Page 14 of Just My Fake Husband

He’s said it so many times, like a mantra. And prior to Prague, he’d expressed his concerns about me taking over for him without a wife.

Your mother is the tour de force behind Foundations. Not many see it, but it’s true.

And, There’s little a man can accomplish without the influence of a wife.

And, more bluntly,Find someone to marry, Gabriel. It’s past time.

I love my dad. I trust his opinions most of the time. And I’d always shrugged these comments off as something to be done in the distant future. Get married and have a family. Of course I want that. But I haven’t found the one yet and figured I had plenty of time.

I stare through the trees, the edges growing sharp against the darkening sky. My hands go up behind my head, interlocking my fingers. In popular sports lore, this position is called thesurrender cobra. When fans do it near the end of the game, sports newscasters joke that it signals their fear. There’s no more hope, they’re surrendering to the probability that their team is going to lose.

I got nothing. I’m on my knees here. Desperation is clinging to me like wet clothes and I’m shivering from the fear that comes from knowing marriage is, ultimately, the only thing that will convince my dad and probably the board, too, that I’m a settled, reliable, committed man.

There is no one in my life to marry, though. Despite Dad not liking the idea, for now, I’m going to have to prove my worthiness in as many other ways as possible.

My phone rings, and I look down to see that it is River Judkins calling. I hover my thumb to send it straight to voicemail. I cannot deal with her and her ire right now.

But if she’s changed her mind about freelancing for me, I have to take the call.

By the fourth ring, the spark of an idea threatens to buckle my knees.

“Mr. Tate?” She asks after I say hello.

“Hello, River.” As I say her name, I understand something. And it scares me. She and I are going to have to stop being so formal at some point, aren’t we?

“Can I ask you some questions about the job?” she says. “You wouldn’t have to fill out the form if we went over it verbally.” There’s a pause, then she continues, “I mean to say, maybe I can do it, if the pay is what you’ve promised.”

“That’s good news.” Blood throbs through my brain.Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.

“I’m not agreeing to anything yet,” she says. “Just thought I’d get more information. Ask you some more questions about the job.”

I step off the patio and into the mud, still gelatinous from the previous night’s rain. “I think we’re going to need to discuss this in person, River.”

Chapter 5

River

He’s on my doorstep already. I gave him my address and finished the call only fifteen minutes ago. It’s probably a good thing Jana left. I wouldn’t want an audience as I try to squeeze more money out of him.

He’s so tall, lean, and broad-shouldered. He’s got the build of both a track star and an Olympic swimmer. I’m tall myself, and short girls can’t ever understand how nice it is when a man is taller.

It’s heaven, just so you know. And that hair? All golden with a big Superman wave at the top? I mean,come on.

Meanwhile, my hair is in a messy bun. It’s not messy by choice but because I literally couldn’t get the elastic out of my hair due to the rat’s nest at the nape of my neck I discovered earlier.I’m wearing jeans, purple Vans, and a T-shirt that has a screen printing of the whole Sesame Street gang.

Skye has a matching one, except lately she’s been refusing to wear it if I am. Rude.

I usher him into the house, showing him to the small living room—the place where I used to play Nintendo with my friends, where my parents set up the Christmas tree every year, where I’d lounge and readHarry Potteraloud to Skye.

It’s still the same couch, something I despised until my parents died. Now I can’t get rid of it. Ever. It’s brown, sturdy, and not at all comfortable. My parents purchased it from a church yard sale back when I was in middle school, and it was old even then. But since it’s attached to my very identity in some odd way, it’s never going anywhere.

Except a storage unit with the rest of our stuff until I can find a place to live.

Still, I’m embarrassed by it as I ask Gabriel to take a seat. I sit in the glider rocking chair in the corner and pull my mom’s yellow afghan over my legs. I wonder mildly if Skye’s going to make her presence known or if she’s going to come investigate our visitor.

“Thanks for coming over,” I offer. What’s the protocol for this? When I told him I wanted to talk about the job, he said we needed to discuss it in person. He offered to meet me wherever I was, and I agreed without thinking. Because if I thought about it, I’d probably chicken out. It’s humbling asking to revisit the offer I’d refused before.

“I thought it best to get started on this right away.” He’s on the brown couch, casually draping his right arm over the armrest with the nonchalance of a king on a throne.

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