As for the details about the wedding, the exact where, when and how? I’d left that all up to Corben to tell her whatever he wanted to.
Shane chuckled. “That’s stone cold, brother.” He seemed impressed. It took a lot to impress Shane. He’d known me too long. Once you’d hung out with a billionaire enough, the wow factor kinda faded, maybe. “I’m surprised they let you get married without some giant church thing worthy of a royal.”
“That was the plan. When Tina was the plan. I told my mom I’d be handling this one my way, though, and that was it.”
“She was okay with that?”
“Nope. But we’ve had enough arguments lately.”
“So?”
“So, maybe she decided to let me win one.”
“Shit. Glad I don’t have your mom.”
I eyed him. Strong words, considering his family history.
“So, what the fuck’s really going on?” That was Lex. I looked at him across the pool. There was a smoking blunt dangling from his lips and he was giving me that lowered eyelid look of his.
“Yeah,” Shane put in. “You fly us all here on like a moment’s notice. To marry some chick from high school. Who clearly is not happy with you right now.”
“Yeah, really fucking sorry to cut into your busy schedules,” I said, “of beating the shit out of people and breaking the law. To fly you to paradise for two days. Hope you can forgive me.”
“I guess it was inevitable, huh?” Shane mused, still trying to piece it all together. “You had to marry someone. At least this one’s not…”
I glanced at him.
“So fake,” he finished. “Tina was… I don’t know… What do you call someone who’s so forcefully happy all the time it’s kinda exhausting to be around?”
“You met her twice,” I said.
“And that was enough. She was way too happy about everything, including hanging out with me.”
“That’s why my mom liked her,” I said, sinking back into the pool. “She was happy all the time. Even when she wasn’t.” Actually, that was kinda the thing I liked least about Tina.
She was a very positive person, in general. She was very driven and successful. She was beautiful. But the fake happy bullshitwasexhausting.
“Christiana wants a perfect headline and a perfect photo to go with it,” I added. “She doesn’t much care about the rest.”
“Like her son being happy?” Shane said doubtfully.
“When has my mom ever cared about that?”
Shane considered that. “I really don’t know your mom. Just your dad.”
I gave him a look, like,Let’s not go there.
“You telling me you’re happy right now?” he pressed.
I turned that around on him. “Are you happy?”
“Fuck, yes. I do what I want to do. It’s fucking simple.”
I said nothing. He probably was happy, the fucker.
I glanced at Lex, who was just watching us as he smoked. “And why are you so quiet?” My cousin had two modes: yapping his face off until you seriously just wanted him to shut the fuck up already, and mysterious silence. The latter was usually not a good sign.
“This one’s not fake happy,” he said thoughtfully. “She’s also not a CEO. She doesn’t fit the mold. I bet your mom likes her, though.”
