CHAPTER 2—Jake

I’m still rooted to the spot until Kyle shakes my shoulders, snapping me out of my daze. “Did you just…” I’m unable to control my thoughts because my nose hurts more than my bruised ego.

“Just let it go,” he says calmly, looking at me like I’m some spoiled child.

I push his hand away. “Easy for you to say because you’re not the one getting punched by a girl in the middle of the street.”

He doesn’t even seem fazed. “Told you we should take the car. You wanted the street experience for yourself”

“And now I’m totally regretting it,” I mutter under my breath. It had seemed nice, walking the streets and casually handing out flyers like I see them do in the movies, but with my half-broken nose… it is the worst thing anyone had to go through.

“Do you want to keep handing them out, or do we go straight to the restaurant?” Kyle asks.

I look down, but there’s only a couple flyers on the floor. The crazy girl must have taken them with her in a haste.

The fuck am I going to do now?

“There’s none left. She took them with her.”

The corner of his lips twitch, and I can tell he is close to losing it. “Let’s just go to the restaurant then and hope someone magically shows up.” His tone is tight, and I can’t even blame him.

“You should have just listened to me and posted an ad on social media,” he adds as he turns and walks away. I follow him immediately. It would be tragic to get lost in the middle of nowhere.

“What if my dad saw? It would definitely get me in more trouble than it’s worth.” I cringe. I had absolutely no way to explain this to him.

“Maybe you should just think about settling down for real.” He takes a quick glance at me as I follow closely behind. “Aren’t you tired of all the girls?”

I laugh, causing many people to turn towards us, but I don’t care. “How can you for one second even think about that?” I slap his shoulder, my hand falling off as he keeps walking. “I would never…ever get tired of all girls. Women were sent to this world to spice it up. Why would I give that up just to satisfy my parents?”

“Still so immature,” he says under his breath, but I can still hear him.

“Hey!” I yell, but he only walks faster. “The real problem is my parents. Why can’t they just give me my inheritance without all these drama? Why do I need to settle down first before I get the money?”

A horn blasts off the distance, muffling my words, but I hear Kyle laugh. “Because, my dear friend, they’re afraid their beloved son will spend all of their riches and hard work on women. It would be heartbreaking for them.”

I scoff. “They’re probably right”

Kyle stops abruptly, making me almost bump into him. “Let’s just focus on getting you a fake wife, okay? You’ll figure the rest from there.”

We don’t speak again after that. I really hope we find someone that can pretend to be my wife for just a couple months until the inheritance is transferred to my name. It’ll be a clean break; I’ll pay her, and she’ll be on her way while I probably spend all the money… on pretty girls.

It’s perfect.

No need for any commitment whatsoever.

When we finally get to the restaurant where I’m holding the interviews, my heart sinks with disappointment. It’s empty, just like Kyle had predicted.

I slip into a seat, unable to look him in the eye. I already know what he is going to say. He already told me my little plan was lame, but there was no harm in trying, right?

He pulls out the seat next to mine. “You should’ve listened when I told you not to rent the entire place out.” He’s holding a bottle of water that I don’t know where he got from. He chugs down the water before I even have a chance to reply to him.

“Someone is going to show up,” I mutter to myself, glancing at the door. “We managed to give a couple people the flyer before the punch girl appeared.”

Kyle just nods. “If you say so. We’ll just wait.”

I glance at my watch. Is anyone really going to come? Maybe my plan was just as stupid as Kyle said, but surely there is a girl somewhere that needs fast money and is willing to just be my wife on paper.

My fingers drum on the table to kill boredom as my thoughts go back to the girl on the street. I touch the side of my nose lightly. How did she learn how to punch like that? Although, it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

She was wearing big basketball shorts and a tank top—definitely tomboy material. Must be where she got that attitude from.

I don’t even realize an hour has passed until Kyle nudges my side. “Let’s get out of here. This isn’t working, and I have somewhere to be.”

With a weary smile, I look at the door. “Five minutes more? I have a feeling someone is on their way.”

He sighs. “No one is crazy enough to take an offer like this.” He waves the flyer in my face. “Anyone who does has no sense of shame or pride.”

I shrug my shoulders. “Say whatever you want. They’re getting tons of money for it.”

