Page 90 of The Accidental Honeymoon

JAY

Rubbing my eyes,I force myself to focus on the printouts that my agent Grady left for me. The stack of sponsorship proposals blurs together. Energy drinks, protein bars, outdoor gear, a line of performance T-shirts; the usual suspects. But there are some new things too. And those things make me pause.

A cookware line. A series of “Dad and Me” adventure books. Alove hotelin Florida. What the hell is that, anyway?? All of them focus on one thing: playing up the angle of my brand-newfamily life.

Ick. I rub my eyes and lean back in my chair to stare at the ceiling.

The love hotel offer is cute, in a nauseating sort of way. “Bring your bride for a romantic weekend!” the brochure gushes. It’s full of pictures of happy couples kissing in hot tubs and canoodling over desserts. It’s very chintzy.

All right, I can totally see Calla and I enjoying the hell out of that place.

It’s two months out, though. Way past the timelineCalla and I agreed on. By then, we’ll have the annulment. And I’ll be... what?

Single again? Back to my old life?

What happens when I tell my followers that it was all a joke? That we were never really married, never really in love? I can only imagine that I’ll lose some followers.

This whole set up was really short-sighted on my part. It would have been better to let sponsors down than to put this kind of pressure on our fledgling relationship.

I close my eyes. Maybe this whole thing was a terrible idea. Maybe I should have just faced the music after Blake left. But then I wouldn’t have met Calla.

A future without her is a prospect too ugly to face.

The sound of Calla’s voice pulls me from my sulk. She’s in the kitchen, on speakerphone. I shuffle to the doorway and lean against the frame to listen.

“I just don’t know if it’s possible,” I hear her say. “That’s really soon. I don’t even have any special cakes made!”

The woman’s voice on the other end is tinny and desperate. “We’re in a bind. The baker we hired flaked, and the wedding isthis afternoon. You’re our last hope.”

I peek around to see Calla chewing her lip. I can almost see the gears in her head turning. “I have a lot on my plate right now…,” she hedges.

“We’ll take whatever you have on hand. Cupcakes, cookies, eclairs, donuts. We’re not picky. Please?”

There’s a pause. I hold my breath. Calla is the most capable person I’ve ever met, but she’s also stretched thin. The last thing she needs is more stress.

“We saw you on Jay Rustin’s Instagram,” the bride adds. “You’re basically famous now!”

Calla crosses her arms, one foot tapping the floor. Shelooks tired.

I can’t help myself, and step all the way in the room to wave at Calla to get her attention. “Go for it!” I mouth, pointing to the phone.

Calla frowns at me and turns away. “Hey, Helen? Let me check some things. I’ll let you know either way by the end of the day.”

The bride sounds like she’s going to cry. “Thank you. We really appreciate it.”

Calla ends the call and turns to me, hands on her hips. “You’re not my boss, you know.”

“I know. But it’s good exposure, right? Plus, you love a challenge.”

She sighs and uncrosses her arms. “I’m not sure I can handle another ‘opportunity’ right now. I’m still catching up from last week.”

I take the phone from her and set it on the counter, then take her hands in mine. “Calla, you’ve got this. They’ll take donuts. You can make donuts in your sleep.”

She softens just a little. “It’s not just the baking, it’s the delivery. The aquarium is all the way across town. I don’t have a van?—”

“But I do. I’ll drive.”

She looks at me as though I’ve spoken in an alien language. “You’ll drive?”

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