Page 33 of The Plus One Pact

Good cheese.

Tomatoes. Eggs. Fresh fruit and vegetables. A well-stocked kitchen for one. Another point for Ivy. She takes care of herself, knows how to cook, uses fresh food.

There isn't a single prepared sauce in her kitchen, actually. Only a salsa. And dad, well, he never was the chef in the family. He never was picky. He bought all his salsa at Trader Joes, because it was cheap, because it was good enough. But he certainly wasn't Mr. Authenticity. He put pineapple salsa on everything.

I miss him.

I do.

I just wish I didn't have another Flores man to fail to stack up to.

Ivy finishes the call with my mother and moves into the living room. "That was different."

"Sorry. My mom is a lot."

"She sounds sweet."

"She is." I take a sip to test the black coffee. Over brewed. I can taste it. I need to balance with milk. "Do you have to get to work?"

"I have some time." She looks at the jar of instant coffee. "Is it that bad?"

"Does it show on my face?" I ask.

She nods. "I guess I'll take it as a sign you weren't faking anything last night."

A laugh spills from my lips. She's funny. I like that in a woman. That's what I liked about Sasha, right away, but we never had that chemistry.

"I thought about getting a coffee set up for my best friend, but I sort of like rebelling against coffee's cultural dominance. It already has the country. It doesn't get my house too."

She's cute. She really is. "It's a nice place."

"Do you, uh, need something or—?"

"Can I get dressed and get the fuck out of your house?"

"I'm enjoying the view, don't get me wrong. But I do have things to do."

I like her. Actually like her. It’s not smart. She’s a client, not a real date, but at the moment I don’t care. I need to bring someone to the wedding and she’s perfect. "I want to ask you a favor."

"Another?" she asks.

"A continuation."

She moves to the kitchen, sits at the little round table, sips her cup of amber tea.

"You know how you played my girlfriend this morning?"

"Sure."

"How would you like to do that at my brother's wedding?"

Chapter Eight

Ivy

Playing Romeo's girlfriend, at his brother's wedding?

Um, what?