Fakecation

Chapter Sixteen

Daniel

Out at the pool, Daniel’s phone rang the moment he took off his shirt.

Amelia’s eyes slid to his screen. “Is that . . . Lucinda?”

“Looks like it. I should probably take this, or else she’ll keep trying.” He grabbed the phone and stepped away, ignoring the feeling of Amelia’s eyes following him.

“Why are you calling?” he asked in lieu of a greeting.

“Where are you? You’re not home.”

“Why are you at my apartment?”

“You never responded to the invite to the wedding,” Lucinda said. “And no is not an acceptable answer.”

“That’s the answer you’re getting. No, I will not come. And why are you at my apartment?” he repeated.

“Excuse me, I chose this place. If anything, it should have been mine.”

“You got my dad’s mansions all over the country. Why are you worried about an apartment that you agreed to let me have in our divorce?”

“It’s not like you’re using it. Where are you?”

Daniel rubbed a hand over his face, feeling a tension headache bloom in his temples. This was like the night before the trip when she’d come over unannounced. She was trying to stir up some sort of emotion from him, but he didn’t feel a single thing toward her.

Except annoyance.

“I’m on vacation,” he said.

“What? Since when do you go on vacations?”

“Since my girlfriend invited me on one.”

“Oh, the girlfriend? That’s right. I heard about her. What is she—a rebound? I bet she’s not even prettier than me.”

“Lucinda,” he ground out.

“Come on, you can admit it.”

“The only thing I can admit is that you are a thorn in my side. You divorced me, Lucinda. That means you leave me alone.”

“We’re never done, sweetie. I’ll always have a piece of you.”

“You never had any of me from the start,” he snapped. “You were the worst mistake I ever made. I don’t want you. I don’t care about you. We are done, and I am with a woman who is nothing like you and I love every second of it.”

“Nothing like me? What does that mean?”

“It means she’s not a manipulative bitch like you are. I’m done talking to you. Goodbye.”

He hung up and then turned his phone to silent. This was how all of their arguments used to go. Lucinda would push and push and then get mad if he said what he truly felt.

“Wow,” a voice said. “You said everything I thought about her.”

He turned, eyes wide at the sight of Amelia.

“You weren’t supposed to hear that.”

“Why not? It was kind of awesome.”

“I don’t like being angry.”

“Considering what I’ve heard she’s done, I think she deserved it. Why did she call anyway?”

“To try and force me to go to her wedding to someone else.”

“Manipulative bitch was the correct terminology,” she replied. “And I’m sorry I followed you. I wanted to be here in case it was a bad conversation, or if you decided to take her back.”

“That’s not happening. Ever.”

“I didn’t think so, but sometimes my anxiety tells me wild things. I’m sorry she ambushed you with that.”

“It was hardly the worst thing she’s done.”

“So, she’s engaged already? To who?”

His stomach sank at the question, but soon, she’d know anyway.

“My father.”

Amelia blinked. “I’m sorry. What?”

“She left me for my father.”

“Your—Oh, holy shit. That’s awful.”

“It is, but she wanted a rich husband who dotes on her and my father is that. They’re going to go public with it when we get back.”

“Public with it?”

“He’s famous. Once he tells people, everyone will know.”

“What does he do? Please tell me he doesn’t own our company.”

Daniel shook his head. “God, no. Have you heard of Michael Anderson?”

“The preacher?”

He nodded.

“Him? That’s your dad?”

“Yes.”

Amelia stared at him as if taking in his features to see if he was lying. “I can kind of see it, but also not really. Daniel, that’s horrible.”

“That he’s my father or that my wife left me for him?”

“Both,” she said. “How are you even functioning?”

“Because her leaving was a bit of a blessing. And I also know she doesn’t love him. She wants the money. And to hurt me.”

“Oh, is that all? I’m glad I took her off the approved visitors list at work. Wait, this is why you want to pretend at the office, isn’t it?”

He nodded. “It’s going to be huge news when the story drops. I’m going to look horrible.”

“Hang on, you know it doesn’t make you look bad, right?”

“She left me for my father, Amelia. I don’t see how this doesn’t look bad for me.”

“It looks bad on her.She left you, not for someone that’s her age, has a regular job, and is kind and loving. She left you for someone who is rich.That’s not what normal people do.”

“I know . . . but it’s still embarrassing.”

Amelia’s face turned soft. “I understand that. I would feel that way too. But it’s not your fault.”