He gets up, and I’m about to do the same when the door opens, and a mob of dark brown hair is the first thing I see.

It might work out after all.

It’s not until the person comes completely in that I groan. It’s the punch girl. She walks steadily towards us, glancing around the entire place.

“Where’s everyone?” She stops in front of us with a raised brow.

Kyle regards her with a frown. “What are you here for?”

I laugh. “Obviously, she’s here to apologize to me. Why else would she go through the trouble of finding me?” I nudge Kyle’s arm. “I told you all the girls have the hots for me.”

Her face turns into one of confusion. “What do you mean apologize?” She waves the flyer in her hand that I didn’t see before now. “I’m here for this.”

For a moment, no one speaks. I stare at her, and her angry eyes stare back at me until I ruin the silence with my laughter, unable to keep it in for much longer.

“You mean… you mean…” I can’t speak until I get my laughter under control. “You want to be my wife? Have you lost it?” I break into another round of laughter, stopping only when Kyle elbows me in the ribs.

“Why?” Kyle asks her, and I watch her eyes grow wide before they dim.

“Twenty thousand dollars is no joke” she says quietly, looking down at her shoes.

That’s weird.

“So you’re here to be his wife?” Kyle asks, adjusting his position on the seat with a mean look on his face.

She’s about to answer when I yell, “No!” Yes, I’m desperate but not that desperate. She isn’t my type at all though she’s a beauty in the eyes.

She’s slender, her baggy clothes hiding a figure I wasn’t sure was there, and I certainly don’t want to marry someone that can easily punch me in my pretty face.

“No what?” Kyle asks, annoyed.

“She can’t be my wife.” I roll my eyes. “She’s totally not my type,” I say, adjusting my jacket.

She looks at me briefly before looking down. I’m not sure if those are tears in her eyes, and I don’t ask.

“Be reasonable, Jake. She’s the only option you’ve got. I doubt anyone else is showing up for this,” Kyle says, casting me a side glance. “Be reasonable.”

I cross my arms. “Still, what if she punches me or something again? I like my women soft and curvy and not out here looking like a gangster.”

“Then you should have indicated it in the flyer.” Kyle pinches the bridge of his nose, and I know he is tired of me. “We’ll go ahead with the interview”

He gestures to the girl. “Your name and why you think you should get this job.”

I groan. “We’re finding me a partner. Stop making it look like a job application.” They both ignore me as the girl fiddles with her fingers.

“My name is Olivia, and I’m perfect for the job because you don’t have to worry about me falling in love with him or whatever,” she finishes, her voice growing bolder as she spoke.

I raise an eyebrow at that. “What makes you so confident that you won’t fall in love with me or form any emotional attachment?”

“It’s just impossible to. Besides, I’m not attracted to dickheads like you,” she answers, and I almost bolt up from my seat.

“Did you just call me a dickhead?” I ask. “Who the hell do you think you are?”

Kyle touches my arm lightly.

“You need a wife, and I need that money. We can definitely work something out.” She steps closer to me, “I don’t know why you’re doing this, but something tells me you’re just as desperate as me.” She doesn’t remove her gaze from me. She’s right. I am desperate.

“I just want to know one thing…” I scratch the back of my neck. “Why do you think you’ll never fall in love with me?”

“I’m not attracted to you?”

My fist pounds the table. “And why is that?”

Her mouth twitches. “Does it hurt your pride that someone for the first time does not find you attractive?”

“Just answer the question.”

She looks me dead in the eye. “I’m just not attracted to men.”

“What?”

She sighs. “I’m a lesbian. That is why I can’t ever be attracted to you. It’s the perfect arrangement.”

A part of me is relieved. “That makes more sense on why you can’t see just how handsome I am. Well, you’re hired, but I have a set of rules you must follow.”

She’s about to answer when both our phones go off at the same time. It’s a text from my father to bring my future wife to dinner tomorrow. Good thing I already found someone to fill in.

“Hey, we’ll be going to dinner…” I trail off when her eyes remain glued to her phone. She finally puts it away and looks at me, her expression apologetic.

“I’m sorry I can’t go through with the contract. I need to go” she says, rushing her words. She glances at her phone again.

“I don’t understand…”

She shakes her head. “I’m sorry,” she says, then hurries out the door.