Page 15 of Curious
For my wedding.
CHAPTER5
Camden
Afew minutes after eleven o’clock, Charlie pulls up in front of the house. I’m waiting on the sidewalk, leaning on my crutches. The day is already hot, and sweat trickles down the back of my neck under my collar. He rolls down the window. “Where are we going?” he asks. “And why are you all dressed up?”
I clear my throat and open the back passenger door to put my crutches in. All I told my brother was that I needed to do a few errands this morning. Since he’s a lawyer, he makes his own schedule, and lucky for me, he didn’t have anything time-sensitive on his calendar today. “Um. A florist, Costco, and the county clerk’s office. I’m wearing a suit because I’m getting married to your receptionist.”
“What the hell?” he yelps as I hop to the front seat and get in. Thankfully, the car is air-conditioned.
I point down the street. “Go that way.”
Charlie gives me a hard look as I buckle up. “Camden. What the actual fuck are you doing today?”
“I’m getting married to Shelby Borchard at one.”
His jaw drops. “There are so many things wrong with that sentence, I don’t even know where to start. For example, I wasn’t aware you two knew each other.”
While it’s the oldest brother’s prerogative to be as aloof and mysterious as possible, I decide to put Charlie out of his misery. “We don’t, really. It’s a long story, but I need health insurance, so he’s going to put me on his plan.”
“Is your ankle that bad?” He peers down to inspect my injury, but it’s wrapped up, and I’m wearing the boot Shelby brought me over my slacks.
I cross my arms. “Yes. It’s fractured in two places.”
Charlie blanches, then shakes his head. “Okay. But marriage? After last year? That’s a little sudden.”
I glare. “This has nothing to do with that.”
“Do you even like him? Are you even bi?”
“Sure, I like him, but no, I’m not. This is just on paper. He needs a place to stay for a while, and I need a doctor.” I sigh and scrub my face. “Actually, I’m panicking because I might need surgery and months of PT, so I need to get going on that as soon as possible.”
“And your only solution was to marry him?”
“No, it isn’t the only solution, but it’s a cheap, fast, and easy one. I can help him out, too.” It sounds flimsy, even to my own ears.
Because getting insurance isn’t the only reason I’m doing this. I can’t explain the protective feelings I have about Shelby. I want him to have a safe place to stay, and I feel like if I marry him, I’ll be able to keep him away from bad relationships for a while, even if he says he doesn’t want to date anyway. I don’t like knowing that his ex hurt him, and if I can keep Shelby close and guard him, I will. Once, you know, my ankle is fixed.
On top of that, I can’t say I ever imagined someone would askmeto marrythem. The time I asked someone … that didn’t end up so well.
When Shelby proposed to me, even though I knew it was for practical reasons, I was flattered.
Charlie is giving me a searching look. Then he puts the car in drive and takes off.
“What?” I ask, defensive.
“I don’t understand what’s going on in that head of yours. You’re the straight sibling. That’s your job.”
“I can still do that and be married to a guy.”
“Tell that to the outside world.”
“The outside world doesn’t matter,” I insist.
Charlie grunts. “I have to say that marrying for health insurance is the least romantic reason I’ve ever heard.”
I shrug. “I’m not romantic.” Notanymore. “And I don’t have a problem with marrying a guy. You should know better than that.”
