Page 8 of A Very Grumpy Firefighter

Soon…

FIVE

Lilou

When I first wake up,I think that me signing myself up for an arranged marriage is all some crazy dream.

Then I check my computer and realize that it was very much real.

And that I’ve been bought.

Holy crap.

I’m getting married.

The email has an attachment that has all of my new husband’s information, apparently, but I can’t bring myself to open it and check. Not just yet.

I stare at the email, at the winning amount, and my mind races. It’s so much money, more than I expected to get. It will be good for my grandpa. I’ll be able to afford his care for a long while and at a great facility.

He’s going to be okay.

I take a deep breath and double-click on the attachment. The first page is a reminder of the rules and information about how and when I’ll be paid.

The second page is the good stuff.

I scan my new husband’s information.

Milo Wright.

I frown as I read the name, wondering if it could possibly be the Milo in town. My Milo.

There’s no way. I would have heard if he was looking for a wife, and he definitely wouldn’t need to pay for one. He could have any girl that he wanted.

I scroll down further, and my heart starts to race as I read his information.

He’s a firefighter.

Just like my Milo.

He was born in Chicago.

Just like Milo.

He lives in Wolf Valley.

“Oh my gosh,” I whisper.

It is my Milo!

I can’t believe it. Why would he buy me? Why was he on an arranged marriage auction site? Why?

I have so many questions, and I can’t seem to wrap my head around the fact that Milo won me and I’m about to be his wife.

I grab my phone and dial Lymric. I need to talk about this with someone, to work through it all. The phone rings and rings, then gets sent to her voicemail, and I sigh and hang up before I can leave a message.

I climb out of bed and head out to my living room. I start to fuss with my plants as I think over everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours. I fill my watering can and smile as I go around the room, picking up a few dead leaves as I water the plants. This has always been my happy spot. I got it from my grandpa. My grandma was really into plants and gardening, and after she passed, my grandpa took it over, and I helped him.

I spent so much time out in flower beds, pulling weeds and watering. He taught me a lot about it, about how to care for different types of plants. It became our thing.

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