SEAL’S Secret Vows

5. Nora

Chapter five

Nora

S itting on the couch, I watch the rain drops pelt endlessly on the well-manicured lawn as I brood over Chase’s suggestion. “Why don’t we get married?” That was what I just ran away from, and it seems like I’m running back into it. Now, isn’t that déjà vu? That’s the last thing I’d ever think of doing to get myself out of this mess.

Chase is fiddling with some gadget on the other end of the couch, bent in half with a screwdriver in his hand. I’m trying to pay attention to anything except my cell phone and Ethan’s most recent text.

You could still come back to me, you know. You should stop this drama while my parents are still ready to take you back.

Come back! As if! How did I ever get engaged to such a jerk? I suppose it’s because I’ve always wanted to please my parents. And look where that got me. With an arrogant, pompous and conceited man who won’t get off my case!

I look at the news headlines again, and I feel anger coursing through me. There's a new headline daily and each one has Ethan's name written all over it . Drama unfolds as High-profile Politician Ethan Sinclair, faces Public Humiliation When Bride-to-be Nora Evans, Daughter of Fellow Power Player, Flees from Wedding Ceremony leaving him in Despair!

Despair?! The Ethan I spoke to yesterday did not sound like he was in despair! He sounded totally fine. Putting on a facade and making it look like I would never amount to anything without him, while trying to sound dejected, and blaming me for ruining his reputation.

My phone dings with multiple text messages.

Are you done with your tantrum, Nora?

I cringe seeing my name. There was a way he used my name that literally raised the hairs on my back. I wish I had paid attention to it before.

I have a press conference at 8.00am tomorrow. I need your response by this evening so I can release a statement to the press about our wedding. Call me when you see this!

I should have blocked him after that call. I drop the phone on the couch and look at the lush greenery outside as the rain stops. Chase does have a flair for luxury.

Ethan's name pops up on the screen, and I resist the urge to kick the phone away. Will he ever give up? Can’t he just take my silence as a no? Or maybe I’ve been quiet for so long that my silence just seems to be a yes to him or to everyone except the one person standing in front of me right now.

I look up, and Chase’s eyes are on my ringing phone. He looks away when I catch him.

“Chase… I…” I swallow thinking of what to say as I’m torn between picking up the call and what to say to Chase.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to do it.” He says softly, a far cry from his earlier insistence.

Another text arrives.

Nora, do not ruin my reputation. Pick up the damn phone!

“Yes. I’ll marry you.” I blurt out angrily.

“What? I mean have you thought about it?” he asks.

“Yes. I mean, I agree to the fake marriage.”

“Are you sure?” he asks, his eyes scanning the length of my face thoroughly as if trying to gauge my real emotions.

“Yes, I’m sure. You’re right. This is the only way to get this leech off my back and it’ll help you solve this case.”

“I understand you’re under pressure from Ethan but if you need more time to think about it, you can.”

“No, I’m done thinking. I’ve made my decision. Unless you don’t want to do this anymore.”

“No. I do want to,” he replies, still looking at me curiously.

“Well, let’s get on with it. What do we have to do?”

“Okay.” Chase says slowly, and I watch as he slowly morphs from Chase-who-putters-around-the-house to Chase, Navy SEAL. His eyes harden, and I feel better—this is a mission. “We need a wedding dress, rings, and a photographer. I’ll make a few calls and order you a dress unless you want to use the same dress you wore on your last wedding day.” I stare daggers at him, and he raises his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay, I’ll take that as a no and make that call now.”

“And after that, I’ll inform my superiors of my plan of an undercover wedding. Hopefully it’ll restore their former perception of me.”

A beep comes from the monitor screen beside the front door and we both look at the door. Chase walks over to the monitor to answer the call, and a bright, cheery male voice comes through.

“Hola! Commander Chase. I’m back with lots of recipes that you like.” A voice says in a sing-song voice. I haven’t met this person before.

“Hmm... great, I hope you brought a lot of spices and fruits, too. I must say I’ve missed your cooking. Someone here has commented that I’m not that good of a cook.” Chase says smirking while unlocking the gates.

