Chapter 56: Brilliant

“This estate that you have here looks really nice,” Malcolm says thoughtfully. “I think we’ll look for something similar.”

“Yeah, you totally should,” Faustino says. “It’s great to have some space and be around nature.”

“The guys want a really big house that will fit us all,” Malcolm says as he gestures to his five friends.

“You mean like a mansion?” I ask.

“Yeah, like a dragon mansion,” Malcolm chuckles.

“Who’s talking about a dragon mansion?” one of Malcolm’s friends asks and joins in the discussion.

Faustino talks to them a bit longer while I go and find comradery among the women, watching the men play with the fire of the industrial-sized grill.

“Why do men always insist on playing with fire?” groans Nicky, one of Faustino’s sisters-in- law and a regular customer at the restaurant where I work.

“Because, Nicky, men like things that are hot.” The woman next to Nicky, whose name is Julie, wiggles her eyebrows suggestively.

“Of course, ladies. If our men didn’t like hot things, none of us would be here,” giggles the woman to my left, her accent reminiscent of Hispanic descent.

“What do you ladies say we show Amy here how the Vollmer clan parties?” asks Nicky with a laugh. The women grin and grab my hands to haul me up.

“Let’s put on some tunes!” says Julie, spinning in a circle and turning on some music.

We all start dancing, and before I know it, the men are joining in. As I spin in a circle, Faustino approaches with a grin plastered on his face.

“Are you enjoying yourself?” he asks.

Laughing, I nod and pull him close so we can talk and dance. He spins me around, dancing surprisingly well, until we’re both out of breath. He tugs me toward the lawn chairs, and we plop down. Faustino’s brother Emiliano and his mate Ella join us with glasses of freshly-squeezed lemonade, handing each of us a cup. I relax back in the chair and sip my lemonade, content to just enjoy the summer sun while the three of them talk.

“Well, there’s a big charity gala that the council is holding. We’re all expected to attend,” Emiliano tells Faustino, who groans. They must be talking about the annual auction and gala that the council hosts.

“Oh, come on, Faustino. It’ll be fun. Besides, I’m sure Amy would like to go, wouldn’t you, love?” Ella turns to face me.

I shrug. “I wouldn’t mind, but it’s not that big of a deal.” “You should come! It will be fun!” Ella insists.

I look at Faustino and shrug. Once Emiliano and Ella leave, Faustino turns toward me.

“Apparently, I don’t have an option to not attend that Gala. I don’t suppose you’d be interested in being my plus one for that too?” he asks.

I can’t help but smile at him. “I love an excuse to dress up.” He grins at me. “Thanks, Amy. I really owe you.”

His words are kind, but they make me frown. For a moment, I had forgotten that this whole

thing was a ruse.

“Wanna swim?” he asks.

A slow smile stretches my face, and I hop up and tear off my dress, throwing it at Faustino and racing him toward the water. As I splash into the lake, I hear Faustino chuckling behind me, and several more splashes sound. Before long, almost everyone is bobbing in the water.

The day flies by in a flurry of fun as we splash in the water, dance in the sun, and eat by the lake. Before I’m ready, the sun is setting, and Faustino and I are driving back toward my house. Once we get home, he walks me to the door and thanks me for coming.

“Thanks, Faustino, I had fun today.”

“Me too,” he says and gives me a wink that has butterflies invading my stomach. “So, uh, that gala is on Friday, at 6. I’ll pick you up at 5:30, if that works?”

I nod and open the door awkwardly. “Yeah, sure, that works. I’ll see you then!”

I rush into the house, closing the door behind me and leaning against it with my eyes closed.

This whole thing is supposed to be fake, but if he keeps being so … him … then I won’t know how to convince my heart that it’s not real.

I might just be in way over my head.

The following morning, I’m leaning against the kitchen counter with a cup of coffee in hand when Dad comes downstairs and looks around with a frown.

“Something wrong, Dad?”

He glances at me with a startled look before smiling at me. “Just thinking.”

“About what?” I ask him, setting my coffee on the counter while I pour him a cup of his own.

With a sigh, he sits at the table and accepts the proffered cup.

“The annual gala is this week, but I have a business meeting on Friday at the same time.” “Couldn’t you just show up late?”

“Not if I want to keep my seat on the council,” he says with a grimace. “Well, how about sending Bo to the meeting?”

Dad’s grimace turns to a frown of dismay as he shakes his head. “Honestly? It’s an important meeting, and one that I doubt Bo is equipped to handle. It would be better if I could send a

representative to the gala, but I’m not sure I can trust Bo with that either.”

“True, he’s liable to do something to embarrass you,” I say, chewing on my lip in thought. “Faustino has to attend the gala as well. He asked me to go with him.”

Dad’s eyes light up at that, and his face slowly stretches into a grin. “That’s perfect, Ames!” “It is?”

“Yes! You can represent the Burke council seat, and with a Vollmer on your arm, nobody will

question it!”

“They won’t?”

“Of course not! Nobody wants to offend the original Nethunian royal family. They might not have their refuge planet, but they’re still important to the Earth culture of water and fire dragons.”

“Huh, I never thought of it that way.”

Dad chuckles and pats me on the back. “It’s settled, you’ll represent the Burke house. You don’t need to do anything, really, just be seen for a few hours, make some small talk, and bid on a few auction items. I’ll give you the crest, and you can wear it along with the Vollmer crest. I’m sure Emiliano will insist that you wear theirs as well since you’ll be with Faustino. It’s brilliant.”