Page 42 of Devil in a Tux

On Saturday afternoon,my phone rang, and the name on the screen was the last one I wanted to see today—Dad. Maybe he was confirming that I was available for work Sunday morning at the deli.

“Hi, Daddy.”

“No daughter of mine is dating a fucking McAllister if I have anything to say about it. No fucking way.”

The conversation I dreaded had arrived.

“Daddy, it’s not what it looks like.” I’d always planned to start with that sentence. It was what came next that I hadn’t figured out yet. Funny how my first line of defense was the same as Evan had used after his fountain debacle.

“You’re going to tell me it’s not you in those pictures? And he’s not grabbing you?”

I couldn’t lie to him. “No. It’s me, at least in some of them. But we’re just good friends. That’s all. I fell, and he caught me… a little awkwardly.”

“I know what your generation means byjust friends. You’re doing it on the side, but not shacking up. I won’t have it, I tell you. You have to stop that right now.”

I wanted to admit the truth to him, but that would make me a liar to Evan. Plus, if my dad let the truth out, it would jeopardize the second million for the children. I made up my mind that the children were worth enduring Daddy’s wrath. Maybe at the end of this he’d understand my motivation and forgive me.

“We’re notshacking up, as you put it—not ever. But we are dating casually.”

“And you intend to continue?”

I gulped down my fear. “For now, yes.”

“I don’t care if this is you being rebellious or just plain stupid, but I won’t let you contaminate Rachel with this kind of behavior. You are not welcome at the house anymore, and I don’t want you to have any contact with her.”

“Daddy—” I was talking to a line that had already gone dead.

Contaminate my younger sister?

The consequences of this fake-dating arrangement were worse than I’d feared.

* * *

Evan

Twice today I’d declined calls from Natalia.

She had been a very pleasant distraction both times I’d dated her, and there was no doubt in my mind that for the right amount of money. she’d be happy to play the girlfriend part. But she didn’t fit the take-home-to-mom profile Charlie had mandated.

The call I’d been waiting for finally came late Saturday afternoon.

“I’m impressed,” Charlie said through the line. “You understood what we’re looking for. I like her—especially the full-ride-scholarship angle for both her undergrad and masters. That will play well. It tugs at the desire for upward mobility and opportunities. The loss of her mother in an auto accident and the family’s struggle after a bankruptcy will both generate sympathy. But…”

I waited for a distinct verdict. When it didn’t come, I asked, “But what?”

“I found an old post from her sister that said her family and your family had a falling out.”

“That’s true,” I admitted.

“Can you trust her?”

It was a question I’d already dismissed. “I think so.”

“You think so isn’t good enough. She can blow this whole deal for you by going along for a while and then pulling out and telling the press you planned it for PR purposes. I don’t want you ruining my track record.”

I took in a large breath before answering. “I know. And I’m willing to trust her. I told you, I know Alexa. Your track record won’t be sullied.”

“You knew her as a teenager. The kind of loss she’s been through can change a person.”

---