Page 31 of The Backup Groom
Dean looked over. “Wait—your name is Ryan Scott?”
Oh no.
He must have connected the dots and realized that I brought two Ryan Scotts to the coffeehouse in two days. Not good.
Rhubarb Ryan placed his palms together in front of his heart and gave a slight bow. “That’s me, in the flesh. Well, not as much flesh as I prefer.” He winked.
That was my cue to do something before Scotty and Dean asked more questions.
“Okay—let’s order,” I plowed on, grabbing him by the arm and ushering him to the line behind two men who’d just come in.
A few minutes later, we were enjoying our juices. I had my favorite mango-guava juice while Rhubarb Ryan opted for the Galactic Ginger Zinger, which had carrot, lemon, and ginger. Now, I would need to figure out the right time to approach the subject of a marriage of convenience.
“I saw on your website that you’ve lived in so many countries.” I took another sip of my mango-guava juice. “Have you been to Paris or Rome? They’re both on my bucket list. Oh, and London. Can’t wait to visit there.”
“I’m not a fan of big cities and tourist traps,” Rhubarb Ryan said. “I prefer the natural beauty of the world, the wilderness, Mother Nature, Mount Everest, the Serengeti, the Great Barrier Reef. I once lived in the rainforests of Costa Rica for six months, just me and the monkeys.” He ran his hand along the table. “The texture of this table is exquisite. It’s almost a turn-on, if I’m being honest.”
My mind was still on him living with monkeys. “What did you do for food in Costa Rica? Did you live off the land? I’m guessing there wasn’t a McDonald’s around.”
“Actually, there are twenty McDonald’s restaurants there, at least there were the last time I was there. Lots of Taco Bells, too.” He tugged on his tank top and grimaced like something was irritating him. “Hey, what do you say we go back to my place, get out of these clothes, and have some dessert? Maybe some rhubarb ice cream?”
That escalated quickly.
How did we go from innocent juice to naked ice cream?
I opened my mouth and closed it, not expecting the invitation. I also wasn’t expecting Maggoty Mercedes to make an encore performance, pushing her way past two customers at the door and stomping in my direction.
“Not again,” I muttered.
“Oh . . . you already had naked dessert today?” Rhubarb Ryan asked.
Maggoty Mercedes stopped in front of me. “You aresoridiculous. It’s not even funny.” She shook her head and glared at Rhubarb Ryan. “Don’t tell me, your name is Ryan Scott.”
“That’s me. Have you taken my yoga class?”
“No, but I’m guessing Amber has,” she said, pointing to me.
Rhubarb Ryan arched a brow. “Hey, you’re right. Do you two know each other?”
Maggoty Mercedes. “The only thing I know is that she’s pregnant.”
“What?” I jerked back in my seat. “I am not. Don’t listen to—”
“Congratulations for falling into her trap, Ryan. She’s looking for a baby daddy. Are you ready to settle down? Raise a family and a kid that’s not yours? Have you changed diapers before?”
I shook my head in disgust. “It’s amazing how low you would stoop to—”
“You know what?” Rhubarb Ryan jumped to his feet and pointed to the door. “I’m almost positive I left my stove on. I need to run.” He slammed the rest of his drink. “Thanks for the juice.” Once outside, he broke into a sprint and disappeared down the street.
I was fuming, but didn’t want to make a scene in a public place.
With both hands on the table, Maggoty Mercedes leaned closer. “I told you I was watching you. Don’t be a fool. Take the deal, and we can end this right now. We’ll go our separate ways and never have to see each other again.”
Part of me wanted to take the deal.
The thought of getting rid of her and eliminating the anxiety and stress she was causing me was very appealing. She was a huge thorn in my side and the worst type of family member anyone could ever want or wish for. Nothing would be better than to have her out of my life for good. There was also the plus of not having to marry anyone for money.
But there was the other side of the coin as well, the part of me who believed that we shouldn’t let bullies win. That we had to fight for what we believed in, to fight for what was right. What gave Maggoty Mercedes the right to push me around and try to stake a claim on something that wasn’t rightfully hers? Uncle Garfunkel laid out the rules of his will, not me. It would be wrong for any of us to change them. So, even though the easiest thing in the world would be for me to accept her deal and move on with my life, I just couldn’t bring myself to do it.
