Page 4 of Marrying Chrissy

Chapter Two

Wyatt waited for Chrissy to hang up her apron, gather her bag, and walk around the counter. Only then did he ask her if she’d like to sit down so they could talk. To his surprise, she shook her head.

“I’m in here all day. There’s only so much coffee smell a girl can take. Let’s walk down to the fountain.” She led the way through the dining area and outside. The heat of the day hadn’t begun to diminish yet, leaving the air feeling thick with humidity.

Wyatt followed, aware of how the ends of her hair bounced around her shoulders as she moved. The sun brought out the stripes of purple, which were more visible now that her hair was a lighter color.

The fountain she spoke of was at the center of the downtown area less than a block from the coffee shop. It was a well-known fixture during town events such as antique car shows, holiday festivals, and even the chili cook-off in the fall.

Right now, most people in the area were cutting through the center on their way to or from somewhere else. Chrissy approached the fountain and sat on the circular brick rim that served as a bench. She looked at Wyatt expectantly.

He’d had everything all planned out when he left work. Now those words tumbled around inside his head like a load of socks in the dryer. He finally sat down beside her and took a deep breath. “Okay, I’m going to try and make a long story short here.”

He paused. “My paternal grandmother just turned ninety, and we’re celebrating with a party this weekend. I’m especially close to her. I have three sisters and no boy cousins. It’s Gran’s dream to see me married so that I can carry on the Tabor name and be happy.” He sighed, wishing it didn’t all sound quite as far-fetched as it did. “Or at least that’s what my parents are constantly telling me. I’m going to be honest and say I think it’s more them than it is her, but once my mom gets something in her heard, there’s no talking her out of it. At this point, I need to take a date to hopefully make my parents happy enough to let the subject drop. Then maybe Gran can actually enjoy her birthday and not have to witness yet another round of family drama.”

Chrissy watched him warily as she ran one hand through the fountain water. The movement caused little ripples to extend from her skin in every direction. “You’re kidding.”

“If someone told me this, I’d feel the same way. But I promise, I’m not joking. Gran’s birthday is four days away, and I need someone to come as my date.”

“So instead of actually finding a girlfriend, you’re just going to pick one out at the coffee shop like you would a bagel?” Her voice rose just slightly as she spoke. She pulled her hand out of the water, wiped it off on her jeans, and then rested it on her lap. Drops of water darkened the bricks and the fabric of her pants. “You realize just how desperate that sounds, right?”

“Of course I do. That’s why it’s important that my family assumes you and I have known each other for a while and that you wanted to go to this party with me.”

The look of disbelief on her face gave way to exasperation. “I’m sorry. I’m not in the habit of blatantly lying to strangers.” She stood up and brushed off the seat of her pants. “Look, I do hope that your grandmother has a wonderful birthday.”

Wyatt leapt to his feet and grabbed her wrist to keep her from walking away. “Contrary to how it might look now, I’m not in the habit of lying, either. This is the lesser of two evils. I care a great deal for Gran, and I’ll do anything to make this celebration a good one for her. If that means making people happy for one night, then it’s worth it. Do you get what I’m saying?” He let go of her wrist, and she took a step backward.

He could tell she was feeling sympathetic toward him and his story. But he could also see that she hadn’t been convinced. He couldn’t blame her. The original plan that he’d considered over and over again back at the club came to mind. Before he could second-guess himself, he blurted out his thoughts. “What if I paid you for your trouble?”

“Excuse me?”

Chrissy’s eyes widened, and this was the first time Wyatt noticed the flecks of gold amid the brown. There was something about her eyes that made him want to keep staring into them. Instead, the frown on her face, coupled with the way she’d dropped her arms and straightened her spine, told him he was losing her attention fast.

Wyatt held up a hand to stop her. “I get that this is a weird and uncomfortable situation. But if you go with me to Gran’s birthday, you’ll be doing me a huge favor. Essentially, you’ll be my birthday gift to her. So if I pay you for your time, I’m really just buying Gran a birthday gift.” He cringed at how cheesy that sounded. “Five hundred bucks for the day.”

If he thought her eyes were big before…

“You’re going to pay me five hundred dollars to have dinner and cake with your family? Who can afford to do that?”

He wasn’t about to tell her that it didn’t even make a dent in his bank account, but that wasn’t going to help him out now. “The party is being hosted at the country club at five on Sunday evening. I doubt it’ll last more than three hours, if that long. There will be steak, chicken, and cake and ice cream for dessert. I’ll pick you up, take you home, and then we can go back to small talk at the coffee shop again. Come on, what do you say?”

~*~

Chrissy truly wanted to laugh at Wyatt, tell him no, and walk away. But five hundred dollars for one evening? That was pretty hard to pass up, especially when it would pay for most of Emma’s medication for the month.

He’d mentioned that having a stranger go with him to the party and lying about knowing each other was the lesser of two evils. Maybe that was the case for her, too. Maybe it was more important to get this extra money to help Emma than it was to tell what would amount to a little lie. Not to mention that, technically, he was the one telling it anyway.

Ugh, she hated that she even had to seriously consider something like this to make extra money. Thinking about Emma going into the job interview this morning was enough to make up Chrissy’s mind.Okay, God. Is it horrible I’m even considering it? Surely You understand why I’m doing this.

She pointed a finger at him. “Five hundred dollars, and I’m out of there by nine no matter what’s going on with the party.”

He seemed surprised, yet hopeful, that she might be agreeing to his crazy scheme. “Absolutely.”

“And you’ll pay me in cash when you pick me up?”

“I’ll pay you half then and half when I drop you off at your house that evening.”

Chrissy would’ve rather had the money all upfront but understood where he was coming from. “Okay, that’s fair.”

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