Chapter 5
CHAPTER
FIVE
Josie
I felt a bit jumpy the next day, already feeling guilty about essentially breaking the law. On the way to work, I was so lost in my thoughts that I kept bumping into commuters. That earned me several glares. New Yorkers were extra moody in the morning.
Usually, in the hustle and bustle of the crowded streets, I couldn’t hear my own thoughts. But today, not even the symphony of cars honking, and strangers yelling was enough to quiet my mind.
It hadn’t helped that I looked up information on the US Citizenship and Immigration Services as well as Immigration and Customs Enforcement websites whenever I got a chance.
They were on the lookout for sham marriages between US residents and foreigners.
If they suspected anything, they could interrogate us.
I was half expecting that, honestly, considering the timing of it all.
But I hoped we’d only be going through a normal procedure, and not the Stokes interview.
Apparently, the questions were so detailed that even real couples had problems answering them.
During my lunch break, I walked the few blocks from my office to Central Park, sitting on a bench that was hidden from the sun by the thick foliage of a tree. I had to take off my suit jacket; the July heat was suffocating.
As usual, the view calmed me. Something about the lush green lawn and people sitting on it, relaxing, was soothing. I came here from time to time during lunch break. My other lunch distraction was the Met, especially when they brought in new collections.
On Tuesday, I was miffed to find an email from Hunter with an attachment. It was a ticket to a rock-climbing hall that had recently opened in town. I called him immediately.
“What’s with the ticket?”
“You like rock climbing, and this is the best place for it in town. You need to blow off some steam.”
“Hunter, I’m fine.”
“You’re not. You’ve been my friend for fifteen years. Trust me to read you.”
My fingers were a little shaky around the phone. My heart was racing. Could he also tell why I was so nervous? That I wasn’t just afraid we’d be found out, but that the prospect of living with him, kissing him scared me?
“Thank you. I’m going to give it a try, but only if you come with me.”
“Climbing? Hell, no. This is a gift for my fiancée.”
My stomach flipped at the word. Silly stomach.
“No one knows yet, so no need for the ticket.”
“Yes, there is. And this is something you need to get used to.”
“What?”
“Being showered with gifts.”
“Why?”
“You’re doing me a favor. I intend to make everything go as smoothly as possible for you. And I won’t accept a no.”
“You won’t accept it?” I teased.
“No. Just have some fun, Josie. You deserve it.”
I was seeing a whole new side of Hunter. He was right, of course. I did need to blow off some steam. I was working my butt off at the law firm because I was hoping to be promoted to partner by the end of next year. And now with this additional stress, I was not myself.
I went climbing later that afternoon, and it was glorious.
When I arrived home, I picked up my phone, intending to scroll through Instagram, and discovered a message from Hunter.
He was inescapable. He’d always been this way, only now, after the kiss, it all felt different.
My stomach flipped each time he called or texted.
Hunter: Are you free tomorrow in the evening?
Josie: Yes. Why?
Hunter: I was thinking we should pick a ring.
Josie: Already?
Hunter: Amelia’s birthday party is on Saturday, remember? It would be good to have it by then.
Oh… he was right, of course.
Josie: Sure.
Hunter: I’ll be at your place at six o’clock.
I had one night to process it all. One night. Oh heavens. I was a little nervous… but why was I smiling from ear to ear?
Hunter
When I told Josie I’d be at her place, she assumed I was picking her up and we were going to Tiffany. I wanted to make things go as smoothly as possible for her, which was why I had someone from Tiffany come to her place.
On the way, I called Mom. I checked in with her once a week to make sure everything was alright.
“Hi, Mom,” I greeted.
“Hey!”
“Do you have time? I have some news I want to share.”
“Of course.”
“You remember Josie, right?”
“She’s your best friend, Hunter. Of course, I remember her.”
“We’re getting married.”
A short pause followed, and then my eardrums exploded.
“Oh my God! What? When? You didn’t tell me anything. Is she pregnant? Since when have you two been dating? You’ve been lying every time I asked you when you’re planning to settle?”
I chuckled. “Mom, slow down. Breathe.”
“Okay. I’ll breathe. You talk.”
“We’ve known each other forever…”
I went on, telling her a version of what Josie and I had agreed on. Mom would have to travel all the way from London for the wedding.
“Three weeks? This is a shotgun wedding, isn’t it? You don’t have to pretend. I want grandkids anyway.”
Guilt twisted my insides. I was getting her hopes up, and three years down the road, I’d disappoint her.
“It’s not a shotgun wedding, Mom. I promise.”
“Have you told Amelia already?”
“No, you’re the first person I’ve told. We’ll tell everyone on Saturday.”
“Can’t wait to gossip with Amelia about it. Sometimes I think she forgets you’re not her son.”
I laughed, because Mom was spot-on. And Amelia’s second husband, Mick, was the closest I had to a father.
“I’m so happy for you, Hunter. So happy.”
“Thanks, Mom. Are you okay? Need anything?”
“I’m good. I’m about to get into a subway station though, don’t think I’ll have reception anymore. Talk to you later?”
“Sure.”
I’d been taking care of Mom for years. While in college, I worked odd jobs on the side, and fresh out of college, made big bucks working in management consultancy. After a few years, I’d had enough capital to start my own business, and attract further investors.
I sometimes wondered what would have happened if I’d moved back to England.
But I hadn’t wanted to leave the States.
I’d been at a good school and had managed to secure a scholarship, because I had good grades.
