Page 14 of A Chance for Us
We turn into the drive and pass the sign for the Fire Resort.
Devney tilts her head. “I thought it was FireflyResort.”
“Maybe the rest will be going up later?” I hedge my bet.
“Later? Why would it go up after they open? They are open, right?”
“Umm, not really. He booked the wedding as a favor to me. The resort doesn’t open for a few more weeks. I guess we’re a test run.”
“God, the hits keep coming.” Devney laughs in earnest now.
“You’re who told me he was opening this place and I should call him about a venue,” I remind her.
Devney raises one brow. “You cannot give me credit for this insanity. This is all on you.”
“Heard.” It changes nothing.
“You do remember I dated him, right?”
“Yes, but I’m not asking him to really marry me.”
Her brows raise before she huffs. “I’m not saying that. I’m saying that Oliver might be a good guy, but he isn’t going to agree to this. I just don’t want you to get your hopes up and end up hurt when he says no.”
“I can’t be any more hurt than I am now. I remember him being great and always rescuing girls who needed it,” I reply.
“True, but . . . this is just . . .”
“Crazy. Yes, I know.”
“He’ll never do it. He’s not good at lying and none of this makes sense anyway. How are you going to explain this to the people who have met the original Oliver?”
The only people I invited who know the original Oliver are my bosses, and that’s an easy fix. There’s no risk of anyone finding out unless someone opens their mouth. We will make our plan and stick to it and everything will be okay.
It can all work out perfectly, providing I can appeal to Oliver Parkerson’s knight-in-shining-armor side.
“It’ll be easy. His name is Oliver. Neither he nor my ex has ever met my family. So, all he’ll have to do is pretend to be in love with me, and we’ll fake the entire thing.”
Devney laughs once. “And what? You pretend to marry him and then tell everyone it was a lie?”
“I’ll worry about that later.” I need a bit of time to work that part out.
She snorts. “Sure. Don’t you think that’ll upset your dad more if he finds out the wedding was a big sham instead of just telling him that the real Oliver called it off?” she counters. “You aren’t thinking right. What is your plan? You just walk up to him and say, ‘Hey, Oliver, it’s been about ten years, but I need you to fake marry me?’”
“Do you have a better plan?”
Devney scratches the back of her head. “You turn around, pick up your morals you left on the road somewhere, and we tell your dad when he gets here.”
“That’s plan B.”
She groans. “Of course not. Look, I haven’t seen Oliver in years. I have no idea if he’s dating someone or married himself. You’re assuming a lot of things here, so just . . . prepare yourself in case this doesn’t work out. Okay?”
We pull up to a beautiful building. It has a rustic, yet elegant style that suggests this building has always been here even though it’s clearly new. It has oak-color siding with a mahogany-colored roof. The porch wraps around the entire thing, and the sunlight reflecting off the lake makes it look majestical.
I exit the car and head toward the three people standing outside the main entrance. One man draws my undivided attention.
Oliver Parkerson.
He was always handsome with dark brown hair, scruff on his face, and toned muscles, but now he’s freaking hot. Now he’s grown into every feature, filled out in every spot that a man should be, and I want to run to him and kiss him.
