Page 11 of Fake Dating the SEAL
Everyone nodded and Kenny turned on his heel and marched to the kitchen. At first, he’d offered to fake date Sara just to keep the women from playing Dolly Levy on her, but it struck him that his offer was as good for him as it would be for her. He’d been on his fair share of blind dates thanks to the women in the Everrett family, some worse than others. This arrangement with Sarawas going to ensure they both had a pleasant and unsupervised holiday.
Stepping past the open doors into the kitchen, he resisted the urge to wink at Sara when their eyes met briefly. This was a mission. He had a part to play. And a job to do—convince everyone that he and Sara were infatuated. “Maile, I can’t thank you enough for another perfect evening. As always, the food was amazing, and the company even better.”
His friend’s mother gazed softly at him, her mouth tipped in a sweet smile. “You’re leaving already?”
“Yes, ma’am. Long flight yesterday, and I’m still in the wrong time zone.” Kenny grinned and turned toward Sara. “Sara, can I offer you a ride home?”
Sara looked up from the sink, suds clinging to her forearms. “Thanks, but I’ve got a ride with my parents.”
Before Kenny could respond, Mrs. Alani appeared at his elbow as if summoned by magic. “Oh my,” her voice pitched slightly higher than normal, “I promised to help Maile with…” She paused, her eyes wide open, a look of panicked realization on her face, her gaze darted from Sara to Maile, a silent SOS as she clearly scrambled for something plausible. “With…uh…”
Maile’s eyes went wide for a split second before understanding dawned. “Oh yes, that’s right, you did promise.” She spun to face Sara, practically beaming. “You two run along. No sense making you wait around for your parents.”
Kenny had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. The two women were about as subtle as a freight train, but their enthusiasm was almost endearing.
“Are you sure, Mom?” Amusement danced in Sara’s eyes.
“Absolutely sure.” Mrs. Alani made shooing motions with her hands. “You go on. We’ll be fine here.”
“Well,” Sara shrugged, untied her apron, and hung it on a nearby hook, “if you insist.”
They made their way through the house and out to the front yard, maintaining their composure all the way to Kenny’s rental car. Settling into their seats, Kenny caught sight of the two women peeking from behind the blinds.
“They’re watching,” Sara murmured.
“I see them.” He backed out of the driveway slowly, resisting the urge to wave goodbye to their audience. They maintained their serious expressions until they reached the first stop sign, and then, as if someone had pulled the plug on a helium balloon, they both leaned forward, bursting with laughter.
“Who knew it would be so easy?” Sara gasped between giggles.
“And so much fun.” Kenny shook his head in amazement. “Did you see your mother’s face when she was trying to come up with an excuse?”
“I thought she was going to hyperventilate.” Sara wiped tears from her eyes. “And Maile jumping in to save her was priceless.”
“They’re going to be planning our wedding by morning.”
“Probably our children’s names too.”
Kenny turned onto the main road, still chuckling. To say the evening had taken an unexpected turn was the understatement of the decade. He glanced at the time on the dashboard. It was still early. “I’m not in a hurry to get home.”
“Me either.” The moonlight painted her profile in a soft, silver light.
“There’s a great little place down by the water that serves incredible ice cream. What do you say to our first official fake-date?”
She looked at him, and her smile was real and unguarded. “I’m in.”
Chapter Six
Enjoying a comfortable, easy silence in the car, Sara leaned back in the seat. The stress of the evening, of knowing her mother and Maile were lurking behind every corner like a pair of benevolent but determined spies, had completely evaporated. It was an odd feeling, this sense of freedom, all thanks to a Navy SEAL and a ridiculously brilliant plan.
“I still can’t believe how smoothly that went.” She looked over at Kenny. The streetlights from the main road flashed across his face, illuminating the amused curve of his lips.
“Like a well-executed covert op.” A hint of his military background showed in the simple response. “They never saw it coming.”
Shaking her head, she chuckled. “I’m guessing they’d hoped and planned, but I think they were simply in shock that one of their efforts may have actually worked.”
He glanced over at her, his smile widening. “It helps when your co-conspirator knows how to read the room.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
