Page 7 of Faking I Do
I released the bag into his hands, glancing at the collection of empty beer cans on the side table as I did. “You get anything done today?”
The paper crinkled as he pulled a double-decker Bonanza Burger from the sack. “Sure. I went into the office, chatted up the city council, and made plans to reopen the warehouse that just closed down.”
I sighed. The “poor, pitiful me” routine my dad had been pulling for the past few months was getting old. It was his own fault he ended up on house arrest. Why did he make it out toseem like he was the victim? “Very funny. I thought you were going to talk to that college buddy of yours about doing some consulting.”
“They don’t need me anymore. Although they did manage to hire someone else to help them with their new campaign.” He nibbled on a fry.
“I’m sure something else will turn up.” I put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. The longer he sat here, unengaged and uninterested in anything going on around him, the longer I’d have to stay. I’d given up my place in town when he got sentenced to house arrest. At the time it made sense. Paying for rent on my small studio apartment seemed like an unnecessary expense when I’d be spending so much time at Dad’s place. Besides, now I could use what I’d pay in rent to afford my assistant.
“Saw you on the news this afternoon.” Dad spread the paper wrapper out on his stomach. “You handled that reporter from Houston pretty well, just like a pro.”
“Until Bodie butted in.” I scowled. “He thinks I need his help. Which I don’t.”
Dad laughed, making his burger bounce up and down on his belly. “Bodie has a mind of his own, sweetheart.”
“You know, maybe you can help me. I need to figure out what to do now that the Phillips family is closing down their business.” My dad had years of experience dealing with the inner workings of Idont. He might not be able to leave the house, but he could still help me navigate the muddy water I’d suddenly found myself drowning in.
“I was pretty surprised when I heard.” He took a bite of burger. I waited while he swallowed. “Seems to me like they’d want to stay on the good side of the town.”
“Why’s that?” I sat down on the edge of the couch and eased my shoes off. My feet ached from the short stint in heelsthis morning. I either needed to practice wearing them more or better yet, give them up for good.
“The town owns the land out there. Phillips defaulted on the payments about eighteen months ago when I was still in office. Their business isn’t doing as well as they’d like people to think.”
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Means whatever they left on the town’s property ought to belong to the town. Have you looked inside?” He reached for one of the beer cans on the table next to him, then drained it. “Hey, sweetheart, can you bring me another beer?”
I got up, padding to the kitchen on bare feet. While I filled a glass with water from the dispenser on the fridge, I thought about what Dad said. If the town owned the warehouse and everything in it, maybe they could sell the inventory to raise some money. But that still didn’t fix the fact that dozens of people were without jobs.
“What’s that?” Dad asked as I set the water next to him and gathered the beer cans.
“Why don’t you try to stay hydrated?” I turned, taking the cans to the recycle bin. Seeing my dad fall into the deep, dark hole he preferred to reside in had bothered me most of my life. Once upon a time he’d been full of smiles and laughs. Back when Mom was still alive. I dumped the beer cans, grateful she wasn’t around to see how Dad was doing. Mom had been the love of his life, and when she passed away it was like a light inside of him had shut off. No matter what I did, I couldn’t seem to get it lit again.
“I’m going to take a bath.” The need to wash away the failure of the day overwhelmed me. A nice warm bath and a glass of wine would do the trick.
“Thanks for dinner, honey.”
“You’re welcome.” I shuffled back to my bedroom to change into my robe before pouring myself a glass of wine from the boxI kept hidden in my closet. It wouldn’t do any good for Dad to find my stash. He’d blow through that, too. If I could only get the local beer barn to stop delivering to him, maybe then he’d stop wallowing in self-pity.
Ten minutes later, I settled into the tub, my glass of wine perched on the edge. Relaxing into the lavender-scented bubbles, I let out a deep breath. Being mayor wasn’t what I expected. Granted, I was only two days in, but it was supposed to be somewhat of an honorary title. It wasn’t even a part-time job. And now I had a whole town to save and a rekindled attraction to Bodie that needed to be stifled.
I opened my eyes, looking for something to distract me. A rack of magazines sat a few feet away. I hadn’t flipped through those in years. Afraid I might come across one of Luke’s rags full of half-naked women, I settled on the one at the front. A photo of a summer bride decorated the front cover.
I sighed as I gazed at the bouquets of lilacs and white roses. I’d dreamed of having a wedding like that one day. Back when I was a kid I’d even made lists of what we’d eat, what kind of flowers we’d have, and what kind of gifts I’d get for my twelve bridesmaids. A soft laugh escaped my lips. Twelve bridesmaids. I’d had big dreams back then. If I got married tomorrow, there was only one person I was close enough with to invite to be in my wedding—my best friend, Zina.
It hadn’t been Zina’s choice to come back to Idont either, but at least we still had each other. Although, as the director of For Pitties’ Sake, the local pit bull rescue, Zina had even less free time than I did.
My mind wandered farther down the path of my childhood dreams. The groom. My cheeks tingled. I’d almost forgotten. Every time I’d imagined getting married, I’d pretended the groom was Bodie. I sat up in the tub, causing water to splash over the side. Of course I’d pictured him. He was the only boybesides my brother who’d ever bothered to say anything nice to me. I shrugged away the thought that it might mean something and flipped the magazine open.
I skimmed the first few pages, passing over ads for cosmetics, promises of how I could make any man fall in love with me, and a quiz that would tell me which fairy-tale hero would be my Mr. Right. The next page flipped open, showcasing the same bride from the front cover. It was an article about how to plan the most romantic wedding. I vaguely remembered reading the article years ago. I’d even circled some of the tips with my favorite purple pen.
As I devoured the single-spaced pages, including a whole section of wedding themes, an idea started to form. Idont needed a new source of income. People needed jobs. I needed a way to restore my family’s name. What if I could take care of all three things at once?
CHAPTER 5
BODIE
I sat at my desk,draining my coffee mug. I’d been working up the nerve to head over to my folks’ place and start asking questions. I could guess all I wanted, but the only way to find out for sure why my family decided to close the warehouse was to come right out and ask. As I got up from my chair, determined to go through with my plan, I noticed her in the doorway.
