By the look of it, they started drinking without me too. And they definitely have that let’s dish look about them. I wonder if there’s any chance that this doesn’t have something to do with my being fake engaged to a Covington.
“What?” I ask as I sit down and stretch out in my chair, soaking up the sun. I’m still proud of myself for my successful corporate espionage efforts and also surprised by Chase’s actions confronting Brad. Honestly, it’s a lot to unpack.
Fi raises an eyebrow. “The shiny black bikini? That can only mean one thing. You’re mad and trying to hurt the man, aren’t you?”
“Or you’re trying to make him jealous,” Angie chimes in. “That bathing suit is nothing short of a superpower. You’re fake engaged to a freaking Covington, who the hell could you possibly be trying to make jealous?”
I look down at the tank top over my bikini. My disguises may have worked on Chase’s clueless billionaire family, but it clearly isn’t going to work on my friends. They know me and my wardrobe choices too well. It hasn’t occurred to me before now, but maybe in a weird way, I am trying to make Chase jealous.
There are totally moments that I don’t want to let him go. Is it crazy for me to wonder what it would be like to be engaged to him for real?
“For your information,” I announce, “this bathing suit was absolutely integral for operation spy on Chase’s brother during the important and secret board meeting.
“Hey, what’s wrong with a little bit of fun corporate espionage in the sun? My spy mission was a success, by the way, thanks for asking. I finally got to use that little spy kit your ex got me for Christmas that year, Fi. Works like a charm.”
Fi takes a sip of her drink. “Well, congratulations. I always knew you’d make a good spy. Wait a minute, wasn’t today supposed to be house hunting?”
“Yep, house hunting this morning and then corporate espionage before lunch. It’s been a big day already. Check your phones, I just sent you guys a few pics.”
Angie looks practically ready to burst. “So, tell us! How did it go looking at multimillion-dollar beach front property? I’m so jealous.”
“Well, we drove around all morning. Chase wasn’t super impressed with any of the estates. The last place we visited was an adorable ocean front cottage. I loved it. Chase might be considering it anyway, I’m not really sure.”
“I think he sees something here he likes,” Fi says, winking at me.
Suddenly I wish that were true. “Oh, believe me, Fi, he’s still a billionaire tourist,” I remind her. “He’s still leaving on a private jet tomorrow, remember? I have to admit, he is a marked improvement over the last guy, though.”
Since I’m still trying to unpack what just happened on my walk to the Tiki, I decide to run the situation by my friends to see what they think.
“Holy shit,” Angie says, watching my expression and elbowing Fi, “there’s more going on with you than just the Covington, the beachfront mansions, and the corporate espionage?”
I smile sheepishly. The way she says it makes me feel like a Kardashian. But it’s true, there’s a mind bogglingly crazy amount of drama that I’m steeped in right now. And it’s funny, because just a couple of days ago, Fi and Angie were saying they were missing my brand of drama.
“Well, I have you two to thank for all of this,” I say, pointing an accusing finger.
“What?” They both ask, jinxing each other and then arguing about who owes who a Mai Tai. Hey, we have our own rules for this sort of thing.
I smirk at both of them. “Wasn’t it just Thursday that you were both complaining that I wasn’t bringing any drama to the table? Well, it’s true. I’ve got more.”
Fi gasps and Angie squeals with excitement and there’s not a single hint of sarcasm. I love my friends, they are the best.
I lean forward to huddle with them because right now we are getting more than our share of attention from the paparazzi. Somehow, they haven’t caught on to the fact that I’m the Covington fiancé, but they have figured out that we are smoking hotties over here and way out of their league. That doesn’t keep them from watching us though.
“Okay, are you ready? I ran into Brad. Just five minutes ago, on the walk from the resort to here. That’s why I’m late.”
Angie’s mouth falls open. “Shut the fuck up. Just now? What happened? Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” Fi adds. “All of those exact questions,” she points at me. “And go.”
I shake my head. “Yeah, just now. And get this. He was super pissed I called the cops about the money.”
I caught Angie taking a sip of her drink. She turns and spits it right out into the sand. “Are you serious? What did he expect, a thank you card? You play stupid games, you win stupid prizes. I hope the police lock him up.”
Fi nods vigorously.
“Me too,” I agree. “Brad looks like shit by the way, so there’s that. Anyway, he got hot, threatened me, and knocked my hat off,” I point to the monstrosity on my head, which I now realize I forgot to take off when I got here. What kind of friends let me wear a hat like this? And how the hell are the paparazzi not catching on to me?
Anyway, I can see by their expressions that Fi and Angie are ready to get up and punch Brad themselves, and they’re leaning forward hanging on every word. “Then what happened?” they ask in unison.
“Chase,” I say, swirling my drink around in my hand and acting as nonchalantly as I can. “He ran over and got in between us. Then that asshole, Brad, started spouting off and put a hand on Chase’s chest.”
Fi and Angie scoot even further forward. I can’t blame them, it’s a good story. I crack a
