Page 36 of Grumpy Boss in Love

The grimace on his face told me that the last thing he wanted to do was ask me this favor. “I need a wife.”

After a beat of silence, I giggled because I did that sometimes when I was nervous or confused. “What?”

“Ruby, I need you to pretend to be engaged to me then marry me this Saturday.”

My mouth dropped open.

“I’ll pay you generously, of course,” he added, as if that was supposed to make his request any less insane.

I think my jaw hit the floor of his fancy car.

13

RUBY

“This would be less awkward if you said something,” Elliot suggested when the silence went on too long.

He was wrong.Nothingcould be said to make this any less weird. I continued to gawk because what was there to say?

“Saysomething, Ruby,” he demanded.

“Fine. Are you having a midlife crisis?” It was either that or he’d lost his mind.

“I’m thirty-four.”

“Are you having anearlymid-life crisis?”

The withering look he gave me would have caused amusement if I wasn’t wallowing in confusion about his strange request and genuinely concerned about his mental health.

“Look, Ruby, I know it sounds a little crazy.”

“It soundsa lotcrazy, Elliot.”

“I can explain…” He looked skyward. “I figure I can trust you with this since you’re no stranger to holding on to my secrets.”

Sometimes I forgot that he hid in plain sight and taught at a university. “Uh-huh.”

“I’m interested in buying property for a project.”

My eyebrows elevated. “Aren’t you going to be more specific?”

His eyes narrowed. “I’m keeping you on a need-to-know basis for now.”

I performed one of my exaggerated eye rolls.

“The owners of the place insist on selling it to a married couple, and I sort of told them I was engaged and getting married this weekend.” His last words dropped to a grumble and his eyes skated away from me.

His revelation brought out my incredulous scoff. “You lied about being engaged? Unbelievable.”

“Not so unbelievable,” he countered. “I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get that property, even fake a marriage.”

I shook my head, half in amusement and half in disbelief.

“I spent all day yesterday contacting college acquaintances and past consorts.”

“Consorts, huh?” I snorted.

Elliot inhaled as if to gather his patience. “The ones who are not married or involved in relationships… I just can’t trust them with this delicate situation, so I have yet to find a suitable fake bride. Then I saw you this morning and thought?—”

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