She laughed. “What?”
“Can you take Friday off? I’m flying over in the helicopter at two. It’s less than two hours. I’ve got a car rented and am going straight to my hotel. I’ll show up at the wedding on Saturday. It’s later in the afternoon, then flying home the same way on Sunday.”
“Don’t be silly,” she said. Talk about a joke. “First off, I have to work. Second, you can’t just bring a surprise guest to a wedding last minute.”
“In my family, yep, you can. My father does it all the time. But since it’s at my grandmother’s, it’s not a big deal. She’s talked about it not being a sit-down dinner either. It’s a buffet. There will be complaints about that too, but it’s not as if my grandmother’s kitchen could prepare meals. That was the only way to do it. If that is the only thing stopping you, don’t worry.”
This was nuts. Was she really considering this?
The fact that she was running it through her head said she was!
“You’re serious?”
“Very serious. I wasn’t until you said it, but now I am.”
“Who are you supposed to say I am? If I even considered this?”
He’d have to make sure she could get a seat on the helicopter, but she didn’t think that would be an issue. He most likely was the only passenger heading in that direction.
Her family would find out.
How would she explain something this out of character for her?
“You can be my pretend girlfriend,” he said. “It’s just a weekend. I mean, I know this is a real date and all, but it’d be crazy even for me to say I’m bringing a date this early if I don’t make it out to sound like more.”
“You’ve been here for one week. No one is going to believe we are dating.”
“The fact you’re arguing my logic tells me I might convince you to do this. Holy shit.”
His surprised expression had her shaking her head. What was it about him that had her doing things she’d never considered with anyone else?
“I don’t know what I’m thinking,” she admitted.
“Let’s reverse. Back to my crazy logic. We went to college together and can say we reconnected. We don’t even have to put a time on it. No one is going to care all that much anyway. I came to the island so we can try it in person and you are attending the wedding with me for moral support. The last part I really need. No lie or fabrication there.”
If he weren’t so adorable looking batting his eyes at her she’d tell him he was out of his mind.
Almost as much as her for thinking of going through with this.
“I don’t know,” she said. “That kind of makes sense.”
“It completely makes sense,” he argued. He was sitting up straighter, a negotiation stance and look on his face.
Her soup was brought out and it’d give her time to think while she ate to counter his logic with her practicality.
Hunter had been on her back to take some time off. It’d only be one day.
She had more fun with Arik today than any other date she could remember in years.
She genuinely enjoyed his company and felt a twinge of sympathy over his family situation.
But her parents and siblings would think she’d lost her mind if she went out of town with someone they’d never heard of before. A complete stranger in their eyes.
Was he really a stranger though?
If things had been different in college, she might have said yes if he’d asked her out. No might about it, she absolutely would have.
One of the biggest obstacles holding her back some was his wealth.
