“Yes, Miles, that's exactly what I'm telling you. They’re on the international sportsperson visa, and I got those through quickly for you, too. It’s usually three months.”
Does he want a medal? “Well, I need another solution.”
Arthur starts laughing again in a way that I don't appreciate. “You could always get married.”
Stopping myself before I join in with his joke, I pause, wondering if I really heard what I think I heard. Married. I know it was another sly dig because of all my siblings, I’ve never had any desire to get married. I can’t deny my interest is piqued because if I’m going to marry, then what better reason could there be than polo?
“Married?”
“It was a joke?—”
“Right, yes, obviously, of course,because?—”
“Because,” he continues, like he’s having to explain a joke, “it goes without saying the illegalities of marriage for visa purposes. Ridiculous. Not to mention the obvious?—”
“The obvious?” I know what the obvious is. I’m just wondering if he has the balls to say it.
“If any Burlington is getting married, it’s not you.”
Well, what do you know, he did have the balls. “What's that supposed to mean?”
“You're not exactly the marrying type. You've made that perfectly clear, and I have a drawer of NDAs if you need reminding.”
Yeah, he's right. I have made that perfectly clear. I’d rather stick pins in my eyes than commit to a lifetime with the same person. It’s enough to break me out in the hives Alex used to get when he was a child. I prefer to see myself as much more of a free bird, someone who enjoys life and everything it has to offer. If that comes in the form of a beautiful woman or two, then so be it.
But, and it is ahugebut, in the last year, Lando has found somebody he wants to spend the rest of his life with. Alex is a father with another one on the way, and Hendricks and Story seem to be glued at the hip once more, leaving Clementine and me to hold up the Burlington singledom. And it’s got me thinking.
Being on my own has been my preference. Running a polo yard is a huge commitment, and I travel six months of the year. The last thing I want is to feel guilty about traveling, with someone nagging me to get home and not giving them the time they deserve.
And here it is—butI could see how it might be nice. Appreciate the comfort you find in sharing your life with another person.
On the flip side, I can still close my eyes and see my mother decimated by grief after our father died in a car accident. In the blink of an eye, she became a single mother to five children.
This idea, though, isnotthat.
“Just to be clear, my options are to wait eight to ten weeks or get married. That’s what you're saying?” I grin to myself when Arthur splutters, because I know that’s not what he’s saying, but I also like to wind him up.
“No, I am absolutely not saying that.”
“But you suggested it?—”
“You know very well it was a joke, Miles?—”
“Are solicitors supposed to make jokes?”
“Miles, do not get married.”
“Well, otherwise, I have to wait eight to ten weeks, and I'm not willing to do that. I don't have that kind of time.”
“Why? I don't understand. I thought you already had the team together for this season.”
“I do. But there's never any harm in adding a couple more. You know, I like to nurture talent where I see it.”
“Nurture talent?”
“Yes. Anyway, leave this with me?—”
“Miles. Please don't do anything obtuse. I am begging you?—”
