Chapter 14 Two Birds, One Stone #2
Atlas had the good sense to look chastised. Meanwhile, anxiety surged to life in my stomach. Was I really jeopardising Tickle? I hadn’t even considered that. I’d been so fixated on finding a way to make our sham marriage work for Irina.
“Henry’s too smart to get caught,” Atlas protested, turning to me. “You are too smart to get caught, aren’t you, Chewy?”
I nodded, as Lucian added, “He’s too smart, but you’re not. So, keep your lips zipped, or you’re going to be the weak link that ruins this for everyone.”
“Right. Okay. Yeah, I can see what you’re saying.” Atlas turned to me. “Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, you know I’m delighted that you wanna go wet your dick in some pussy that isn’t Cadence’s, but this is a bit extreme.”
My cheeks flamed. “I’m not … I just want to help her, and this is the most expedient way to do it. It’s purely for show.”
Atlas smirked knowingly. “Sure it is. I’d be willing to bet my entire fortune that once you’ve tied the knot with your little Russian Bride, it’ll only be a matter of time before you’re hitting that.”
“Leave him the fuck alone,” Lucian warned. “Go sit in your office, and I’ll meet you there in five. I wasn’t lying about needing to go over your security detail.”
Atlas rolled his eyes as he headed for the door.
“She’s Romanian,” I muttered mutinously before he was out of earshot.
“Keep telling yourself this is just for show, Chewy. I think you’ve got it bad for this one.” Atlas slapped the door frame, chuckling. “Henry marrying a porn star was not on my bingo card this year.”
Lucian blew out a long, slow breath. “Are you out of your mind, Bax?”
“Quite possibly. But I’m not changing my mind. Now, go and have whatever conversation you need to with Atlas.”
“Have you forgotten that she broke into your bedroom just over a week ago and that we have no idea why?”
“We do have an idea. It’s exactly what she said—she needed somewhere to remove an uncomfortable item of clothing. That’s all.”
“And you believe her?” he barked.
“I do. I also believe that she’s trying to escape a bad situation with her family back home, and if I can help her with that, I will.”
“You’re interested in her.”
Face burning, I sat at my desk, avoiding any eye contact. “I know enough about her to feel comfortable trusting her. Don’t worry, I’ll have a prenup drawn up.”
“Jesus, Bax, that’s not what I’m concerned about! Well, not entirely, anyway.” Lucian sighed. “I just worry that you’ll get yourself in too deep with her, and you’ll come out the other side of this a broken man.”
“And I would like to think that of everyone who knows about this, you are the one person who would trust my judgement enough to know that I can make this decision. Now, go reprimand Atlas some more. We’ll talk tonight.”
The room was silent for a long moment, and then his heavy footsteps retreated. I didn’t think that was the end of it, but hopefully I’d given him something to think about.
Pulling up the links Liv had sent me, I perused the application information.
We needed a marriage certificate number to be able to apply for the partner visa.
I grabbed some gum, chewing vigorously to try and assuage the anxiety churning in my gut.
There were so many moving parts to this process, and I couldn’t control all of them.
Priorities, Baxter. Handle the marriage certificate first, then worry about the rest.
I dug deeper into the hidden workings of the site.
Government websites were notoriously terrible for security, and in a matter of minutes, I was inside their system.
Now all I had to do was fill in the form and lodge that data showing an appropriate application date, and when we complained that our form had gone missing, it would suddenly appear in their archives.
If I could convince them that the delay in getting our marriage certificate was the reason we had missed the cut off for the visa application, that might be enough to get us to that next step. But now that the application was in, we needed to get to the actual marriage.
And I needed to convince a celebrant to join our little scheme.
I sat opposite River Riley and explained the situation to him. I may have exaggerated a romantic connection between Irina and me—I needed him to buy into us as a couple in love who just wanted to stay together and were just a little disorganised with our timing.
“So, you see, we need to fudge things, just a little, so that our marriage is dated a month ago—before Irina’s visa expired. All I need you to do is sign your name on the dotted line, I’ll do the rest. It would mean so much to me … and to my fiancée.”
My stomach swirled with a maelstrom of emotions saying that out loud.
River leaned back in his chair, scratching his head. “Bloody oath, that’s quite a story! Look, I have to admit, it does sound more than a little dodgy.”
My heart stopped.
“But I have a proposal to put to you too. Perhaps we can scratch each other’s backs, and everyone comes out a winner!