My fellow classmates hadn’t let me forget about my new status.
They’d also claimed I’d gotten it because Mom and the principal were friends. They’d nicknamed me “the stray.”
I’d learned to ignore them. I just wanted to graduate, get a scholarship to Columbia University, then buckle down to work. By the time Amelia started teaching at the school, the raucous comments were just background noise.
When Josie arrived three years later, they directed the comments at her, and I hadn’t wanted her to go through the same. I’d only meant to protect her at first, but somehow, she ended up being my friend.
Then again, Josie could be friends with anyone. She’d quickly become close with my cousins. Before I knew it, she was a regular at Amelia’s place.
The realization of it all was hitting me hard; I had some big problems. That I was about to break the law, for one. That I had to lie to everyone I cared about, for the other.
But right now, my biggest problem was that I couldn’t stop wanting Josie. I’d always noticed she was gorgeous, always been attracted to her. But I’d compartmentalized that easily enough. I’d made a clear distinction between Hunter the man and Hunter the friend.
Those walls had completely shattered when I’d kissed her. The way she’d responded… fuck. I almost got hard just thinking about it. She’d opened up without a second’s hesitation. But I knew the moment I’d tasted the cocktail on her lips that the only reason for that had been the alcohol.
I repeated that mantra, but it was no use. The second Josie opened the door, I could practically taste her on my lips. I drank in the curve of her waist, the way her dark hair bounced just above her breasts. It was as if that one kiss had opened the floodgates.
“Hey!”
She smiled brilliantly at me, then looked over her shoulder toward her living room.
“Kendra’s already here. That’s a nice surprise.”
I was very pleased with myself when Kendra greeted me. I’d personally called before and talked to her. I had a little surprise in store for Josie.
The vendor winked at me when Josie wasn’t looking and said, “Shall I begin taking out the selection?”
“Yes,” I said.
“Right away. Congratulations, by the way.”
I laced an arm around Josie’s shoulders, pulling her closer. She smiled shyly. My heartbeat intensified. I couldn’t wait to see her reaction when she saw the selection.
Kendra turned to the metal case next to her, opened it, and pulled out a tray with forty rings.
I studied Josie’s face closely as she perused the rows, and knew the exact moment she found the sapphire, because she didn’t look away from it.
“Shall I take that one out for you?” Kendra asked excitedly. Then, as if deciding there wasn’t any reason to continue keeping the secret, added, “Your fiancé called before and asked if I had it in the store and to include it in the selection. I thought that was so romantic.”
Josie looked up in surprise.
“Kendra, can you excuse us for a moment?” I asked.
“Of course.”
Josie and I went into her small bedroom. Once Kendra was out of earshot, Josie asked, “How did you know about the ring?”
“I asked Tess.”
“That’s sweet,” she murmured.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s just that… I want that ring when I get engaged for real.”
I hadn’t thought about that. And what was it with the knot in my stomach? I nodded tightly.
“Do you think Tess will catch on if we show up with another ring?” she whispered.
“No, I’ll just tell her I messed up and had the wrong ring brought up or something.”
“I’ll just say I changed my mind. Which one do you want to buy?”
I shrugged. “Whichever you want. Doesn’t matter to me. Something you see yourself wearing for some time.” I forced myself to sound detached, like it was all the same to me. When we returned to the living room, Josie glanced at the rings again, and ended up picking one with a round, modest diamond.
Kendra didn’t seem all too surprised that Josie had chosen another ring.
“Don’t sweat it. We women sometimes change our minds,” she said.
I just nodded curtly. What could I say? Josie hadn’t changed her mind. She still wanted the sapphire ring and a future. She just didn’t want that future with me .
I’d known all that, I had no idea why I was feeling so off-kilter. Because I’d wanted to do something nice for her, and it had completely backfired. That was the reason. The only reason.
As Kendra packed up the tray and Josie put the ring on her finger, I wondered if we shouldn’t act more like a couple.
No, this was just fine. We didn’t have to put on a show twenty-four seven. That would get tiring fast. Even real couples weren’t all over each other all the time. Buying the ring was probably one of those moments that did involve emotions though, judging by the disconcerted look Kendra gave us.
But I sensed that Josie needed some space, and I wanted to give it to her.
For the first time, it occurred to me just how much I was asking of her. I’d never given marriage any thought, mostly because I didn’t think anything could last. My own parents’ marriage crumbled when the financial problems started.
But Josie was more optimistic than I was. This was harder for her, going through the motions while possibly comparing it to what she’d imagined.
She was silent after Kendra left. I wanted to leave her with her thoughts but gave up after exactly twelve minutes.
“Let’s call this off. It’s not too late,” I said.
Josie blinked up at me. “What? Why?”
“Because this is obviously going to be much harder than I anticipated. For you, I mean.”
She shook her head. “No, it’s fine. I’ll be fine. Just… I imagined the day I was getting my engagement ring to be different.”
“That’s exactly what I mean.”
“Hunter. You’ve done so much for me. This is the least I can do.”
I stepped closer, tilting her head up.
“Josie. Look at me. I don’t want you to go through with this out of some skewed sense of obligation.”
“Right.”
“I don’t want you to feel like you owe me, because you don’t.”
“That’s a lot of don’ts.”
“There’s a lot more where that came from.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
“I’m discovering a new side to you. Not sure how much I like it.”
“Judging by your shit-eating grin, you love it.”
She tried to rein in her grin—and failed.