AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What… No!” I raise a finger, speaking in a tone of warning. “It’s just hard to get to know someone with my crazy schedule.”
She stares at me as if I’m full of shit and I compose myself and continue. “Let’s just stick with the story that you are a hockey fan, okay? It’s not a big deal. They’ll barely let you talk anyway.”
Now she looks at me with mistrust, her shoulders tense and her eyes staring at me between narrowed lids.
God, the wedding is in just a few weeks, and I really need her…
“Fine,” she finally mutters. She folds her hands over the table and looks down at them, considering how to continue. “Let’s talk about the basics. How long have we known each other?”
“Um…” I try to remember exactly when I started lying to my family, and it shows on my face. “A little over three years?”
“You’ve supposedly had a girlfriend for three years and she’s never even met your family?” she asks, incredulous.
“Eh…” I wave her off. Yes, my story has a lot of plot holes, but everyone has been swallowing it so far.
“My work is seasonal, and her work is seasonal, so we’re never free at the same time.”
“Okay, and what exactly is the work that I do?”
“Education,” I don’t bat an eyelash. “You’re a high school teacher who does volunteer work for kids in low-wage families during summers.”
She raises her eyebrows and bites her lips, looking thoughtful and pleased with what I said.
Her drink finally arrives, and Tessa apologizes for the delay, but all that matters to Elsa is taking a big gulp, her mood quickly brightening with each sip.
“Well, at least my job is good.” She nods and puts her drink down. “Yeah, I can fake working in education. I like kids. And I can say I took some well-deserved time off to finally meet everyone at your sister’s wedding.”
“Good,” I smile, feeling relief that something is going right.
“What else do you want to talk about?” I ask.
“Well, how long we’ve been engaged, for starters.” She perks up even more after another sip of coffee.
“Oh, that’s recent. Just three months ago,” I say.
“Okay,” Elsa nods, writing in her little notebook.
She sips her coffee, and I try to sip what’s left of mine, but it’s now cold. Elsa looks up at the sky, and my eyes follow her gaze.
It’s overcast and ugly, but the breeze it brings feels nice. It’s late April and still a little chilly in Boston, but I’m used to the cold, so it doesn’t bother me.
“So, your family has never even seen a picture of this girlfriend and now fiancé of yours?” she asks with disbelief and confusion.
“Kinda…” I reply. “Every time I date a blond girl, I tell them it’s her. But don’t worry, this will be the first time I’m introducingherto my grandma.”
She almost spits in her coffee. “How is that even possible?” she asks, skeptical. “They don’t notice they’re different women?”
“Nope,” I say, with my own share of determination. “I usually only bring someone if they insist and if it’s a party where I know they will be drinking heavily. Then I come late and even then, if they ever say she looks different, I blame it on plastic surgery.”
“Oh my God,” she says, covering her mouth with her hand and shaking her head in a mixture of shock and amusement. “If they are that easily fooled, then that makes my job that much easier. Alrighty then. And where did we get engaged?”
I am starting to get overwhelmed by all these questions.
I don’t know what I was expecting. Maybe I thought that she would just sit down in front of me and do as I say.
But no, of course it couldn’t be that easy.
“On my boat?” I say, making it up on the spot.
