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I should have known our secret wouldn’t last long. If it wasn’t for that snobby teen last night, something else would have come along. I’m a bit relieved that it’s out there now. There’s something about hiding our relationship that doesn’t sit well with me. Adalyn deserves more than that. Fake marriage or real one. And I’m beginning to accept that I might consider it a lot less fake than I did a week ago.
That’s probably ridiculous. We’ve only been on this trip for two weeks. Yet, it feels like it’s been months. I’ve gotten to know her so well in such a short time, and I suppose that’s thanks to our close proximity.
Spending every single day, morning and night, with someone makes it impossible not to grow close at a faster-than-normal pace. We have no option but to share things about ourselves and become friends on a level that takes most people months to reach.
The circumstances are different with us, but I wouldn’t expect anything less with her.
“Hey, Dad.”
I stretch my neck and lean against the railing, looking out at the city. It’s early, but the streets are packed, the shops already open. My stomach grumbles as the smell of fresh bread wafts up toward us.
“Hey, kid,” he says.
“I’m too old for you to be calling me a kid.”
“You’ll never be too old in my eyes.”
“Right. Well, get on with it, then. I’m assuming you’ve heard the news.”
“You mean the news that my only son got married and I wasn’t invited?” he asks, and for whatever reason, his voice is as calm as ever.
“It wasn’t a real wedding. Not like that,” I sigh.
“Try telling that to your mother. I spent an hour this morning trying to talk her down from buying a plane ticket to wherever the hell you are and beating you with a stick.”
I wince. “She’s upset?”
“Of course she is. You’re her only child, and she just found out you got married without a word to her about it.”
“Fuck.”
He hums. “Fuck indeed. You know, I never expected that it would be Adalyn who would make me a grandpa, but I’m not one to complain about a good thing.”
“Woah, slow down. Nobody is making you a grandpa anytime soon. This isn’t like that.”
“You know, you keep saying that, but I have yet to hear as to why it isn’t ‘like that.’ Are you telling me that you married her for what? Some kind of joke?”
“No. It wasn’t a joke.”
“So, what, then?”
“It was an accident,” I mutter, embarrassed.
There’s silence on the other line. I rub a hand down my face and groan.
“You married Adalyn Hutton on accident?” he asks slowly.
“We were drunk.”
Suddenly, he roars a laugh into the speaker. “You idiot. You goddamn idiot.”
“It’s frowned upon to call your children idiots, Dad. And to laugh at them at dire times like these.”
“I’m at a loss for what else to do. The minute you touch down in Canada, Oakley and Maddox are going to destroy you. I don’t know if I can protect you at this point. Maybe we’ll need to say our goodbyes right now.”
“You know, you’re really not funny. At all.”
“Agree to disagree.”
