’s certain of something, there’s no swaying him, and in this case I’m not so sure he’s wrong. Mira’s good for him. He has a tendency to dig in his heels, but when he gets dug in too deep, she can help pull him out.
