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“Excellent.” Maggie rubbed her hands together. “Let the corruption begin!”
CHAPTER EIGHT – ADELAIDE
“Okay.” Florence looked to Millie. “Clint Eastwood, Pierce Brosnan, Daniel Craig.”
Millie threw her hands out. “They could all be my dad!”
Maggie fell bag in her chair, laughing.
“Too late!” Florence declared, waving an arm around. “You must answer!”
“This is gross,” she muttered.
Like playing snog, marry, kill with a woman in her late seventies was completely normal.
“Oh, shit. Um. I guess… snog Daniel Craig, marry Clint Eastwood, and kill Brosnan.”
I nodded slowly. “That’s what I’d do.”
“Kill Pierce? Marry Clint? Why would you do that?” Maggie exploded.
“If I marry Clint, I can get close to his son, Scott. Then divorce Clint, take half his money, and marry Scott Eastwood.” Millie tapped a finger against her temple. “Smart, see?”
“Yes.” I gripped my wine glass. “That.”
“I like a girl who thinks on her toes,” Florence replied approvingly. “Your turn, Millie.”
She leaned forward and waved her finger in my direction, albeit in a slightly wobbly way. “Snog, marry, kill.”
“Okay.” I nodded. “Hit me.”
She pursed her lips and looked around with a glimmer of concentration in her eye. “All right. I’ve got it. Liam Hemsworth, Prince William, and… Alexander.”
“Oooh.” Maggie and Florence slowly turned to me with both their mouths shaped in a little ‘o.’
“That’s not fair. It’s not supposed to be anyone we know. Isn’t the point of this to talk about unrealistic situations?” I met their gazes one by one, and my stomach dropped. “Ugh, fine. I mean… I guess… I’d have to marry Prince William, kill…” I shut my eyes and wrinkled my face up. “Oh, my God. Kill Liam Hemsworth and snog Alexander,” I said quickly, so quickly that the words all rushed into one long sentence.
It was more like, “KillLiamsHemsworthandsnogAlexander.”
“Wow,” a horribly familiar voice said from behind me. “I’m not marriage material, huh?”
Oh, no.
Oh, shit.
A slow grin broke out across Millie’s face, and I knew. I knew she’d set me up.
I turned and rested my arm on the back of the sofa and smiled up at Alexander. “No offence, but he’s going to be king, and it was better than killing you. I’d never hear the end of that from Gabi.”
Alex ran his tongue over his lower lip. “Fair enough. It’s hard to argue with you on those excellent points.” He glanced at the ladies. “You appear to have had fun tonight.”
“We’ve corrupted her,” Maggie said, leaning forward. “You’re welcome.”
I shook my head quickly and grabbed my things. “And I think this is my cue. I have a lesson to teach in the morning, after all.” I hugged everyone as they stood to say goodbye to me. “Thank you so much for inviting me, Maggie. It was lovely to meet you all.”
“Sunday.” Florence clasped my hands. “We’re meeting again on Sunday at four. If you’re able, you should come again.”
I looked at the empty glasses on the table. “I’m not sure I can handle another night of this.”
“Oh, no. We don’t drink on the Lord’s day.”
“She might not,” Millie said. “But after three hours in church and lunch with my grandmother on my mum’s side, I sure as heck do.”
My lips twitched at the flash of disapproval in the look Florence sent her way. “I’ll see what I can do. My sister might be coming. I’ll let you know.”
“I’ll give her your number,” Alex assured Millie. “I’m sure she’ll need to get out after spending the weekend with my mother while I’m not here.”
I stepped behind him and nodded, mouthing a “yes” to Maggie, who didn’t give me away.
“I saw that,” Alex said, turning to look at me.
I clicked my tongue and looked away, whistling innocently.
“I’d be offended if I didn’t feel the same way.” He laughed and put his hand on my shoulder. “Thank you for welcoming her, ladies.”
Maggie winked at him. “Well, she’s going to be here a while, isn’t she?”
Millie threw a napkin at her.
“And we’re leaving.” Alex steered me towards the door, and I waved enthusiastically at the three remaining women as he literally pushed me out of the door and back onto the little village square.
I was not surprised by that at all.
“Are all the women in this village trying to marry you off?” I shot him an amused look as we walked towards the car park.
“You’d be surprised,” he replied wryly. “If they don’t have a daughter, they try to marry me off to their best friend’s daughter. I learnt early on not to accept any offers to dinner partie. Or any parties, really.”
“Wow. Do you not spend any time in the village?”
“Mm, occasionally. There are some… wealthier… residents in the village who would like to see their daughters, nieces, or granddaughters marry up. And the problem with wealth is that when you have a lot of money, the only way to have “more” in society is to marry into a higher societal class. The next one up from me is royal, and there aren’t many single ones of those left.”
