At three o’clock, I realized I had to start getting ready. I got up from the couch and checked my phone. I had a missed call from Veronica, so I dialed her number.
“Hey, bestie,” she said instead of hello. “What are you doing tonight? Want to hang out together?”
“I can’t,” I replied.
“You’ve got plans? Oh thank God.”
I winced. I’d been a bit clingy lately, calling her every day.
“What are you doing?” she asked. “Actually, you know what? You don’t even have to tell me. Oh, who am I kidding? I do want to know. Are you going to have fun?”
“Now that you’re asking, something funny happened the other day. Griffin Sterling called.”
“The Greek god from the bar? Hallelujah! Some good thingscanhappen on this planet. I kept beating myself up that I didn’t get his number for you or something.”
“He tracked me down on Instagram. One thing led to another, and tonight I’m going with him to a dinner with a potential business partner. I’m pretending to be his girlfriend.”
There was a pause, and then Veronica asked, “You’re pulling my leg, aren’t you? You’re just going to stay home and curl up with a book.”
“No. I’m so serious. I dug out the gold dress from my red bag.”
“Holy shit, youareserious. I need details.”
“Apparently, the business partner who walked out on him at the bar didn’t like his womanizer reputation. And, as I said, one thing led to another.”
“I still need more details. You have to fill in the blanks.”
I summarized my conversations with Griffin, and she went silent again.
“Veronica, stop doing that. You’re freaking me out.”
“I’m sorry, but who are you, and what have you done with my best friend? This is the funniest thing you’ve done in a long time. Probably ever.”
“I don’t know. You had to be there to hear that conversation unfold. Griffin can be very charming.”
“Wait, he coerced you into this?”
“No, no. God, no. That’s not what I meant. It’s just the way he talks. Everything seems so easy when he says it. Like ‘Huh, what’s the big deal? We can just pretend we’ve been dating for six months. No one is going to ask questions.’ Then the second we finished the conversation, I realized how far off he was. Like, hello?Of coursesomeone is going to ask questions. We can’t just ignore them.”
“You sound happy,” Veronica said.
I couldn’t help my grin. “I know. It’s insane, but I am.”
“I’m glad. You deserve the distraction.”
“I think it’s going to be fun.” I might be nervous as hell, but I didn’t have any doubt that the evening would take Marshall and the rest of this mess off my mind.
“Oh, by the way, please wear the lucky underwear I gifted you for the trip.”
My face turned beet red in an instant. “Wh-Why would I do that?” I stammered.
“You don’t want any panty lines showing through the dress, do you?”
I cleared my throat. “Really, Veronica?”
“What other reason would I possibly have?”
“I don’t know. Your mind works in unique ways.”
