He handed her a pumpkin spice latte, and they drove off, officially fake engaged. Why did it feel real?
She took a sip. “I’m sorry about the work-wife thing.”
“I get your hesitation.” He merged onto the 405, accelerating and sliding into traffic without once applying the brakes. As he moved into one of the middle lanes, he said, “I’m more than you’re ready for.”
At that, she laughed. “Markus, you just picked me up. Did you see all those people?” She gave him a moment to recall Burt. “I thinkI’mmore than you’re ready for.”
“Oh, I’ve met your people. I get it.” He accelerated and passed a semi. “I’m ready to show up for you and the people you love. You’re the one looking for a work-wife-with-benefits situation.”
“Markus, you make it sound like I’m just out here looking for…”
“Dick? You can say it, Gabby.”
She gasped, “Markus! Don’t say that.” But… was that what she wanted? He wasn’t wrong.
He took a sip of his coffee calmly while she clutched her pumpkin spice latte and stared straight ahead, feeling naked in her desires. Was she the frat boy? She couldn’t be. “I… uh…”
“I get it if that’s where you’re at. I have a dick. It’s available.”
“Thanks.” She swallowed too loudly. “I’ve never had a guy show up for me in the million little ways that count. When Phil left, it was almost simpler.” If he was being honest, so could she. “Sure, he paid the bills, but he never helped with the kids, the cooking, the cleaning, the shopping, the chauffeuring, so I just did my regular, but without also worrying what he wanted for dinner, or his opinions on all the choices I made throughout the day.” She twisted the sleeve on her coffee cup. “I don’t trust that you’ll be there for me.It’s not because of who you are, it’s because that’s how it always is with men and women. I hear about guys who went to liberal arts colleges and do equal work, but I haven’t met one yet.”
Markus nodded. “I guess I’ll have to show you I mean business then.”
They drove in silence for a few miles, while Gabby added caffeine to her conflicting emotions. It seemed like she’d found the right guy at the wrong time. Not to mention that she was spying on him.
“Let’s go over our plan.”
“Make contact with the liaison,” Gabby said. “Pick up the dead drop. Look for Sheridan.”
Markus changed lanes. “I’ve been doing yoga with the Big G—” He glanced at Gabby and said, “That’s what the insiders call him. Anyway, I’ve been practicing with G for a year and getting the basics, but I haven’t done the couples stuff. This will be new to both of us.”
That was kind of nice.
Markus side-eyed her. “From the way I understand it, we’ll be marrying each otherandInner-G.”
“What?” She tried to wrap her mind around that. “Literally or metaphorically?”
He flashed a mischievous grin. “We’ll find out, I guess.”
Now, that was something Gabby never saw coming. She’d fallen asleep to several of Genesis’s multi-million-dollar blockbusters. For years, she’d seen pictures of him on red carpets wearing a tux with the sleeves ripped off to show off his bulging muscles and tribal art tattoos. A recipe for baked nachos she’d ripped out ofPeoplehad a picture of him at the Golden Globes. There was a grease stain on his face. Now she was going to be his cult bride.
“Wedding planning… that could be a lot, given that we’re on a mission.”
If this was anything like her last wedding, he was going to be deep sea fishing and getting buddy-buddy with Genesis while she made centerpieces with Jasmine or something.
“I don’t anticipate the wedding interfering with our mission,” Markus said. “The resort staff will help out. I don’t think many people at this place do anything for themselves.”
Maybe that’s what money could do for a relationship. If you hire out all the labor and paper over all the underlying inequalities, everyone lives happily ever after, except for the hired help. She was going to be living theDownton Abbeylife in the Azores.
Markus pulled them into LAX long-term parking. “The last thing we want is to forget where we parked after all of this.”
Now, that sounded likely.
“What’s this ramp called?”
Gabby was focused on collecting her things: ChapStick, phone, bag. About to embark on a mission, about to get fake married. She had the same feeling as she did before she had to give a presentation, not that she’d had to do that recently. Her mind retreated to some dark corner and left her body to go through the motions on its own. She had started to unbuckle when Markus placed his hand over hers. “Hold up, Gabs. You didn’t answer my question.”
“What did you ask? Oh, parking. Ramp D, fourth floor,” she started to say, but when she looked up, she didn’t see a man with a parking garage question in his eyes. Markus was deep into her soul, looking at her, trying to connect with her.