“I’m not blameless in all of this either.”

She frowned. “Why not?”

He sighed. “I wasn’t a very good husband. I mean, I tried to love her in the beginning, but she always wanted me working or making money, and then I just started focusing on that and less on her.”

“That doesn’t mean she can cheat on you, though.”

“In my father’s eyes, that’s why it’s okay that she did. And sometimes . . . I believe him. I wasn’t great to her in the end because I just shut down. I barely talked to her and I was never home. So, it almost makes sense why she would want to leave.”

“But why did you shut down?” she asked. “There has to be a reason.”

He took a moment to think about it. “Because she only cared about how she looked to the world. We would go on a hike and none of it would be spent hiking, just posing for the perfect picture. Or when we got our apartment, she wanted it to look perfect, and I never got a say in it. I felt like I was just the person funding the life she wanted. But there was nothing else there.”

“You ran yourself until you shut down. Kind of like I did last night.”

Daniel sighed. “Yeah, that’s exactly what I did.”

“And when that happened to me, you were there for me. But when you did that to her, she left. And that’s wrong. We all get tired. Maybe not as intensely as I did, or as you did, but it should be a two-way street. What did she do for you that helped you?”

“I . . . I can’t think of anything.”

Amelia waved her hand, as if it absolved everything. “You weren’t happy. Why didn’t you leave?”

“I don’t think I knew I had the option. I mean, obviously, I wasn’t happy, but it looked like I was, and I was pretending that I was, so I thought I had no reason to feel like I did and that I was actually happy.”

“I get that, but you definitely did have a reason. I’m sorry that happened.”

He looked down. “I just have to get through this reveal that they’re planning, and then . . . I don’t know. I don’t think I can ever marry someone again if it ends up this way.”

“You know, not everyone is going to be like her,” she said softly. “It’s entirely possible you could find someone else and actually be happy.”

He looked at her. He wasn’t blind to his own feelings. He knew that she could easily be someone he could move on with.

But he doubted she wanted that in return. She’d made it clear that she was happy being alone. She didn’t need a partner, not in the way he was starting to see her.

“Yeah, maybe.”

“Don’t rush it. I mean, I’m going on year five of getting over someone, so take your time.”

Daniel wished she’d never had the ex that turned her away from love. He wished he had met her first.

“Do you want to go to the beach?” he asked. “I don’t think I can take thinking about it too much longer.”

“Sure,” she said, smiling. “I’m always up for a little distraction.”

She led him to the beach where he completely forgot about the phone call as they treaded into the surf.

The waves were taller than usual; they dumped cold water on them from the moment they got to waist level.

“This is freezing!”she yelped.

“I thought you liked to jump right in.”

“Not today I don’t.” She shrieked as another hit her, wetting her entire back. Daniel couldn’t help but laugh as half of her hair got wet.

He had turned his back on the waves—a rookie mistake. A wave crashed over him, soaking him far more than Amelia.

“That’s what you get,” she said, finally dropping her whole body in the water. “It’s rude to laugh at your girlfriend.”

“Not when she’s funny,” he replied. He shook the excess water out of his hair.

“Ooh, this is a good one,” she said, eying a tall wave heading their way. “Think I can ride this all the way back to the shore?”

“You can try.”

She dove into the water, swimming ahead of the wave. He plunged under it, knowing he couldn’t jump. When he resurfaced, Amelia was gone. A few seconds later, she appeared at the shore.

“I swallowed so much sand!” she called. “But that was awesome!”

“Think you can teach me?”

“You have to be ready to be beaten up by a wave,” she said as she slowly made her way back to him. “Can you handle it?”

“I’m willing to try anything once.”

It was not as easy as Amelia had made it look. There was an art to hitting the wave at the perfect moment to be carried to the shore. It took him many attempts, but after a dozen wipeouts, he could finally feel the water surge around him as a wave sent him all the way to the shore.

She wasn’t kidding when she said he needed to prepare to be beaten up. Sand got everywhere, and there was a moment where he didn’t know what direction was up. But then he surfaced, and he could feel the rush of adrenaline.

“We did it!” Amelia cheered. She was on her knees, having landed that way after the ocean spit her out. Her hair was splayed over her face, and she was somehow covered in more sand than him. Despite the back-to-back failures, it was the most fun he’d had in a while.

“It was, though I think I might need some not-salt water. I swallowed more than the recommended amount.”