“Oh my, I wonder who would dare to say such a thing to my commander.” Whoever this is, he seems to be quite dramatic.

“The door is open, Javier.”

“Yes, thank you, sir. I’ll be right there.”

“Who’s that?”

“My chef. Javier.”

“Oh, does he stay in the house?”

“No, he stays in one of the rooms in the bungalow at the back.”

“And he’s going to be well aware of the arrangement, right?” I ask.

“Aware? No. He won’t.”

“Which means?” I raise a brow at him as my question sinks in. A knock comes from the door just as he’s about to say something else, and for the first time in a while Chase looks confused.

“He goes to the bungalow when he’s done for the day. He rarely comes upstairs unless it’s urgent. So, I’d say this may work with him around, or…”

“You should open the door, though,” I say, and he runs his hand through his hair—most likely thinking of what to say to the chef about my presence, and why I’ll be staying in his house for God knows how long we’ll play husband and wife.

Chase must have thought this would be much easier than he imagined. Opening the door, he welcomes a middle-aged man who is wearing a wide grin and carrying bags of groceries.

“Good morning, Commander.”

“Good morning, Javier. It’s Lieutenant Commander to you, Javier,” he replies jokingly, shutting the door.

“Well, Commander’s close by, right? Lieutenant commander and commander, same thing. Don’t you agree?” Javier adds, winking.

“Well, who am I to disagree with the great Chef Javier? If you say it’s Commander, then Commander it is.”

“Exactly! Feels good to be back.” He bellows with a beaming face, eager to share his adventure with Chase who looks just as happy to see him.

“My kids say, papa make us this, make us that dish. They just want me to cook when all I wanted was a short break but there’s hardly any break when you have children around. So, I had to cook and Sierra—my wife—even she wanted me to cook, too.” He looks around the house and stops when he notices me on the couch. “Anyways, she sends her regards,” he finishes, my appearance cutting his conversation short.

“So, Javier, speaking of wives, let me introduce you to my wife-to-be. Her name is Nora. Nora Evans.”

“Oh, my. Hello, ma’am. My name is Javier. Javier Rodriguez.”

“Nice to meet you, sir.” I say, mustering the best smile I can offer and wondering what he thinks of Chase’s statement.

“Wife? Wait, sir. Did you say wife-to-be?” He asks, unable to hide his surprise.

I give myself a pat on the back for playing into the character even though I’m finding it difficult to hide my shock. I sort of thought he’d just tell the guy the truth.

“Yes. Javier. You heard right.”

“But that name, Nora Evans. It does ring a bell, no?” He says, and I’m praying he won’t say he saw my name in the news or something. “Or perhaps you’ve mentioned this to me or maybe the name just sounds familiar.” He shrugs. “Oh, pardon my manners. I should drop these bags.” He makes his way to the kitchen but stops short by a few steps.

“Oh, quick question, pardon me, again. When is the wedding?” Chase and I stare at each other for a few seconds then reply at the same time.

“Tomorrow.”

Color drains from Javier’s face, and it’s replaced with a mix of emotions ranging from shock to confusion. He drops the grocery bags. A bag hits his foot, and he cries out in shock.

“Ow! Those onions.” He grumbles, hopping on one foot as he struggles to find his balance before bending to pick up the onions.

He lifts the bags and takes them to the kitchen muttering incoherent words under his breath about how he is going to handle wedding preparations on such short notice, and I refrain from laughing. Who says he was going to make any preparations?

“But why tomorrow?” he asks as Chase joins us in the kitchen, placing the rest of the onions on the kitchen island. “Wait!” He holds up a finger and his eyes furrow as he goes into deep thought before turning to me. “Pardon me, but sir can be quite persuasive. Is he the one asking you to get married so quickly?” He eyes Chase suspiciously and Chase raises a brow in return.

“No. He didn’t. We just want to get married. And it’s a quiet wedding and you won’t have to do anything.” I look at Chase, hoping for some kind of support. This man doesn’t seem to believe us one bit.

“Yes, Javier. It’s a quiet wedding.” Chase adds snatching up one of the apples in the bag and earning a look of disapproval from Javier.

