Chapter 6
Creeping, Thinking, and Making Bad Decisions…
Vivian
“Too bad he’s gay,” Paige calls from the en suite, her words garbled by the toothpaste in her mouth.
“I don’t think you’re supposed to say stuff like that,” I say, searching through several men named Dominic James on Instagram.
She spits, rinses, then stands in the doorframe in her nightshirt. “Not for his sake. For yours. He’s hot, and other than not being rich, he’s pretty much perfect.”
We asked several staff members about him, and they all love the guy.
Then we spent an hour chatting with Dominic after his show.
(We watched the show, by the way, and dude can act.
And sing, and dance.) I think about his enormous dark brown eyes and his chiseled jaw.
“He does seem great, doesn’t he? He’s so funny and thoughtful.
Not that I’m looking for Mr. Right, because that’s the last thing on my mind. ”
“Of course, bigger fish and all that,” she says, brushing her red hair. “But if you were looking and he was straight…”
“Exactly.” I don’t have time to think about that at the moment though because I have a huge decision to make, and it has to be made immediately.
I’m supposed to be getting on a plane tomorrow afternoon, but if I decide to go ahead with Dominic, I’m going to postpone my flight and spend a few weeks here so we can learn every little detail about each other for the immigration interview and make loads of videos and pics together for my socials.
Getting back to the matter at hand, I say, “He wasn’t lying about his online presence. ”
She flops onto her bed. “Nothing?”
“Not a thing,” I say, biting my thumb nail.
“Well, that’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”
“Yes, but I’d also like to be able to find something more than what we already heard from his coworkers.
I mean, he told us this whole story about helping to raise his nephew, which makes him sound generous and loving, but what if that’s all made up?
What if I show up at his house tomorrow and he turns out to be some sort of ‘it puts the lotion in the basket’ psycho? ”
Paige snort laughs, then says, “First of all, you’re way smaller than him so there’s no way he could make a suit out of you.” Her smile fades and I wait for her to continue, but she doesn’t.
“And second?”
She narrows her eyes at me. “I was going to say I didn’t get that vibe, but it’s not like I’ve met a serial killer in real life. What do I know about how they act?”
My stomach tightens. “Yeah, look at Ted Bundy. He was charming and handsome.”
“Forget it. This is a terrible plan. I’m not letting you do it.”
I drop my phone on my bed and rub my face with both hands. “Yeah, the whole thing is a bad idea. I should just fly home tomorrow and fess up to Zara and Zaylee.”
Paige nods, then her eyes light up and she snaps her fingers. “I’ve got it! Mac!”
“I’m not following you. You want me to fake marry Mac, the love of your life, who everyone on the planet knows about because of the massive campaign to find you two?”
“No, silly,” she says, grabbing her phone off the night table. “I bet he knows Dominic.”
I glance at the time. “It’s after midnight, do not call him.”
“He won’t mind,” she says.
I open my mouth to protest again but she’s already saying hello to him in a dreamy ‘I miss you and can’t wait to climb into bed with you tomorrow’ sort of way. “No, everything’s fine. We’re having a wonderful time. You sound sleepy. Were you sleeping?”
Pause. “Aww, that’s so sweet. I can’t sleep without you either.”
I happen to know that’s a boldfaced lie based on the amount of snoring coming from her side of the room last night.
“So, listen, Viv and I met someone who might be perfect for her husband project,” Paige says.
She already told him about it this afternoon when she called him to see if he might know anyone who could help me out.
He didn’t. He did have all sorts of practical advice for me, however, about being honest. So basically, he was no help at all.
“Do you know a guy named Dominic James?”
She pauses, then nods at me with a little smile. “Uh-huh … uh-huh… Awww, that’s so sweet.” And now, a pause long enough that I get up and walk into the bathroom to brush my teeth.
While I’m in there, I stare at myself in the mirror for a second, wondering if that woman looking back at me has even a shred of sanity left.
“Habitat? Really? They sound wonderful.”
When I walk out of the bathroom, Paige grins and gives me a thumbs up. “Okay, well, that’s very encouraging. Thanks, babe.” Pause. Little giggle. “Oh, I’ll definitely pay you back.”
Oh, perfect. More sexy talk giggling. Can’t they wait for tomorrow? I suppose not. This must be what it’s like to be madly in love. No thank you. I don’t want anything that will turn me into a serial giggler.
She hangs up after a couple of rounds of ‘I love you more,’ then claps her hands. “Well, Missy! Dominic officially has the Mac seal of approval.”
A wave of relief comes over me. “Really?”
“Yup. He grew up down the street from the James family. I guess his mom and Mac’s mom were good friends, and Dom’s mom helped look after her when she got sick. She always brought food over for them, and after Mac’s mom passed, she helped his grandpa out a lot.”
“Oh wow, so he knows the whole family.”
“Yup, he’s a couple of years older than Dominic and his brother Ben, so they weren’t close friends, but they did play together in the neighborhood.
Dom’s parents are overseas. They volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.
His dad was a contractor so they decided to put those skills to good use and see the world at the same time. ”
I put my hand to my chest. “That’s so sweet.”
“Right?” she says. “Anyway, Mac said the entire family is the salt of the earth and he’d trust them with anything.”
Letting out a happy sigh, I say, “That’s wonderful.”
She smiles at me. “It’s the best news.” She picks up her phone and taps away for a second. “Oh! And we found his mom. Josephine James. Thank you, Facebook.”
I get up and sit on her bed next to her as we scroll through his mom’s pictures. Loads of an adorable little boy with red-rimmed glasses. My heart squeezes when I look at him.
“Oh my God, that’s the cutest child I’ve ever seen,” Paige says.
