He shrugs a shoulder the barest amount. “Then no.”
“Are you just saying that to make me happy?”
Once again, all I get is a straight-faced stare.
“Right. Right. It’s pretend, so it doesn’t matter if you have secrets.”
“Everyone has secrets.”
“Yes, but I need to know that no one in my hometown will seeSteveon the local news for having murdered a man.”
“You have an ex who made the news for murdering someone?”
“No, but there’s always a first time, isn’t there?”
“Could be justifiable homicide.”
“Oh my god. Are you marrying me to get an alibi?” I flap my hand toward the workroom. “Was that your accomplice? Are you trying to steal something from my museum? Are you involved in some kind of extortion scheme?”
“Pretend marrying. No. I don’t steal and I don’t help criminals.”
But what’s he doing here? Who was in the workroom? And where’s the sheriff? “Why would you do this?”
“I like helping people.”
“So you just go around agreeing to fake marry women to get their grandmothers off their backs?”
He looks me straight in the eye. “World’s been good to me. Why not be good back?”
“Again, that’s not an answer.”
“It’s true.”
“Is it the full truth?”
“No.”
“What’s the full truth?”
“I’m offering fake marriage. That’s it.”
This is too easy.Entirelytoo easy. “Is this the first time you’ve offered to fake marry someone?”
“No.”
It says something about this conversation that I’m not actually surprised, and I think I believe him. “Were there pictures?”
“Yes.”
“Just one wedding?”
“No.”
“How many times have you fake-married women to help them out?”
“Fewer than five.”
I squeeze my eyes shut.