“That’s for apple pie,” Javier says pulling the bag away from him, but Chase shrugs as he rinses the apple and takes a bite before continuing.

“It’s simply due to the nature of our jobs. It’s for safety. And I’m sure you understand. But the wedding has to be done in this manner for our safety, and I’m sure you know what that means.”

“Yes, I see.” Javier sounds unconvinced but he doesn't push further. “I didn’t know she was a SEAL, too. Commander, like you?”

“No. I’m an intelligence analyst.” His brows furrow in confusion as he tries to find a meaning to the words.

“The tech lady. I work with computers and gadgets.”

“Oh, I see, I see. But regardless, since there’s a wedding,” he declares with a thunderous clap, catching us off guard, “we will feast!” Javier proclaims this with a gleeful grin, while Chase lets out an exaggerated groan. “Okay, I’ll make it small.” He turns and starts busying himself with the groceries. Resisting the urge to laugh, I make my way to the living room. Now this is some chef. But did he really believe us or is he just playing along even though he sees through our drama?

“He’s interesting,” I comment, grinning at Chase.

Surprisingly, Chase’s expression softens. “He’s a good man.”

I cock my head. “Sounds like there’s a story there.”

He shrugs. “I met him at a diner when I was in a pretty low spot in my life. After… after a bad mission. We got to talking, and I learned that he was working basically twenty-four seven to take care of his family. So now he works for me for half the hours and triple the pay.”

I smile. Chase is a good man , I think to myself.

“Nora,” Chase calls out as he follows behind me. “I know someone who can help with a wedding dress on such short notice. She has a clothing store and can have someone bring you a wedding dress. She’ll need your basic measurements, so I’ll send you her number.”

“That’s nice. I was wondering where you were planning to get a wedding dress on such short notice.” Chase has thought through most aspects of this plan already, except for the Javier part.

“Yeah, I have my ways.”

I nod. Then, sighing, I add, “I have to call my parents.”

His brows raise. “You’re inviting them?”

I look at him in surprise. “You’re not inviting yours?”

He shrugs. I sigh again. “I just don’t know about mine. They’re close to Ethan’s family. If I want him to believe it…” I shrug.

He nods, sympathetically. “Maybe the wedding photos will be enough? I’ll spare no expense.”

“Yeah. Maybe so!” I nod, feeling a little better. “Anything else?”

“No. Just wait for a message from someone about the wedding gown.”

“Okay. I’ll be in my room then.”

“No.” He calls out again. “I mean. It’s fine, but you’re coming to mine, if you know what I mean.” He points a finger in the direction of the kitchen where Javier seems to have made himself busy with whatever feast he’s planning and realization washes over me. We have to share a room now to avoid any suspicion. That means, I’ll have to move into Chase’s room each time Javier is around. Oh God! This isn’t going to be as easy as I thought.

“Alright. Message understood. I’ll get my things.” Maybe we should just come clean to Javier about the wedding. “Chase, I think you should tell Javier the truth. He'll see through it.”

His eyes consider me, probably taking in how uncomfortable I look. “Hmm... That's true. I'll think of what we can tell him. But let’s take the pictures first. We can tell him later.” He replies.

Relief floods me. “Okay. That’ll be great.” Moments later, I receive a message from an unknown number. The sender introduces herself as Celine, and asks for my measurements. I forward the measurements, and Celine replies saying she’ll bring three wedding gowns for me that should fit.

If this was a real wedding then it would be proper to get fittings, but since it’s fake, this would have to do. Plus, after the amount of fittings I had to do for my last wedding dress, I am not eager to repeat it.

She sends the pictures of the gowns and without giving much thought about it, I tell her they’ll work fine.

Then, unable to stop myself, I text Sarah.

Don’t ask questions, but can you come to a wedding tomorrow?

She texts back instantly.

Girl, I’ve already DONE this.

I snort.

I’ll text you the address. You can bring a plus one. DON’T scream when you see me.

I send her Chase’s address. I know I need to explain myself, but like a good friend, she’s on my side immediately even if it doesn’t make sense to her.

I busy myself with a project from work to distract myself from this drama until it’s finally time to go to sleep.

Tomorrow is my wedding day. Again.