Page 92 of Faking I Do
Moving forward. Is that what we were doing? I didn’t feel like I was moving at all, not forward, backward, or even sideways. If anything, I felt stuck. Like I’d been caught up in a web of some sort and had no idea how to cut myself loose. I pulled into an empty spot at the Burger Bonanza. Lacey let me open her door and even tucked her hand into the crook of my arm as we made our way inside.
Jojo met us at the hostess stand. “Ah, it’s the lovebirds. How many more days until the wedding?”
“Next Saturday,” Lacey said. “You’d better have it on the calendar. You’re doing the cake.”
Jojo grabbed two menus. “Don’t worry about that. I already started on it. I’m thinking about opening up a little business of my own and doing cakes on the side. I figure someone’s going to need to help all those brides we’ll be bringing in.”
“I think that’s a great idea.” Lacey shot me an I-told-you-so grin as she slid into the corner booth.
I took a seat on the vinyl bench and waited for Jojo to drop the menus and move away. “People are opening up businesses? This better work.”
“Stop worrying. Now that we’ve secured the article in the Texas Times there’s nothing standing in our way.” She sidled up next to me. “Why don’t you put your arm around me? Callan Hiller’s keeping an eye on us and I want to give him a good show.”
I obliged, snugging my arm around Lacey’s shoulders and pulling her tight against me. She smelled like summer and sun and something citrusy. It was enough to tighten that vise to the point where it felt like my heart was going to be crushed. I wanted to tell her how I felt, to lay it all out there and see how she’d respond.
Before I could say a word, a clinking noise came from the table behind us. Several other diners lifted their flatware and began to tap their utensils against their water glasses. A chorus of clinks surrounded us.
Lacey turned to face me, her mouth a mere inch or so from mine. “I’ve only ever seen this done at wedding receptions, but I think they want us to kiss.”
I glanced around the cozy interior of the restaurant. Callan stood. “Kiss, kiss, kiss,” he chanted.
I didn’t need further encouragement. I cradled her head in my hands and lowered my mouth to hers. As our lips touched, the vise loosened.
Lacey
I gasped as Bodie deepened the kiss. I felt myself falling, head over heels, my heart so full it nearly burst out of my chest. A round of enthusiastic applause pulled me back to my senses. I broke the kiss, my lungs burning for air.
Bodie opened his eyes and focused on mine. “That ought to keep them satisfied for a while.”
“Mmm-hmm.” I didn’t want to waste any breath on making words. As I gathered my scattered bearings about me, I reminded myself it was just a show. Even though my pulse rocketed, my cheeks tingled, and my toes curled so tight I felt a foot cramp coming on, it was all pretend.
Bodie cleared his throat. “You want a burger basket or should we go all out and get a dinner platter?”
“Oh, I’m not very hungry. I think I’ll just get a salad tonight.”
His brow furrowed. “You sure?”
“Yeah.” My stomach was so tied in knots I couldn’t imagine forcing food into it.
Dinner passed without any other strange requests. Bodie downed his entire burger platter and still managed to finish off my salad. Jojo came by to check on us one more time.
As she approached the table, she pulled her phone out of her apron. “Y’all don’t mind if I snap a picture real quick, do you? Helmut wants me to put it up on our social media. He thinks people will want to eat at the same place BoLa had their last date night before the big day.”
“BoLa?” Bodie asked.
“It’s a mash-up of your names. Bodie plus Lacey equals BoLa, get it? All the celeb couples do it.”
“But we’re not famous,” I protested.
“After that article comes out you will be.” Jojo snapped a few photos. “Thanks. And Helmut says dinner’s on him.”
“You sure about that?” I asked. “I’ve worked here off and on for years and I’ve never heard of him comping someone a meal.”
Jojo shrugged. “I guess there’s a first time for everything.”
Bodie slid a ten under his plate for a tip. “Ready to get going?”
“I sure am.” Maybe Bodie was right. Things might be getting a little out of control. But with the wedding only a week away, our time in the spotlight was almost up. Which reminded me, we still had one big detail to work out. As we neared his truck, I pulled on his hand. “You know, we still haven’t figured out how we’re going to break up.”