She slowly stood. “I’ll go with you. I should probably drink some too.”

There was a vendor selling drinks out of a cooler. Daniel paid an exorbitant amount for two bottles of water, but he didn’t regret it. He needed hydration. He drank half of the bottle, and when he was finally done, he looked over and saw she had completely finished hers.

“Good call on the water,” she said, out of breath. “I needed that. I feel like an old beater car with all of its warning lights on.”

“Let me guess, you’re hungry too?”

“How did you know?”

“Because I’m starving.”

“I’ll get us food. And before you offer, you paid an arm and a leg for this water, so I’ll get lunch. There’s a sandwich place not too far from here.”

“Are you—”

“Yes!” She was already grabbing her cover-up. “I’ll be back in a few.”

She was gone before he could ask again. She was fast when she was determined to get something done.

Daniel found a table by the pool deck, content to watch the people walk by.

Families played in the water with smiles on their faces. It was relaxing to slow down and not look at his phone. Maybe he needed to do this more often.

“Daniel? Is that you?”

He looked over and saw that Mandy had walked up. She had a book in hand. “Hi,” he replied. He hadn’t talked to her much, save for their one coffee shop visit at the beginning of the trip, and he knew she hadn’t been feeling well.

“What are you up to down here?”

“Amelia and I were swimming and she just left for lunch.”

“Good. I was hoping you two were having a good time. Mind if I sit for a bit?”

“Go ahead,” he said.

“I’m sorry I haven’t been feeling well. I know it can be frustrating when one person isn’t participating.”

“It’s not frustrating at all. I’d rather you take care of yourself.”

“That’s very sweet of you. Though nothing is physically wrong. It was up here.” She pointed to her mind.

Daniel nodded. “It’s all the same to me.”

Mandy smiled. “Really? That’s good to hear.”

“It’s basic decency. The brain is a part of the human body too.”

“You’d be surprised at how many people disagree,” she replied. “But enough about me. How are you enjoying yourself?”

“It’s been fun. I haven’t been on a vacation in a very long time. And even when I had, I found reasons to work.” He shook his head. “But this time, I’m enjoying myself. Amelia just taught me how to bodysurf. I’ve never been that covered in sand, yet it was the most fun I’ve had in a while.”

“She got someone else to do it with her? That’s fabulous. She loves swimming in the ocean with others, but it’s never been John’s thing. He hates all the sand.”

He gave a little shrug. “I’ll deal with it if I’m having fun.”

“And if you ever . . . you know, want to take Amelia out on a date, there are a few things you can take her to do in Charleston that she would love.”Mandy winked.

It would look bad to say no. That had to be the only reason he leaned forward and said, “Tell me. I’d love to take her out on a date.”

And Mandy did. He committed them all to memory, wondering if he could get away with taking her to them as a friend and nothing more.

But then he wondered if he would be okay with going as her friend and nothing more.

“I’m back!” Amelia announced as Mandy whispered one last option to him. “I didn’t know if you wanted sauce or no sauce or if you wanted chips or fries, so I got both. And two kinds of sandwiches. And more water.”

“I’m sure whatever you’ve picked out for me will be fine,” he said. “I’m not very picky.”

“Okay, good because—” Amelia paused when she finally noticed Mandy. “Mom? Were you there the whole time?”

“I was, but I didn’t want to interrupt. Besides, I got my time to talk to Daniel.” She winked again and stood. “You two enjoy lunch.”

“Why do I feel like she just planned something?” Amelia eyed Mandy as she walked away.

“We really just talked,” he replied. “And she gave me some ideas.”

“Ideas for what?”

“A date. For us.”

“A date?”she asked. “What kind of date?”

“I think that would be breaking the boyfriend code if I told you.”

“The fake boyfriend code says otherwise.”

“But in her eyes, it’s real, and it would be a letdown if I told you ahead of time.”

“You’re good at this,” she said. “So, you’re taking me on a date?”

“If you want. We don’t have plans tonight and . . .” He trailed off, trying to come up with a reason other than he wanted to take her out. “It would look good?”

“It would,” she said, biting her lip. “But still, no one would be around.”

“And we would just be hanging out. Sure, some of the ideas were kind of romantic, but we’re both adults. We can be mature about it.”

“Fine. You’ve convinced me.”

“Should it be this hard for a level-two boyfriend to convince you to go on a date?”

“Careful. Or I’ll demote you.”

“Message received.”

“Though I might feel better after I eat.”