” He beamed at me, and my heart juddered back into a frantic rhythm, even as my mind conjured up an absurd image of River and me hugging, dragging our nails down each other’s backs. I shook the silly picture away.
“What’s your proposal?” I asked, sliding my shaking hands to my knees and squeezing. I wished I had my vape with me—today was much too overwhelming already—but it was back in my drawer on the Girl on Fire.
“I have a bit of a slide show presentation, if that’s okay with you?” River said, pulling a laptop from his bag and setting it on the desk. Drone footage of what looked like an abandoned hotel appeared on the screen.
“This is Staghorn Island. Until recently, it was a bustling, if somewhat-run-down, resort island in the Whitsundays, named for the abundance of Staghorn corals in the reef just off the beach.”
Footage of the reef appeared on the screen, vibrant and full of life.
“When Covid hit, and the tourists dried up, the owners couldn’t recover. The resort went out of business and the island was abandoned. It’s been up for sale for eighteen months now, with no one prepared to take on the mammoth task of revitalising the resort.”
The drone zoomed over an emerald-green forest. “Staghorn is also home to some truly unique flora and fauna, found on only a handful of Whitsunday islands.”
My eyes lifted to River. “And you’re showing me this because …?”
River’s eyes met mine, but I couldn’t hold the intense focus in them.
I glanced back to the screen as the drone returned to the dilapidated remains of the resort.
“Because the price has just been dropped, again, and suddenly a Casino in Vegas—The Bacchanal—is showing interest in developing the entire island into a Greek-themed extravaganza, complete with a resort and casino, a theme park, its own airport and the largest shopping mall in the southern hemisphere.
My lip curled in disgust. “That’s horrendous!”
River leaned forwards, hands clasped in front of him on the table. “My thoughts exactly. Unfortunately, the owners are desperate to sell, to pay off their remaining debts, and the government is seeing dollar signs at the thought of all the pokie tax.”
The mention of pokies sent a sickening lurch through my stomach. I shook my head, unable to form words at the thought of all this beautiful wilderness being cleared for greed and exploitation.
“But,” River continued, his voice trembling slightly.
“I convinced the owners to give me a month to find a more suitable buyer for the island. Someone who has the capital, and the wherewithal, to create something that not only respects and harmonises with the fragile ecosystems of the island, but allows tourists to enjoy nature, to appreciate something that should be preserved for generations to come.”
The screen changed again, filled with computer-generated images of small huts nestled between beach and forest, of a beautiful pool surrounded by native palms and ferns.
“I think you’re that man, Henry. I know how much weight you put into creating a carbon-neutral footprint for your business. I know that your yacht is state of the art in its green features. And I know that you have the funds available to save this island from greedy developers.”
I shut my eyes, thinking furiously. “So, you want me to buy this island, and restore the resort that was there before?”
River shook his head. “That resort was dated and disharmonious. What we would do would be to remake the island into a true ecotourism destination. Where people could unplug, unwind and get back to nature. A resort that would be able to function completely off-grid, if necessary, and be a blueprint for other developments around the world.”
“This is a massive undertaking. It is truly a noble cause, but I’m not sure I’m the man for the job.”
“I would volunteer my services to run the project,” River blurted, straightening in his chair.
“I’d do the whole thing myself, if I had the capital to make it happen.
I’ve been raised my whole life on an eco resort, and I’d love to put my name to something else that will benefit future generations. ”
“And is your assistance with the marriage license contingent upon me agreeing to this?” I asked sharply. “Because I’d hate to feel like I was being blackmailed by someone who wanted me to go into business with him.”
River shook his head vehemently. “Mate, I’m happy to help you out despite some misgivings about the little workaround you’re planning …
all I ask is that you come up with me over Easter weekend to Staghorn.
Have a look at it, see for yourself what it could be.
Please consider this. I promise it will make money in the medium term.
It just needs some TLC, and it needs someone who cares about preserving the habitat too. ”
And suddenly, things slid into place in my mind. A remote island, a wedding celebrant on hand. The Easter weekend, which I had promised Irina would be doable for completing this step towards her permanent residency.
“I think we have a two birds, one stone scenario,” I said, reaching my hand across the table for River to shake. “I’ll come up to Staghorn this weekend. If I can bring my fiancée too … and if you agree to marry us while we’re on the island.”
River’s eyes lit up. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”