“Seriously, he should be in every commercial,” I answer, my heart stopping as she scrolls to a photo of the little boy with a man who looks a lot like Dominic, only rugged.
“Well, hello!” Paige says. “That must be Ben.”
I stare at the photo, a tingly feeling coming over me. Trying to sound casual, I say, “Oh, yeah, that makes sense. He looks very dad-like.”
Paige turns to me with a raised eyebrow.
I give her a blank look. “What?”
“He looks very dad-like?”
Is it super warm in here? It feels like it got very warm in this room all of a sudden.
“I mean, the way he’s holding his son in one arm and a plate of burgers in the other.
” I neglect to mention the fact that he’s shirtless in the picture and has a smile (and an upper body) that could give Henry Cavill a run for his money.
“Do you mean ridiculously hot? Because I think you mean ridiculously hot.”
“Is he? I didn’t notice.”
“Liar,” she says, scrolling to another picture of Ben with a sleeping baby on his shoulder.
She lets out a little groan, then says, “I think I just dropped an egg.”
I snort laugh, then shake my head. “Anyway, it doesn’t even matter because I’m going to have to think of him like a brother-in-law.”
“Sort of. I don’t exactly think Dominic would mind if you and Ben had a little side action. Just for funsies.”
“Okay, well, first of all, he’s probably married to this adorable child’s mother.”
“Dominic didn’t mention a mother when he invited you to come live with them,” she says. “Besides, if he does have a wife, why would Ben need his brother to help him raise his son?” Paige gasps. “I wonder if she died.”
We both turn our attention to the screen and scroll through the last several years of Facebook posts—photos and videos of birthday parties and swimming lessons, of playing with Play-Doh and playing soccer, of Christmas celebrations and days at the beach.
We get to a video she posted of Ben and Dominic surprising his son with the most magical playhouse I’ve ever seen.
Paige and I both sit back against the headboard and watch the entire thing.
“Oh my God, this is the sweetest thing ever.” She looks over at me.
“You have to marry this man. Even if it is just to be part of this family.”
An old familiar ache creeps over me at the thought of belonging to people who love each other this much, and I brush the feeling aside. “Yeah, well, don’t believe everything you see on social media. They could have had a big fight as soon as the camera was shut off.”
Bumping me with her shoulder, she says, “Not every family is like that.”
She means not every family is like mine. “Yeah, maybe.”
We keep going until we get to the one announcing her grandson’s arrival.
There are several photos of him with Ben, Dominic, Josephine, and her husband, Roman.
But not one photo of the baby’s mother. Under the pictures, the caption reads: “Best Surprise Ever. Our Ben is a new dad to beautiful Henry John James, born February 15th.”
“Huh, that’s weird, right? Not to have even one picture of him with his mother?” I ask.
“Totally weird. Surely Josephine would have mentioned it if she died.”
“Definitely,” I say, as if I’ve known the woman for years. “She’s brimming with compassion. She’d be heartbroken if her grandson’s mom died suddenly.”
After a few seconds of trying to figure out what happened but coming up blank, I realize we’ve totally gotten off track. I’m supposed to be making the most important decision of my career.
“Well, anyway, clearly Ben doesn’t have a wife,” Paige says. “So, if you want to tap that, you totally could.”
“Oh my God, is that why you’ve been scrolling for the last forty-five minutes? In case I can tap that?”
“Well, that and a natural curiosity, of course,” she answers.
“Okay, look, even if this guy is single, the last thing on my mind is some side action. My career is in serious trouble here. I have to stay focused.”
“Right, of course,” Paige answers, doing her best to look very professional. “Very focused on not noticing this incredible specimen of a man you’re about to be living with.”
Suppressing a grin, I say, “I’ll admit he is quite easy on the eyes.”
We giggle, then I immediately feel annoyed at myself. Giggling already? Upon just seeing photos of a hot guy? This is how it starts. The road to pathetic. “Okay, so I may end up enjoying the view. But I’m not going to touch. No touching.”
“No, none,” she agrees. “Unless … you both want to.”
“Too complicated. Besides, he might be a total jerk.”
Shaking her head, Paige says, “Mac said he’s a good guy.”
“Well, he might just hate me.”
She gives me an incredulous look. “Do you hear yourself? That’s crazy talk.”
“What? Not everyone loves me, you know.”
“Pffft, name one.”
“LornaLuvsLuxury, and now all of her followers.”
“She doesn’t count. She doesn’t even know you.
Besides, LornaLuvsDrama can suck it.” Paige yawns, which turns out to be contagious.
I cover my mouth with my hand for a second, then get up and crawl under the covers of my bed.
“We should get some sleep,” I tell her. “I have a very big day tomorrow of canceling my flight plans and moving in with my future husband.”
Paige grins at me. “You’re going for it?”
“I am. I feel totally numb, but I am definitely doing this.”
“Wow, you’re such a brave woman.”
“You mean such a crazy person.”
“No, I mean brave. And strong. You’re going to make this work and it’ll be wonderful.” Paige sets the phone on its charger and snuggles under her covers.
“I’m completely terrified,” I tell her.
“But you’re doing it anyway, which is what makes you brave.”
We’re both quiet for a minute, then I say, “Paige?”
“Yeah?” she asks, sounding half-asleep already.
“Thank you for today. For helping me.”
“No need to thank me. It was fun.”
“Seriously, thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
She opens her eyes and smiles at me. “Hey, I just realized, I’m going to get to keep you here for a few more weeks.”
I smile back. “Can’t wait.”
She yawns again. “Who knows? Maybe you’ll wind up deciding to stay here forever with your fake husband and his hot brother…”
“As nice as that sounds, I have a life I love and a big, shiny career back in New York that I intend to get back to.”